Dakota Community Church
April 25, 2010
Amos 3
I want to move forward in our study of the book of Amos by looking at a couple of the themes given as reason for the coming judgment upon the people of God.
Today I want to look at the plight of those trapped in poverty; at what God has to say about this situation, and at how these things should speak to us – if at all.
Let’s begin by looking at a few key passages from Amos:
Amos 2:6-7
They sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals.
7 They trample on the heads of the poor as upon the dust of the ground and deny justice to the oppressed.
Amos 3:10-11
"They do not know how to do right," declares the LORD, "who hoard plunder and loot in their fortresses."
11 Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says:
"An enemy will overrun the land; he will pull down your strongholds and plunder your fortresses."
Amos 3:15
I will tear down the winter house along with the summer house; the houses adorned with ivory will be destroyed and the mansions will be demolished," declares the LORD.
Amos 4:1-5
1 Hear this word, you cows of Bashan on Mount Samaria, you women who oppress the poor and crush the needy and say to your husbands, "Bring us some drinks!"
2 The Sovereign LORD has sworn by his holiness:
"The time will surely come when you will be taken away with hooks, the last of you with fishhooks.
3 You will each go straight out through breaks in the wall, and you will be cast out toward Harmon," declares the LORD.
4 "Go to Bethel and sin; go to Gilgal and sin yet more.
Bring your sacrifices every morning, your tithes every three years.
5 Burn leavened bread as a thank offering and brag about your freewill offerings— boast about them, you Israelites, for this is what you love to do," declares the Sovereign LORD.
Amos 5:11
You trample on the poor and force him to give you grain.
Therefore, though you have built stone mansions, you will not live in them; though you have planted lush vineyards, you will not drink their wine.
Amos 5:18-24
Woe to you who long for the day of the LORD! Why do you long for the day of the LORD? That day will be darkness, not light.
19 It will be as though a man fled from a lion only to meet a bear, as though he entered his house and rested his hand on the wall only to have a snake bite him.
20 Will not the day of the LORD be darkness, not light— pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?
21 "I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies.
22 Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them.
23 Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps.
24 But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!
Amos 6:1,4-7
Woe to you who are complacent in Zion… You lie on beds inlaid with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs and fattened calves.
5 You strum away on your harps like David and improvise on musical instruments.
6 You drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest lotions, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph.
7 Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile; your feasting and lounging will end.
The ruin of Joseph is a direct reference to the brothers of Joseph who ate bread while their brother lay in the pit and then sold him into slavery. - Enjoying life while a brother suffers.
Amos 8:1-6
1 This is what the Sovereign LORD showed me: a basket of ripe fruit. 2 "What do you see, Amos?" he asked.
"A basket of ripe fruit," I answered.
Then the LORD said to me, "The time is ripe for my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.
3 "In that day," declares the Sovereign LORD, "the songs in the temple will turn to wailing. [a] Many, many bodies—flung everywhere! Silence!"
4 Hear this, you who trample the needy and do away with the poor of the land, 5 saying,
"When will the New Moon be over that we may sell grain, and the Sabbath be ended that we may market wheat?" — skimping the measure, boosting the price and cheating with dishonest scales, 6 buying the poor with silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, selling even the sweepings with the wheat.
Today is not about feeling guilty about things that are not sin.
We should not feel guilty about being born in North America, about having good parents, quality education and health care or strong economic opportunities.
We should not feel guilty about having made wise choices and good investments.
Acts 17:24-27
24"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. 25And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. 26From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. 27God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.
Today is not about reverting to works righteousness
You cannot give enough to satisfy the requirement of the law. Remember the good Samaritan? This is the standard the law requires for salvation, meeting the full needs of everyone, every stranger on the street in need, picking them up, paying for room and board, medical treatment and picking up any extra they may run up in our absence. You cannot do it – that is why Jesus came and did it for us.
Galatians 2:21
I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!
Today is about understanding the heart of God
We saw the words from Amos.
Luke 12:13-34
13Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me."
14Jesus replied, "Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?" 15Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."
16And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. 17He thought to himself, ’What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
18"Then he said, ’This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19And I’ll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." ’
20"But God said to him, ’You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21"This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God."
22Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. 23Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[b]? 26Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?
27"Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
32"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Galatians 2:1-10
1Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. 2I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders, for fear that I was running or had run my race in vain. 3Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 4This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. 5We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you.
6As for those who seemed to be important—whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not judge by external appearance—those men added nothing to my message. 7On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles,[a] just as Peter had been to the Jews.[b] 8For God, who was at work in the ministry of Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles. 9James, Peter[c] and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews. 10All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
Is the lighthouse mission a New Testament concern? Should we be going to the Dominican Republic with supplies for orphans and churches?
Today is about examining our own hearts
Matthew 6:24
24"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
There is a reason why Jesus called money out here.
How many other things might He have used here?
• Power
• Sex
• Amusement
• People
• Self, pride
• Addiction, food, alcohol, substances and stimulants
He chose money – think about why that might be.
What is your excuse for not participating - if you don’t – financially in the Kingdom of God?
I do not want your guilt money; the New Testament is clear about generous hearts!
I want for you a freedom I saw amoung the poor Christians of Rio San Juan, a freedom that has been working its way deeper and deeper into the heart of this former prosperity preacher.
How much is enough?
Today is about what we are building together here at DCC
PowerPoint available (Free of charge) on request dcormie@mts.net
