The Reply Of A Nation Series

Series: Social Justice [#2]

THE REPLY OF A NATION

Amos 1:2-2:3

Introduction:

The shepherd Amos was a gifted preacher and psychologist. He began preaching about the sins of Damacus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, and Moab. This made the Israelites very happy because he was preaching against their enemies; but they did not realize that Amos would also be preaching against them. Amos was going to preach to them that those Nations were responsible for their actions; but Israel and Judah were more responsible because they had the truths of God.

Amos condemned each Nation according to their sins. These Nations were under God’s judgment; and were responsible to God for what they had done. Nations are still held responsible to God for their actions. As our Nation celebrates July 4th tomorrow, I want to ask the question, “Is the US under the judgment of God right now”?

There are 4 ideas to consider concerning God’s judgment on those Nations and any other Nations.

Notice…

1. The Sovereign.

You cannot understand what is happening in the Book of Amos until you have looked at God. One of our Nation’s greatest issues is that we do not have the concept of an eternal, sovereign, authoritative God. We have no idea of a God to whom we are morally responsible. We ignore Him, turn away from Him, mock Him, or laugh at Him. Many people do not give themselves to God because they have no understanding of who He is; but each person will be confronted with Sovereign God.

God is Sovereign, which means that He is in charge of everything. God will do as He pleases; and nothing that people can do will thwart His plan. God rules over everything whether we understand it or not. God rules over everything whether you like it or not. We answer to God, not the other way around. We must understand the God is in control at all times.

Amos 1:2

Notice the Sovereign’s…

* Judgment.

The word “roar” is a vicious word. Amos referred to the lion’s roar before he pounced upon his victim. This roar strikes terror into the prey. The phrase speaks of imminent danger, destruction, pain, and even impending death. Roar is the word which Amos used in reference to God. Our God sometimes roars and warns of impending doom and destruction. With that said, understand that God does not make hasty judgment. Let’s read through all 6 of the condemnations and notice the consistent pattern.

Amos 1:3-15; 2:1-3

Here is the unusual pattern, what does it mean? God was indicating, “I was very patient, the 1st transgression”. The 1st rebellion deserved God’s immediate response; but He was longsuffering. The 2nd certainly should have been judged immediately; but God still waited. The 3rd time, God raised His fist; but He stopped in midair. When the 4th transgression was committed, God’s patience wore thin. God’s decision to send judgment wasn’t hasty; but mankind’s sin had reached its fullest proportion; and God had to act in judgment. “The Lord roared,” wrote Amos.

We must understand a cardinal truth about the Almighty- There is a point beyond which God will not let us go. “My Spirit will not always strive with man” (Genesis 6:3) God warned in the very 1st Book of the Bible. In the New Testament there are 2 basic doctrines which express this truth. There is the unpardonable sin- When the wickedness and rebellion of a lost person reaches such proportions that he rejects God (and even curses) God as though He were actually Satan. God can reach the point beyond where He will not go. 2nd, if a child of God ever becomes so rebellious and hostile against the purposes of God, God can move in judgment on the life of that Christian. 1 John 5:16 speaks of “a sin unto death” which is committed by a Christian. The Christian is guilty of such a sin and is called away by the Lord. In this life, judgment falls upon the disobedient, rebellious Christians though God is patient and waits in mercy to forgive and forbear. There is a time when “the Lord will roar from Zion,” and in judgment God will move upon the people. Those pagan nations had sinned and overflowed their sin cups. They were running over with rebellion and God said, “I’ve had enough” and judgment fell like a blade of the guillotine.

Notice the Sovereign’s…

* Perception.

God sees all- Nothing escapes His eyes. Our earthly relationships have heavenly dimensions. What we do toward one another affects our relationship with God. All sins mentioned here are those of inhumanity, sins, oppression against another person or persons. Our actions toward mankind provoke reactions from God, and God is protective of everything in our lives. In the case of Damascus, that city had done unjustly to the Gileadites. Hazael’s sin was a half century old. In this case, God saw the past- The sin of Hazael even though the sin was in the past, it was so great an abhorrence to God because it hadn’t been met with the fruits of repentance. God does see unrepentant sins- Those sins that might have been forgotten by some. When it came to Gaza, God saw individual acts of slave trade, seizing people and putting them in harnesses; and selling them as pieces of property or animals. In verse 9, when Amos dealt with Phoenicia or Tyre (Tyrus), he saw that Tyre had made a treaty and broken it. In verse 11, concerning Edom, he saw hidden hatred, hostility, and bitterness in the hearts of Edomites. In verse 13, he saw the emotions and ambitions Ammon had swallowed up all the pity; the Ammonites brutally disregarded the welfare of others as they sought to enlarge their borders. Going into Chapter 2, concerning Moab, he saw a memory of cherished sins and bitter hostility which existed in their lives. Amos saw the Sovereign as Judge, because he (Amos) also viewed clearly the heinous sins of those who were to be judged.