Sin and Judgement

Introduction

A. What bothers you most about Memphis drivers? I have heard numerous times about how bad Memphis drivers are. I have no credible way to verify if they are bad. By that I mean I haven’t looked up the statistical information to discover if we have more accidents here or if insurance rates are higher here why those rates are higher. But all of us have had experiences with bad drivers. It would be fun to hear some of your stories. I suppose that we each have our special irritants about poor drivers. Those who do not drive the speed limit; those who do not use their turn signal indicators; those who cut you off; on and on we could go.

B. All I have to say, “it’s a good thing we are perfect drivers. We always use our turn signal indicators; we always drive the speed limit; we don’t cut others off; we just don’t make driving errors. It is nice to know that I am in the company of the best drivers in the city of Memphis.” Do you agree with that statement? Do you agree that you are perfect driver? Or is there a “blind spot” in our thinking about our own driving (pun intended)? Too often this is the way that it is, we don’t see our own faults nearly as quickly as we see the faults of others. Jesus had something to say about such thinking in Matthew 7 when he spoke about the speck of sawdust that we see in another’s eye and fail to see the plank in our own eye. Part of the human condition and something which Jesus said needed and must change.

C. We begin today a series of lessons from Amos and Micah. Amos is an 8th century B.C. prophet who spoke to Israel. You will recall that after Solomon’s death, Israel was divided into two kingdoms. The Northern Kingdom was called Israel and the Southern kingdom was called Judah. Amos lived in Tekoa which was a small town from the Southern Kingdom. God called him to prophesy or to speak to the Northern Kingdom.

D. It is about 765 B.C. or so when Amos speaks to the Northern Kingdom. In forty short years, the people will be overrun by the Assyrian army. At the time that Amos speaks, the Northern Kingdom is in a time of great prosperity and peace. Politically, surrounding kingdoms are weak. Even Assyria is in a down turn. Israel prospers politically and militarily by reclaiming land lost in previous battles. Israel prospers economically. And with all this peace and prosperity the people also increase their religious observance. They are engaged in more sacrifices and celebrations. But there is a problem. While life healthy, the spiritual and moral life of the people is in decline. But they do not see it. They see prosperity and interpret such as God’s blessing. But Amos comes to declare a different message. Unfortunately, the people do not listen. May we hear today.

E. The Text

1. Amos was minding his own business in Tekoa when God called him to be his prophet. 1:1 tells us that he was a shepherd and 7:14 tells us that he also tended sycamore trees. Not exactly what one would call prophetic training. But God calls Amos to bring a message to the people of the Northern Kingdom. After the division of the united Israel following Solomon's reign, the Northern Kingdom no longer considered Jerusalem the place of worship. Worship centers were distributed throughout the Northern Kingdom. The political division had serious implications on the spiritual connection of the Northern Kingdom with God's plan and purpose. God didn't forget his people. He consistently called out to his people to return to him. Amos serves as another call from God to his people in the north.

A. According to verse 2, the call comes from Zion. Two things to notice. First, is the word "roar." This carries the idea of a lion roaring out. When we come to chapter 3, we will see this idea more fully expanded. The lion was the symbol of Judah, but more distinctly, the lion is one who gets its prey. When one hears the lion roar, they stop and listen. This is the intent of this word in verse 2. Listen. Second, the roar comes from Zion. Zion is the special name given to Jerusalem. It is a word which only those in covenant with God used. It was not a word used for those outside the covenant. From the very start the intent of Amos' prophecy is to call out to the people in such a way that they will listen and this call from Zion is to get them to question their spiritual connection with the covenant God. Since those in the north did not worship at Jerusalem, the covenant God is calling them to return to him and to Jerusalem.

B. From 1:3—2:3, Amos speaks against several kingdoms. Each kingdom's sin is held out for examination, judgment, and condemnation. Every nation has violated God's will. Of particular interest are the sins.

    1. Aram — capital is Damascus; brutal mistreatment of others

    2. Philistia — Gaza is a major city; selling people into slavery instead of treating them as precious humans made in God's image.

    3. Phonecia — Tyre; same as Gaza but this in violation of a promise made in a treaty.

    4. Edom — connected by blood to Israel (Jacob and Esau); this country had been adversarial toward God's people for a long time.

    5. Ammon — ripped open pregnant women in order to expand borders

    6. Moab — desecrated the body of the dead.

C. These judgments outline the heinous nature of the sins of the surrounding nations. As Amos begins to share the "roar" of God from Jerusalem to the northern kingdom, the people of the north would have been glad to hear these decrees. But what they do not realize that the speck in the eyes of the enemies does not exceed the plank in their own eyes. Three things to learn.

Application

A. First, notice the patience of God. Each oracle begins with “For three sins, even for four, I will not turn back my wrath.” The point is not to suggest that only four sins produced God’s judgment but rather that God was extremely patient with these nations as they acted without thinking about the Creator. The idea is that God’s extreme patience, however, came to an end and it was time to allow these kingdoms to suffer the consequences of their mistreatment of others. Peter writes in 2 Peter 3:9 that God is extremely patient. He wants everyone to come to repentance. But there is a limit to God’s patience. God gives us all more chances than we deserve. Those chances are often ignored. But God is patient. But the chances will end one day.

B. Second, notice that the judgment comes because of the mistreatment of others. People are precious treasures. Every person is made in the image of God. Every person has value and worth. Every person is due respect. They may not act in respectful ways, but created in the image of God places great worth and value on them. God cares about people. Can we care a fraction as much as he does? There are plenty of times that we see the sins of others and recognize that justice needs to be done. One of the real challenges that we have is to hold the view that a person has value and worth while seeking justice. It is too easy to say that a person gets what they deserve. We recognize sin as sin, but we also recognize that sinners need a Savior. Which leads me to my third point.

C. Third, we are guilty of the same sins that we see in others. Before you get defensive and begin sputtering about your innocence, let’s review our sins:

1. Have you gossiped about someone and shredded their reputation just as Ammon did to pregnant women in shredding the child from her body?

2. Have you used someone to get something that you wanted just as Philistia did in selling another in order to increase their wealth?

3. Have you been angry with another person so that compassion was lost just as Edom did against others?

4. Our vision statement reminds us that we recognize that we are all sinners in need of encouragement and strength in our spiritual journey. So do others. Can we treat others with the compassion that we would like to receive? Can we remember that God has been patient with us and we can be patient with others? Can we focus on the value and worth of people?

5. God did this for us. Let's do this for others.

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