Monday: Amos
“I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. But the LORD took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel’” (Amos 7:14-15, NIV).
Amos was quite open in admitting his lack of qualifications for being a prophet, but as he presents his message to the Israelite nation, he shows an obvious ability to draw his hearers into what he wants to tell them.
Amos
He begins on a popular note, listing off the surrounding nations—Syria, Philistia, Phoenicia, Edom, Ammon, and Moab—and detailing their crimes, outrages, and atrocities for which God will punish them (see Amos 1:3-2:3). It is easy to imagine the Israelites applauding these indictments of their enemies, particularly as many of the crimes of these nations had been directed against the Israelites themselves.
Then Amos moves a little closer to home, declaring God’s judgment against the people of Judah, Israel’s southern neighbors in the now-separated kingdoms. Speaking on behalf of God, Amos cites their rejection of God, their disobedience to His commands, and the punishments that would come to them (see Amos 2:4-5). Again, we can imagine the people in the northern kingdom applauding as Amos points out the wrongdoing of those around them.
But then Amos turns on his audience. The rest of the book focuses on Israel’s evil, idolatry, injustice, and repeated failures in the sight of God.
Read Amos 3:9-11; Amos 4:1-2; Amos 5:10-15; and Amos 8:4-6. What sins is he warning against?
While Amos is not diplomatic in his language and his warnings are those of doom, his message is seasoned with entreaties to turn back to their God. This will include a renewal of their sense of justice and care for the poor among them: “But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” (Amos 5:24, NIV). The last few verses of Amos’ prophecy point to a future restoration for God’s people (see Amos 9:11-15): “In their hour of deepest apostasy and greatest need, God’s message to them was one of forgiveness and hope”. – Ellen G. White, Prophets and Kings, p. 283.
| Are there times when we need to be prepared to speak harshly to correct wrong? How do we discern when such language might be appropriate? |
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Amos was a grumpy old man. If you take time to read Amos you will find that he does not add a lot of happy thoughts to biblical literature. He is cranky with the neighbours (kingdoms around Israel and Judah), gets up the nose of cousins (the Kindom of Judah) and then makes his own family (Israel) hate him.
For all that, he had good reason to be cranky, and it was not just a case of him having a feed of unripe figs. Look what he has to say. Does it sound like a message we need to hear today?
Maybe we ought to listen to the grumpy old man.
Amos made clear in his writings that he did not come from a family of prophets, nor did he even consider himself one.
God’s word through Amos was directed against the privileged people of Israel, a people who had no love for their neighbor, who took advantage of others, and who only looked out for their own concerns.
Amos holds God’s people accountable for their ill-treatment of others. It repeatedly points out the failure of the people to fully embrace God’s idea of justice. They were selling off needy people for goods, taking advantage of the helpless, oppressing the poor, and the men were using women immorally.. Drunk on their own economic success and intent on strengthening their financial position, the people had lost the concept of caring for one another; Amos rebuked them because he saw in that lifestyle evidence that Israel had forgotten God.
Injustice permeates our world, yet as Christians we often turn a blind eye to the suffering of others for “more important” work like praying, preaching, and teaching. But the book of Amos reminds us that those works, while unquestionably central to a believer’s life, ring hollow when we don’t love and serve others in our own lives.
God has called Christians not only to be in relationship with Him but also to be in relationships with others. For those Christians whose tendency has been to focus more on the invisible God than on His visible creation, Amos pulls us back toward the center, where both the physical and the spiritual needs of people matter in God’s scheme of justice.
Amos did not have a choice, his message had to be said the "hard" way. God knew how far Israel had gone, thus He knew how the message should be delivered.
How do we know when to answer harshly to someone? It all depends on the previous communication and to whom. It is different when this is done to a friend or to family. To a son, for example, for educational purposes, sometimes a more severe posture is necessary. With other family members or friends the situation is more delicate. Sometimes a harsh word may block the communication. We have to be wise on that.
Jesus shows us how we should care for the poor, needy and the outcast! He identify himself with them. We ought to follow His example. "For I was hungry, thirsty, naked, and sick but you ignore me: I do not know you!!"