Amos 5:1-26

Judgment is coming on the nation of Israel.  God calls Amos to warn the people of this fact and call the people to repent of this sin so they might live.  Unfortunately, the people largely ignored his warning and refused to repent so they were hauled off into captivity and many of them were slaughtered in battle or consumed by the various plagues sent upon the people.  God has repeatedly called His people to repent but many have refused this grace.  Sinful men prefer to follow the idols of their own hearts over worshiping the God who created the heavens and the earth.  The Day of the Lord is coming and it will usher in a time of judgment on the earth much more complete than the judgment of the nation of Israel.  The only means of escaping this judgment is to repent and trust the Lord.

A REQUEST FOR TRUE REPENTANCE: Amos calls the people to a life of true repentance.  He tells the people that God is planning to judge the nation in such a way that on ten percent of the population will survive this judgment.  The other ninety percent will be killed or taken into captivity.  Those who are taken away will not return.  In light of this terrible truth Amos pleads with the people to repent.  He makes five appeals for the people to seek the Lord so that they might find life in Him.  The nation had grown accustomed to trusting in its own strength or to look to the nations around them for help.  This must stop if they are to have any hope of salvation.  If we want to be saved from the wrath of God, we will never be worthy of that salvation in our own merits.  Our good works are all tainted by sin and are far outnumbered by the evil intentions of our own hearts.  We cannot imagine that there is hope from any other source besides the Lord. The religions of men and the armies of nations will not give us any hope in the day of God’s judgment.  Our only source of hope is found in seeking the Lord.  He is the source of life and gives us life only if we will repent and trust in Him.

A WARNING FOR FALSE WORSHIP: The children of Israel had begun to cry out for the Day of the Lord to arrive.  Amos warns them that this is a very foolish thing.  This coming day of judgment will be a day of great mourning and an experience of the wrath of God.  The reason for this wrath to come was because of Israel’s false worship.  The Lord hates idolatry because He created us to worship Him.  When we refuse to worship Him that is bad enough but our sin becomes even greater when we choose to worship idols instead of Him.  The nation of Israel celebrated holidays, they made sacrifices and they sang songs but these were only hollow activities that sprung from idolatrous hearts.  God is not impressed by religious rituals.  He desires that we walk according to His Word. He calls us to walk in justice and righteousness. He wants us to help one another without second intentions.  He wants justice for the poor and He wants our hearts to be pure before Him.  The nation of Israel began their idolatry when they were walking in the wilderness and they continued it once they reached the Promised Land.  Not only did they worship idols but they oppressed the poor and they were enslaved to immorality.  God does not tolerate this kind of rebellion.  It was not acceptable in Israel and it is not acceptable in our lives today.  God’s judgment is sure to fall on all who worship idols and refuse to walk in the righteous path God has revealed in His Word.