Why die? Seek the Lord and live, may the Lord’s justice roll on like the waters of an ever flowing stream – that’s Amos’ message to us.
Amos 5: Seek the LORD and Live
1 Hear this word that I take up over you in lamentation, O house of Israel:
2 "Fallen, no more to rise, is the virgin Israel; forsaken on her land, with none to raise her up."
3 For thus says the Lord GOD: "The city that went out a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which went out a hundred shall have ten left to the house of Israel."
4 For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel: "Seek me and live;
5 but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing."
6 Seek the LORD and live, lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, with none to quench it for Bethel,
7 O you who turn justice to wormwood and cast down righteousness to the earth!
8 He who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the surface of the earth, the LORD is his name;
9 who makes destruction flash forth against the strong, so that destruction comes upon the fortress.
10 They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth.
11 Therefore because you trample on the poor and you exact taxes of grain from him, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not dwell in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine.
12 For I know how many are your transgressions and how great are your sins--- you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and turn aside the needy in the gate.
13 Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time, for it is an evil time.
14 Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said.
15 Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
16 Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the Lord: "In all the squares there shall be wailing, and in all the streets they shall say, 'Alas! Alas!' They shall call the farmers to mourning and to wailing those who are skilled in lamentation,
17 and in all vineyards there shall be wailing, for I will pass through your midst," says the LORD.
Let Justice Roll Down
18 Woe to you who desire the day of the LORD! Why would you have the day of the LORD? It is darkness, and not light,
19 as if a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him, or went into the house and leaned his hand against the wall, and a serpent bit him.
20 Is not the day of the LORD darkness, and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?
21 "I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
22 Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the peace offerings of your fattened animals, I will not look upon them.
23 Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen.
24 But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
25 "Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
26 You shall take up Sikkuth your king, and Kiyyun your star-god---your images that you made for yourselves,
27 and I will send you into exile beyond Damascus," says the LORD, whose name is the God of hosts.
Amos 6: Woe to Those at Ease in Zion
1 "Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria, the notable men of the first of the nations, to whom the house of Israel comes!
2 Pass over to Calneh, and see, and from there go to Hamath the great; then go down to Gath of the Philistines. Are you better than these kingdoms? Or is their territory greater than your territory,
3 O you who put far away the day of disaster and bring near the seat of violence?
4 "Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory and stretch themselves out on their couches, and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the stall,
5 who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and like David invent for themselves instruments of music,
6 who drink wine in bowls and anoint themselves with the finest oils, but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!
7 Therefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile, and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away."
8 The Lord GOD has sworn by himself, declares the LORD, the God of hosts: "I abhor the pride of Jacob and hate his strongholds, and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it."
9 And if ten men remain in one house, they shall die.
10 And when one's relative, the one who anoints him for burial, shall take him up to bring the bones out of the house, and shall say to him who is in the innermost parts of the house, "Is there still anyone with you?" he shall say, "No"; and he shall say, "Silence! We must not mention the name of the LORD."
11 For behold, the LORD commands, and the great house shall be struck down into fragments, and the little house into bits.
12 Do horses run on rocks? Does one plough there with oxen? But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood---
13 you who rejoice in Lo-debar, who say, "Have we not by our own strength captured Karnaim for ourselves?"
14 "For behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel," declares the LORD, the God of hosts; "and they shall oppress you from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of the Arabah."
Things to think about…
1. It’s never too late to turn and do what is right. In Amos 5:4, 14 even after judgement has been decreed for Israel God says, ‘seek me… and do good, that you may live’. He says “let Justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever flowing stream”, vs 24. The Lord simply wants obedience. He says this is far better than sacrifice. They didn’t sacrifice in the wilderness, Amos 5:25. Does he need their animal sacrifices now? The answer is no. He wants their hearts to submit to Yeshua and His word. The same is true today for us as Christians.
2. The northern kingdom would be no more. Amos says “but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing”, Amos 5:6. He is speaking about the gold calf at Bethel and the other national gods as if they had any power to help. Judgement was coming. This would come true in 722BC with the onslaught of the Assyrian army and taking of Israel to Nineveh. Some of the areas mentioned remain desolate even to this day. They are slowly being rebuilt, but the ruins are still there as a testament to God’s judgement. The only stronghold that lasts is found in Christ.
3. This period in 750BC was a time of prosperity in Israel. Yet in their ease and security, God says they should consider the other kingdoms who also felt secure and yet were taken away, like Calneh, Hamath and Gath, Amos 6:2. 722BC was rapidly approaching when the Assyrians would finally lead them away captive. May God have mercy on the Australian churches to preach His truth regarding our ease and rebellious pride in this country.
4. Pride will always be brought low. Look at this judgment that would come on the land of Israel it would affect them from the very north point - Lebo-hamath, to the southernmost border – the Brook of Arabah. But look at what Israel was saying in Amos 6:13. They believed that by their own strength they had won small regional victories, vs 13. God was about to humble them. Their pride was about to be brought low. Has Israel learned its lesson? They still reject the Messiah who takes away sin and still do things in the might of military strength. Pray for repentance for Israel and that they would see their true Messiah, Yeshua.
Vision statement for CBC
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Prayer points
1. Pray for the church in Australia that it focuses on Christ, His Word and holiness and away from trying to mould character aside from the cross and repentance.
2. Pray for our leaders in Australia that they press in closer to Christ.
3. Pray for the Liberal party as they wrestle with leadership issues.
4. Pray for the people of Iran that they finally get their freedom from an oppressive regime
5. The Royal Commission that the Jewish people will feel safe in Australia.
6. One for Israel ministry.
7. Conflict zones – especially within Africa, Israel, Iran and Ukraine
8. Pray for new people to step into ministries at CBC – eg worship, café, sound/technical, giving, podcast.
9. Reform and Revival over our city and country.
10. Finances to cover our needs
11. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to increase.
Praise Points
1. Praise God for His blessing over our service on Sunday
2. Another day of joy on Sunday with new folks at our service.
3. Praise God for ministries – Life Groups, Prayer meetings, Kids@Church
4. Café team every week. Thankyou to all those who serve and bring food. Especially Fiona, Maddie and Suzy.
5. Worship, Admin and Technical teams – Nita, Brendon, AJ, Suzy, Maddie, Mathys, Doug.
6. Kids Church teachers – Jacqueline, Maddie, Elise, Anastacia and Fiona
7. The Lord’s faithfulness this year to CBC and all who have served in ministries
8. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
Announcements
1. All ministries on break over the school holidays
2. Kids@Church starts back Sunday 1st Feb
3. Members Meeting – Sunday 22nd Feb after the service
4. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
5. Tune in again this week on our YouTube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
Catechism questions for February...
Q. 5. Did our Lord Jesus Christ ever sin? A. No; he was holy, blameless, and undefiled.
