“I Will Not Utterly Destroy the House of Jacob” (Amos 9)

Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are on the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from the face of the earth; yet I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, says the LORD. For surely I will command, and will sift the house of Israel among all nations, as grain is sifted in a sieve; yet not the smallest grain shall fall to the ground. (vs8-9)

God brings judgment upon the world and chastens the church, but He NEVER destroys one of His own. Everyone for whom Christ DIED shall be saved, because justice won't allow us to perish. We will be chastened for our sins and scattered, but we will not be cut off. Many will die in sin, hypocrites will be unmasked, and there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, but no one who really believes will be destroyed, even though we're sifted and humbled over our sin.

God chastens to SAVE His people, not destroy. He says, “For surely I will command,and will sift the house of Israel among all nations, as grain is sifted in a sieve; yet not the smallest grain shall fall to the ground”. He destroys to build, and He wounds to heal (Jer 29:11)! Bless Him for the assurance of the gospel, that it will be well with those who believe God, even if we've failed miserably in sin.

I'm thankful that my future is not bound by what I deserve, but rather, Christ's DEATH for me has secured a BRIGHT and shining future that I could never deserve. He has earned the grace that keeps me, changes me, and then rewards me. He has earned my heaven, and I'm not being dealt with after my sins, but according to His purpose of grace.

He is a saving God who saves people that He's rightfully troubled, so you and I don't have to despair as if pain and hardship mean the end. If we will repent and be turned, if we'll improve,then forgiveness and promises are ours. He says, “On that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down, and repair its damages; I will raise up its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old” (Amos 9:11). He told the five churches to repent, or else, but if they repented, it would be well. He says again, “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the tgreader of grapes him who sows seed”, so that the harvest is so plentiful with fruit that the planters overtake the reapers. He continues, “the mountains shall drip with sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it” (vs13). Jesus saves us from unbelief, gives the repentance, and He makes us into the corn that will never fall away to destruction, the kernel that He cherishes for Himself.

It has been the same with you. All around, hypocrisy is leading men to hell, and we were on that road, and He shook us, but not to death; it was unto life. He troubled us to PRODUCE a change, removed self-confidence, and He gave us faith when we had no where to turn but to Him. Grace SAVES and gives us a glorious end. He says, “I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; they shall build the waste cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them; they shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them. I will plant them in their land, and no longer shall they be pulled up from the land I have given them, says the Lord your God” (vs14-15). The heaven you DON'T deserve will be a shining example of God's greatness, as you enjoy what He's chosen to give you forever (Eph 2:7).

You were His before you knew Him, and knowing Him is ASSURANCE that He'll be yours to the end, “For surely I will command, and will sift the house of Israel among all nations, as grain is sifted in a sieve; yet not the smallest grain shall fall to the ground”. Do you believe that you shall not die in sin? Do you believe that He hurt to heal? Then you will enjoy the salvation.

“Its End Like A Bitter Day” (Amos 7:7-8:10)

“And it shall come to pass in that day, says the Lord God, that I will make the sun go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in broad daylight; I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; I will bring sackcloth on every waist, and baldness on every head; I will make it like mourning for an only son, and its end like a bitter day” (vs9-10)

If we don't listen to God when He warns and threatens, then the evil will happen against us, and we will die in sin. He says, “and its end like a bitter day”. Silencing the prophet doesn't change a thing, and rejecting truth has never made it fiction. You may close your eyes, plug your ears, and dance freely on the railroad tracks, but it will not change the fact that trains are coming, and DEATH will be your end.

Be wise, children of Satan, and hear the warning. God is destroying sinners who don't obey Him - who don't repent and believe the gospel. He doesn't ask anything of you, other than you believe that He does EVERYTHING for us, freely. Rom 3:23-24, says, “For all have sinned and fall short [continually and presently] of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus”.

We are to believe that sinners like us are forgiven because of what Jesus Christ did, at God's appointment, according to His eternal purpose. He REDEEMED us by His blood and paid the whole penalty of sin, so that God may graciously give salvation to us, which includes pardon, peace, and power, even heavenly bliss. We are to BELIEVE that He is for us, and we are helped with our sins, believing that His love put us in the Book of Life, chose to save us, and will keep us until the end. Yes, we're to BELIEVE, that even though sin is stronger than us, sneaky, and defiling, it is not stronger than Christ and the Spirit, according to the grace of God! We are to believe and never reject the gospel for any reason – not because of our pride or for some sinful pleasure. We are to believe free grace, receive righteousness imputed to us, and we're to walk with God in the promises of what He'll do, recognizing the commands , for Christ's sake and by the Spirit, are fulfills in us. Heb 13:20-21 says, “Now, may the God of peace... make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen”. We are to repent and be saved, and if we refuse to believe, challenging God and denying the gospel, then we'll be damned in the end.

Many think this a matter of opinion. They tell me, “It is wrong to demand that people believe on Christ”, and I tell them, “I didn't write the command. The Son of God did. And, it is wrong for you to tell me there's another way, or that salvation is not really needed... unless you're telling me the truth”.

It is not wrong to preach faithfully, even as Amos did (Amos 7:12-17)! We read, “Then Amaziah said to Amos: Go, you seer! Flee to the land of Judah. There eat bread, and there prophesy. But never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is the royal residence. Then Amos answered, and said to Amaziah: I was no prophet, nor was I a son of a prophet, but I was a herdsman and a tender of sycamore fruit. Then the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to My people Israel. Now therefore, hear the word of the Lord: you say, Do not prophesy against Israel, and do not spout against the house of Isaac. Therefore thus says the Lord: Your wife shall be a harlot in the city; your sons and daughters shall fall by the sword; your land shall be divided by survey line; you shall die in a defiled land; and Israel shall surely be led away captive from his own land”. They made others stop, but not Amos. I've been called a coward for not asserting what another person believed, but a man of God gets power to stand for what he does believe, which is everything that God has said. Don't be distracted, as if human threats mean anything to you. They can kill the body, but not the soul. They can hate on you, but only God can cast you into hell, hating you and punishing you eternally.

Don't pull back from the truth and suffer the fate of wickedness. Believe the gospel of God, and be GLAD there are warnings and chances to repent! Be glad God saves sinners, admit your needs, and be thankful for Him, rather than silencing the prophet and dooming yourself to eternal destruction.

“It Shall Not Be” (Amos 6:1-7:6)

Thus the Lord GOD showed me: Behold, He formed locust swarms at the beginning of the late crop; indeed it was the late crop after the king’s mowings. And so it was, when they had finished eating the grass of the land, that I said: "O Lord GOD, forgive, I pray! Oh, that Jacob may stand, For he is small!" So the LORD relented concerning this. "It shall not be," said the LORD. Thus the Lord GOD showed me: Behold, the Lord GOD called for conflict by fire, and it consumed the great deep and devoured the territory. Then I said: "O Lord GOD, cease, I pray! Oh, that Jacob may stand, For he is small!" So the LORD relented concerning this. "This also shall not be," said the Lord GOD. (Amos 7:1-6)

God hears His people's prayers and turns back from His wrath. He says, “It shall not be, said the Lord”. He heard Christ for us, heard Moses for Israel, and He hears you and me, even as He heard Amos here. He hears us pray for ourselves and others, for prayer gets God to do the impossible.

We are heard through Christ, even after we've personally failed, for “Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31). The repentant are heard in our prayers for others, not always, but it is the way that they're saved. Someone prayed for you, and now, you're praying for someone else. Wrath is deserved, as Amos 6 clearly teaches, “Woe to you who are at ease in Zion, and trust in Mount Samaria, notable persons in the chief nation, to whom the house of Israel comes... woe to you who put far off the day of doom, who cause the seat of violence to come near; who lie on beds of ivory, stretch out on your couches, eat lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the stall; who sing idly to the sound of stringed instruments, and invent for yourselves musical instruments like David; who drink wine from bowls, and anoint yourselves with the best ointments, but are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph. Therefore they shall now go captive as the first of the captives, and those who recline at banquets shall be removed”. But, their salvation is still hoped for and the object of prayer, because God pulls back His wrath and gives the change in character that's needed.

I can talk to people day and night, logically explaining every biblical truth, but I can't save a single one! Christ, the great preacher, never erred in doctrine or spirit, yet the Spirit of God alone gives men obedience to the message. Paul said, “Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor 12:3). This comes from God. That person hanging on the edge of death can be brought back by you, as God answers you, even as He heard Moses, even as He hears the Lord Himself.

Prayer is powerful with God, getting Him involved savingly. Prayer doesn't always save others, but it will always save you. He says, “And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise Him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven” (James 5:15). You can continually have failed and done things your way, bringing a curse upon yourself, and yet God will hear you and pull back wrath. He will also hear you, perhaps, for your family, and so continue in hope. Don't let the circumstances destroy your optimism. Keep in mind the God who hears prayer hears you for Christ's sake, and the God of glory who can CHANGE men is open to hear your cries. I don't care how far you've fallen. I'm persuaded you'll be heard, not only for yourself, but for as many as are appointed.

Christians hope in God, so all isn't hopeless. We will get changed supernaturally, He'll fight for us, and we'll conquer sin and problems that we've brought on ourselves. This power - this access in prayer, this easing of burdens, and this saving knowledge of God – is yours, as we come in contact with His Person. When things look impossibly broken, we have a repenting and relenting God who pulls back the wrath that we should get.

Justice and Righteousness Are Mandatory (Amos 5:8-24)

"I hate, I despise your feast days, and I do not savor your sacred assemblies. Though you offer Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them, nor will I regard your fattened peace offerings. Take away from Me the noise of your songs, for I will not hear the melody of your stringed instruments. But let justice run down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream.” (vs21-24)

It doesn't matter how religious we appear or how zealous we are in church activity: there must be righteousness and justice in our religion, or it isn't of God.

Righteousness is how God saves sinners by the blood of His Son, whereby He paid for sins, so that God may righteously and justly FORGIVE them. Righteousness is Jesus Christ, by the blood, earning all of the grace that you'll ever need or receive. Hebrews 9:15 says, “And for this reason, He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of eternal inheritance”! Righteousness is God favoring us for Christ's sake; it is the truth of the word, as it is, lived out in the life of believers. Righteousness is walking uprightly by the power of the Spirit, doing God's will from the heart. Righteousness is God's gift, both in our standing, indwelling new nature, and in our deeds. And, without righteousness by faith and faith that makes us do righteous deeds, we don't please God, nor have we the Spirit, and our worship is in vain!

People think that saying God's name and giving Him some time and lip service secures us eternal life, that if I speak well of Him and attend religious meetings, then it doesn't matter if I don't believe what He says and practice it. But it isn't so. He says, “They hate the one who rebukes in the gate, and they abhor the one who speaks uprightly. Therefore, because you tread down the poor and take grain taxes from him, though you have built houses of hewn stone, yet you shall not dwell in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink wine from them”, and again, “Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord! For what good is the day of the Lord to you? It will be darkness, and not light. It will be as though a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him! Or as though he went into the house, leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him!” Most people think salvation by grace means that I don't have to be righteous. Instead, we must believe that grace makes us righteous in behavior, as well as our standing. We must have a whole religion, or God isn't pleased, we are not saved, and we must repent quickly or die.

Righteousness is hated by men, for they hate those who reprove in the gate, but it is pleasurable unto all who enjoy God's fellowship. It is rewarded with peace, power, and love. To be righteous, though men and your own flesh abhors you, is to be loved by God and to experience the sweetness of peace. Jesus, that Man of sorrows acquainted with grief, was a righteous and thereby peaceable Man. He walked with God and had His pleasure, even though He walked among men and fought Satan repeatedly. Righteousness is surely rewarded in the next life, even if this life has its grief. Righteousness is the only heavenly passport there is, the only proof of favor from God, and the mark given that we are genuinely His.

Don't fall into the trap of “any religion is good, so long as it is sincere”. Don't think, “It doesn't matter what I do, so long as I ask forgiveness in Jesus' name” (John 8:11). Walk with God in the righteousness of Christ, the righteousness that's imputed to faith. Paul said, “and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith of Christ [the gospel], the righteousness which is from God by faith” (Phil 3:9). Walk with God by this righteous standing trusting Him to give you righteous character. Walk loving righteousness and justice, and you walk wisely with God, rather than against. You will be hated by men, loved by God, and you'll be rewarded eventually, even though you suffer to be holy now.

“You Have Not Returned to Me” (Amos 4:6-5:7)

"I sent among you a plague after the manner of Egypt; your young men I killed with a sword, along with you captive horses; I made the stench of your camps come up into your nostrils; yet you have not returned to Me, Says the Lord. I overthrew some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were like a firebrand plucked from the burning; yet you have not returned to Me, Says the LORD."(vs10-11)

Sinners don't return to the Lord, when He afflicts (vs6-11). They seek everything but the salvation that only He can give. The curse is upon us because of Adam and our sin in Him, and the Lord alone can remedy it and heal us. We need grace, forgiveness, and obedience, but this comes from the Lord. These are not things that can be found at the psychologist/witch doctor, nor can they be found by looking within or in false religion (Col 2:1-10). These are God's gifts to us, so that everything needed is from Him.

Be wise, return to the Lord, and seek Him. Confess your sinfulness and your pain to God in Christ, “For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: Seek Me and live; but do not seek Bethel, nor enter Gilgal, nor pass over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nothing. Seek the Lord and live, lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, with no one to quench it in Bethel – you who turn justice to wormwood, and lay righteousness to rest in the earth!” (Amos 5:4-7). Trust Him for the grace that's promised in scripture and conquer by the power of God Almighty.

You don't have to bring Him anything of your own: no strength or goodness. Seek Him as you are, and for Christ's sake, He'll meet your needs. People think that God won't help, but they are wrong; He will. “And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both” (Luke 7:42). Return to Him, return to obedience, and return to believing God, for we should have never left Him in the beginning. Walk with God by grace, obey Him by the Spirit, and make Him the answer of your problems.

Don't seek more sin to cover the pain of rebellion. Don't seek entertainment to blind your mind to reality. Seek the Lord. Yes, you have pain and misery. Return to Him who'll receive you. You have gone astray, but you may be returned and welcomed home. You've played the Prodigal, but know there's compassion with Him. We read, "And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry” (Luke 15:20-23).

“This You Love” (Amos 3:9-4:5)

“Hear this word, you cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria, who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, who say to your masters, 'Bring wine, let us drink...Come to Bethel and transgress, at Gilgal multiply transgression; bring your sacrifices every morning, your tithes every three years. Offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, proclaim and announce the freewill offerings; for this you love, You children of Israel! Says the Lord”(Amos 4:1-5)

The Lord reproves false worship, the worship that doesn't obey the gospel and live uprightly. They claim God in name, but they defile Him in their actions and doctrines, teaching things they ought not, for the love of pleasure. This isn't the saint who repents; this is the sinner who claims Christ, and yet WILL NOT leave sin. They will be destroyed, because Christ must be obeyed on His terms. We can't make up our own religion, even if we're happy, and call it God's.

What options do we have? Repent and believe the gospel, bring forth works fitting of repentance, and express your faith in the church, as God has said. Paul said he, “declared first to those in damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn t God, and o works befitting repentance” (Acts 26:20). He didn't call us to “come to Christ”, and then live godlessly, making up our own rules as to what holiness is. Following Christ is living His way, and the more adamantly and uncompromisingly we do this, the better off we are. We are not playing with fire, living near the world, but we pursue the Lord Jesus Christ and obtain powerful grace to fight and mortify sin. Romans 8:13 says, “For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live”.

The sinner that comes to Christ will be saved, and whoever believes upon Him, by the Spirit, to put down the flesh, will taste the victory of true worship and will escape the wrath that's coming on hypocrites. God won't hold them guiltless who take His name in vain! We must follow Him His way, being DEAD to all attempts to earn His favor, and being DEAD to our old way of life. He says, “For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, known this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin my be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin” (Rom 6:5-6).

We are not ashamed of the gospel, nor are we going to compromise it to appease anyone – not our flesh or anyone else's. We are following Christ by His power and living by His commands. We have compassion on sinners, for we all sin more than we desire, and yet we have been made WILLING to obey, willing to live godly, and we see obedience as the only reasonable option; it is not a drudgery, but a proper course of actions. Paul says, “And in this I give advice: it is to your advantage not only to be doing what you began and were desiring to do a year ago; but now you also must complete the doing of it; that as there was a reading to desire it, so there also may be a completion out of what you have” (2 Cor 8:10-11). This is not something that we must do ourselves; obedience is God's gift by the mercy of the cross. He says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service” (Rom 12:1).

Don't think, “I go to church... occasionally... I give... a little... and I don't do all the things that I once did. But, I will still live my life my way, on my terms, and be safe”. He says, “An adversary shall be all around the land; he shall sap your strength from you, and your palaces shall be plundered”. He says, “As a shepherd takes from the mouth of a lion two legs or a piece of an ear, so shall the children of Israel be taken out who dwell in Samaria – in the corner of a bed and on the edge of a couch!” He says, “in the day I punish Israel for their transgressions, I will also visit destruction on the altars of Bethel; and the horns of the altar shall be cut off and fall to the ground. I will destroy the winter house along with the summer house; the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall have an end, says the Lord” (Amos 3:10-15).

Make sure your worship is biblical, that you are in the mold of Scripture, and that what God calls holy conduct and saved living manifests itself in you. Noah built the ark according to God's specifications, and he was saved. God said, “Make yourself an ark of gopher wood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch. And this is how you shall make it...” (Gen 6:14-15). Likewise, this is how you and I live life: we believe what He says until what He says is manifested in our lives and thoughts. He says, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. For I say through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith” (Rom 12:2-3).

We believe the truth unto love, and God tests what we know by the fruit it brings forth, proclaiming humility and holiness as the fruits of grace.

“Who Can But Prophecy?” (Amos 3:3-8)

Can two walk together, unless they are agreed? Will a lion roar in the forest, when he has no prey? Will a young lion cry out of his den, if he has caught nothing? Will a bird fall into a snare on the earth, where there is no trap for it? Will a snare spring up from the earth, if it has caught nothing at all? If a trumpet is blown in a city, will not the people be afraid? If there is calamity in a city, will not the LORD have done it? Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets. A lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken! Who can but prophesy?

God's spoken to us in the Son, declaring salvation and Judgment to come. Who can but prophecy and speak the awesomeness of God's Day?

He is returning to judge the earth, and we know it, so we have fled. He has revealed judgment ahead of time, and we, like Noah, find Him to be right. Scripture says, “By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith” (Heb 11:7). We have corrupted our way, walked in sin, and lived opposing Christ in fleshly rebellion. Will He not swing the blade and punish? He will. The grace of God makes us messengers of refuge in Jesus Christ, bidding the justly condemned to grab hold of Him in a way that's righteous. Many think, “I can have Christ” in name only, but He reproves our DEEDS and reveals that Christ must be in us: I must have FAITH and works.

The gospel isn't a message of acceptance in Christ and forgiveness WITHOUT repentance. It is “Repent and believe the gospel”, and “Repentance and remission of sins should be preached” (Mark 1:15; Luke 24:47). Paul told us to bring fruits worthy of repentance, as did John the Baptist. And, the epistles direct us to make our calling and election sure, examining ourselves, to make sure that we're partakers of the life-changing, life-giving faith that's Christ.

God receives SINNERS and then He changes us. We never outgrow sinfulness in self as we grow in grace, but we prosper in holy obedience by the Spirit. The gospel is impossible with men, boring, and impotent. But, in the believer, it is God's power to make us like Christ, to conform us into His image, and to put us in the Church as members (1 Cor 1:18; Rom 1:16).

There is ONE Church - not two, not denominations, not fractions or factions. There is ONE Church and all who believe and practice the gospel - gathering together and striving that God's elect be saved - are united in this calling. Phil 1:27-28 says, “Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel, and not in any way terrified by your adversaries, which is to them a proof of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God”.

Our church worship reveals our relationship with God, for many say, “I know Him”, but in works, they are reprobate (Titus 1:16). What kind of God do you know? What Christ? We know Christ as defined by Scripture, and the miracle is that He, by the gospel, makes us live out the gospel, until our lives bear fruit of the Scriptures in our speech and character. He said, “Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matt 7:21).

This GRACE that we need always sanctifies and changes. We read, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-13). Therefore, making your election sure is a life-long process, never ending, never saying, “I have arrived”. Paul wrote, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me” (Phil 3:12). Like the husband and wife that romance each other lifelong, working on their relationship, even so we do with Christ. We have pride to be abased, faults to clear up, and changes to be made... but we also have God in Christ to pardon sins and give us victory over them by the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God's gift to us, for Jesus' sake, so that we can be fruitful. He comes as Christ is exalted in redemption for delivering us from sins by His sacrificial death in the place of and for every believer. He washed away the sins, and because of His obedience, the Spirit is GIVEN to sinners who believe, just as He is GIVEN to saints, by faith, so we can obey and love (Rom 8:2-4).

This gospel of holiness by the obedience of Christ - by the word of the gospel and by the Holy Spirit - is the ONLY gospel there is! We believe it, or we die. God's people are united in this message, preaching Christ, worshiping Him properly and in order, so that others may be saved. We read, “A lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken! Who can but prophesy?” Are you in Christ's church? Are you saved? Or, are you a person who refuses to believe? If you believe, your life shows it. You've heard from God that Judgment is coming, just and holy, and you've not only fled for yourself, but you live that others may believe.

Fire and Destruction Because... (Amos 1:1-2:5)

Thus says the LORD: "For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because they have despised the law of the LORD, and have not kept His commandments. Their lies lead them astray, lies which their fathers followed.  But I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem." (Amos 2:4-5)

God's judgments are just. He says continually in Amos 1-2, “Because”: Because you have done this, God will do that, justly. He doesn't punish unfairly, but He gives us what we deserve. He says, “I will not turn away its punishment, because they have threshed Gilead with implements of iron”,“I will not turn away its punishment, because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and did not remember the covenant of brotherhood”, and, “I will not turn away its punishment because they ripped open the women with child in Gilead, that they might enlarge their territory.” Those who admit their sin and beg mercy get salvation. Those who won't repent pay for what they've done themselves.

Don't think He's unjust, or you can't be saved. You and I can't have mercy, unless God is just in our misery. We must be GUILTY in God's court to be forgiven, and we must DESERVE what happens to us, if we'll be delivered through Christ's grace. Job said, “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes” (Job 42:5-6). Likewise, not only must we deserve our punishment in order to be saved, but we must admit the Lord deserves to save us because of Christ's death and the payment He made. Justice must be honored in punishing our sins, so that we can be justly forgiven, and justice must be honored or God is unjust to help the wicked. Paul wrote, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation... for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, 'The just shall live by faith'”, and, “But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe... being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Rom 1:16-17; Rom 3:21-26).

You'd be outraged if an obvious criminal came into court, guilty on all charges, and then was rewarded with wealth and honors. You'd expect punishment, and it is the same with God. We can't leave the court innocent, unless the Son glorifies the Father in paying for our sins. Now, we may justly be saved.

Judah, Edom, Syria, Tyre, and the nations are being told what is coming upon them, so we may repent while there is time (Amos 1-2). You have death and hell coming upon you, justly. Will you repent in this day of mercy, take hold of Jesus Christ, and live? This just salvation changes you, paying for sins, and then giving you a new course of action, so that you are not what you were. Rom 5:1-2 says, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God”. Romans 8:3-4 says, “For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness requirement of the law (love) might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit (by faith in Christ crucified and all that He has earned). Repentance has made you honor the Son, and you'll be rewarded for your good.

Always, as Job learned, believe God is right. No matter how disappointing or how it hurts, He is doing justly, and all pain and threats are deserved. This will put you in the spot of mercy, and you'll see Him as a just God and a savior. He says, “Tell and bring forth your case; yes, let them take counsel together. Who has declared this from ancient time? Who has told it from that time? Have not I, the Lord? And there is no other God besides Me, a just God and a Savior; there is none besides Me” (Is 45:21).

God is righteous, and those who ADMIT it - admit that His way is good - not only get pardon for wrongs, but we're enabled to please God in this world, until He perfects us in the world to come.

Not Grieved for Joseph (Amos 6:6)

“Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountains of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came… That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.” (vs1, 6)

People who don’t love God’s elect are not saved – (I John 4:7-8) “and every one that loves is born of God, and knows God. He that loves not knows not God; for God is love.” The Lord Jesus removes this selfishness from us, because He chastises the heart and makes us see everything is vain, except Him.

We’d destroy ourselves, but He rescues by affliction, causing us to see our shame. He says, “Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself”, but this happens to us in this life (Amos 2:14). He makes everything I would be enamored by, everything that would choke out the word, to become fruitless and empty. I can’t find the peace, love, and power that I need, and when all else is gone, Jesus Christ the Comforter of my soul comes in to give me faith and life by what He did.

He takes away earthly joy, to give us joy everlasting and spiritual. He removes earthly hope, so that we can have the true hope – (II Cor 4:17-18) “For our light affliction, which is but for a momen6t, works for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporary; but the things which are not seen are eternal”.

Some are not chastened, and they go on in their way, but God’s people are afflicted for our good. The Lord teaches us by what we endure, so that Asaph would not have looked and worshiped God, if he had not seen the folly of his unbelief. He said, after coveting the life of the ungodly, “My flesh and my heart fails: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever” (Ps 73:26).

The flesh crowds the word and wants vengeance upon us, but the Lord Jesus makes me care for others, by pardoning my sin – “Wherefore I say unto you, Her sins, which are many, have been forgiven; for she loved much”, this is how we know, “but to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little” (Luke 7:44-47). He gives us hearts to help the church and love people, because He gives us love for Himself in the remission of sins and acceptance in the Beloved.

The religion of Christ PRODUCES love to people, and those that don’t have it, don’t know God’s grace – “He that loves not knows not God; for God is love” (I John 4:8). The Word means nothing to us, unless we love.