Seek Me So That You May Live
First B Jackson
2025-10-26

Automatically transcribed. Where this and the recording disagree, the recording is the record.

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Good morning, everybody. Welcome to First B. I think it's the last Sunday in October. I can't remember.

I think

it is.

Yeah. Yeah. Would you stand with us and join with us... Join us in song? Here's an encouraging word from first Samuel two two to lead us into worship.

It says, there is no one holy like our Lord. There is no one besides you. There's no rock like our God. Join us in singing holy holy holy.

Amen. Y'all have can a seat. I've got a few announcements. We'll see. We'll see.

It's good to be back. Thank you, John, for last week preaching in my stead here while we were in Guatemala. So we have guest musicians for next week. I didn't wanna forget to tell you all this in case you showed up and thought, where? What is going on?

Tim, the fiddle player from the old RJ is now in like a cowboy band. They play cowboy churches around. He says, we're gigging and we want to have as much exposure as we can. And so I've run into him usually these days, I run into him at funerals and I've invited him multiple times and he says, next week is the week. So plan on that.

It ought to be fun. Band gets a break, so we're gonna just kinda sit and watch and join in, I guess, not really watch. They're leading congregational singing and everything, so looking forward to that. There is a discovery class next week also. Information about membership, it's in my office in between services somewhere around 10AM.

So right after this service before the next. Seeking truth in your twenties is starting back up next week. So they're off for this week, but next week, that's gonna be... Oh, wait a second now. Post high school to...

I thought that that was an address. Post high school to 29 years old. It's 7755 North Roberta Drive. That's where that's gonna be. Seeking truth in your twenties is something that's happening.

Jackson Hole Men's Alliance, we got ahead of it this week. This is coming November 5. November 5 is next Wednesday. Not this Wednesday, but next Wednesday. So 06:30AM, first be breakfast.

And usually, we have a testimony or an encouraging word from somebody. So I don't know who that is yet, but breakfast is provided. That one, you show up and there will be food, I promise. November 5, 06:30 in the morning. There's a children's choir that is forming.

So is Lauren... There she is. Lauren, would you stand up? Lauren Feldman is an opera singer and music vocal coach. Lisa Landis is trained classical musician, piano player, extraordinaire.

They are leading a children's choir. This is something that I look back on children's choir and love it. I think it helped a lot. So if you wanna be involved, those are the two people to talk to about. If you want your kid involved, that's that's the person to talk to about it.

So 10:05 to 10:30 in the Purple Room starting November 16, and the performance will be December 21 during this service. Okay? The 9AM service, we'll do that. Guatemala missions trip update. So we're back.

And Mike is gonna come up. I think that there is a video and the video normally has a song behind it that we can't play without them cutting us off the Internet. So imagine the most beautiful Peppy song that you can think of. There you go.

Alright. Alright. Can you guys hear

me? Yes.

Didn't wanna leave you hanging, but I wanna thank you guys so much for your prayers and support. So many of you have asked how the trip went. And I gotta tell you, going into this, it's been seven or eight years since we've been to Guatemala and served with Hope of Life, which is the organization we partner with down there. We didn't really know what to expect. But as you'll see in these these slides that go by, we got down there and all we did was say yes, and God showed up all over the place.

He took our yes, and he turned it into acts of service. I saw huge hearts operating in their full capacity. I mean, we took 16 people down there. We paired up with another team of 15 or so. So there's about 30 of us, and they would pack us up, send us into villages, and we would just love on people.

We delivered about $10,000 worth of food. I mean, it's just pallets. We we order a bunch of pallets of food, then we break those down into smaller, probably 30 or 40 pound bags, and then we go and give them out 200 at a time in these villages. And it was awesome to be a part of. Like I said, we didn't know what to expect.

I took a two year old and a six year old, the Galloways came down there as well. They had a seven and a nine year old, and God used every single person on that team in incredible ways. And I'd say probably my biggest takeaway is that maybe you're like me and you feel like when you wake up some mornings throughout the week, maybe you forget to pray. Maybe you forget to bring God along in the day. You look at your day and you think, I can probably handle what's gonna come today.

And that's how I operate in my day to... A lot of my day to day life. But when we went down there, we didn't know what to expect. There was an element of fear and risk being way outside of our comfort zone, and we had to lean on God and say yes. And it was a really incredible experience.

And I got to see gifts inside team members that I believe were lying dormant for a long time, get to come into their full fruition. And when we would come back to this compound that we would stay at in the evenings, there was a buzz, almost like a high that was going on among the team members because we were operating in the gifts God created us to, and we were serving people. We were the hands and feet, and it was so incredible to be a part of it. So a, we're back safe and sound. B, we didn't know what to expect, but God showed up.

And c, we're gonna go back next year. So thank you for your prayers and support. And I would... I believe that God was stirring several more people here in this congregation to maybe go on a trip like this. We stuck our toe in the water.

We tested it out again. And we're gonna take teams back. I'd say don't let the fact that you have kids stop you. Come with us next year. I talked to Jay, the guy that heads up Hands and Feet Ministry that we we partner with, and he said, we could do a 100 people.

We could take a 100 people to this ministry, and they could handle it. There's plenty of work to do. So please consider that, and again, thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your support. We really did feel loved, supported, and sent by this church.

So we're back with a thumbs up report. Thank you so much. And let me let me pray for the people of Guatemala too before we go. God, thank you for each and every servant down there. Thank you for each and every heart and life that you care so much about, God.

The people in the villages, the kids, the old folks. God, thank you for what you're doing to just get cold water to people that need it. God, we love you so much and we're thankful to play a part and thank you for this local body. God, I pray a blessing on every prayer partner, every supporting person, every person that is here today. In Jesus name,

amen. Amen.

Amen. Would you stand with us? Thank you, Mike.

Why don't you greet your neighbor and we'll bring you back with a song? Amen. God, we come before you this morning with our our hearts open and our hand... Hands open wide, Lord. We just thank you for who you are in our lives.

We thank you for, your redemption and bringing us back into relationship with you. And, we just thank you for this morning. We pray that you would open our hearts even more, to learn what you would have for us this morning. And it's your name we pray. Amen.

You can have

a seat

for a minute.

We're gonna enter a time of worship through giving, and I'll invite the ushers to come on forward. We're gonna sing a song. It's an older song called I Will Not Forget You, and it comes from a song, Psalm 50, where it says, make thankfulness your sacrifice to God and keep the vows you made to the most high. Then call on me in your trouble and I will rescue you. Ray, can you pray for

me? Sure. God, thank you for for this morning, for these that are gathered in your name. Lord, we pray for your direction and for your inspiration. Think of literally the inspiring, the bringing in of air, the bringing in of air into our lungs in the morning.

Lord, when we are consciously awake, I pray our first thought would be, Lord, I long to do your will. Show me your way and I'll walk in it. What we want, Lord, is to do your will and your way, whatever that is. And I pray that you'd use every single one of us in this room to do that. Would you have an effect with our close inner circle, would you have an effect to the very uttermost parts or we don't get a glimpse of all that is happening and you do.

And so we don't know how we would best be serving. Would you show us? We'd love to be a part of what's going on. In Jesus name, I pray that you'll bless each of us with the truth of your word that would just make sense to us and inspire us to go forward. In Jesus name, amen.

Many men will drink the rain and turn to thank the clouds. But I will not forget you. You are my God,

my

need. With a thankful heart, I bring my offering and my will read your words, but they will never change their minds. But I will not forget you. You are

Amen. Y'all can have a seat. It's time for children's church downstairs. And here we go. So the last thing I said to you before I left to go to Guatemala, last word, literally, last word in the book of acts is unhindered that Paul was able to spend the next couple of years there where people were coming to him and asking all the questions about Jesus and he's able to tell them all of the things that he had learned and learned directly from Jesus, and learned throughout all of his travels, and inspired by the Holy Spirit, and he served unhindered.

And I think, man, what a great word that is. It's a really really good word. And then, I knew my next task. I have been through since I've been here for thirteen years. Let me just make a confession.

I have a confession. My name is Ray, and I have a confession to make. I avoid preaching from the Old Testament. Has anybody noticed? It's been thirteen years.

I almost not done it. I've I've preached through a few here and there. I love the Old Testament, and every time that the New Testament mentions it, I try to chase down that reference, you know, and go back to it. I've done it, but not nearly as much as most of the other pastors that I have enjoyed in my life. I had a preaching professor in seminary that said that a series should not be more than five sermons long.

Mine has been thirteen and a half years. And it's been the whole New Testament. His book was called Preaching with Balance, and he says it should be a balance between New Testament and Old Testament. So I'm going against everything that I have been taught. But I I do that.

I'd present from the New Testament, first of all, because I have a background in New Testament Greek. I've studied that quite a bit. I've not studied Old Testament Hebrew very much at all. So I have to use the tools. It's a little bit harder for me.

That's okay. That's not an excuse. I'm just saying. I also do that because in the age that we live in, after the cross, after the resurrection, in the age of grace, we're living after the coming of the Holy Spirit who indwells the life of every believer. And so to examine the lives of the Old Testament people and think, oh, we're just like them, or I can be just like them, we have the tendency to be like them because we have both the spirit within us and we still are dragging around our flesh.

And so for me, it's hard because we're living in a different age and a different day than they were living in, in a different time, and the Holy Spirit was operating in different way than he is today. So for me, it's hard to articulate clearly in thirty minutes to a room of people who are in all kinds of different levels of understanding, different levels of faith, and different levels of obedience. So I don't want misunderstanding to create a problem, and I see that happening. I do see it. I saw it happen this week, actually.

Misunderstanding something that the spirit is saying or misunderstanding a small s spirit and taking that as if it's the Holy Spirit is a real danger, and it's something that leads in a lot of bad directions. Also, as you know, since we've just been going through the New Testament in order, in chronological order, we went through it once and came back and did the whole book of Acts again in chronological order. For cherry pickers are a problem for me. I don't like cherry picking verses to prove my point. So I've tried to live this the whole time I've been here that just let scriptures agenda be the agenda instead of letting my agenda, what I see as the problem be the agenda.

So cherry pickers who have a cause tend to go to places that support their cause in the Bible, and they do this on both sides of the argument. If they agree that the Bible is common ground, then they will use it to their favor. I want for it to speak to me in the ways that it challenges me, and I want for it to speak to you in the ways that it challenges you. So here we go. We virtually ignore Leviticus except for the places where it helps us in a cultural battle.

Have you all noticed? The Bible is very clear in a lot of different areas. One of them is, it is very clear that we are all sinners. Okay? Can I get an amen?

Yeah. It's very clear that we stand in need of a savior with a capital s, savior because we cannot do that for ourselves. We cannot save ourselves. Can I get an amen? The Bible is clear that forgiveness is available through humble agreement with God about our own sin.

Amen. Many times that is individually, but sometimes it's collectively, like as a culture, as a as a people. Now, we're a New Testament church. We've been called out of all of our other affiliations and into this. This is supposed to be our identity is in Christ and in this.

And so, the history books speak to the truth that I said, we're all sinners and we all stand in need of a Messiah, savior. The law books all present this. The prophets really preach this. Okay? And so there's none like Jesus.

There's no one who seeks after God without Jesus. It's all pointing towards Jesus, but I'm going back and I'm doing something that was pre Jesus, seven hundred and something years pre Jesus. So Paul says in... I think I'm actually in my slides now. Here we go.

Oh, goodness. It's gonna be a short sermon. Here we go. Here we go. Paul says in first Corinthians.

Alright. He says in first Corinthians, now in the first 10 verses, has given a history of the wilderness generation that has been brought out miraculously out of Egypt, and they were stiff necked, they went against him, and they wandered, and they were without faith, and they had all kinds of problems. Okay? And Paul says that these things that happened to them, as an example, and they were written down for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages has come. This is the age of grace.

This is the age he's talking about. He was at the beginning of it. We're in the midst of it. I'll let you all think we're in the last of it, and I hear that quite often. I don't know.

We're definitely in the middle of it. We're in the midst of it. So he says it in first Corinthians. He says it also in Romans. So we who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, not to please ourselves.

Let each of us please his neighbor for his good to build him up for Christ didn't please himself. But as it's written, you see the humility here? Paul is saying, reproaches of those who approached you fell on me. That's about Christ. But for whatever was written in the former days, this is what we're going to be going into, the minor prophets and the rest of the old testament too at some point.

Whatever was written in the former days was written for our instruction that through endurance and through the encouragement of the scriptures, we might have hope. So as I start off in Amos, I wanted to encourage you, and I want for you to have hope. And it ain't easy in the middle of the minor prophets to have hope. In the middle of each of those books, it's a really, really dark cloud, but there's always a silver lining in there. There's always a silver lining that will be encouraging and give you hope.

So that's what I'm hoping we'll do, but may the God of endurance and encouragement grant you all, y'all, to live in such harmony with one another in accordance with Jesus Christ, that together, you may all with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. You usually hear that as a blessing at the end of the sermon. Therefore, welcome one another just as Christ has welcomed you for the glory of God. We had a couple of visitors this morning that came in and admitted it, and I said, oh my goodness, you're in for a ride. I'm so used to giving a New Testament, happy, good, this is wonderful, here's Jesus, and we're going into Amos, so have fun with that.

This is Paul in Corinthians and Romans. Peter also agrees this thing's not working right now. There it is. Peter speaking of the prophet says this, and so we have the prophetic word made more sure because we've seen Jesus. We've seen the...

What was being prophesied. So we have the prophetic word, and it's made more sure because we've seen Jesus, to which you all will do well to pay attention. It's like a lamp shining in a dark place until that day dawns and the morning star rises in your own hearts. But know this first of all, no prophecy of scripture, think about this, becomes a matter of someone's own interpretation. It says what it says.

What does it mean to you? It's not the answer. What does it mean? Is the answer. That's what does it mean?

So we're trying to get at what it means. It's not something subjective, and I say this sincerely because I, this week, have talked to someone who believes that that God is speaking to them in the same way that he spoke to Amos. That's dangerous. Okay? Because God's not speaking in the same way through anybody today in the same way.

Prophesying and proclaiming thus saith the Lord for something new that is not in accordance with God's word is dangerous. It's not good. Saying thus saith the Lord because he wrote it down is good, and that's what I'm trying to do. For no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. So he was a relayer of a message, that's Amos.

So here we are, book of Amos. It is a collection of sayings. So it was probably many years of him sayings these same things, and people wrote them down. Some of them are poems, some of them are straight up prophecies, and the collection of the sayings is all in a book. This is one of the longer of the minor prophecies, nine chapters long.

I'd love to finish it today. I don't think we're going to. It's about social injustice primarily. If I had to say it in two words, it is social injustice. So here we go.

Amos, a sheep herder's vision. Chapters one, the very introduction is introducing Amos. He is... These are the words of Amos, who was among the sheep herders from Takoa, just a working guy. Takoa, it's not in...

It is in North Georgia, but spelled like this, it's in Northern Judah. This is during the time of the divided kingdom, so there's Judah in the South and Israel in the North. These words of Amos who was among the sheep herders of Decol, which he saw in visions concerning Israel. So he's from Judah, he's from the South, but he is presenting these words to the North. So in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, that was his king.

Remember, it's the same time as... Time frame as Isaiah, because in the day of Uzziah the king, Isaiah, blah blah blah. In the days of Jeroboam, oh gracious, Jeroboam, son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake. Jeroboam, let me just say it like this. The Northern Kingdom had no good kings, period, as far as God was concerned.

They had some wealthy kings, they had some battle... Some real real battle guys. And Jeroboam was one of those successful in the world's eyes and had completely filled the coffers of Israel, and it was a prosperous time. The economy was really really good, but Jeroboam was one among the worst of the kings, and there were no good kings in Israel. There were a few good kings in Judah.

So here we go. Amos, the man, he's a southern boy in Yankee territory. He's a native of Judah, but he's prophesying to Israel. So there they are on the map. Depending on where you put Tekoa, some people say it's closer to Israel, but he was really upset by that.

He was really really upset by what he saw going on in Israel. Now, how do national people take to someone from outside of their nation telling them what to do? Nothing has changed there. He's a sheep herder and a sycamore fig farmer. We see that in chapter seven.

Just a regular working guy. It's during the reign of Jeroboam, like I said, reign of Uzziah in the Southern Kingdom. So Isaiah is speaking there and he's speaking above, so it's a similar time frame there. And we put it between seven sixty seven, 753. That's where we are historically speaking.

Assyria is on the rise, but it's not mentioned by name. So Assyria is... I had a professor in seminary that said Israel and Judah are mice, but they're surrounded by big cats. Okay? So Assyria is one of those big cats that's on the rise, and it's in the North.

It's on the other side of Damascus, on the other side of Syria. And so whenever we hear any place references, I didn't put a lot of maps in today, but Assyria is the big cat that's on the rise. So Assyria is up there, Egypt is down there. Where... Are we together?

Okay. Here we go. And he said, the Lord roars from Zion, And from Jerusalem, he utters his voice. Now, if he's prophesying to Israel, why do they care? They're living in a prosperous time.

They've got a great economy. They've got things going on. And so he's prophesying usually to leadership, almost always to leadership, and Amos is speaking up and he said, the Lord is roaring out of Zion, my capital. And from Jerusalem he utters his voice, and the shepherds pasture grounds mourn, and the summit of Carmel dries up. And so then he begins, and I'm going to summarize because it's just too much.

Okay. Usually, I go literal word for word, verse for verse, but there's too much. Let's sum up. He starts off with oracles against the nations. And I say seven plus one.

The way that he does this is pretty genius. He's pretty good speaker, I guess. But he starts off, these were probably all given in the same speech maybe, but initial oracles start the book off and it's from right after our introduction to who he is, and he immediately starts railing against seven nations, and then one more. So here it is, it's eight nations, seven plus one is eight. Characteristics of each of these oracles is like this, there's an announcement of judgment.

Boom. Now, it's time. There's an announcement of judgment, and the reason is given for the judgment because you have done this. And then there's the nature of the judgment. This is kind of the punishment that shall follow.

And he does this poetically for seven nations, and here we go. These are the seven other kingdoms. And if you're looking at the map, and I didn't put the map up there, but I'll mention it again in a minute. The people of Israel are probably really enjoying this. How would you like it if we said, yeah, that dirty corrupt government of Mexico.

Sorry. That filthy corrupt government of Guatemala, El Salvador, whatever. If we said that sort of thing and we we... It's like, you know what? That's why the people are in such bad shape.

With Romania. Thank you. So Amos starts with those, and I'm sure he's getting amens. He's probably a quiet kinda... Let me listen to this guy.

I see a few of y'all exactly like this right now. This is what the Lord says, for three offenses of Damascus and for four, I will not revoke its punishment, announcement of judgment. And then the reason, because they threshed Gilead with iron sledges. Okay. Where's Gilead?

What are the iron sledges? They they were warriors that overtook people. Gilead, specifically. So I will send fire upon the house of Hazael, and will consume the citadels of Benedad, and I will break the gate of the bar Damascus, and eliminate every inhabit of the Valley Of Avon, as well as him who holds the scepter. And from Beth Eden, and from the people of Aram, they'll be exiled to Kirs, says the Lord.

And so, Israel's sitting back going, for Damascus? Sounds good. Oracle against Gaza. This is what the Lord says for three offenses of Gaza and for four, I will not revoke its punishment. Announcement reason, because they led into exile an entire population to turn them over to Edom.

Edom is pretty much always the bad guys. Right? I mean, they are related to Israel. They are related, but you you turn them over to Edom. So I'll send fire, consume the citadels, eliminate every habit for Ashdod, Ashkelon, Ekron, and the remnant of the Philistines, their ancient enemies will perish, says the Lord God.

Okay. That's number two. Okay. I'm with you. I don't like Damascus or Gaza.

Oracle against Tyre. This is what the Lord says, for three offenses retire and for four. Now, that's a three three is that number, and then they went beyond the number. They went beyond the... That was plenty at three, but you know what?

God waited, and they've done four now. I'm not going to revoke its punishment because they turned an entire population over to Edom, we heard that before. They didn't remember the covenant of brotherhood. They went against what they said they were going to do. They broke their treaties, their vows, whatever.

So I'll send fire on the Wall Of Tyre, and it will consume her citadels. Three. That's the fourth one. Right here, Edom. This is what the Lord says for three offenses of Edom, and for four, will not revoke his punishment.

Because he pursued his brother with the sword and stifled his compassion, His anger also tore continually. You know, Edom is the son of the Esau. Edomites come from that line. There's a lot of biblical history back there. You can look into it if you want to.

His anger also tore continually. He maintained his fury forever, and all of his descendants had the Hatfields and McCoy's attitude against Jacob Israel. Right? So I'll send fire upon Teman, and I will consume the citadels of Basra. Okay.

Still with you, Amos. This is what the Lord says, for three offenses of Ammon, that's where the Walmart is in Idaho Falls. I was there yesterday for the traffic of Ammon. No. For four, I will not revoke its punishment because they ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead in order to enlarge their borders.

Okay? That's the reason for the offense. Ruthlessness with women and children. So I'll come to father in the Walleraba, consumer citadels, war crimes in day of battle amid a storm, day of tempest. The king will go into exile as princes together, he and his princes together.

So that's five. That's against Ammon. Here we are against Moab. This is what the Lord says, for three offenses of Moab, and for four, I will not revoke its punishment because he burned the bones of the king of Edom to lime. To me, I'm like, okay.

But that's a big deal. Big deal. So I'm going to send upon Moab, and it will consume. Now, some of this just may be rhetorical because he's building towards something. We're on number six right now, and so far we're like, yeah, Amos.

We're on God's side, and go get them God. They they need what they deserve. I want mercy for me and justice for everybody else. Moab will die amid the panic of battle amid war cries and the sound of the trumpet. I'll also eliminate the judge from her midst and slay all our leaders with him, says the Lord.

So we get those and the characteristics of each. So these are six other kingdoms and this is... He's presenting up north, Israel, not Judah, he's presenting. And so the seventh one, if you're following on the map, it has gone from like this, and then a little bit closer circle, and then the seventh one is next. The people of Israel so far just lapping this up and loving it, like, yeah, death to our enemies.

This is what we want. So Oracle against Judah, I knew that split was the right thing to do. Right? Politically speaking, they're like, God's gonna even get Judah. They're too big for their britches.

That temple in Bethel is every bit as good as that temple in Jerusalem. This is what the Lord says for three offenses of Judah and for four, will not revoke its punishment. Announcement reason, because they rejected the law of the Lord. Yeah. And they have not kept his statutes.

That's what we're saying. Their lies also have led them astray. I believe that's true. Those which their fathers followed. Yes.

It'd been a hundred and fifty years since the split. Okay. The US is two hundred and fifty years, close, 249 years old. So it's been a hundred and fifty years since the nation split into two, and there's still some lingering stuff there. Right?

So I'll send fire upon Judah, and it will consume the citadels of Jerusalem. So there's an oracle against Judah. And then, so far so good for Israel, we'll hear more from this guy, and this is what he hears. Now the oracle against Israel is next, and it is three times as long and much more intense because they're all nodding their heads like this, and then when they see they're no different than anybody around them. This is what the Lord says for three offenses of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke his punishment because they sell the righteous for money.

The almighty dollar. I mean, the almighty shekel, what would it be back now? The needy for a pair of sandals, those who trample the head of the helpless to the dust of earth and divert the way of the humble, they make it hard to do the right thing, and it becomes all about money. And a man and his father resort to the same girl, so as to profane my holy name. So money and sex are...

They're gods. They're gods in Israel. And actually, I mentioned the temple in Bethel. The temple in Bethel had two golden calves. One golden calf wasn't good enough.

Two golden calves. And then after they put those two golden calves in the temple that's supposed to be for God, they put in all these other things into it. And they had weather gods, they had sex gods, they had war gods, all in the temple that's supposed to be the temple of God. So they were allowing idolatry in. On the garments, seized as pledges, they stretch out beside every altar in the house of their God.

They drink the wine of those who have been fined. This is the wealthy taking advantage of the poor and other stuff too, not just that. And then God gives him an additional explanatory note through Amos. Yet it was I, God says, that destroyed the Amorite before them. Remember that?

Though his height was like the height of cedars, and he was as strong as the oaks, I also destroyed his fruit above all his roots below. And it was I who brought you out of the land of Egypt and led you in the wilderness for forty years that you might take position of the land of the Amorite. You remember? God is saying. So he's explanatory note and his reason.

Then I raised up some of your sons to be prophets. I sent the message to you by your own people, and some of your young men to be Nazarites that would be set aside for consecrated service to me. Is this not so? And we can read the Old Testament and say, he did do that. Long, you know, major prophets are longer books, minor prophets are smaller books, but we can see that God did do that.

Is that not so, you sons of Israel? Declares the Lord and he says, but you made the Nazarites drink wine. You wouldn't let them just go. And you commanded the prophet saying, you shall not prophesy. You can't say that around here.

No. We don't wanna hear that. It goes against what we believe even if it's the word of the Lord. So the nature of the judgment is right here. Behold, I'm making a rut in the ground beneath you just as a wagon makes a rut when filled with sheaves.

It's pretty image we can all understand. Refuge will be lost from the swift, and the strong will not strengthen his power nor the warrior save his life. The one who grasps the bow will not stand his ground. The swift of foot will not escape nor will the one who rides the horse save his life. Even the bravest among the warriors will flee naked on that day you cannot trust in your military might.

So what was Israel's problem? Social injustice was the problem. There were bribes that were thwarting justice, and there were pledges that were causing problems. Some of that has to do with debt. Okay?

This is a hard situation to be in, to be listening as modern Americans to this because I do think that this does show some of the stuff that's problematic in our society. And if I speak really, really loud, it sounds like I'm against one side. I'm against both sides, okay? Just I I don't I don't think either side has a monopoly on the truth. I do think God does.

I think that if we'll pay attention to it, it'll help us. So don't be trying to thwart justice. Don't be putting your thumb on the scales. Don't make that back call to your cousins, whatever, to get something done that is wrong. Pledges, immorality, and oppression of the poor.

Those are the things that Amos list straight up. Basically, with God's explanatory note, it's saying, I gave you grace and you answered it with sin. You took advantage of it. You tread upon the grace of God. So sermons against the nation of Israel start up now.

It doesn't sound like they've started. The oracle against was to begin with, but then he kinda speaks sermonically. And I've got five minutes left. I'm gonna make it up through part of chapter five. Okay?

So we're gonna go through half of the book today. We'll get to three dot dot dot dot dot an ellipsis, we'll stop right there. So here we go. When he says that I'm the one who brought you out of Egypt and I chose you from all the nations of the earth, that's what he's about to say. You know, when you're trying to save a world like God is trying to save a world, and you start somewhere, it's by your...

By his grace. Right? That's that's what he was choosing when he spoke to Abraham and said, leave land that you know, go to the place that I'll show you, the ones you bless, I'll bless, the ones you curse, I curse. I want to have a relationship with you. Let's walk between the pieces of this bull in a ceremony that makes sense to you.

We're gonna do this. I'm calling people through you. You're gonna be a light to the nations. You're my starting point. And so God's election of Abraham or his calling of Abraham, you only had I known from the beginning.

That's where I started. Your people, I started with your people, but but you've forgotten about me. So there's a rhetorical whammy that's coming up in a series of pretty easy questions. The last question is the key, and I'll try to get through that, and we'll... I used to hate when I was watching Happy Days, and it said to be continued at the end.

Made me so mad. Even in syndication, and I'm doing it this week, and I just can't stand that. But hear this word of the Lord which the Lord has spoken against you sons of Israel, against the entire family which he brought up from the land of Egypt, the entire family. For you only have I known among all of the families of the earth, all of them were going wrong and I picked you out to start something. Therefore, I'll punish you for all your wrongdoing.

The two people walk together unless they have agreed or agreed to meet? Can two walk together unless they be agreed? Does a lion roar in the forest when he has no prey? Does a young lion growl from his den unless he has captured something? Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground when there's no device in Does a trap spring up from the earth when it captures nothing at all?

If a trumpet is blown in the city, will people not tremble? If a disaster occurs in the city, has the Lord not brought it about? Certainly. The Lord God does nothing unless he reveals his secret plan to his servants, prophets. That's why we need to be listening to the prophets.

And properly handled, that's why we need to be listening to preachers. If you stick close to what it says, that's why we need to listen to what it says. Maybe that's that's a better way to put it. He is going to tell you how he is, who he is, and what he will do. A lion has roared.

Who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken. Who can do anything but proclaim or prophesy? Who can do anything but see this judgment coming? So Amos, right there, that's the end of chapter three, beginning of chapter four.

Amos calls the pampered women, and I'm saying Amos said it, I didn't say it. Cows of Bashan. That is not gonna make a southern fella's reputation any better. The pampered women of Israel, he calls them the cows of Bashan. Bashan was a great, absolutely wonderful feeding ground, and the cows of Bashan were known to be very, very ample.

But these women were oppressing the poor, and he said that captors will drag them away. Proverbs 22. Let me just throw that in here. Do not rob the poor because he is poor. Don't take advantage of their situation nor crush the needy at the gate, for the Lord will plead their case and he'll take the life of those who rob them.

I missed a slide during the announcements, it was about the benevolence fund. Our benevolence fund here, I'm so thankful for y'all's generosity. Now, I'm preaching for Mamos, and I'm saying, don't take advantage of the poor, and I'm also same time saying, be generous to the poor, and I know I'm preaching to the choir because you all are pretty generous to the poor for the most part. So it was a big number, $117,000 or something. And this has been a growing trend that we are trying our best to take care of the poorest people.

There it is. Hey, the build. There it is. Thank you. Up in the booth, Josh.

That's pretty cool. Taking care of it. I'm saying that sort of as a pat on the back, but I'm also saying still take the word of, can we go back to the other thing? He's he's working on it. Yeah.

The Lord will plead the case of the poor. You know what? He wins. He wins. In the courts, a lot of times the poor don't do so well.

You know, but yeah. God will plead their case. So God's persistence in Israel's stubbornness, this is God showing a little sarcasm, I think. Go ahead. Bring your offerings.

I'm not listening. I'm not paying attention to them. You don't mean it. They were quite religious still. And can you imagine walking to the front walking to the front with a gift and you walk past Baal and Asherah and all these other gods, and then you're laying down your...

So it was overt and real easy to see for them. But do we still do that? Do we still have some idols? Do we still have some affiliations that we're like, that's more important or at least as important as our affiliation with Christ and his kingdom? So God's redemptive efforts, redemptive.

The famine, the drought, and the plague is redemptive. He's trying to bring them back into a recognition that I am the Lord. Right? So God's conclusion in these sermons is prepare to meet your God. So it's a dirge over Israel.

Amos uses shock technique to get Israel's attention and a call to embrace true values. Don't resort to Bethel or Gilgal or Beersheba. Don't go to those places, come directly to me. Darkness, not light. This is what's coming.

And I'll read through this rather quickly, and I might start right here next week again. Hear this word which I'm taking up for you in the... As a song of mourning, house of Israel. She has fallen and she will not rise again. The virgin, Israel.

She lies unnoticed on her land. There's no one to raise her up. For this is what the Lord God says, the city which goes forth a thousand strong, trusting in their strength, will have a 100 left. And the one who goes forth with a 100 strong will just have 10 left, 90% taken out. This is what the Lord says to the house of Israel, seek me so that you may live.

Amen. Amen. This is the point. This is the whole point. It's at the absolute center of this book.

It says it multiple times, seek me so that you may live. Trust me. Did I just jump up and down? I didn't plan that. Sorry.

But don't resort to Bethel. Don't go to Gilgal. Don't cross over to Beersheba. Gilgal is certainly going to go into captivity, you already heard me say that. Bethel will come to nothing, you already heard me say that.

Seek the Lord so that you may live. Second time he said it, or he'll break through like a firehouse of Joseph, and it will consume with no one to extinguish it for Bethel. He is the Lord, and he can do whatever he wants. Put your trust in him. Humbly agree with him.

For those who turn justice into wormwood and throw righteousness to the earth. We don't care about that. All we care about is Benjamin's. Whatever it was at the time. I don't know what it was.

Those who turn justice into wormwood. We don't care about justice. We don't care about righteousness. He who made the Pleiades and Orion, so the constellations of stars, and he changes deep darkness into morning. He's the one that brings that sun up every morning.

He also darkens the day into night for he's the one who calls the waters of the sea, pours them out on the surface of the earth. The Lord is his name. The Lord is his name. Almighty God. That's the one you're supposed to seek so that you may live, not God of the weather, the fishing gods.

I can't tell you how many how many calls I get from people going fishing saying, we've got our little ways that we do things, all our superstitions, but we're trying to get your God to help us too. We're praying to the fishing gods. You pray to your guy. No. We sang a song about it this morning that people will drink the rain and then praise the clouds.

It's... It is common. It's common. It's really common here. It's common everywhere.

It's he who makes destruction flash upon the strong so that destruction comes upon the fortress. They hate him who rebukes in the gates. Oh, I don't think you can say that. I don't think you can say that. I said this a few weeks ago.

Billy Sunday, famous revival preacher. They said, Billy Sunday, you cannot say that. You can't say that. You're stroking the cats far the wrong way. And his response, well, the cat is headed towards hell.

And if that cat would turn around, I'd be stroking this far the right way. They hate him who rebukes in the gate. They despise him who speaks with integrity. If you call out either side in the politics right now, if you call out either side, you're going to reap the whirlwind. But we still got to do it.

And both sides. They despise him who speaks with integrity. Therefore, because you impose heavy rent on the poor, take a tribute of grain from them, that points towards sharecropping, it comes up everywhere. In Guatemala, that's the main way that everything is produced just like it was in the South after the civil war. Sharecropping is the normal way.

It's it's oppressive. It is. Therefore, because you do this, and though you have built houses out of cut stone, you will not be able to live in them because this is a prophecy about their doom. You've planted beautiful vineyards, yet you're not going to drink their wine. The day is coming.

I mentioned Assyria is on the rise. And spoiler alert, forty years later, Assyria is not just on the rise, Assyria overtakes them. And they weren't able to live in those houses, and they weren't able to drink that wine. So it happened. It came to pass.

For I know your offenses are many, your sins are great, and you are hostile to the righteous, and you accept bribes, and you turn away the poor from justice at the gate. Therefore, at such a time, the prudent person keeps quiet because it's just an evil time. Okay. When I mentioned at the beginning, we're New Testament church, New Testament believers, and we have the Holy Spirit kind of in our heart and in our minds, and he's written his law in our hearts, and we know the right thing to do, can we still not do it? Yeah.

So we're either gonna be sowing to the spirit and walking in obedience, or we're gonna be sowing to the flesh, and he's shown us a lot of ways we can go wrong. And there are lot of very tempting ways to go wrong. At such a time, the prudent person keeps quiet because it's just an evil time. And I think that that's been the case in place after place after place since this was written, and it's encouraging Amos, God through Amos, is encouraging the prudent man not to keep quiet. Okay?

But it's got to be about what thus saith the Lord, not does saith my own brain and my own opinion. So seek good. It said seek God, seek the Lord so that you may live, seek the Lord so that you may live, and then now it says seek good and not evil so that you may live. All of those other gods are evil. And God is good.

God is good. And Amen. All the That's right. And so he said, seek after the good so that the... May...

And so may the Lord, God of armies be with you just as you have said. You have been saying he's with you. But you seek after what is good, righteousness, and not evil, that's how you're gonna live. So may the Lord of God of armies move. Just if you said, hate evil, love good, establish justice in the gates, start at home.

Perhaps the Lord God of armies will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph. There are some of these people that were the remnant that had not bowed their knee to the Baals, and they had not done this stuff. He's calling more people to join into actual true worship of the true and holy God. Therefore, this is what the Lord God of army says. Let me let me skip forward on this.

No. I will not skip forward. Oh, I'm over. I want to get somewhere. Therefore, this is what the Lord God of armies.

The Lord says, there's mourning in all the public squares and all the streets. They say, oh, no. Oh, no. They also call the farmer to mourning, professional mourners to mourning rights, and in the vineyards, there's mourning. Sounds like doom and gloom.

Because I'll pass through the midst of you, says the Lord, you should be afraid. You should be revering me. Woe to you who are longing for the day of Lord, for what purpose will the day of Lord be to you? It'll be darkness and not light. If you feel like I'm on God's side, I'm on God's side, I'm on God's side, But you don't act like you're on God's side.

This is this is a real... It's a wake up call. It's a real hard thing to to process. It's gonna be darkness and not light. It's gonna be like a man that's running from a lion, and then a bear confronts him.

Or as he goes home, he leans his hand against the wall. Finally, I'm home, and a snake bites him. With the day of the Lord, will it not be darkness instead of light, even gloom with no brightness in it? I can't believe I'm going call the band up after this. I hate I reject your festivals.

Nor do I delight in your festive assemblies. Thank you very much for your warm, receptive hearts coming in here this morning. Even though you offer up to me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I'm not going to accept them. I won't even look at your peace offerings of the fat and oxen. Take away from me the noise of your songs.

Turn in your hymnals. I will not even listen to the sound of your harps. But let justice roll down as a river or waters and righteousness as a mighty stream. But let justice roll out like waters and righteousness like an ever flowing stream. Those two words is what I wanna land on.

Took me a while to get here. Justice. Justice is from Hebrew word tzedekah. It refers to a standard of right, equitable relationships between people no matter what. Okay?

Treating everybody well, treating everybody like do unto others as you would have them do unto you. That's a very New Testament thing. Despite the social differences, despite everything else, and I I love y'all. I'm glad that we're all together, we've got a mix of all kinds of people. Treat each other well, do unto others.

And then righteousness, so that's mishpat. Mishpat refers to concrete actions that you can take to correct injustice and to create righteousness. So both of these things are permeate the life of God's people like a rushing stream fills a dry riverbed. Okay. That's what we're shooting for.

Now, I love y'all, and I want you to know the hope of the gospel. I want for you to know that everybody in every land has always done the same kind of stuff that all of those oracles were against. It is the normal way of man, but the spirit of God who inspired Amos to call it out, to call out all the religious hypocrisy and the baloney, and to call out all the ugliness is the same spirit that is moving today in his people. It indwells. He's writes the law in our hearts, and it's moving today.

This is an Old Testament sermon with a New Testament offer... Altar call. Okay? Jesus frees us from the perpetual cycle of our own humanity. God's spirit is still very, very active, and he's still speaking to hearts.

And if he's speaking to yours, I invite you to come forward. You can pray at the altar. You can speak to me. I'll turn the microphone off. We can speak afterwards.

I am leaving the altar open to say, come. Come. And I'll ask the band to come on up, and I'll pray. Lord, may we never be guilty of just plain old religiosity. May we be sincere in our worship of you.

May we be sincere in our introspection, and may we get a clear picture of where our heart actually is. I think Amos has helped collectively, but Lord, I I pray individually, you'd say, this is the place. And Lord, that we'd be able to discern between the spirits that would condemn us. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. All who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.

So Lord God Almighty, I pray that you would be saving right now. That you'd be bringing people into the kingdom right now. That you'd be healing people right now. In Jesus name. In Jesus name, we gather and we pray and may your name be lifted up.

Amen. Would you stand with us?

There is joy in the morning springing up in my soul there's

Thank you for coming this morning. As a benediction, we'll just, read first Thessalonians five. Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ and Jesus.

Have a great day. Thanks for coming.