Amos begins with a humble description of himself - "one of the sheep
farmers" (Amos 1:1). Being a prophet of God has nothing to do with what
we are in ourselves. It's all about God. It's all about His grace and
His call. Looking after sheep - This is such an apt description of the
ministry of a pastor. "The Lord roars from Zion" (Amos 1:2). These words
make us think of a lion. This could be terrifying for sheep. Think of
the lion - Aslan - from "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" (C S
Lewis). It's a picture of Christ. His voice is more than a roar. It's
the voice of love. The "roar" speaks of authority. The greatest
authority is the authority of love. How does the Lord command our
respect? He loves us. As we learn to appreciate His love, we learn to
love Him. Our love for Him is inspired by His love for us. As we learn
to love Him, our obedience to Him increases in strength. "The Lord has
said this" (Amos 1:15). The prophet's voice is to be an echo of the
Lord's voice. We speak because God has spoken.
"I brought you out of Egypt..." (Amos 2:10-11). God had done great things for His people. Sadly, this is followed by "You made the Nazirites drink wine. You commanded the prophets to stop prophesying." God has been good to us. How are we reacting to His love? Are we being changed by His love? His love is not only a gift to be received. It's a power to make us more like Him.
"I brought you out of Egypt..." (Amos 2:10-11). God had done great things for His people. Sadly, this is followed by "You made the Nazirites drink wine. You commanded the prophets to stop prophesying." God has been good to us. How are we reacting to His love? Are we being changed by His love? His love is not only a gift to be received. It's a power to make us more like Him.
Privilege and responsibility (Amos 3:2). "The Almighty
Lord has spoken. Who can keep from prophesying?" (Amos 3:8). God's Word
is not to go in one ear and out the other ear. It's to change us. It's
to equip us for living as His people and being His witnesses.
"And
still you didn't return to Me, declares the Lord" (Amos 4:8-11). What
does God say to people who keep on refusing to return to Him? This is
what He says: "Prepare to meet your God" (Amos 4:12).
"Search for
Me and live! ... Search for Me and live!" (Amos 5:4,6). Life can be
tuned around. This isn't something that we can do for ourselves. It must
done for us by the Lord. "Search for good instead of evil so that you
may live" (Amos 5:14). The Lord gives us a new direction in life. When
we read of the call to conversion, we must remember that we cannot
answer this call in our own strength. The strength that we need must be
given to us by the Lord.
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