Introduction: This week we come to the end of our study of the book
of Amos. How would you guess a book like Amos should end? After all
of the warnings, after all of the predictions of gloom and doom, how
would you write the last chapter? Let’s jump in and see how things turn
out!
- Repair
- Read Amos 9:11. Verse 11 starts out, “in that day.” What
day are we talking about? (Let’s go back and revisit Amos
9:10. “That day” is the day of judgment and destruction of
sinners.) - Let’s go back and finish up the entire sentence by reading
Amos 9:11-12. Out of this destruction, what is God’s
promise for the future? (That He will make things as they
used to be. He will repair what He has destroyed.) - Who is “Edom” and why would they (the righteous) want
to possess it? (J.A. Motyer’s commentary on Amos
explains that Edom represented all that was hostile
to the kingdom of God. After defeating the evil of
Edom, what is left (the remnant) will not only be
possessed by God’s people, but it will (v.12) “bear
[God’s] name.” Note that King David was the only one
to conquer and hold the literal kingdom of Edom. (2
Samuel 8:14)) - Read Acts 15:15-18. What is James quoting? (He is quoting
the text we just read in Amos!) - Let’s find out what this is about. Read Acts 15:1-2.
What is the controversy? (Whether and how the
Gentiles can be saved.) - Read Acts 15:7-11. How would you summarize Peter’s
argument? - Read Acts 15:13-20. How does James use and understand
his quotation from Amos 9? (He uses it as God’s
prediction that gentiles will become part of God’s
people and that His people should not “stand on
ceremony” to prevent them from joining.) - Is it proper for James to quote a text that, as we know
from our study of Amos, is a prediction of doom for Israel
that actually took place a long time before? (This is an
important principle of prophecy. Some prophecies have
multiple applications. James was completely correct in
applying the prophecy of Amos to his time.)
- How do you explain that Amos 9:12 refers to “possess[ing]
the remnant of Edom?” (This is the great gospel
commission! By converting “gentiles” we “may possess the
remnant of Edom” just as King David “possessed” Edom. The
difference is that we possess it by persuasion and
conversion – not conquest.) - As you consider Amos 9:11-12 do you see any “conversion”
possibility here? Is there anything here that would cause
you to convert if you were an unbeliever? (What else is
Amos all about, other than conversion? Why would God send
a messenger to threaten people with destruction if he did
not have a redemptive goal? The goal of Amos is to have
the people repent and return to God. That is apparently
what happened to a “remnant.” That is part of God’s
“repair.”) - Is this message from God as relevant today as it was in
the days of Amos and James? - Future Farmers
- Read Amos 9:13. I must say that since I don’t have a
background in farming, this is a little difficult for me
to understand. Let’s work it through. What are the
“reaper” and the “one treading grapes” doing? (They are
gathering in the food and processing it.) - What are the plowman and the planter doing? (They are
preparing the soil and putting in the seed.) - So, what is going on if the two preparing the soil
and putting in the seed are “overtaking” the two who
are gathering the food and processing it? (It seems
the people are not done gathering and processing the
food from the last growing season when the people
putting in the new crop come on the scene.) - Is that good? (Yes! It seems to say they have a
harvest that is so huge they cannot get it all
in and processed before the next growing
season.) - Why would new wine “drip” from the mountains and
“flow” from the hills? (This is another picture of an
abundant harvest. The land is “sweating” grape
juice!) - Enjoy
- Have you ever heard of a situation where a person works
for 30 or 40 years and then retires, only to die a few
months later? Why is that so troubling? (They did not get
to enjoy the retirement they deserved.) - Read Amos 5:11. Do you remember this as part of the
judgment that Amos promised? Now read Amos 9:14. What is
the difference here? (God promises that those who are
faithful to Him will be allowed to live in their own
cities, drink the wine of their vineyards and eat the
fruit of their gardens. No one will take the “reward” of
their work away from them.) - Are you looking forward to a retirement of sitting back
and watching television? Is that the picture we have from
God about the future? (No. God has work in mind for us.
What makes the difference is that you get to keep what you
have made.) - What does that suggest about how we should live life
now? - Amos is filled with warnings about the rich
mistreating the poor. What lesson might we find in
verse 14 about how we should treat the poor? (The
common complaint in Amos is that the rich are
cheating the poor. They are taking advantage of
them. Nowhere does it suggest that the rich have an
obligation to help individuals who are unwilling to
help themselves. Indeed, the goal seems to be a
productive life where you get to keep what you have
earned. Amos approach to the rich is to be fair and
kind to the poor. His approach to both the rich and
the poor is to work. This accords with Paul’s
statement in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 if you don’t work
you should not eat. God’s goal for our life is to
enjoy productive work.) - Read Amos 9:15. Why does God say He will “plant” Israel?
(He looks forward to His people growing.) - Earlier, we discussed the multiple fulfillment of
prophecy. This seems to be a prophecy that could
apply to our future in heaven. If this is a view of
heaven, how is a plant a good analogy? (There are a
couple of ideas here. First, God looks forward to us
“growing” in heaven. Our wisdom and spiritual
insight will continue to develop. Second, the plant
has a special relationship with the land. The word
picture here is that God will give us a place to live
that will help us to grow. It will be a pleasant
place.) - Friend, how about you? Do you look forward to a time and
place when you never have to worry about someone “taking
away” your family members? Never have to worry someone
“taking away” your life or your stuff? Do you look forward
to a pleasant place? This is what God offers to those who
are faithful. Will you decide today to be part of the
“remnant of Edom?” - Next week: We start a new quarter on the “Cosmic Conflict
Between Christ and Satan.” The title of our lesson next week is
“War in Heaven.”
