God's Call and Our Response:  "The Call of God to Amos"

LIFE (Living In Fellowship Everyday):  We are on a relational Journey--Greater connection with God and people.

Calls of God: (from Dr. Peter D. Wyns--Chronicles of Righteousness)
1. Call from eternity; a call to life
2. Call to every child; childhood experiences with God
3. Call to salvation
Every soul receives the first three calls
4.  Call to discipleship
5.  Call to service
6.  Call to your own ministry
7.  Call for greatness (these are people who continually answer God's call).

Last Week:  We looked at God's call to Israel.  God's invitation to Israel was to enter into a covenantal agreement whereby they could partner with God in mission.  The Israelites were called into a position of worship--agreement with God.  Many Israelites never tasted the promises of God; many continue to miss the best gift of all--Jesus!  God  has not forsaken Israel; we are to continue to pray for the shalom--the peace and salvation--of Israel.

This Week:  We will explore the book of Amos.  Amos was called by God, as a prophet, to proclaim righteousness--again, a posture of worship that leads to right living as God's people.  This was a call to service.  The prophets were all about connecting to God; God still sends His prophets to help make those connections. 

Introduction:  Amos enters into his calling during a time when Israel is a split kingdom; the northern kingdom (Israel) and the southern kingdom (Judah).  Due to pagan influence in the north (through the leadership of Jeroboam I), the very people God had placed to bring restoration and help to the poor and oppressed began to abuse others. Paranoid Jeroboam was worried about losing his "worshipers" to the southern kingdom.  So, he embraced strands of paganism to keep the people planted.   Worship turned from a place of oneness with God into a place where people fought for power; literally they fought against the heart of God.  Amos leaves Judah and travels to the northern kingdom where he begins to keep God's people accountable for the call on their lives to the One True God.  He told the people that their words were empty without the right heart; the heart of a worshiper--the heart of a servant.

Amos begins his calling by declaring the improper actions of Israel's surrounding nations.  Israel wholeheartedly agreed these things others were doing were very wrong.  However, Amos then begins to tell Israel they themselves were sinning against God.

Can you imagine how Amos would feel at this time?  He is not in his home town and he is speaking against those who truly feel they are God's chosen who are right with God; they are only "self-right."  They had totally lost their direction and servant hearts; God was not pleased.  Amos was called by God to cast judgment against God's chosen people who knew from the beginning what he expected from His worshipers.  How quickly we forget God and live for ourselves.

READ:  Amos 3:7-8; Amos brings an indictment against Israel. 

• We can meet God in worship--oneness
         Worship must be authentic
• Or, we can meet God in judgment

READ:  Amos  7:12-15 We pick up the reading with the high priest, Amaziah, as he sends a message to Jeroboam to get rid of Amos.   Both Amaziah and Jeroboam I. are not looking good as leaders.  They profess one thing; they are living a totally different way.

Here we note a little corruption in the priesthood; covering each other's backsides so to speak!  The faithfulness and boldness of Amos was a problem to those around him; especially Amaziah and Jeroboam I. God will call for us to be bold in professing our faith!

JOKE:  An elderly lady was well-known for her faith and for her boldness in talking about it. She would stand on her front porch and shout "PRAISE THE LORD!"

Next door to her lived an atheist who would get so angry at her proclamations he would shout, "There ain't no Lord!!"

Hard times set in on the elderly lady, and she prayed for GOD to send her some assistance. She stood on her porch and shouted "PRAISE THE LORD. GOD I NEED FOOD!! I AM HAVING A HARD TIME. PLEASE LORD, SEND ME SOME GROCERIES!!"

The next morning the lady went out on her porch and noted a large bag of groceries and shouted, "PRAISE THE LORD."

The neighbor jumped from behind a bush and said, "Aha! I told you there was no Lord. I bought those groceries, God didn't."

The lady started jumping up and down and clapping her hands and said, "PRAISE THE LORD. He not only sent me groceries, but He made the devil pay for them. Praise the Lord!"

Keep your witness bold and remain faithful to praise our Lord; God will provide!  Remember, God calls ordinary people who simply obey and SERVE an extraordinary God!  Here's a look at Amos:

I.  Amos was a lay person. 
• Herdsman
• He was from Tekoa; eastern village in Judea (800' above sea level).  He could see the Mount of Olives in the distance.  He could look down upon the Dead Sea.  Tekoa was 6 miles south of Bethlehem and twelve miles from Jerusalem. 
• It was a desolate place; anyone would have struggled for survival in Tekoa
• Amos was bold and strong; persevering and ethical in his faith; his environment prepared him for the things he would experience in Israel.

II.  Amos was drafted to the prophetic office.
• He says, "Look, I am not a professional prophet."  (King Jeroboam had professional prophets).  NOTE:  God did not use them.
• Not a prophet by birth or personal choice
• Not looking to make money on this deal (King Amaziah accused him of such; Amaziah was on the deception payroll)
• God mandated his actions

III.  How did the call of God come to Amos?
• No one really knows
• Some surmise that Amos meditated upon the moral nature of Israel's God and at the same time contemplated the immoral nature of the people; therefore, judgment must come upon the people. 
• Holy God could not condone the idolatry, immorality, drunkenness, and indifference of a people who had been so richly blessed. Someone had to act.
• Maybe a lion pounced on innocent prey during his tending hours and he was convinced that the God of justice would bring judgment.

History:  God always spoke through his prophets and always warned of impending judgment.  Repentance sometimes stayed the wrath of God. 
• Maybe God is calling you to bring a word of invitation or warning to someone who needs God's forgiveness?
   Life can be empty; we fill it with idolatry
   There are consequences for displacing God 
• Maybe God is calling you to rise in your service to Him; we are all called to be servants. 
   Jesus referred to himself as a servant.
• Service is the reason we have been given the Holy Spirit

Calling and Purpose:  Do you feel your existence is too routine?  Or, perhaps you feel there is a non-stop struggle for survival--like Amos.  If either of these are the case, then something is missing. 
According to Dr. Peter Wyns:
• Within every person is a seed of purpose
• Must nurture the seed until we "know" we are doing what God created us to do
   Mary Testimony:  There have been times lately, in my life and ministry, where it just feels right; I have inner peace and a sense of knowing all is well with God!  I sense the pleasure and smile of God in my spirit.  Not because I do everything right, but because my heart to love and serve God is right.  Those are the things God cares most about.  In those areas, my heart has taken a posture of worship--oneness.

Here are 7 aspects of your personal calling that are common to every person.
1. Your calling is designed to make a difference in the world.
2. It is a huge challenge to discover who you are and to find your purpose.
3. As you begin to discover your ultimate purpose, you will walk through the gates of greatness.  Each of us have magnificent gates that are designed just for you.  Finding those gates means discovering who you are, what your life should focus on, and what you should do.  God will reveal these things to you; you must enter and go through the gates.  This involves a battle; proceed at all cost.  Salvation is free, but finding your God-given purpose will cost you everything.  Operative words are "discover what is yours and go through."  Entering in you will sense God's pleasure; God's smile.  It's a holy place.
4. It will be hard work; you must build your own highway to achieve your goals--this is between you and God.  No one will do this for you.  (NOTE:  If I could have paid someone to go through the hard times for me I would have done so!ha!  But, God does not work that way; we need to embrace even the hard times and know that God will sustain us with His strength and make us even bolder for Him).   God will show you the steps involved in building your personal pathway.  This step involves hard work, training, learning from others, and taking risky steps that lead you forward. 
5. Along the way, you must remove the stones that obstruct the pathway to your destiny and future.  Pride, selfishness, and inferiority complex, laziness, and addictions all work to slow you down.  Poverty, sickness, and strife will interfere. God will help to remove these stones.  The stones have to do with human weakness.  We can overcome in Christ.
6. Every person's God-given mission will ultimately involve helping other people.  We are to prepare a Way for others.  We must cooperate with the personal preparation we just discussed.  As we mature, the Holy Spirit works in our lives.  Our calling is one that encourages, teaches, delivers, frees, gives, supports, upholds, etc other people. 
7. Once you are fulfilling your ministry, you should wave it like a banner.  This is a picture of your testimony; what God has done in your life.  Touch the next generation with your story.  Begin to spiritually reproduce yourself.  This is a picture of greatness.