Amos

A Broadside Wake-Up Call

Well, as we continue our walk through the Bible sermon series, we come to the book of Amos. The time frame of the book of Amos is around 760 BC — that's about 350 years after King David. At this point in time, the nation of Israel is prosperous and secure. Their agriculture and trade economy is flourishing. They are safe from external threats and are actually enjoying a measure of international renown. As a nation, Israel is on a roll.

When suddenly, a sheep breeder and fig tree farmer from South Israel named Amos appears on the scene like a bolt from the blue, with a word from the Lord. That word from God is that he sees through the prosperity and security of the nation of Israel — through it to the rampant injustice, immorality, and superficial worship that characterized their society.

In Amos chapter 2, God says of his people:

"They have rejected the law of the Lord and have not kept his decrees. They have been led astray by false gods. They sell the innocent for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals. They trample on the heads of the poor as on the dust of the ground and deny justice to the oppressed."

He goes on in chapter 5:

"I hate, I despise your religious festivals. Your assemblies are a stench to me... Away with the noise of your songs. I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river and righteousness like a never-failing stream."

The Israelites had a show of religion. Whether at the Jerusalem temple or at the altars and shrines set up around their nation, they were bringing sacrifices and singing praises. But in their hearts, they'd stopped taking God seriously. They had ceased to genuinely seek God. And here's the thing: when humans forget God, we forget how to love our neighbor. Immorality and injustice start to permeate society and take over like toxic weeds.

It was time for a broadside wake-up call via the prophet Amos, declaring the word of the Lord.

Seek Me and Live

"This is what the Lord says to Israel: Seek me and live. Do not seek Bethel, do not go to Gilgal, do not journey to Beersheba... Seek the Lord and live." (Amos 5:4)

My desire as we look at this scripture today is that each one of us would have clarity when it comes to one question: Am I genuinely seeking God in every area of my life?

Why does he say, "Seek me and live"? Because if we're not genuinely seeking God — even in just one area of our life — we will start to drift from the ways of the Lord. We will become distracted by the things of this world. We will walk in disobedience, and in the end what will be left is disappointment and the destructive impact of sin.

The people of Israel in Amos' day were seeking a whole lot of different things — the same things most people in our society today are seeking most of the time: power, wealth, pleasure, and comfort, along with spiritual blessing and significance. They were seeking a whole lot of things in a whole lot of places, but they were missing the key: they needed to seek the person of God.

Why Not Bethel, Gilgal, or Beersheba?

These three place names all had major significance in Israel's history. Bethel was where Jacob had his vision of the stairway to heaven. Gilgal was the first encampment of God's people in the promised land. Beersheba had spiritual significance in the lives of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

So why were the Israelites told not to go to any of these places?

• Bethel had turned, over the years, into an idol worship epicenter.
• Gilgal and Beersheba were pilgrimage locations honoring Israel's past, but the people were neglecting to seek God in the present.

God had said in 2 Chronicles 7:16, "I have chosen and consecrated this temple... so that my name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there." God's presence was in the temple at Jerusalem — yet the people kept going elsewhere to seek him.

God wants to be found, and he always makes a way for us to find him. But we have to seek him in the place — and with the heart — that he has appointed. Even when the Israelites did go to the temple, they didn't come with the right heart. As one commentator put it, "The Israelites had the false view that one can actually worship God by going through the ritual and not turning oneself fully to God."

"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13)

All your heart doesn't just mean emotions — it means your will, your energy.

What Does It Mean to Seek God?

To seek God is the strong desire and pursuit to be near him, to hear him, and to follow him. It is a longing, a hunger in our heart — a determined quest, day in and day out, to draw near to him.

Seeking God is a dynamic relationship. Whatever season we're stepping into, we say, "God, I want to seek you here. I need your presence, your power, your word, your guidance." And because God wants to be found, when we seek him with all our heart, we begin to recognize his presence active in our lives — wisdom, strength, perseverance, guidance. Then when the season changes, we step in again and ask him to reveal himself anew.

Seeking God in the Age of AI

Humans throughout history have had a natural inclination to seek the divine. In just the last few years, a new avenue has emerged: artificial intelligence.

Several religious and spiritual experiments with AI have appeared across major world religions. One chatbot app called Text with Jesus let users message the apostles and prophets — even receive voicemail with a premium subscription. In 2024, one Christian group had to rush to take its chatbot offline after it advised that it would be fine to baptize a child in Gatorade.

More soberly, one founder said he hoped to develop "a god based on AI" — not to make the app more intelligent, but to make the experience "more authentic and personal." Within 15 hours of launch, it had over a million downloads.

A study released last month by Barna found that 48% of professed practicing Christians in the US said they would trust AI with their spiritual growth, and a third said AI's spiritual guidance is as trustworthy as a pastor's. However, 65% expressed concern about AI replacing God — a number that rises to 79% among pastors.

Whatever we conclude about AI, the underlying question remains: How and where are you seeking the person of God?

Seeking a Person, Not a Place

The good news of the New Testament era is that we don't seek God in a particular place — we seek him in a particular person.

"I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6) "If you have seen me, you have seen the Father." (John 14:9)

We don't gather at a campus because God dwells in the building — we gather because God dwells in us. All who've received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior have his Spirit living in their hearts. He calls us to come together to seek him, worship him, learn from him, and encourage one another.

Even here, we need to ask: Am I here to seek the person of God, or for a spiritual experience, an emotional high, a social boost, a favourite pastor, a family tradition, a box to check? Not all these reasons are wrong — but it's good to be honest with God: "Lord, I'm here for this reason." And our prayer can be, "God, teach me what it looks like to seek you in every season of my life."

Seeking God in the Shake-Up

The Israelites in Amos' day weren't pursuing the person of God — they pursued the fulfillment of their own desires, which led to oppressing the innocent and trampling the poor. Because of this:

"I will shake the people of Israel among all the nations as grain is shaken in a sieve, and not a pebble will reach the ground." (Amos 9:9)

The Image of the Sieve

A sieve was a tool of ancient farming. A farmer would spread his harvest on a threshing floor and roll a heavy stone over it, back and forth, to separate grain from chaff. The resulting mixture — stalks, twigs, pebbles, chaff, and grain — would then be shoveled into a sieve held over a sack. As the farmer shook the sieve, the small grains fell through the mesh into the sack, while the rocks, twigs, and chaff remained on top to be thrown out.

In Amos, the whole world becomes one massive sieve, and God is shaking and sifting according to his purposes. Those who fall through — who have sought the Lord and received his forgiveness in Christ — become the eternal harvest. But here's the key: before the grain drops through, it's right in the mix, right in the shake-up.

The Israelites who sought the Lord in Amos' day were themselves victims of the oppression and idolatry around them. Isn't that a realistic picture of our world today? It can seem chaotic. We face trials, hardship, evil — personally or in the world at large.

But just before the sieve is mentioned, we read of "the sovereign Lord" who is doing the sifting (Amos 9:8). Every movement of every piece — chaff or grain — is overseen by a sovereign, loving, almighty God with a purpose in everything he allows.

You may be shaken, but you're never forsaken.

"Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you... those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good." (1 Peter 4:12,19)

Seeking God in the shake-up means allowing him to test us, refine us, grow us, transform us — and as we are transformed, we respond to his call to do good in the world, including confronting evil and injustice.

A Word to Fathers

Today is Father's Day, so I want to speak directly to the dads here. The National Fatherhood Initiative says there is a "father factor" in nearly all the societal ills facing America today. Research shows that a child growing up in a father-absent home is:

• Two times more likely to drop out of high school
• Four times more likely to live in poverty
• Seven times more likely (for teen girls) to become pregnant
• Two times more likely to suffer obesity
• Significantly more likely to face prison, addiction, crime, abuse, and neglect

Author Anna Machin writes in The Marvel of the Human Dad:

"We need to discuss the dads who coach football, read bedtime stories, locate rogue school socks, and scare away the nighttime monsters... the stepdads, adoptive and foster fathers, grandfathers, uncles, mentors, coaches, and teachers."

Dads and father figures — never underestimate the influence you have. When you seek the Lord in the midst of the shake-up and teach the next generation to do the same, your impact is generational.

How Are You Seeking Him in the Shake-Up?

Maybe you're in a trying season right now, and you need the reminder that the sovereign Lord is still in control. Maybe seeking the Lord means confronting the evil and injustice you see around you — perhaps through one of our 30 partner agencies locally, nationally, or internationally. Maybe God is calling you to start something new, or to be more intentional in investing in your family and the young people in your life.

The book of Amos teaches that we cannot have a genuine relationship with God and authentically worship him while remaining unmoved by injustice, oppression, and suffering around us. When we truly worship God, we are transformed to have a heart like his.

What God Is Building

The final part of our scripture reminds us that God's judgment and sifting isn't the last word — he is building something beautiful and eternal.

"In that day I will restore David's fallen shelter. I will repair its broken walls and restore its ruins and will rebuild it as it used to be, so that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations that bear my name, declares the Lord who will do these things." (Amos 9:11–12)

Amos prophesied judgment, and just 40 years later Northern Israel was conquered by Assyria; 140 years after that, Judah fell to Babylon and the temple was torn down. But God promised he would build up what was broken — restoring kingship to David's line, extending it to all nations, and drawing them into personal relationship with himself. And the Lord himself would do these things.

When we open the New Testament, we find Jesus — born in the kingly line of David — declaring that the kingdom of God has come.

"And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." (John 12:32) "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19)

Jesus brought a kingdom not limited to one nation, but open to all peoples — because Jesus is God, and the Lord himself has done these things.

"In him, too, you are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." (Ephesians 2:18-22, paraphrased)

As we seek God, we become part of what he is building. The question is: are we inviting him to build in us?

The Mansion of Your Life

One of the highlights of the year at Centre Street Church is our summer baptisms. When someone comes forward for baptism, we use this illustration: imagine your life is like a mansion with many rooms — a kitchen, a living room, bedrooms, a rec room, an office, storage spaces. Each room represents an area of your life: friendships, work, family, finances, habits, attitudes, a struggling addiction, hopes for the future, fitness, sexuality.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

The question becomes: what access have you given Jesus to these rooms? We baptize by immersion, putting the whole person under the water, as a sign that the whole self comes under the lordship of Jesus Christ — no room off-limits.

Sometimes we invite Jesus only into the entryway — a spare bedroom, a washroom — and keep everything else closed. Or we give him access to almost every room, except one locked door marked "restricted access." But have we given him the master key — to enter any room, at any time, and make whatever changes he desires so that we might become more like him?

He might rearrange the furniture in one room, tear down moldy wallpaper in another, or say of a third, "I've got a beautiful vision for this space, but we're going to have to gut it completely and renovate from the ground up. It's going to be messy, and it's even going to be a little painful."

It's no coincidence that when Jesus walked this earth, he was a carpenter, a builder. And he's still building today. Will you let him build in you?

Closing Reflection

"Seek me and live," says the Lord.

• How are we seeking the person of God in this season and situation — calling out to him, longing for his presence and his word, longing to follow him?
• How are we seeking him in the shake-up of this life — relying and trusting in his sovereignty, confronting the evils and oppression we see around us?
• How are we seeking him in what he's building?

Jesus, we thank you that you are the master builder. You know more about us than we could ever know about ourselves. Lord, we want to seek you. I pray that each one here would be calling out to you right now: "God, I seek you in this season of my life. I seek you in this area of my life that maybe I haven't fully let you into." Speak, Holy Spirit, we pray.