Amos 6:8-14 Lo-Debar

In the first half of chapter 6 of Amos, we found Israel heaping upon themselves material treasures and boasting presumptuously, as if they were utterly successful. In the second half of this chapter, we find God heaping condemnation upon Israel, as if they were utterly in misery. Listen how God responds to their trust in human devices. “I abhor the pride of Jacob, and hate his palaces; therefore I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.” … For behold, the LORD gives a command: He will break the great house into bits, and the little house into pieces.

Curiously, in verse 13, Amos accuses the Israelites of rejoicing in Lodebar – or as the King James Version translates it, “Ye which rejoice in a thing of naught.” Lodebar was an Ammonite city, which means in Hebrew, “nothing.” The absurd irony is that though Israel was bragging in her military victory in Lodebar, in God’s eyes it was no reason to rejoice at all; in fact they rejoiced over nothing. How foolishly absurd it is for man to boast in what only God can do. Yet this is exactly that man does every time he raises up the almighty “I.” Think about it, even in our language, “I” is the only pronoun capitalized, other than those which refer to Deity.

Human beings are the only creation who rejoice in themselves – and as such rejoice in nothing. People boast and glory in their bigger houses, expensive cars, high-paying jobs, better social status, finer ethnic background, advanced education, theological superiority or extraordinary spiritual experience. Such behavior is evident even in children who brag about their bicycle, their report card, or their physical accomplishments or attractiveness. Pride then fuels a complacent life that ignores the needs of others who are deemed as different and therefore less important. Be assured that the root sin that causes man to ignore his fellow man is surely nothing other than pride. Pride causes a man to think of himself as better off than he truly is, so he becomes smug, and easily forgets about others. So watch out when you think you’ve got it made, because your demise is not far off (Prov 16:18).

Paul calls believers to a sober judgment of themselves (see Rom 12:3, 1 Cor 4:6-7, Phil 2:1-11). At its core, the sin of pride entails taking credit for an accomplishment, which should be attributed to the grace of God alone. In 1 Cor. 4:7 Paul asks, “and what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?” James reminds us (1:17) that every good gift and every perfect gift is from above … not the least of which is the gift of salvation (James 1:18). Yet we find men often boasting how he has “accepted Christ,” while the Word of God clearly teaches that the natural man is unable to accept anything spiritual (1 Cor 2:14). Foolish man, you did not accept Christ – He accepted you! Why do you glory in anyone other than Christ? Oh how man loves to rejoice in nothing!

Are you rejoicing in Lodebar (nothing)? Think about which of God’s gifts you may be taking credit for by examining your behavior toward others? Have you no care for the poor? Perhaps you’re trusting in your own material success. Has your higher education kept you from considering those who may not be as astute? No care for the weak or infirmed? Maybe you’re taking your own strength for granted. Has your ethnicity kept you from reaching across cultural boundaries to lend a helping hand? Has your theological understanding caused you to criticize others who are not as well studied? Do you often pass judgment on those you consider “less spiritual” than yourself? Maybe you are glorying in your own unique spiritual experience.

This week search the Scriptures below and believe God’s Word about pride so that you might repent by the power of the Holy Spirit and instead of rejoicing in nothing, rejoice in God!

Cross Refs: Job 8:14-15, 27:16-21; Is 10:15, 17:13, 28:14-15; Jer 9:23-24, 23:28-29, 49:4; Luke 12:19-20; Rom 4:2, 1 Cor 3:18-21; Gal 6:14-15; Eph 2:8-9

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Amos 6:1-5 At Ease in Zion

Woe to you who are at ease in Zion,

And trust in Mount Samaria,

Notable persons in the chief nation,

To whom the house of Israel comes!

Go over to Calneh and see;

And from there go to Hamath the great;

Then go down to Gath of the Philistines.

Are you better than these kingdoms?

Or is their territory greater than your territory?

Woe to you who put far off the day of doom,

Who cause the seat of violence to come near;

Who lie on beds of ivory,

Stretch out on your couches,

Eat lambs from the flock

And calves from the midst of the stall;

Who sing idly to the sound of stringed instruments, and invent for yourselves musical instruments like David; who drink wine from bowls, and anoint yourselves with the best ointments, but are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph. Therefore they shall now go captive as the first of the captives,

And those who recline at banquets shall be removed.

The Israelites had adopted an easy religion that had provided them with just enough, in their eyes, to insure themselves of an eternal future in heaven. They practiced this easy religion without it much affecting what they wanted to do with their lives in the world. At the slight cost of a little outward expression, their religion, which never challenged their hearts and minds, only served to encourage their motivation for self-satisfaction. In the midst of this complacent environment comes Amos, with the second ‘oracle of woe,’ “Woe to those who are at ease in Zion.”

Complacency and laziness are a deadly combination for both individuals as well as communities. We’ve already seen in chapter 5 how Amos exposed the false security in Israel resulting from her religious practices. In chapter 6 we again see Israel as a community with a false sense of security based upon her military success (vs. 1-2) and material prosperity (vs. 4-7). Their religion did not arise from ‘who God is,’ nor did it take into account ‘who man is,’ but they lived solely by the principle of self-satisfaction, self-fulfillment and success. Their walk was one of self-indulgence, laziness, frivolity, and excessive personal vanity. They sought to escape reality by way of an unreasonable admiration for entertainment. In their pursuit of gratification, they are not grieved, nor is there any concern for the desperate spiritual condition of their brothers. Like Joseph’s brothers, they ‘eat their bread,’ while their brother languishes in prison. Just like the people in the Titanic, they were having a great time … until their ship hit the iceberg.

Optimism and positivism is a good thing, but too much of it creates a living illusion. Many people are content to live a life outside of reality, and they like their preachers to be ‘encouragers’ of their self-love. The last thing that a complacent community wants is a preacher like Amos to wake them from their dream. In 1861, Charles Spurgeon preached from this text in a sermon entitled, “Scourge for Slumbering Souls.” In this sermon Spurgeon sought to awaken the complacent people of the church by calling out six types of Christians – which he named Presumptuous, Procrastinator, Sin-lover, Love-self, Careless, and Crossless. Presumptuous lives at ease in his own self-righteousness. Procrastinator puts important matters of his own spirituality on the back-burner in order to taste worldly pleasures today. Sin-lover is the one who loves his sin too much to repent in this life. Love-self cares not for Christ or His church, but only for his personal success. Careless is a giddy, light-hearted, frothy soul with superficial convictions. And lastly Crossless is one who believes he can be a disciple without bearing a cross. Look at these five categories of people; can you identify any of these attitudes in your life?

A Christian man is seldom long at ease
When one trouble’s gone another doth him seize

John Bunyon

Read the story of the rich fool in Luke 12:13-21. What was the basis of this man’s security? How does this relate to Israel’s complacency? Read Revelation 3:14-22, how do the sins of the church at Laodicea compare to the sins of Israel 28 centuries ago? Can you identify the same sins in today’s church?

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Galatians 3:1-5 The Foolish Ones

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? Have you suffered so many things in vain — if indeed it was in vain? Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

This passage begins the major teaching of the book of Galatians, that a man is justified by faith alone and not by good works or law. Of course, a man should be good and do good; he should be as good as he can be and should do as much good as he can. A man should live a moral and just life like the law says; this is not the point that this Scripture is making. The text teaches rather, that a person is not justified before God by doing good works and keeping the law. No man can do enough good works nor can he keep enough laws to become perfect and accepted by God. Only God is perfect, and no matter how much good and how much law one keeps, one never becomes perfect; we still all fall short; we still fail; we sin and we will die. Good works and law do not perfect us; they do not make us acceptable to God, nor do they impart eternal life to us. Only God Himself can perfect us, accept us, and give us eternal life. Any fair and honest thinking person knows that there is nothing – absolutely nothing on earth – that can keep us from coming up short and dying. There is absolutely nothing on earth that can grant us eternal life in a perfect world where there is nothing but love, joy and peace. If we are ever going to inherit life, then it must be because God has to give it to us.

The point of this section of the book of Galatians is this: how can we know that God will justify us? How can we know that God will accept us, and give us life with Him forever? The answer to this question is in our present passage. There are six proofs that God will justify us by faith alone; and there are six proofs that God will justify us neither by works nor by law. This week, read and meditate upon the six Scriptural proofs whereby we may know that God will justify us by faith. They are:

1) The proof of a believer’s experience, Gal. 3:1-5
2) The proof of scripture, Gal. 3:6-14
3) The proof of God’s covenant or promise, Gal. 3:15-18
4) The proof of the law’s powerlessness, Gal. 3:19-22
5) The proof of what faith does for us, Gal. 3:23-29
6) The proof of Christ and the fullness of time, Gal. 4:1-7.

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Amos 5:21-27 All That Glitters

“I hate, I despise your feast days,

And I do not savor your sacred assemblies.

Though you offer Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings,

I will not accept them,

Nor will I regard your fattened peace offerings.

Take away from Me the noise of your songs,

For I will not hear the melody of your stringed instruments.

But let justice run down like water,

And righteousness like a mighty stream.

“Did you offer Me sacrifices and offerings

In the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?

You also carried Sikkuth your king

And Chiun, your idols,

The star of your gods,

Which you made for yourselves.

Therefore I will send you into captivity beyond Damascus,”

Says the LORD, whose name is the God of hosts.

Festive celebrations; sober prayer gatherings; offerings being made to God; vibrant praise and worship music; who would ever enter such an environment with criticism? Well, the answer is Amos would and did! He knew that all that glitters is not gold.

It is important that we realize that the environment in which Amos prophesied was not one that was fundamentally wrong in form or substance. The feasts they celebrated and sacrifices offered were most likely the one’s prescribed by God in Torah. Theirs was no ecumenical service embracing the observances of Hinduism and teachings of Buddha. This was an assembly that is relatively orthodox in word and practice. The problem was that, like much of the church today, Israel’s religion had become event-centered instead of God-centered. Whether it was their cheery festivals or their solemn assemblies, it wasn’t the form or even the substance of Israel’s worship that displeased God, as much as it was the reality that their hearts were far from Him (Matt 15:8-9). Throughout history, such worship has offended God (see Gen 4:5-7, 1 Sam 4:3-11, Ps 51:16-17, Is 1:10-15, Mal 1:10-2:3, 13-14, Rom 2:29, 9:6, 2 Tim 3:5). This is most vividly illustrated in the story of 1 Samuel 15, where Saul disobeyed the Word of God by keeping the Amalekite’s best sheep and cattle so that he might sacrifice them to the Lord at Gilgal. Read Samuel’s memorable reply in 1 Samuel 15:22-23. When offered in pretense, religious services, singing, offerings, prayer, and similar activity are no substitution for holiness or obedience and as a result are hated by, and despicable to God.

Those who would be most vocal in their praise of God’s covenant love and grace, must themselves become channels of such grace to those who hunger and thirst for it. Such is an active consequence of genuine faith, but was wholly lacking in God’s people 28 centuries ago.

There is a significant nugget of grace in the midst of all this woe, whereby God announces another way, contrasting the religious hypocrisy of the day; it is in verse 24: But let justice run down like water, And righteousness like a mighty stream. These are the evidences of true religion (see also James 1:21-27).

Can it be said that justice rolls down like a river and righteousness in a never-failing stream in the church of this day? How about our church? your life?

Look up the following Scriptures to find out what matters most to God when it comes to your religious expression. Jer 17:9-10, Ps 14:1, 51:10, 66:18, 119:10-11, Prov 3:3, Matt 5:8, 12:34-35, 22:37, Lk 12:34, Heb 10:22, 1 Pet 1:22, Amos 5:21-27

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