Homerton Baptist Church
Evening Service (260517)

      • Amos 5:1–17ESV

  • Hymn 46a - GOD IS OUR REFUGE

      • John 8:48–59ESV

      • Ephesians 1:15ESV

  • Hymn 889 - Soldiers of Christ, arise

      • Amos 5:1–17ESV

  • Order of Service

    Welcome

    Prayer

    Hymn - GOD IS OUR REFUGE AND OUR STRENGTH (46a) - THE PSALTER 1912, ALT.

    Notices

    Prayer Meeting - 7:30pm Wed
    Friday 7pm - Online
    Sunday Morning 11am & 6pm
    Tithes & Offerings - £

    Main Prayer

    Hymn - SOLDIERS OF CHRIST, ARISE (889) - CHARLES WESLEY 1707-88

    Reading

    Amos 5:1–4 ESV
    Hear this word that I take up over you in lamentation, O house of Israel: “Fallen, no more to rise, is the virgin Israel; forsaken on her land, with none to raise her up.” For thus says the Lord God: “The city that went out a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which went out a hundred shall have ten left to the house of Israel.” For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: “Seek me and live;
    Amos 5:5–8 ESV
    but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing.” Seek the Lord and live, lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, with none to quench it for Bethel, O you who turn justice to wormwood and cast down righteousness to the earth! He who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the surface of the earth, the Lord is his name;
    Amos 5:9–13 ESV
    who makes destruction flash forth against the strong, so that destruction comes upon the fortress. They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth. Therefore because you trample on the poor and you exact taxes of grain from him, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not dwell in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine. For I know how many are your transgressions and how great are your sins— you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and turn aside the needy in the gate. Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time, for it is an evil time.
    Amos 5:15–17 ESV
    Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph. Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord: “In all the squares there shall be wailing, and in all the streets they shall say, ‘Alas! Alas!’ They shall call the farmers to mourning and to wailing those who are skilled in lamentation, and in all vineyards there shall be wailing, for I will pass through your midst,” says the Lord.

    Sermon

    God, through Amos, has condemned the actions of the women, worship and sturbbornness of his people
    Amos 5:1-17 follows a classic biblical structure ("chiasm"):
    5:1–2 Introduction to Lament
    5:3 Lamentation/Decimation
    5:4–6 Exhortation
    5:7 Accusation
    5:8–9 Hymn
    5:10–13 Accusation and Judgment
    5:14–15 Exhortation
    5:16–17 Lamentation

    Lament over Fallen Israel (v1-3)

    Amos 5:1–2 ESV
    Hear this word that I take up over you in lamentation, O house of Israel: “Fallen, no more to rise, is the virgin Israel; forsaken on her land, with none to raise her up.”
    The third chapter to start with “hear this word”
    People of Israel
    Cows of Bashan
    House of Israel
    qinah - funeral song sung over the deceased
    singing funersal song signified that the nation was dead
    what a shock when the people considerd the nation strong and prosperous
    the future death of the nation was so certain Amos saw it as an accomplished fact
    Amos grieved over that truth
    Once God has declared war on a people, they are as good as defeated
    “Fallen”
    as a term indicates a person who died tragically or unnecessarily
    rather than died from disease or old age
    “Virgin”
    is used here to describe youthfulness and purity
    If Sanaria fell then Israel could not endure long after
    The prophet’s proclamation of the catastrophe about to break upon Israel must had had a terrifying effect
    Amos 5:3 ESV
    For thus says the Lord God: “The city that went out a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which went out a hundred shall have ten left to the house of Israel.”
    This is a military description
    Company was 1000 men
    Platoon was 100 men
    Squad was 10 men
    Whatever the number of men they send out 10% will survive

    Appeal to Repentance (v4-6)

    Amos 5:4–6 ESV
    For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: “Seek me and live; but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing.” Seek the Lord and live, lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, with none to quench it for Bethel,
    The announcement of Judgement
    Is a call to repentance
    it announces a time of grace
    “seek me and live”
    Seeking God is not at a religious site
    These centres were under a sentence of divine judgement (3:14)
    They had become a substitute for “seeking” YHWH himself
    Seeking God it turning to him in submission and living under his authority and in dependence upon his power
    Repentance requires a change of heart and attitude
    resulting in a change of action

    Condemnation of Injustice (v7)

    Amos 5:7 ESV
    O you who turn justice to wormwood and cast down righteousness to the earth!
    They had turned justice upside down
    what was right before God was of little consequence to them
    the result is chaos
    Death would be the result of pilgrimages to the shrines

    The Creator’s Sovereign Control (v8-9)

    Amos 5:8–9 ESV
    He who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the surface of the earth, the Lord is his name; who makes destruction flash forth against the strong, so that destruction comes upon the fortress.
    The theme of the hymn is praise to God
    The God who is creator and exercises his sovereign control over creation
    Is a God of Justice and Wrath
    He will bring order and righteousness
    replacing the choas and unrighteousness
    God controls the day and night, the rainfall
    also brings destruction on is people
    even where his people thought they were secure
    Israel may be destroyed by an army, but they must understand that God is in control of that army
    No man-made security system protects them against God’s judgement

    Silent in an Evil Time (v10-13)

    Amos 5:10–13 ESV
    They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth. Therefore because you trample on the poor and you exact taxes of grain from him, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not dwell in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine. For I know how many are your transgressions and how great are your sins— you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and turn aside the needy in the gate. Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time, for it is an evil time.
    “They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth”
    they hated the poor, deprived them of justice, and exacted taxes from them
    they bribed (ransom) and intimidated people to get what they wanted
    1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.”
    all they have built up will be removed from them
    Amos 5:13 “Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time, for it is an evil time.”
    There is significant translation difficulties in thie verse
    The Hebrew is not recommending silence
    The righteous could not keep silent
    The tense is: that wise men who in better times would be consulted for their wisdom were silent because no one would listen
    even a sense that they will be silenced / killed
    goodness during a time of evil will not be tolerated

    Hope for God’s Gracious Response (v14-15)

    Amos 5:14–15 ESV
    Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said. Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
    “Seek good, and not evil, that you may live”
    Seek - Desire, by definition to love
    God will be with you
    “Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate”
    God will judge you
    To believe any different is to lie to yourself
    Amos prescribes coming before God in humility before a sovereign God
    who is under no obligation to be gracious
    His prescence is an act of grace
    God will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph
    Amos, Obadiah, Jonah Hope for God’s Gracious Response (5:14–15)

    Purity in moral behavior and complete devotion to Yahweh in worship were synonymous with life in the presence of Yahweh

    Wailing when God Passes Through (v16-17)

    Amos 5:16–17 ESV
    Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord: “In all the squares there shall be wailing, and in all the streets they shall say, ‘Alas! Alas!’ They shall call the farmers to mourning and to wailing those who are skilled in lamentation, and in all vineyards there shall be wailing, for I will pass through your midst,” says the Lord.
    There will be wailing and mourning in the streets

    Hymn - GOD OF THE POOR (944) - Graham Kendrick

    Q&A

    Hymn - O CHRIST, THE GREAT FOUNDATION (573) - Daniel T Niles 1908-1970

    Closing Prayer

    Doxology

      • Amos 5:1–4ESV

      • Amos 5:5–8ESV

      • Amos 5:9–13ESV

      • Amos 5:15–17ESV

      • Amos 5:1–2ESV

      • Amos 5:3ESV

      • Amos 5:4–6ESV

      • Amos 5:7ESV

      • Amos 5:8–9ESV

      • Amos 5:10–13ESV

      • Amos 5:14–15ESV

      • Amos 5:16–17ESV

  • Hymn 944 - GOD OF THE POOR
  • Hymn 573 - O CHRIST, THE GREAT FOUNDATION
  • Doxology 1145 Chorus

      • 1 Corinthians 16:23–24NKJV

Homerton Baptist Church
pastor@homerton.church
0756 612 9969
http://www.homerton.church
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