Message of the Week

The Little White Community Church

Scripture: Amos 4: 12 October 15, 2023

Message: “Prepare to Meet Your God!” by Pastor George Gnade

Intro.: 1. In Amos chapter three, God reiterates the many ways He tried to warn the people of Israel to repent and get right with Him, but they continuously refused to do it.

2. Over and over again He saved them, but they still went back to the same mistakes, committing the same sins as before. In fact, it happened so many times that Amos describes the nation in Amos 4: 11 as a “burning stick, snatched out of the fire.”

a. This reveals the love, mercy, and faithfulness of our God. Yet the same verse goes on to say, ‘“yet you have not returned to me,’ says the Lord.”

b. Therefore, in vs. 12, Amos told them: “Prepare to meet your God, O Israel.” In the chapters that follow, God tells them how the Assyrian Army would come and take them away, scattering them in many different directions.

3. This is the context of the message I would like to share with you today. Based on this and many other Scriptures, what can we learn about “preparing to meet God?”

A. To begin with, God usually used prophets to warn people to get ready to meet Him.

1. Think of Elijah who was chosen to warn Ahab. Or how about Isaiah who was sent to warn King Ahaz (Is. 7)? Jonah was sent to Nineveh. Jeremiah was sent the nation of Judah before Nebuchadnezzar took them into captivity.

2. In the N.T., John the Baptist called the people to repent and prepare for the coming of Jesus. Confronting the Pharisees and Sadducees, John said: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Produce fruit worthy of repentance… The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire” (Matt. 3:7-10).

3. Then there is Peter on the day of Pentecost who cried out to those who were listening: “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).

4. In our day, God uses preachers from all over the world to share God’s Word and invite people to come to Jesus.

Our messages would mean nothing apart from God’s Word and the work of the Holy Spirit who was sent to “convict us” of our sins (John 16:8).

B. Secondly, if we are going to prepare to meet God, we must listen when He speak to us!

1. Many times when the prophets spoke, only a few would respond. These are called “the remnant,” because the rest hardened their hearts and refused to listen.

2. In John 10: 27, Jesus said: “My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.” What a wonderful promise Jesus gave to those who do listen and want to follow Him.

3. Many Christians believe in the doctrine of eternal security based on this verse. Please notice that the assurance of our salvation is not based on how I feel or measure up to others. It is simply based on our faith in Jesus and the finished work He accomplished on the cross where He died and paid for all of our sins.

C. Thirdly, as we listen and follow Jesus, He helps us “to prepare” to meet God.

1. How should we prepare to meet God? John the Baptist said “to bring forth fruit worthy of repentance.”

a. If you have visitors coming to stay at your house, don’t you try to clean it up before they come?

b. By repenting of our sins and asking Jesus to wash us in His blood, He cleans us up and gives us the Holy Spirit to help us.

2. If your guest is only going to stay for one day, cleaning up usually isn’t too hard. But what if you invited your guest to stay with you for a long time? Ouch! That requires a deeper commitment!

a. When we ask Jesus into our hearts, that is exactly what we are doing! We are asking Him to stay in our hearts forever.

b. No wonder the Bible compares it to getting married. Jesus is the husband, and the church is His bride, and we the people become His children. That is why we call it belonging to the family of God.

3. Living in a family takes prayer and it is easy to get upset with each other. But Jesus gave us what He called “the new commandment.” He said He wanted us to love one another in the same way that He has and always will love us.

a. Like a child learning as he grows up, so Christians are like little children in God’s eyes. He knows we will need a life time to grow up and mature and become all He wants us to be.

b. Always keep that in mind as you get to know other Christians. When we feel inadequate, we need to remind ourselves: “God is not finished with me yet.” That is the attitude we need when we see the faults of others. Keep reminding yourself that God is not through with them either! The truth is we all have a lot to learn.

4. But it all starts with this concept of preparing to meet Him. When the Holy Spirit opens our spiritual eyes, we actually come to realize how much we need Him. Like the song writer put it: “I need thee, O I need thee. Every hour I need thee. O bless me now my Savior, I come to you.”

In conclusion: That is what God wanted Amos to help the people do. He wanted them to get prepared and make room for God while they could.