Message of the Week

The Little White Community Church

Scripture: Amos 3: 1- 9 September 24, 2023

Message: “The Lion Roars!” by Pastor George Gnade

Intro: 1. As most of you know, last week we began a new series of messages on the Book of Amos. We learned how God called Amos from caring for his sheep to become a prophet of the Lord to the people of Israel.

2. In Amos 1:1 – 2: 5, Amos was told by God to confront all the nations surrounding Israel, including Judah to the south of her. Each time God used the formula, “for three sins, even for four, I will not turn back my wrath.” Then God went on to explain the case He had against each country.

A. Let us begin today by considering God’s complaints.

1. The list of sins included things like extreme violence, the selling of whole communities as slaves, the abuse of children, sexual immorality and extreme greed.

2. The Bible expresses the anger of God caused by these sins as a lion roaring and ready to pounce on its prey.

a. In Amos 1: 2, it says: “The Lord roars from Zion and thunders from Jerusalem.” That is because God had come to dwell on Mt. Zion in His temple in Jerusalem. As long as the Lord continued to dwell in His temple, He was visualized as roaring from His temple.

b. Once God left His temple because of the sins of the people, from that time on He was and is symbolized as speaking from Zion in heaven instead where the new Jerusalem is located (Heb. 12: 18-28). That is where Jesus sits on the right hand of God the Father, ruling over us from heaven.

3. After roaring against all the other nations, in Amos 3:2, God turns His attention on Israel. God says: “You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth, and therefore I will (also) punish you for all your sins.”

a. Being special did not mean they were exempt from punishment. It meant they would be held to an even higher standard.

b. In vs.4, it says: “Does a lion roar in the thicket when he has no prey? Does he growl in his den when he has caught nothing?” In vs. 8, God says: “The lion has roared, who will not fear? The Sovereign Lord has spoken, who can but prophesy?”

4. Amos had been given the job of prophesying to Israel and he had no choice but to take his responsibility seriously.

a. But this was not written for Israel alone. It should have great importance to us also. We are just as guilty of many of the same sins.

b. For a long time, our nation was looked up to as a primarily Christian nation, filled with Christian churches who believed in the God of the Bible and its moral teachings. Presently, that is no longer true.

5. Presently many are going away from the God of the Bible and the moral teachings of the Bible in favor of other cultural values. And as a pastor who has been called to teach you God’s Word, I must warn you, just as Amos had no choice but to warn them, that we have been extremely privileged and blessed by God with more churches and more Bibles than any country in the world.

a. Being privileged does not make us exempt from punishment, it means we too will be held to a higher standard.

b. As the Lion roared over Israel, I believe the Lion is roaring over us and many are not listening.

B. Consider what was happening to Israel and what appears to be happening to us.

1. In July, we finished a series on Elisha. God told him to anoint Jehu to punish Ahab and his offspring. Jehu did that, but in II Kings 10: 31, it says: “Yet Jehu was not careful to keep the Law of the Lord, the God of Israel, with all his heart. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, which he had caused Israel to commit.”

2. In II Kings 10:32, the Bible says: “In those days, the Lord began to reduce the size of Israel.” This was a key turning point, a place of no return, at least not in their near future. Amos, speaking to the next generation, reiterates that warning.

a. The Lion was roaring and God was beginning to remove His blessing from them. Amos was a prophet from about 780 to 740 B.C., and in 734 B.C., Israel was captured by the Assyrians and scattered all over the world.

b. In terms of America, I sense that the destruction of the twin towers in 2001 was a warning and signal from God that His patience with us was running out. Instead of turning back to Him, we have been like a freight train, that has no choice but to start slowly, but then picks up steam and moves more and more rapidly, in this case, moving away from the Lord in the other direction.

3. In the last 22 years, we have had the flooding of New Orleans, many bombings, extreme changes in our weather patterns, fires out of control, tornadoes wiping out large areas, and more and more threats against godly people who simply want to live loving lives for the Lord.

a. But the majority in our country, especially in our colleges and universities, people who will soon be the leaders of our country, are, for the most part, moving away from the faith of our forefathers.

b. That is why the Lion is roaring. As Christians we are to only show love, correct only with gentleness and kindness, and set godly examples. But our God is the God of all the earth. He is in control.

4. In our passage, God was concerned for the whole world, not just Israel. He was about to judge the whole world of that day for their sins, not just Israel.

a. Presently the whole world is moving away from Him, not just America, and we are closer to an atomic war than ever before.

b. So as kindly as I can, I just want to warn you that the Lion is roaring. America seems to have turned a corner, and there may not be a way back.

In Conclusion: Many would agree with me that our country is no longer what it was and may continue on this downward trend apart from a revival and the grace of God.

All I can do is encourage you to pray: “Lord hear our prayers for our country and the future of America.” Amen!