Greetings! Below you will find questions which reference the sermon preached on Sunday, October 26th, 2014 at The Park. This week we studied Chapter 4 of Amos. Have someone in your group read this section of scripture.
Each week new questions are posted to track along with the sermons. Work hard to facilitate discussion. Listen to the hearts around the room and close with prayer.
Intro to Amos:
Amos was from Tekoa, a small town in Judah about 6 miles south of Bethlehem and 11 miles from Jerusalem. He was not a man of the court like Isaiah, or a member of a priestly family like Jeremiah and Ezekiel. He earned his living from the flock and the sycamore-fig grove. Whether he owned the flocks and groves or only worked as a hired hand is not known. His skill with words and the strikingly broad range of his general knowledge of history and the world preclude his being an ignorant peasant. Though his home was in Judah, he was sent to announce God’s judgment on the northern kingdom (Israel). He probably ministered for the most part at Bethel, Israel’s main religious sanctuary, where the upper echelons of the northern kingdom worshiped.
The book brings his prophecies together in a carefully organized form intended to be read as a unit. It offers few, if any, clues as to the chronological order of his spoken messages—he may have repeated them on many occasions to reach everyone who came to worship. The book is ultimately addressed to all Israel (hence the references to Judah and Jerusalem).
- If God was looking out over the world currently, who do you think He would call “fat cows”?
- Amos 4:4-5 resembles a liturgical Call to Worship, but with a tone of sarcasm. If you were hearing the words of God with this sarcastic tone how would your heart react?
- What would this ‘Call to Worship’ include if it were spoken to the Church today?
- What would a current day example be of verses 4-5?
- In verses 6-11 God states that he did many things in order to provide his people an opportunity to return to him, yet they didn’t. Why do you think they missed these opportunities? Do you think they knew what was happening?
- Over and over again, God calls for His children to take care of the poor and needy. What are you doing to help the neglected? What are some things you aren’t yet doing but could begin soon?
- How would you respond to a prophet speaking to you, “prepare to meet your God, O Israel” (v12)?
- What are some difficult circumstances in your life that you know The Lord allowed in an attempt to steer your heart back to Him? What was your response?
- What struggles (if any) do you have in viewing God as one who brings judgement upon people when they have not recognized, acknowledged, or obeyed Him?