In a courtroom in a small American town, a witness calmly lists the failings of the prosecutor, then of the defense attorney, until the judge hastily cuts the questioning short. That scene opens a study of the book of Amos (Amos 1-2), a prophet who first announces judgment on Israel’s neighbours and only at the end takes aim at his own audience. The sermon shows how eagerly we name other people’s injustice and how reluctantly we hear the truth about ourselves. Listen and see what God’s justice, and God’s patience, have to say about your life today.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- Amos first announces judgment on Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, the Ammonites, Moab and Judah, and only at the end on Israel. How might the listeners in Bethel have reacted, and why did this circle turn out to be a target?
- What sins of Israel does Amos list in chapter 2, and what do they reveal about how wealth and prosperity shaped the people's attitude toward the poor and toward God?
- The sermon says it is easy to hear about other people's sins but hard to hear about our own. When do you catch yourself listening to a sermon and first thinking about who you should send it to?
- The speaker shares about his own hypocrisy: as a camp leader he got angry at campers for the very thing he struggled with himself. What helps you notice your own inconsistency before you start judging others?
- God reminds Israel that he brought them out of Egypt, and the warning through the prophet gives them time to change. How do you understand the idea that grace in Christ is not permission to keep living in sin?
- The sermon calls us not to turn our heads away from the poor and the homeless. What concrete step of caring for people in need in your city can you take this week?
