Prepare To Meet God Amos

Lesson 195 Prepare To Meet God Amos

MEMORY VERSE AMOS 4:12 Therefore thus w ill I do to you, O Israel; Bec ause I w ill do this to you, Prepare to m eet your God, O Israel! WHAT YOU WILL NEED: Four bowls, masking tape, slips of paper, felt pen and one drinking straw for each child. Index cards and paper and pencils for each team (2 4 teams depending on the size of the class. Three similar sized baskets or similar sized boxes, a small index card for each child, felt pen, at least one beanbag, three large index card or sheets of paper, tape and a chalk/dry erase board with chalk/dry erase markers. ATTENTION GETTER! Straw Verse Relay Introduce today s memory verse and story with this fun game with straws. You will need four bowls, masking tape, slips of paper, felt pen and one drinking straw for each child. Prior to class write one word from the verse (or groups of two words for younger classes) on slips of paper using a felt pen. Then make an identical set. Place each set in a separate bowl. Make a starting line with masking tape. Place two empty bowls on the starting line. Place the bowls containing the verses across the room from the starting line. Divide the class into two teams. Teams line up behind the starting line. Give each child a straw. When the teach says, go, the first child from each team runs to the bowl containing the verse, uses the straw to lift one slip of paper, then runs back to the empty bowl and drops the paper in. Children in line repeat process until all

slips of paper have been transferred to the bowl on the starting line. Then the team members work together to put verse in order. The first team to finish is the winner. LESSON TIME! How many times have you heard, If you disobey, you are going to get punished? We hear this from our parents, teachers, and from others who are in authority. We do not want to hear this because we want to do our own thing. Yet our parents know what is best for us and if we do not obey, someday we will pay the price for our wrong choices. Do you think when we are punished, it is because our parents are being mean to us; or is it because they care enough to guide us the right way? We are warned because they do not want us to hurt others or ourselves. Wrong choices are not worth the price. Our parents love us enough to warn us what could happen if we disobey; similarly, God our heavenly Father, loves us so much that He warns us in His Word, the Bible. He wants us to repent and turn from our sin so that He can forgive us, and we can live a good and happy life. In our lesson today, God sends His prophet Amos to warn the people to turn from their wicked ways. God has warned them over and over but they refuse to listen. Amos message from God is very clear. Change your ways or you will be punished and destroyed. It is time you turn to Me and do what is right or you won t have My protection and blessing anymore. God does not want to punish them but He can not continue to let them do evil. God is righteous, and He expects His people to be righteous. Amos was a farmer by trade. His name meant, burden bearer. He was a shepherd, and he tended the Sycamore orchards, which produced figs for the very poor. He was probably very muscular

and tanned as he worked outdoors. He did not have much of an education. He was not the type that we would expect to go a big city like Jerusalem and warn the nation of Israel. After all what could one uneducated man do to change a nation, its king and religious leaders? Yet this was God s chosen man, God s prophet. Amos trusted in God. God sent Amos to warn the nation of Israel to repent, or they would meet the wrath of their God. We prepare to meet God by asking Jesus into our hearts. AM O S 1:1-2:16 T h e w o r d s o f Am o s, w h o w as am o n g t h e s h e e p br e e d e r s o f T e k o a, w h i c h h e s aw c o n c e r n i n g I s r ae l i n t h e d ay s o f U z z i ah k i n g o f J u d ah, an d i n t h e d ay s o f J e r o bo am t h e s o n o f J o as h, k i n g o f I s r ae l, t w o y e ar s be f o r e t h e e ar t h qu ak e. An d h e s ai d : " T h e L O R D r o ar s f r o m Z i o n, An d u t t e r s H i s v o i c e f r o m J e r u s al e m ; T h e p as t u r e s o f t h e s h e p h e r d s m o u r n, An d t h e t o p o f C ar m e l w i t h e r s. " T h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : " F o r t h r e e t r an s gr e s s i o n s o f D am as c u s, an d f o r f o u r, I w i l l n o t t u r n aw ay i t s p u n i s h m e n t, B e c au s e t h e y h av e t h r e s h e d G i l e ad w i t h i m p l e m e n t s o f i r o n. B u t I w i l l s e n d a f i r e i n t o t h e h o u s e o f H az ae l, Wh i c h s h al l d e v o u r t h e p al ac e s o f B e n -Had ad. I w i l l al s o br e ak t h e gat e bar o f D am as c u s, An d c u t o f f t h e i n h abi t an t f r o m t h e Val l e y o f Av e n, An d t h e o n e w h o h o l d s t h e s c e p t e r f r o m B e t h Ed e n. T h e p e o p l e o f S y r i a s h al l go c ap t i v e t o Ki r, " S ay s t h e L O R D. T h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : " F o r t h r e e t r an s gr e s s i o n s o f G az a, an d f o r f o u r, I w i l l n o t t u r n aw ay i t s

p u n i s h m e n t, B e c au s e t h e y t o o k c ap t i v e t h e w h o l e c ap t i v i t y T o d e l i v e r t h e m u p t o Ed o m. B u t I w i l l s e n d a f i r e u p o n t h e w al l o f G az a, Wh i c h s h al l d e v o u r i t s p al ac e s. I w i l l c u t o f f t h e i n h abi t an t f r o m As h d o d, An d t h e o n e w h o h o l d s t h e s c e p t e r f r o m As h k e l o n ; I w i l l t u r n M y h an d agai n s t Ek r o n, An d t h e r e m n an t o f t h e Ph i l i s t i n e s s h al l p e r i s h, " S ay s t h e L o r d G O D. T h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : " F o r t h r e e t r an s gr e s s i o n s o f T y r e, an d f o r f o u r, I w i l l n o t t u r n aw ay i t s p u n i s h m e n t, B e c au s e t h e y d e l i v e r e d u p t h e w h o l e c ap t i v i t y t o Ed o m, An d d i d n o t r e m e m be r t h e c o v e n an t o f br o t h e r h o o d. B u t I w i l l s e n d a f i r e u p o n t h e w al l o f T y r e, Wh i c h s h al l d e v o u r i t s p al ac e s. " T h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : " F o r t h r e e t r an s gr e s s i o n s o f Ed o m, an d f o r f o u r, I w i l l n o t t u r n aw ay i t s p u n i s h m e n t, B e c au s e h e p u r s u e d h i s br o t h e r w i t h t h e s w o r d, An d c as t o f f al l p i t y ; H i s an ge r t o r e p e r p e t u al l y, An d h e k e p t h i s w r at h f o r e v e r. B u t I w i l l s e n d a f i r e u p o n T e m an, Wh i c h s h al l d e v o u r t h e p al ac e s o f B o z r ah. " T h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : " F o r t h r e e t r an s gr e s s i o n s o f t h e p e o p l e o f Am m o n, an d f o r f o u r, I w i l l n o t t u r n aw ay i t s p u n i s h m e n t, B e c au s e t h e y r i p p e d o p e n t h e w o m e n w i t h c h i l d i n G i l e ad, T h at t h e y m i gh t e n l ar ge t h e i r t e r r i t o r y.

B u t I w i l l k i n d l e a f i r e i n t h e w al l o f R abbah, An d i t s h al l d e v o u r i t s p al ac e s, Am i d s h o u t i n g i n t h e d ay o f bat t l e, An d a t e m p e s t i n t h e d ay o f t h e w h i r l w i n d. T h e i r k i n g s h al l go i n t o c ap t i v i t y, H e an d h i s p r i n c e s t o ge t h e r, " S ay s t h e L O R D. T h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : " F o r t h r e e t r an s gr e s s i o n s o f M o ab, an d f o r f o u r, I w i l l n o t t u r n aw ay i t s p u n i s h m e n t, B e c au s e h e bu r n e d t h e bo n e s o f t h e k i n g o f Ed o m t o l i m e. B u t I w i l l s e n d a f i r e u p o n M o ab, An d i t s h al l d e v o u r t h e p al ac e s o f Ke r i o t h ; M o ab s h al l d i e w i t h t u m u l t, Wi t h s h o u t i n g an d t r u m p e t s o u n d. An d I w i l l c u t o f f t h e j u d ge f r o m i t s m i d s t, An d s l ay al l i t s p r i n c e s w i t h h i m, " S ay s t h e L O R D. T h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : " F o r t h r e e t r an s gr e s s i o n s o f J u d ah, an d f o r f o u r, I w i l l n o t t u r n aw ay i t s p u n i s h m e n t, B e c au s e t h e y h av e d e s p i s e d t h e l aw o f t h e L O R D, An d h av e n o t k e p t H i s c o m m an d m e n t s. T h e i r l i e s l e ad t h e m as t r ay, L i e s w h i c h t h e i r f at h e r s f o l l o w e d. B u t I w i l l s e n d a f i r e u p o n J u d ah, An d i t s h al l d e v o u r t h e p al ac e s o f J e r u s al e m. " T h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : " F o r t h r e e t r an s gr e s s i o n s o f I s r ae l, an d f o r f o u r, I w i l l n o t t u r n aw ay i t s p u n i s h m e n t, B e c au s e t h e y s e l l t h e r i gh t e o u s f o r s i l v e r, An d t h e p o o r f o r a p ai r o f s an d al s. T h e y p an t af t e r t h e d u s t o f t h e e ar t h w h i c h i s o n t h e h e ad o f t h e p o o r, An d p e r v e r t t h e w ay o f t h e h u m bl e.

A m an an d h i s f at h e r go i n t o t h e s am e gi r l, T o d e f i l e M y h o l y n am e. T h e y l i e d o w n by e v e r y al t ar o n c l o t h e s t ak e n i n p l e d ge, An d d r i n k t h e w i n e o f t h e c o n d e m n e d i n t h e h o u s e o f t h e i r go d. " Y e t i t w as I w h o d e s t r o y e d t h e Am o r i t e be f o r e t h e m, Wh o s e h e i gh t w as l i k e t h e h e i gh t o f t h e c e d ar s, An d h e w as as s t r o n g as t h e o ak s ; Y e t I d e s t r o y e d h i s f r u i t abo v e An d h i s r o o t s be n e at h. Al s o i t w as I w h o br o u gh t y o u u p f r o m t h e l an d o f Egy p t, An d l e d y o u f o r t y y e ar s t h r o u gh t h e w i l d e r n e s s, T o p o s s e s s t h e l an d o f t h e Am o r i t e. I r ai s e d u p s o m e o f y o u r s o n s as p r o p h e t s, An d s o m e o f y o u r y o u n g m e n as N az i r i t e s. I s i t n o t s o, O y o u c h i l d r e n o f I s r ae l?" S ay s t h e L O R D. " B u t y o u gav e t h e N az i r i t e s w i n e t o d r i n k, An d c o m m an d e d t h e p r o p h e t s s ay i n g, ' D o n o t p r o p h e s y!' " B e h o l d, I am w e i gh e d d o w n by y o u, As a c ar t f u l l o f s h e av e s i s w e i gh e d d o w n. T h e r e f o r e f l i gh t s h al l p e r i s h f r o m t h e s w i f t, T h e s t r o n g s h al l n o t s t r e n gt h e n h i s p o w e r, N o r s h al l t h e m i gh t y d e l i v e r h i m s e l f ; H e s h al l n o t s t an d w h o h an d l e s t h e bo w, T h e s w i f t o f f o o t s h al l n o t e s c ap e, N o r s h al l h e w h o r i d e s a h o r s e d e l i v e r h i m s e l f. T h e m o s t c o u r age o u s m e n o f m i gh t S h al l f l e e n ak e d i n t h at d ay, " S ay s t h e L O R D.

Amos, a prophet of God, has a vision concerning Israel. The Lord tells Amos of the impending judgment coming to the surrounding nations and Israel. God is going to judge Syria, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, Moab and then Judah and Israel. They have rejected the laws of God and have refused to obey Him. He has warned them over and over but they will continue their wicked ways and are worshipping false gods. God also reminds the Israelites that He brought them out of slavery in Egypt and restored them and their worship yet they have still turned away from Him. God is speaking about being weighed down. His heart is heavy and He is very disappointed in them. How we need to learn from those who have made the mistake of turning away from God. God wants to bless us and give us a wonderful life serving Him. But when we refuse to serve Him then we cannot receive His blessing. Our lives become filled with misery and eventually judgment, as He cannot allow sin to continue forever. How we keep that from happening is to turn our hearts towards Jesus Christ. He has taken all of God s judgment and wrath upon Himself when He died on the cross. We prepare to meet God by asking Jesus into our hearts. AM O S 3:1-2 H e ar t h i s w o r d t h at t h e L O R D h as s p o k e n agai n s t y o u, O c h i l d r e n o f I s r ae l, agai n s t t h e w h o l e f am i l y w h i c h I br o u gh t u p f r o m t h e l an d o f Egy p t, s ay i n g: " Y o u o n l y h av e I k n o w n o f al l t h e f am i l i e s o f t h e e ar t h ; T h e r e f o r e I w i l l p u n i s h y o u f o r al l y o u r i n i qu i t i e s. " God tells the nation that He had made them His special people. Because of their sin He will have to punish them. It is sad that God s special people did not want to have anything to do with Him.

They would rather have the idols of the nations around them, which are only empty and useless. AM O S 3:11 T h e r e f o r e t h u s s ay s t h e L o r d G O D : " An ad v e r s ar y s h al l be al l ar o u n d t h e l an d ; H e s h al l s ap y o u r s t r e n gt h f r o m y o u, An d y o u r p al ac e s s h al l be p l u n d e r e d. " Israel is going to be surrounded by an enemy. They are going to be conquered. All their wealth will be taken away, and the nation will be destroyed. This prophecy was fulfilled in Jerusalem when King Nebuchadnezzar from Babylon surrounded Jerusalem and if finally fell to him. AM O S 4:5-11 O f f e r a s ac r i f i c e o f t h an k s gi v i n g w i t h l e av e n, Pr o c l ai m an d an n o u n c e t h e f r e e w i l l o f f e r i n gs ; F o r t h i s y o u l o v e, Y o u c h i l d r e n o f I s r ae l!" S ay s t h e L o r d G O D. " Al s o I gav e y o u c l e an n e s s o f t e e t h i n al l y o u r c i t i e s. An d l ac k o f br e ad i n al l y o u r p l ac e s ; Y e t y o u h av e n o t r e t u r n e d t o M e, " S ay s t h e L O R D. " I al s o w i t h h e l d r ai n f r o m y o u, Wh e n t h e r e w e r e s t i l l t h r e e m o n t h s t o t h e h ar v e s t. I m ad e i t r ai n o n o n e c i t y, I w i t h h e l d r ai n f r o m an o t h e r c i t y. O n e p ar t w as r ai n e d u p o n, An d w h e r e i t d i d n o t r ai n t h e p ar t w i t h e r e d. S o t w o o r t h r e e c i t i e s w an d e r e d t o an o t h e r c i t y t o d r i n k w at e r, B u t t h e y w e r e n o t s at i s f i e d ; Y e t y o u h av e n o t r e t u r n e d t o M e, " S ay s t h e L O R D.

" I bl as t e d y o u w i t h bl i gh t an d m i l d e w. Wh e n y o u r gar d e n s i n c r e as e d, Y o u r v i n e y ar d s, Y o u r f i g t r e e s, An d y o u r o l i v e t r e e s, T h e l o c u s t d e v o u r e d t h e m ; Y e t y o u h av e n o t r e t u r n e d t o M e, " S ay s t h e L O R D. " I s e n t am o n g y o u a p l agu e af t e r t h e m an n e r o f Egy p t ; Y o u r y o u n g m e n I k i l l e d w i t h a s w o r d, Al o n g w i t h y o u r c ap t i v e h o r s e s ; I m ad e t h e s t e n c h o f y o u r c am p s c o m e u p i n t o y o u r n o s t r i l s ; Y e t y o u h av e n o t r e t u r n e d t o M e, " S ay s t h e L O R D. " I o v e r t h r e w s o m e o f y o u, As G o d o v e r t h r e w S o d o m an d G o m o r r ah, An d y o u w e r e l i k e a f i r e br an d p l u c k e d f r o m t h e bu r n i n g; Y e t y o u h av e n o t r e t u r n e d t o M e, " S ay s t h e L O R D. God reminds them of previous warnings He gave them, hoping they would turn to Him and repent. He brought hunger, thirst, crop failure, blight, mildew, and plague upon them; but they still refused to return. Is it not sad that God has to keep on saying and doing the same things over and over because they just refuse to turn to Him? We can be wiser than that and learn from their mistakes. We can listen to the Lord s voice and turn to Him with all of our hearts. We prepare to meet God by asking Jesus into our hearts. Preparation Picture Challenge We are learning in our lesson today that we can be prepared to meet God by asking Jesus into our hearts. Having a relationship with Jesus is just the beginning to a wonderful life with God. In this game we will learn other things we can do to prepare ourselves for God s service as we grow older. You will need to split children into two teams (you can have up to 4 teams if you have a large class). You will need index cards and paper and pencils for each team.

Before class think of several ways the children can prepare themselves for growing in their service to the Lord. Come up with one word or phrase things like, read the Bible, go to church, or pray. Write these down on index cards prior to class. When the children are split into teams and ready to go have each team designate a drawer and the rest of the children will be guessers. You will then show one card to the drawer in each group (show them the same card). When you say, go have the children draw a picture to represent the action on the card, similar to the game Pictionary. The drawer cannot speak or make gestures, only draw. The first group to correctly guess the picture wins that round. Keep points as to which team has the most points and declare a winner. Perhaps the winners could learn about preparing for a life of service by passing out the snack to the rest of the class for the evening. Use this game and the items drawn to reinforce the lesson today and make application to children who already know the Lord, yet need to be prepared to spend their lives serving Him. AM O S 5:12-16 F o r I k n o w y o u r m an i f o l d t r an s gr e s s i o n s An d y o u r m i gh t y s i n s : Af f l i c t i n g t h e j u s t an d t ak i n g br i be s ; D i v e r t i n g t h e p o o r f r o m j u s t i c e at t h e gat e. T h e r e f o r e t h e p r u d e n t k e e p s i l e n t at t h at t i m e, F o r i t i s an e v i l t i m e. S e e k go o d an d n o t e v i l, T h at y o u m ay l i v e ; S o t h e L O R D G o d o f h o s t s w i l l be w i t h y o u, As y o u h av e s p o k e n. H at e e v i l, l o v e go o d ; Es t abl i s h j u s t i c e i n t h e gat e. I t m ay be t h at t h e L O R D G o d o f h o s t s Wi l l be gr ac i o u s t o t h e r e m n an t o f J o s e p h.

T h e r e f o r e t h e L O R D G o d o f h o s t s, t h e L o r d, s ay s t h i s : " T h e r e s h al l be w ai l i n g i n al l s t r e e t s, An d t h e y s h al l s ay i n al l t h e h i gh w ay s, ' Al as! Al as!' T h e y s h al l c al l t h e f ar m e r t o m o u r n i n g, An d s k i l l f u l l am e n t e r s t o w ai l i n g. God is saying, Do not think you are fooling me. I know all about your sin. Nothing is hidden from me. I would suggest you keep quiet. Times are very evil. They thought since they were His special people that He would not judge them no matter what they did. Even though they refused to turn, God is telling them that it is still not too late. If they will seek good and turn from evil, He will forgive them so that they may live. If they will follow His laws and obey Him, they will not have to go through the judgment; but if they refuse to repent, there will be crying in the streets. All over the nation, people will be mourning the people lost in battle. We prepare to meet God by asking Jesus into our hearts. AM O S 5:21-24 " I h at e, I d e s p i s e y o u r f e as t d ay s, An d I d o n o t s av o r y o u r s ac r e d as s e m bl i e s. T h o u gh y o u o f f e r M e bu r n t o f f e r i n gs an d y o u r gr ai n o f f e r i n gs, I w i l l n o t ac c e p t t h e m, N o r w i l l I r e gar d y o u r f at t e n e d p e ac e o f f e r i n gs. T ak e aw ay f r o m M e t h e n o i s e o f y o u r s o n gs, F o r I w i l l n o t h e ar t h e m e l o d y o f y o u r s t r i n ge d i n s t r u m e n t s. B u t l e t j u s t i c e r u n d o w n l i k e w at e r, An d r i gh t e o u s n e s s l i k e a m i gh t y s t r e am. God is saying that He hates the big show that they are putting on, their hypocrisy of honoring Him with their religious feasts and

solemn assemblies. He is saying they do not worship Him from the heart. They are just going through the motions. They do not mean it. God cannot accept their sacrifices and music. He would rather see justice and righteousness instead of meaningless ceremonies. AM O S 7:1-8:3 T h u s t h e L o r d G O D s h o w e d m e : B e h o l d, H e f o r m e d l o c u s t s w ar m s at t h e be gi n n i n g o f t h e l at e c r o p ; i n d e e d i t w as t h e l at e c r o p af t e r t h e k i n g' s m o w i n gs. An d s o i t w as, w h e n t h e y h ad f i n i s h e d e at i n g t h e gr as s o f t h e l an d, t h at I s ai d : " O L o r d G O D, f o r gi v e, I p r ay! O h, t h at J ac o b m ay s t an d, F o r h e i s s m al l!" S o t h e L O R D r e l e n t e d c o n c e r n i n g t h i s. " I t s h al l n o t be, " s ai d t h e L O R D. T h u s t h e L o r d G O D s h o w e d m e : B e h o l d, t h e L o r d G O D c al l e d f o r c o n f l i c t by f i r e, an d i t c o n s u m e d t h e gr e at d e e p an d d e v o u r e d t h e t e r r i t o r y. T h e n I s ai d : " O L o r d G O D, c e as e, I p r ay! O h, t h at J ac o b m ay s t an d, F o r h e i s s m al l!" S o t h e L O R D r e l e n t e d c o n c e r n i n g t h i s. " T h i s al s o s h al l n o t be, " s ai d t h e L o r d G O D. T h u s H e s h o w e d m e : B e h o l d, t h e L o r d s t o o d o n a w al l m ad e w i t h a p l u m b l i n e, w i t h a p l u m b l i n e i n H i s h an d. An d t h e L O R D s ai d t o m e, " Am o s, w h at d o y o u s e e?" An d I s ai d, " A p l u m b l i n e. " T h e n t h e L o r d s ai d : " B e h o l d, I am s e t t i n g a p l u m b l i n e I n t h e m i d s t o f M y p e o p l e I s r ae l ; I w i l l n o t p as s by t h e m an y m o r e.

T h e h i gh p l ac e s o f I s aac s h al l be d e s o l at e, An d t h e s an c t u ar i e s o f I s r ae l s h al l be l ai d w as t e. I w i l l r i s e w i t h t h e s w o r d agai n s t t h e h o u s e o f J e r o bo am. " T h e n Am az i ah t h e p r i e s t o f B e t h e l s e n t t o J e r o bo am k i n g o f I s r ae l, s ay i n g, " Am o s h as c o n s p i r e d agai n s t y o u i n t h e m i d s t o f t h e h o u s e o f I s r ae l. T h e l an d i s n o t abl e t o be ar al l h i s w o r d s. " F o r t h u s Am o s h as s ai d : ' J e r o bo am s h al l d i e by t h e s w o r d, An d I s r ae l s h al l s u r e l y be l e d aw ay c ap t i v e F r o m t h e i r o w n l an d. ' " T h e n Am az i ah s ai d t o Am o s : " G o, y o u s e e r! F l e e t o t h e l an d o f J u d ah. T h e r e e at br e ad, An d t h e r e p r o p h e s y. B u t n e v e r agai n p r o p h e s y at B e t h e l, F o r i t i s t h e k i n g' s s an c t u ar y, An d i t i s t h e r o y al r e s i d e n c e. " T h e n Am o s an s w e r e d, an d s ai d t o Am az i ah : " I w as n o p r o p h e t, N o r w as I a s o n o f a p r o p h e t, B u t I w as a s h e e p br e e d e r An d a t e n d e r o f s y c am o r e f r u i t. T h e n t h e L O R D t o o k m e as I f o l l o w e d t h e f l o c k, An d t h e L O R D s ai d t o m e, ' G o, p r o p h e s y t o M y p e o p l e I s r ae l. ' N o w t h e r e f o r e, h e ar t h e w o r d o f t h e L O R D : Y o u s ay, ' D o n o t p r o p h e s y agai n s t I s r ae l, An d d o n o t s p o u t agai n s t t h e h o u s e o f I s aac. ' " T h e r e f o r e t h u s s ay s t h e L O R D : ' Y o u r w i f e s h al l be a h ar l o t i n t h e c i t y ; Y o u r s o n s an d d au gh t e r s s h al l f al l by t h e s w o r d ; Y o u r l an d s h al l be d i v i d e d by s u r v e y

l i n e ; Y o u s h al l d i e i n a d e f i l e d l an d ; An d I s r ae l s h al l s u r e l y be l e d aw ay c ap t i v e F r o m h i s o w n l an d. ' " T h u s t h e L o r d G O D s h o w e d m e : B e h o l d, a bas k e t o f s u m m e r f r u i t. An d H e s ai d, " Am o s, w h at d o y o u s e e?" S o I s ai d, " A bas k e t o f s u m m e r f r u i t. " T h e n t h e L O R D s ai d t o m e : " T h e e n d h as c o m e u p o n M y p e o p l e I s r ae l ; I w i l l n o t p as s by t h e m an y m o r e. An d t h e s o n gs o f t h e t e m p l e S h al l be w ai l i n g i n t h at d ay, " S ay s t h e L o r d G O D ; " M an y d e ad bo d i e s e v e r y w h e r e, T h e y s h al l be t h r o w n o u t i n s i l e n c e. " Amos has a series of 5 additional visions. 1. DESTRUCTION BY LOCUSTS - God changes His mind. 2. DESTRUCTION BY FIRE - God changes His mind. 3. A PLUMB LINE - God draws the line, no more. 4. RIPE FRUIT - ripe for the taking, to signify the end. 5. STRICKEN SANCTUARY - a famine of hearing the words of the Lord. They will seek it but will not find it. AMOS 9:8-10 "Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are on the sinful kingdom, And I will destroy it from the face of the earth; Yet I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob," Says the LORD. "For surely I will command, And will sift the house of Israel among all nations, As grain is sifted in a sieve; Yet not the smallest grain shall fall to the ground. All the sinners of My people shall die by the sword, Who say, 'The calamity shall not overtake nor confront us.'

Even though God had to judge His people, He still remembered them. He promised that He would not completely destroy Judah. Israel would be scattered all over the world. He still would be watching everything. The people who would destroy His people would pay also by dying by the sword in the future. AM O S 9:11-15 " O n t h at d ay I w i l l r ai s e u p T h e t abe r n ac l e o f D av i d, w h i c h h as f al l e n d o w n, An d r e p ai r i t s d am age s ; I w i l l r ai s e u p i t s r u i n s, An d r e bu i l d i t as i n t h e d ay s o f o l d ; T h at t h e y m ay p o s s e s s t h e r e m n an t o f Ed o m, An d al l t h e G e n t i l e s w h o ar e c al l e d by M y n am e, " S ay s t h e L O R D w h o d o e s t h i s t h i n g. " B e h o l d, t h e d ay s ar e c o m i n g, " s ay s t h e L O R D, " Wh e n t h e p l o w m an s h al l o v e r t ak e t h e r e ap e r, An d t h e t r e ad e r o f gr ap e s h i m w h o s o w s s e e d ; T h e m o u n t ai n s s h al l d r i p w i t h s w e e t w i n e, An d al l t h e h i l l s s h al l f l o w w i t h i t. I w i l l br i n g bac k t h e c ap t i v e s o f M y p e o p l e I s r ae l ; T h e y s h al l bu i l d t h e w as t e c i t i e s an d i n h abi t t h e m ; T h e y s h al l p l an t v i n e y ar d s an d d r i n k w i n e f r o m t h e m ; T h e y s h al l al s o m ak e gar d e n s an d e at f r u i t f r o m t h e m. I w i l l p l an t t h e m i n t h e i r l an d, An d n o l o n ge r s h al l t h e y be p u l l e d u p F r o m t h e l an d I h av e gi v e n t h e m, " S ay s t h e L O R D y o u r G o d. In the last days God has promised to completely restore the tabernacle of David. He promises to bring back the captives of His people, Israel, and give them back their land. They will never again be taken from the land God had given them.

The Gentiles who are called by His name refers to the followers of Jesus Christ. All who have asked Jesus into their hearts, as Savior will live with Him forever in heaven, His land of plenty. And so we end with a wonderful promise. God is loving, kind and compassionate. He wants restoration, not judgment. He wants our hearts and He wants to bless us, not to bring judgment and chastisement into our lives. Because we have turned to Jesus as our savior one day we will get to receive all of the promises of God. What a great day that will be! Are you prepared to meet God? We prepare to meet God by asking Jesus into our hearts. Bean Bag Toss Use this game to reinforce today s lesson. You will need three baskets or similar size boxes, a small index card for each child, felt pen, at least one bean bag, three large index card or sheets of paper, tape and a chalk/dry erase board with chalk/dry erase markers. Set the three baskets or boxes in the center of the classroom. Label the baskets either true, false or not in story. On each small index card write a statement about the Bible story that can be identified as true, false or not in the story. Divide the class into two teams. Teams should line up about 6-8 feet from the three baskets. One child may act as the scorekeeper or the teacher can keep score. The first player on team one chooses a card and reads the statement. The player must identify the statement as true, false or not in story, then attempts to toss the beanbag into the correct basket. The player receives 5 points for stating the correct answer and 5 points if the beanbag lands in the basket. If the player does not give the correct answer, tell them what the correct answer is. The player may still earn five points by tossing the beanbag into the correct basket. Have the teams take turns. The scorekeeper records each team s score on the board. The team with them most points wins.

PRAYER Lead the children in a prayer of thanksgiving to God for our salvation He has provided through His Son Jesus. If there are any children who have not yet responded to the gospel, give them opportunity to do so.