Ephesians 2:1-5, 19-22.

When God saves us and the Spirit indwells us we are made true worshippers (as we saw last week). But what happens is that true worshippers are not left to themselves. All these true worshippers are folded into a Jesus family. Family is one way the Bible talks about being an everyday disciple. Family is all about being children of God through faith in Jesus Christ and then adopted into God’s family as brothers and sisters united by the Holy Spirit.

Jeremiah 17:5-10.

The year 2020 scorched several of us in numerous ways. Our lives were marked by movement last year but it was unhealthy movement. Many were just surviving (barely). So what does healthy movement look like going forward in 2021? What does it look like to move from surviving to thriving as an everyday disciple? From Jeremiah 17 we see Spirit inspired imagery that gives answers. Contrasting the imagery of a desire shrub versus a fruitful green tree we see that it is possible for everyday disciples to thrive in the heat of daily life.

Pslam 7.

Amos 9:1-15.

Yahweh is the Lion of Judah and He is neither toothless nor tame. Being a shepherd from Tekoa, Amos knew the danger of treating a lion in this way. A lion in the wild is not tame and it will be to your disaster if you treat it as such. But the book of Amos has taught us that the people of Israel were guilty of this very disaster. Thus, Amos was sent to remind them that the Lion from Zion was not to be trifled with. Amos 9 zeroes in on the Lion of Judah as the agent of judgment who is poised to pounce, ready to carry out the promised judgment. But we also see that in His mercy , the black cloud of God's wrath will give way to the rainbow of God's promised restoration and blessing in Christ.

Amos 8:1-14.

As the visions continue, Amos now sees a basket of summer fruit. At first glance, this vision might stir thoughts of comfort and refreshment. After all, fruit picked in the summer would mean it is ripe and ready to be eaten; something good to be enjoyed. But as Israel would find out, God was using this vision to give a glimpse of what the judgment to come would be like. Just like summer fruit is ripe and ready to be consumed, so Israel was a people ripe and ready for judgment. In this vision the LORD reveals the unavoidable consequence of judgment.

Amos 7:10-17.

With the vision of the plumb line still lingering in the air, Amaziah the priest is stung into action. The prophet from Judah has gone too far with his message of judgment and the time has come to shut him down. This interaction between Amos and Amaziah is very instructive for any and all who've been called to stand firm on the Word of God. We learn that when confrontation comes our confidence is found in the LORD who has spoken.

Amos 7:1-9.

As we roll into the last section of the book of Amos, we will see five visions that further clarify the message of coming judgment. Because the people were on the brink of receiving just judgment for their sin, the need of the moment was two-fold: someone who would speak the truth out of love for God AND someone who would plead in prayer and out of love for souls. And what we will find is that Amos meets the mark on both accounts. We learned that this section means for us today by asking two key questions.

Amos 6:1-14

Among all the ways God's people had drifted from God, we learn in this chapter that the sin of complacent pride was at the heart of it all. So, what does God do? In His grace He sends a prophet with a message of "woe" to show the gravity of the situation. Not because of hate, but because of love. When God exposes sin in our lives it is an invitation to turn from our pursuit of worldly playthings and to embrace Him as the everlasting pleasure we were created to enjoy.

John 15:4-5; Isa. 8:11-17; Peter 2:9-12.

2020 was a year that caught everyone off guard as we experienced a universal upheaval that threw us all for a spin. And the thing is, 2021 is already shaping up to be a repeat. But, we don't have to be caught off guard, spun out and anxious as we roll into the new year. The difference though will lie in what we feed on and fear. In 2020 many fed themselves on the equivalent of spiritual junk food leading to a full on embrace of worldly fear. But there is a better path forward that walks in the feeding relationship of abiding in Jesus marked by a fear of the Lord.