Most of us don’t mind a sermon that exposes sin—that is, of course, unless that sin is one which we ourselves enjoy and would like to keep a while longer. Let the preacher confront the wider culture outside the church. Let him speak of those ungodly folk who commit sins which never even tempt us. Then we’ll heartily add our “Amen” to the message. But if the sermon deals with our own bad habits—perhaps more “respectable” sins like gossip, envy, or pride—well, at that point, “the pastor has gone from preachin’ to meddlin,” as they say! Amos was from Tekoa, in the southern kingdom of Judah (1:1). But when God called him to preach, He sent him to the northern kingdom of Israel (7:15). So the missionary prophet left his flocks and trees and travelled across the border with a message of divine judgment. When Amos began to share the material from the opening chapters of this book, it’s not hard to imagine the audience nodding in agreement. Perhaps they rather enjoyed hearing his condemnation of all those hostile neighboring nations: Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, and Moab (1:3-2:3). “Amen, preach it brother!” But in chapter 2, having circled all around the region, Amos boldly presses in. When the people of Judah are called out (v 4-5), the audience begins to squirm. (Then again, there are a lot of sinners down there in the southern kingdom!) But a line is definitely crossed when this bold preacher actually has the nerve to confront the people who are right there in front of him! “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment.” Hey, wait just a minute! This man is no longer preaching; he’s meddling in our affairs! (v 6). Judah and Israel actually belonged together; they were one people of God. Unlike all other nations, they were blessed to have received His revelation. Yet they had “rejected the law of the LORD” and did not keep His statutes (v 4a). Is the same true of us? Someone wisely said of the Bible, “This Book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this Book.” Many who claim to know God have rejected His law because they do not want to relinquish their sin. Those who reject the Bible have rejected the God of the Bible, only to believe lies and to worship false gods (v 4b). Soon the people of Israel were living no differently than those heathen nations that surrounded them! Amos draws attention to their selling of people into slavery, their oppression of the poor, and their illicit sexual relationships. He cites their perversion of justice, their drunkenness, and their irreverent treatment of Nazirites and prophets (v 6-12). We cannot fool God. He sees all, and His holy judgment is coming (v 13-16). For further meditation: