Holy Scriptures and Israel

Guest (Male): Shalom. Holy Scriptures and Israel is a ministry designed to share with the Jewish people the good news of the Lord Jesus Yeshua the Messiah and to instruct Christians on the Jewish roots of their faith. And now teaching God's word from a Hebrew Messianic perspective here is Gideon Levytam.

Gideon Levytam: The study of the book of Amos chapter eight. That we will learn from this and we'll know how ourselves to treat one another in this is what God had said concerning the people of Israel. And again I would like to emphasize he says this will come upon my people of Israel, the chosen people of God. And so in the first six verses Amos sees the reason of Israel's end in the land. Sin have rose up to God's you might say before God. The cup is now full and the time of judgment is to come. So now in the next verses, the second half of this chapter from chapter eight verses seven to 14 in these verses, beloved brothers and sisters, Amos is told how the Lord is going to bring about Israel's end in the land.

How God will do so against his chosen people Israel. It must have grieved him in his heart, but he had to do so. So notice that two points I will emphasize here in this passage. First of all, in verses seven, eight, nine and 10 the Lord point to the shoe judgment that is going to come. Judgment is going to come. So notice in verse seven the Lord said I'm not going to forget what they have done. I'm not going to forget. Notice in verse seven the Lord had sworn by the excellency of Jacob. Notice he said surely I will never forget any of their works.

Now you see maybe Israel thought that the Lord will forget. And maybe you and I sometimes think that the Lord will forget. But the Lord is not going to forget. Because the Lord knows everything about us and he wants his people to repent and turn back to him. So he's saying about Israel he says I will notice it's very strong word he says here in verse seven. He said the Lord has sworn by the excellency of Jacob. What does that mean by the excellency of Jacob? In Hebrew it says big on Jacob, big on another word be when Israel was so proud in those days and they were kind of assuming that I'm fine.

I don't need God and I don't need the ways of God. God says of Israel through Amos I have sworn by the pride of Jacob of Jacob. I'm not going to forget the wrong doing unless they will repent and confess I am surely going to bring the judgment upon them. This verse remind me of second Corinthians five and verse 10 where the apostle Paul says for we must all appear before the judgment seat of the Messiah. He's speaking to believers. That everyone of us will give an account of the things the way we have lived our life as believers.

We may forget others may forget. But everyone of us one day as believers, not for our salvation, but we're going to stand before the judgment seat of the Messiah. Second Corinthians chapter five and verse 10. That everyone will give an account for what you have done in his life. And when you think about it if it wouldn't be for the Lord Yeshua the Messiah our sin so great, so many that unless God have forgiven them on a basis of the finished work of Yeshua the Messiah, who will ever be able to stand? That's why we have to be so thankful as we read today first John that the apostle in John as well as the apostle Paul says listen, we need to repent and turn away from our evil way and then go back to a relationship with the Lord who will forgive us.

If we confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. But they didn't heal. Brought about the necessity of the Lord to bring the judgment of the Assyrian to come into the land of Samaria and to take them captive. Look at verses the next verse verse eight. The land and its people of Israel will experience turbulent time, terrible days. He's mentioning here the prophet Amos to Israel. Notice in verse eight he says shall not the land tremble? For this and everyone mourn the dwellers therein and it shall rise up holy as a flood and it shall be cast out and drown as by the flood of Egypt.

In other words God is saying listen, the land shall be troubled. He's speaking about a time of of discipline that he will have to bring upon his beloved nation. The land and its people will experience terrible time. And you notice brothers and sisters how he lead us here to the tribulation period. Amos here is going beyond the days of 722 BC and he takes us to the future tribulation period because look at the next verse verse eight and verse nine. Actually verse nine it says and it shall come to pass in that day. And that day is a you might say title in scripture that apply to the tribulation period.

In Hebrew we call it Jacob's trouble that will happen at the end of the days after the church age will come to its conclusion and Israel direct dealing with Israel will be when the antichrist will come and Israel we're going to go through the a terrible experience of tribulation. And notice what he says in verse nine. It says here and it shall come to pass in that day says the Lord God that I will cause listen, the sun to go down at noon and I will darken the earth in the clear day. Now that's never happened in history.

The only time that the sun refused to shine specifically was when Yeshua the Messiah died on a shameful Roman cross. And you remember it was darkness all over the face of the land. And Yeshua cried my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? And God laid upon the Messiah the judgment that we deserved and Yeshua cried my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? And then he answered if you remember in Psalm 22 for thou art holy thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. A holy God had to judge sin and he judge it in the person of Yeshua the Messiah.

But here beloved brothers and sisters, he's speaking about taking Israel from the time that Amos was ministering and preaching and receiving this vision. He takes all the way to the end of the days to the tribulation period. Amos doesn't know of the age in which you and I live in today. As far as him he is concerned, he's speaking about Israel, the nation and the and the nation that will be at the time of the tribulation period. And it says that the sun will go down at noon. How that possible? The sun is in its brightest in the middle of the day.

And then it says and the darkness of the earth will will come upon the earth in a clear day. This is a catastrophic event that is going to happen judicially by the holy and righteous God who will bring judgment doing those terrible days of the tribulation. Now I want you to notice and I just want to read a verse in Matthew chapter 24. Look at the words of Yeshua the Messiah in Matthew chapter 24 and verse 29. That's the Messiah said when he was still alive before he died. In Matthew 24 it says listen to this verse and I 'm reading that verse 29.

Immediately after the tribulation of those days notice what he says the sun shall be darkened and the moon shall not give her light and the stars shall fall from heaven and the power of the heaven shall be shaken. That's what Yeshua, the Messiah himself said when he was still alive before his death on that shameful Roman tree, Roman cross. The prophet Joel who wrote a few hundred years before Amos wrote he said in Joel chapter two we read and I'm going to read just couple of verses verses one and verses two. He said blow you the trumpet in Zion and sound an alarm in the holy mountain.

Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble for the day of the Lord cometh. For it is nigh at hand. And he continue a day of darkness and of gloominess a day of clouds and of thick darkness. Joel is mentioning this in his second chapter speaking of this terrible event that is going to come. And he take us Amos take us all the way to the tribulation period. In Hebrew we call it Jacob's trouble. And so he continue here in this very same verse and I can just continue for a moment to read in Revelation just this one verse because I I made a note for myself in Revelation chapter 16 in the middle of the tribulation.

We read in verse 10 and I'm going to read that verse. It says here and the fifth angel pour out his vial upon the the seat of the beast and his kingdom was full of darkness. And then gnash their tongue for pain. Again John, the apostle received the revelation from the glorified Messiah and in connection with the tribulation period. Terrible time that is going to come, but as far as Amos is concerned is going to come near, but prophetically he takes us further and further because you notice beloved brothers and sisters since 722 BC the 10 tribes of Israel are not in the land the way they used to be before the Assyrian disperse the people of Israel.

Verse 10 of Amos chapter eight says Israel feasts and song will be turning into lamentation. In verse 10 we read I will turn your feast into mourning and all your songs into lamentation. And I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins and boldness upon every head and I will make it as the mourning of an only sun and the end thereof is a bitter day. Now if I would be Amos, I would be shivering to even express this and to see this. But the Lord have given this to Amos and I can tell you beloved brothers and sisters as Amos was presenting before his people even though they were not part of the southern kingdom Judah, they were part of the northern kingdom Israel.

He loved his people and his heart was grieved when he had to present such a message to the people of Israel. But judgment must begin at the house of God. And sure enough God is presenting this judgment against Israel. Now notice the final verses. Sad chapter sad message that Amos received from the Lord that vision, but yet this vision was necessary for Amos to see to receive explanation and to pronounce it upon the people because he was a faithful message. And I'm sure it grieved his heart. So in the last verses verses 11 to 14 the Lord ultimate punishment of a famine that will come upon the land and the people of Israel.

And I want you to notice this famine is not famine for food, not famine of bread and water, but it is a famine. In Hebrew we call it is a famine of the hearing of the word of the Lord. You might say right now brother Gideon, you preach the word, you speak the word, you you preach the word, you preach the word and and sometime we say well we exhausted. How much can we take? But brothers and sisters listen, there is a day coming that God had predicted here that there will be a famine. But it will be a different kind of famine.

It will not an issue of bread or water to drink or bread to eat, but it will be the famine of the fact that people will not be able to heal the message of the word of the Lord and to receive from him guidance and clear direction in their life because God going to bring this famine upon the nation of Israel and even further upon the nations of the world. And so we read in verse 11 behold the days come says the Lord God and I will send a famine. In the land not a famine of bread nor a thirst for water but of hearing the words of the Lord.

Can you imagine? You remember what God said to Israel in Deuteronomy chapter eight men shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord shall men live by. Men was not created just to have pleasures in this world, but not to have a relationship with the living God. But look what's going to happen. God said I'm going to send the famine. And it's not going to be an issue of bread eating or water drinking, but it's going to be a famine of the hearing of the words of the Lord.

And then he continue. He says in verse 12 they shall wander from sea to sea and from north even to the east. They shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord and shall not find it. Solomon said in the Proverbs when there's no vision the people of God are scattered. When there's no message from the word of God the people of God are not able to govern their lives. Can you imagine what it what will happen if we don't we are not able to hear the word of the Lord? Can you imagine if we will not be able to hear guidance from a living God to give instruction for his own people?

What an amazing judgment is this. You and I hold the Bible in our hands that for us it become like a treasure. Through this Bible, through this Hebrew scripture, the God is speaking to his people. But can you imagine when there will be no message from the word of God? And he's not speaking about the world now, he's speaking about his own people. Can you imagine you're going to go to a church meeting and the Bible will not be read and taught and the scripture will not be open. Can you imagine you have a you religion without the living God?

And here he said I'm going to be sending a famine of the hearing of the word of the Lord because they will not be able to heal the message from the word of God. They're going to seek to find it. They will wander from sea to sea from the north to the east. They shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, but they will not find it. Can you imagine brothers and sisters what does that mean? If we will not going to be able to have guidance from the word of God you know in the days of Samuel you read first Samuel chapter three.

Israel at that time was not right with the Lord. It says that the word of the Lord was precious, was rare in those days. There was no visions. God did not speak. 450 years between Malachi and the coming of the Messiah there was no prophets before the Messiah Yeshua came until John the Baptist said behold the lamb of God which taketh away the sin of this world. Can you imagine? We're going to chase all the preachers. We're going to tell them I don't want to hear the word of the Lord. I have itching ears. I don't like to hear what you have to say.

I want to I want to feel good. I want to have my own way. I don't want any any conviction. I don't want any responsibility. I don't want any challenge. I'll do my own thing while God says okay. You will see what's going to happen. These are day coming when I'm going to send this famine and you not going to be able to hear the word of the Lord. You're going to wander from place to place from the north to the south, from the east to the west, go seeking it in everywhere, but you will not find it.

Because you rejected my word when I first appealed to you to turn to me, but you will not find it. And you notice he continue and he says even the young people. It says here in verse 13 in that they shall the fair virgins. This is the young ladies. And the young men will faint for thirst not thirst for bread and water, but thirst for the word of the Lord, but they will not going to be able to heal it. What a sad condition is the pronouncing of the word of God. And I know that America and Canada and Europe is not the church, the assembly.

Because the assembly is only all true believers belong to the assembly. But you know that America and Canada and Europe used to be so called a Christian countries who believe the Bible understood that the Bible is the word of God and we can put it in every hotel, in every every motel. You would have the Gideon Bible. Now you're going to go most of the places you search for a Bible no Bible. Because men reject the word of God setting him aside, going further and further and further away from him and God says okay. There will be that day when you will seek for me and you will not find my word.

You will you will want to read the word of the Lord. You would want to hear from the the voice of the Lord, but I will not allow you to find it because I'm going to judge you because of your rebellion against the Lord. Brothers and sisters you know the Lord gives us a little bit of time to gather ourselves together and to hear the word of the Lord. Maybe to get up in the morning and to pray and to read a passage from the word of God. Maybe to make a phone call to a friend and to read a a verse from the Bible of encouragement.

Or to come to the meeting and sit around the Lord and hear the word of the Lord. And you know when we don't want the word of the Lord the Lord will take it away from us. God not going to force us a himself on us. But we will have to learn a lesson when we reject the word of the Lord as Israel had to learn that lesson here in our chapter. Now let me conclude. And the last verse and that's it for today. Here is the final portion in connection with the fourth vision that Amos received from the Lord in verse 14.

They that swear by the sin of Samaria and they say thy God, this is a small G thy God or Dan liveth and the way or the manner of Beersheba liveth even they shall fall and never rise up again. Those that seek after other gods, in this case the God of Dan, remember I told you if you would look at that map one more time and you will notice that in Dan there was an image there, the golden calf. It was called the God of Dan. Then you have in Bethel another golden calf. It was the God of Bethel.

And he says those that are going to continue on and if you as it will continue to swear by that sin adopting idols and other gods and not the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel he says a day shall fall and never rise again. In other words when they continue with their own way continuing their own a wrong direction identifying with false gods, with false that which is dishonoring to the Lord, eventually they are going to fall and they will never rise again. And you remember in history all those great opposers of the God of Israel they ended up to be eventually destroyed.

But the God of Israel remained the same. He never changes. His word remained the same. Here you are. Amos is writing 780 or so BC and you and I now 2019 AD we still reading the same message. And it's applies to us today. And the Holy Spirit of God speaks to us and convict us and speaks to us, show us. He says listen, how about you? Where do you stand? What about your relationship with the Lord Yeshua the Messiah? Did you set him aside and continue in your own way? How about you? How do you going to live your life as a believer in Yeshua the Messiah?

And if you are not a believer God says I love you. I love you so much that I gave the darling of my bosom, Yeshua the Messiah, to pay for your sins. I want you to be blessed and to have a life a eternal. And so beloved brothers and sisters here is Amos sadly. I can I can just imagine the sadness that gripped his heart as he spoke concerning his own people. The beloved people of God, the nation of Israel, the judgment had to come. And look at us brothers and sisters. Where is the northern kingdom of Israel today?

They're no longer in the land. And the little land that you have there, they have a fight every day. There are bullets being shot there. There are rockets being shot to there. There are people who don't who say this is this land is not yours. The only time that Israel will finally receive the promised land is when Israel as a nation will look upon him, the Messiah himself, acknowledge that he Yeshua is the Messiah and eventually will be restored and possess all the land that God have promised the people of Israel. I'm I'm longing for these days to come and I trust that you long for these day to come as well.

Can we say amen today?

Guest (Male): You have been listening to the Holy Scriptures and Israel with Gideon Levytam. Gideon teaches God's word from a Hebrew Messianic perspective. For more information about this ministry write to Holy Scriptures and Israel, box 1411 Niagara on the Lake, Ontario L0S 1J0 or visit our website at holyscripturesandisrael.com. You are also invited to Gideon's weekly Bible teaching on Fridays at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. and Saturdays at 1 p.m. at Willowdale Christian Assembly Hall, 28 Martin Ross Avenue in Toronto. Holy Scriptures and Israel is made possible by your prayers and financial support. If you would like to support the program, visit holyscripturesandisrael.com.

God bless you. Shalom, shalom.