Amos is the first of the prophetic books containing a prophecy to Israel, the northern kingdom. He had been preceded in Israel by a couple of miracle-working prophets - Elijah and Elisha. But Elijah and Elisha did not leave any written prophecy behind them. Amos was the first person to put down his prophecies in writing.
Amos started prophesying about 40 years after Elisha. If Gehazi (Elisha's servant) had not chased after Naaman's money and thus ruined himself, it is possible that he may have got a double portion of Elisha's anointing and become the next prophet in Israel. In that case, Gehazi may have written this prophecy instead of Amos. But Gehazi missed that privilege. The Lord warns us to be watchful so that no one takes our crown (Rev.3:11). There is a crown that God has kept for you if you will be faithful in the ministry God planned for you. But you can lose that crown if you are unfaithful. And then the ministry you were supposed to fulfill will be done by somebody else and he will get your crown. So perhaps Amos got Gehazi's crown!
Amos had no desire to be a prophet. He was a simple shepherd - just like many of the first apostles were simple fishermen. Elisha had been a farmer. Amos was a man who looked after cattle, sheep and figs. When questioned about his credentials he said, "I am not a professional prophet. I certainly never got any training to be a prophet. I am just a shepherd. I take care of fig trees. But the Lord called me away from my flock and told me, 'Go and prophesy to My people in Israel' " (Amos.7:14-15).
Why did God pick Amos to be the first person to write down a prophetic message? God must have watched him (like He watches all of us) to see if Amos feared God and was faithful in his work. Amos was not a scholar or a priest, but he was very faithful in his work. He was God-fearing, was kind to poor people and lived in a good way. And one day, God called him and told him, "You are going to be My servant."
God watches us every day to see if we are faithful in our daily life, whether we choose the way of humility always, whether we take time to wait on Him and listen to Him, to study the Scriptures, etc., Maybe Amos had been faithful for 25 years, I don't know. I know that Jesus was faithful for 30 years in Nazareth before He was called to preach. When you continue being faithful in little things for many long years, you can begin to wonder whether God has forgotten all about you. He has not. All of a sudden, one day, God will say to you, "You are My servant from today." God calls those who are faithful in their secular work. He did that in the Old testament. Jesus also called as apostles men who had been faithful in their secular work.
Two expressions that never occur in the book of Amos are 'the God of Israel' and 'the Holy One of Israel.' This was because Amos saw God as the God of all nations, and not just the God of Israel. He quotes the Lord's words, "Do you Israelites think that you are more important to Me than the Ethiopians? I brought you out of Egypt. That's right. But haven't I done as much for other nations? I brought the Philistines from Crete. I led the Arameans, that is the Syrians, out of Kir. And I brought you out of Egypt. What is the difference between you and them?" (9:7).
Amos was a prophet with a "new covenant" vision that embraced all people of all nations. He believed that God would gather the Gentiles also along with the Jews and make them all into one body. Amos rose above the petty narrow- mindedness of the Israelites. He had a large heart for people all over the world. He was not exclusive like the other Israelites who felt, "We are the only people whom God has accepted." There are many Christian groups today too that imagine that God has chosen only them to be His people on earth!! In fact, that attitude is one of the identifying marks of a cult There were people like that in Israel in those days too. But not Amos - he had a large heart.
A true servant of God will have a large heart that accepts God's people in every group and denomination. Babylon is not a system that is found in any one denomination. It is the world system that can be found right inside your heart. People can sit in the best church in the world and be a part of Babylon - because Babylon can be in their spirit. They may imagine that because they have come out of a denominational system, they are free from Babylon. But that is not true.
For example, if you love money, whichever church in the world you may belong to, you are a part of Babylon. If you live according to the lusts of the flesh, whichever church in the world you are in, you are an adulteress. You can glory in your pure doctrines saying, "We don't worship Mary or practice infant baptism..." Good. But if you worship money and practise your lusts, you may actually be worse than those others. Theirs is a head-problem (doctrinal), whereas yours is a more serious heart-problem (related to life).
There is a lot of exclusivism in Christendom today, that imagines that God cares only for one's own little group!! The body of Christ is larger than any one denomination. God's people are not found in any one denomination today. God has His people in every denomination. There are born again people in many churches with different doctrines. I don't agree with the doctrines of many churches. But I cannot deny the fact that God has some of His children there. In the same way, there are unconverted people who sit as registered members in evangelical churches and who are breaking bread in "separated" assemblies - especially those of the second and third generations in those churches.
We must see something of Amos' vision in these days. God punishes people of all nations and of all denominations. And He gathers people also from all nations and all denominations.
