Introduction

Good day to all. Today, we turn to Amos, chapter 3. The minor prophets in the Old Testament often spoke with considerable force, not mincing their words; they were forthright. Yet, the words of these minor prophets in the Old Testament are often overlooked by some pastors today. For instance, when I shared with someone that God is a God who blesses and curses, he retorted that there were no more curses in the New Testament. Where did he get such confidence, and where did he read this? Open your Bibles to Galatians, Romans, 1 Corinthians—these are all books of the New Testament. They state that if anyone does not love the Lord, let him be accursed. This is in the New Testament, not the Old. Not only did he not read the Bible properly, he got angry with me, insisting that he was already saved, yet his conduct suggested otherwise. Another person, afflicted with cancer, saw his wife similarly afflicted ten years later. When I told him that this was because of a curse, he immediately retorted that I was the one who would be cursed.

These individuals have received a peculiar teaching from their churches, and thus, they particularly need to read the books of the minor prophets. Today, the theme of Amos, chapter 3, which we are studying, is Hear this word that the Lord hath spoken against you. It is not the devil attacking you. Some claim to be attacked by demons, but the demons probably don’t even bother with them. To claim to be Jezebel or Lamech is to flatter oneself. Chinese Mingding Destiny will never be widely accepted in this generation; only those who preach that God is a God who saves you, not one who attacks you, will be widely accepted by the masses. When a sister developed cancer, I suggested she was under a curse. Her pastor immediately denied this, saying she loved the Lord and always arrived early to arrange the chairs before service. Arranging chairs is not necessarily loving the Lord; it may be more accurate to say it is loving the pastor.

In this generation, we must proclaim loudly: Hear this word that the Lord hath spoken against you. It is strange to me that even pastors with cancer still declare their love for God. But can loving God result in cancer? Not only am I surprised, but even his congregation is taken aback. One sister approached me in confusion, and I told her, This is hearing the words the Lord has spoken against you. This pastor has likely never preached on the words of the Lord against you; his sermons focus on the Lord being your refuge and your rock. The problem is that without heeding God’s word, the Lord will not be your rock. To say that the Lord never brings disaster is to not have studied carefully.

I. Blessings and Curses Are for God's People

In fact, God’s people are a very confused group. Why is it that non-believers can sin without consequence, while God’s people are disciplined by God for the slightest sin? Yet, this is not strange at all.

Hear this word that the Lord hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying, You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities. (Amos 3:1-2)

Our God is a holy God, a jealous God, a consuming fire. One must be careful when engaging with Him. If you do not wish to engage with God, then go and worship in temples. Otherwise, worshiping God like worshiping idols, like worshiping the golden calf, is utter foolishness.

Can two walk together, except they be agreed? (Amos 3:3)

Walking together here refers to walking with God. If one’s heart is not filled with God’s word, if one’s heart does not align with God’s, it is difficult to walk in God’s ways. Even slight obedience to God’s word feels like a great sacrifice. In reality, walking in God’s ways is not difficult, because doing what benefits us and brings blessings cannot be hard. However, people do not believe and treat sin as a common occurrence, and they do not fear sin. If believers sin, God will punish all your iniquities, and this is not my saying. Blessings and curses are set before us; which will you choose to walk in?

Do not delude yourself into thinking that you are already saved and blessed. Being saved and blessed is not like that, making it as difficult as struggling with severe constipation to act according to God’s word. Over the years, I have ministered to too many such people. Eventually, I grew accustomed to it. Those who should leave do leave, and those who are willing to stay, we walk with God together.

II. God Always Warns His People in Advance

God will certainly warn His people in advance, just as Deuteronomy 28:1-14 speaks of blessings, foretelling God’s people that if they carefully obey and follow God’s words, God will bless them. However, it is too difficult for people to receive blessings because of their unbelief. Some seem to treat carefully obeying and following God’s words as if they are working for God, feeling that since they attend Bible study on Wednesdays and Fridays, pray on Tuesdays, and keep the Sabbath on Sundays, why has God still not blessed them? It is as if they are keeping these for God, yet they do so with such reluctance. However, these do not even constitute carefully obeying and following God’s words. Yet if one does not keep them, it is surely not carefully obeying and following God’s words.

God always warns His people in advance. Deuteronomy, from verse 15 to 68, speaks of curses. Cancer is a curse, but if cancer is healed, I congratulate you because you have turned back to God, beginning to carefully obey and follow God’s words. If you continue not to carefully obey and follow God’s words, curses will surely come upon you. The book of Deuteronomy has already written this clearly; everyone should read it carefully. It explains very clearly that blessings and curses are for God’s people. That is why non-believers can worship idols without consequence, but we cannot.

Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he reveals his secret unto his servants the prophets. (Amos 3:7)

Before God brings disaster, He will surely declare it through His prophets. Today, God is using me to lead everyone in studying Amos chapter 3 to declare it again. If you still cannot hear, it is because your ears are blocked.

The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord God hath spoken, who can but prophesy? (Amos 3:8)

The prophecies of the minor prophets are not pleasant to hear. Today’s pastors preach so pleasantly, but they do not speak words of rebuke. Yet, the minor prophets spoke words of rebuke to God’s people. The words of blessing have all been spoken; those who listen, listen, and those who do not, still do not. But after each time words of rebuke are issued to God’s people, God waits again, sending another wave of warnings to see if they will repent. After speaking several times without change, some ask why God has not acted. Of course, He cannot act; acting would mean annihilation, complete destruction. Sadly, many still do not believe.

Hear ye, and testify in the house of Jacob, saith the Lord God, the God of hosts. (Amos 3:13)

Warn these Christians, but they simply do not listen.

Publish in the palaces at Ashdod, and in the palaces in the land of Egypt, and say, Assemble yourselves upon the mountains of Samaria, and behold the great tumults in the midst thereof, and the oppressed in the midst thereof. (Amos 3:9)

God is so angered that what should be spoken in Jerusalem is instead declared in the palaces of Ashdod and Egypt. Therefore, everyone should gradually understand that belief and unbelief are crucial. People hear the words of the Lord against His people, and it goes in one ear and out the other, if at all. In reality, their ears are walled off, unable to hear. This is unbelief because they are fixed on what they believe. I am truly saddened that some stubbornly refuse to listen, courting death.

God has warned His people so that they know that if they repent, the things mentioned above will not happen; if they do not repent, they will certainly happen. If you suddenly commit a sin today, such as knowing good and evil, that makes you feel uncomfortable inside, it is a warning from God. If you continue being stubborn after God warns you and persist on this path, what awaits you is God’s judgment, a situation almost impossible to reverse. Of course, this does not apply to those who are not God’s people, but even for them, curses still ferment. We will find that God has a way of doing things: He does not punish you immediately after you commit a sin; there is no immediate consequence.

Our God designed it this way. Committing sin today will be delayed; short delays may be a few days, long delays may be many years. When you sow a curse, by the time it ferments, it is essentially irreversible. A person coveted her mother-in-law’s house, only thinking that her son was about to get married, not realizing that covetousness is a curse. Today, I warn everyone not to covet, or the curse will surely befall believers and non-believers alike. The woman who coveted her mother-in-law’s house was plagued by illnesses for many years, on the verge of death.

A discerning person knows at a glance that this is a curse fermenting, not far from death. I advised her to repent quickly, but repentance requires homework, writing God’s words in her mind. She wrote with extreme difficulty, each sentence conflicting with her internal beliefs. If every sentence of God’s word conflicts with your beliefs, you will surely be very tired. The devil teaches her ten sentences for every sentence of God’s word she learns, making it very hard. This hard work makes it impossible to continue. She left the church for many years and came back, but she could not stay long and left again, completely unable to continue.

The uncle of one of our brothers is not a believer, but do not think that God does not care about non-believers; God still cares for them. This brother’s aunt bought a house in the city and brought his grandmother to live there. But when the house was demolished and they received a new one in compensation, his uncle took a fancy to it. Disregarding that the new house was in his aunt’s name, he rushed to renovate it as soon as it was allocated and insisted that it was his. Before the renovation was even complete, he contracted lung cancer and died three months later. Coveting anyone’s house is deadly, especially when the house does not belong to one’s own parents. I have seen many such cases.

Therefore, we slowly observe that the most important thing for Christians is not to step on the red line of curses. The curse is a red line; you must not disbelieve it. The red line is a high-voltage line; touching it is deadly. If you love money and are deceived, that is only a warning. Who told you to fill yourself with worldly logic? If you suffer losses today, you must change; if you cannot change, you deserve it. There is nothing in the system of worldly logic in our minds that does not suffer curses. If you have said these things, it is best to take them back and cover them with the blood of Jesus, perhaps escaping disaster. This is no joke.

As a prophet of this generation, it may be difficult to specifically speak the words of the Lord against His people. If we insist on doing it, the church may even collapse. However, thank God, our church has not collapsed and we must continue to speak. But one thing can be guaranteed: if you truly carefully obey and follow the words of the Lord God, you will persist even if a knife is held to your throat. Nothing is so great about a knife being held to your throat, and there is nothing to fear. Do not be timid, afraid of your husband, afraid of your wife, or afraid of your children, valuing other things more than God’s word. That is definitely not the right path.

III. How Can Two Walk Together Unless They Agree?

Can two walk together, except they be agreed? (Amos 3:3)

Many pastors have quoted this verse, but they interpret it as you should be of one heart and mind in your marriage. Is this to be of one heart and mind in receiving curses and violating God’s word? This is not about a married couple at all; interpreting it as marital harmony is pure nonsense. Actually, it is saying that if you are not of one heart and mind with God, you cannot walk with God. If you cannot accept God’s teachings and God’s words in your heart, you cannot walk with God. Without walking with God, even if you are of one heart and mind in your marriage, you are walking with demons together.

Those who have heard such absurd teachings will know, if they read the context carefully, that Can two walk together unless they agree is actually saying that people must walk with God in this world. In Genesis, there was a man named Enoch who walked with God in this world, and God took him away. Without context, one might think it is about a married couple walking together, but that is walking with demons, and the couple will eventually suffer curses together, which is not a good thing. If a couple can manage to get along, they can stay together; if they cannot, they should decide for themselves. I will not advise them either way. As for whether you are walking with God, it depends on what is inside you. If you are filled with worldly logic, you cannot walk with God, and every step will be difficult. Others can cross snowy mountains and grasslands, but you cannot overcome this obstacle.

Acting according to God’s word is an easy thing, but for many, it is like believing with fifty pounds of rice on their back, watching as if it is very tiring. It would be better to go to a temple; you might get something from worshiping idols in a temple. You are just muddling along here, bearing the name of God’s people while living under curses, only getting words of God’s rebuke. People fill themselves with worldly logic and still want to come here seeking warmth and blessings, thinking that they must be in a victorious church. But even in a victorious church, you cannot worship idols. People only seek their own benefit and want to gain some advantage. Leaving is also troubling, and not leaving means hearing me speak of God’s rebuke all day, causing inner turmoil. So, whenever I speak of rebuke, they mute their phones. Surely there are people like this, right?

If two are not in agreement, they cannot walk together. God prepares a beautiful grace for those who walk with Him. Those who walk with God must have the concept of eternal life within them. If they do not have the concept of eternal life, it is impossible to walk together. People are busy in the world trying to go public, but even after the IPO, the game is not over. Don't think that being the boss of a listed company is easy. Although you and I have never done it, I have heard others say that it is very hard. There are all kinds of regulations, and it takes a lot of intelligence to divert the shareholders' money into one's own pocket. It's not an ordinary game, and you never know when you will be investigated.

To be of one mind with God is to be able to walk with God. If you understand this logic, you must put God's words inside us. The choice between curse and blessing is not determined by flipping a coin. Anyone with a little brain who puts in some effort will definitely choose the path of blessing. That requires being of one mind with God, walking with God, and engraving God's words on our hearts. Make up your mind that you can have nothing, but you cannot be without God. That way, you will no longer be weak or fearful. Some people will question how to live life then, but as long as you have God, you can live. The people of Noah's generation were all swept away by the flood, but Noah walked with God, which was infinitely good.

IV. God is a Stone of Stumbling

I once gave a sermon with the theme “God is a Stone of Stumbling,” which was very popular, and the number of online hits is still increasing day by day. The stone of stumbling is not what I said; it is recorded in the 《Bible》. Many will rise, and many will fall, and those who fall deserve it.

Does a lion roar in the forest when it has no prey? Does a young lion cry out from its den if it has caught nothing? Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground where no snare has been set? Does a trap spring up from the earth if it has caught nothing? (《Amos》 3:4-5)

After reading this passage, everyone should know what God is saying. God has designed many pits, stones, and snares. If you are caught, it is because you have a worldly logic system inside you, and you are only thinking about making money. Some time ago, someone was scammed out of 100,000, then someone was scammed out of 600,000, and another person was scammed out of 1 million. This kind of thing happens frequently in the church. Who told you to be God's people? God has designed many thresholds. Don't blame God; God just wants to sift out His people and bring them into His kingdom.

Don't think that being God's people is as simple as shouting that you have already made a decision and been baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Of course, being God's people is not difficult; God's word is clear. However, the ugly things are said beforehand, and there's nothing to be done if you insist on stepping on the snare. It's like a wild dog stepping on a snare, and its leg is immediately caught. The principle of the snare is the same as a mousetrap. Once you step on it, it catches you. In the video, the dog that was caught was howling in pain. God warned not to step on it, but people don't believe it and insist on stepping on it. Who can you blame if your leg is broken?

When a trumpet sounds in a city, do not the people tremble? When disaster comes to a city, has not the LORD caused it? (《Amos》 3:6)

Everyone must know that our God is a God who brings disaster, a stone of stumbling, a God who brings disaster. You have been warned before; it is up to you whether you believe it or not. As for those who don't believe and insist on trying, the disaster may happen in twenty or thirty years, or maybe not. No one can say that the disaster should not happen; God designed it that way. If anyone thinks that this God is bad, then I have the same opinion as you, but we have been told in advance not to touch the high-voltage line. Some people don't believe it and touch it, and then they become BBQ, burnt black. Some people insist on touching it because they don't believe it, thinking that there is nothing wrong with corruption and bribery. They even think that they are good at math and have calculated the probability accurately, but they end up falling into the 10% that get caught.

Don't disbelieve that God is a stone of stumbling, a God who brings disaster. This will all come to pass slowly. If it were to happen immediately, the world's population would decrease by 90% all at once. God has been patient again and again, warning again and again, watching the kingdom of Israel last for two hundred years and the kingdom of Judah for three hundred years. God warns every day, but the Israelites are also quite interesting, thinking that it is all well as long as it doesn't happen in their generation. In fact, two or three hundred years is not a short time, and several generations may have passed. But God keeps忍着 , constantly issuing warnings. During this period, it may not be the fall of a nation, but the fall of a family. There was a news story about a village bully who beat someone to death, and the victim's son grew up and killed the bully's entire family. A gentleman takes revenge, ten years is not too late; but God's revenge, two or three hundred years is not too late.

V. God Will Surely Punish All the Sins of His People

“You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your sins.” (《Amos》 3:2)

God is saying this to make us pursue holiness. Never be侥幸 and play probability with God. Exert all your strength and strive to pursue holiness. 《Hebrews》 speaks of striving to pursue holiness, which is addressed to those who call themselves Christians but do not seek to understand God's word. Don't gamble with God, and don't play probability with God, because God will surely punish all the sins of His people, without missing a single one. At this time, you must quickly repent. When the precious blood of the Lord Jesus covers you upon repentance, those things are attributed to the Lord Jesus. But if you only repent and do not change, the sin is still on you. If someone suddenly loses their job, they should reflect on how they have been believing in the Lord. There was a sister who lost her job, and when asked, she had been a believer for more than ten years but had not read the 《Bible》 through once. It's really abominable. She spent all her time on Douyin,一直抖 to the point of抖掉 her job today.

God will surely punish the sins of His people. When God punishes, you are powerless to reverse it, and prayer is useless. For example, the sins of the house of old Eli cannot be atoned for by sacrifice. Because God repeatedly warned old Eli, but he did not listen and continued to sow sins until his destruction. Because the worldly logic system makes people feel that they have taken advantage of taking other people's land, houses, and vineyards, moving other people's boundaries, and taking other people's money and enterprises or equity.

“Proclaim to the fortresses of Ashdod and to the fortresses of Egypt: ‘Assemble yourselves on the mountains of Samaria; see the great unrest within her and the oppression among her.’” (《Amos》 3:9)

Thinking that violence and oppression are taking advantage, but God sees it and will surely demand his debt.

“They do not know how to do right,” declares the LORD, “who store up in their fortresses what they have plundered and stolen.” (《Amos》 3:10)

Christians must see clearly all things in this world and do what is right in the eyes of the Lord. If you think everything in the world is good, but God's word is not good, then it is impossible to walk with God. If God does not let him do it, he must do it. Even the Egyptians who do not believe in the Lord know that these things are bad, but God's people do them. How strange. Because inside is a worldly logic system, the core interest is still the matter of活着。 If all our purpose of活着 is for this little thing of活着, then you will have a hard time, and this is really a sin.

This worldly logic system kills people, because according to worldly logic, cursed things are taking advantage, and blessed things are always considered a loss. No matter how you calculate it for him, he can't turn it around, and it's very difficult to explain. He turns around and brings novels to ask me, but I haven't read these either. I only know blessing and curse. It doesn't matter if you bring 《Water Margin》 or the Eight-Nation Alliance into Beijing, I wasn't there, so I won't talk about that. I'll only talk about blessing and curse.

“In the day I punish Israel for her sins, I will destroy the altars of Bethel; the horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground.” (《Amos》 3:14)

Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: “An enemy will overrun the land; he will pull down your strongholds and plunder your fortresses.” (《Amos》 3:11)

When God punishes Israel for her sins, no one of her sins will be let go. The Lord Jesus said that the kingdom of heaven is near, and you should repent, but look at our repentance, it is far from enough. In fact, I thank God that by being a pastor and shepherding God's people, I have learned many lessons. Don't think that I am serving you at a cost. In fact, all the service I have done in my life has trained myself. There is nothing to boast about. After seeing more, I should be more in awe of God.

So how much of our core worldly interests have been demolished? Now we must slowly demolish them. When some people move real money, they move their hearts, but if God is our core interest, moving real money is not moving our hearts. Because those who worship God cannot worship both the Father and Mammon, and Mammon refers to money.

VI. The Opportunity for Salvation is Slim

This is what the LORD says: “As a shepherd rescues from the lion’s mouth only two legs or a piece of an ear, so will the Israelites be rescued who sit in Samaria, with the corner of a couch and on a silk cushion.” (《Amos》 3:12)

Silk cushions sound pretty good. When you go to the home expo, you quickly spend 50,000 to buy one. The bed is also a 100,000 high-end product. Lying on it for a total of 150,000 is so comfortable. Those are all German and Italian famous brands, but the Germans also have insomnia. No matter how comfortable the bed you sleep on, it won't solve the problem of insomnia. So much money was抢来 from others. It's comfortable to lie down after buying high-end furniture and bedding, but God sends a group of people to围攻 this land.

Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: “An enemy will overrun the land; he will pull down your strongholds and plunder your fortresses.” (《Amos》 3:11)

After抢了 other people's财物, they end up in other people's places as slaves. This is not fun at all. According to today's saying, it's慢慢玩 in prison. The scene described is thought-provoking and despairing. It's too late to cry for God to save you at that time. At best, you can only搶回来 two legs. What's the use of having only legs left after the body has been eaten? Are you going to make BBQ with them? There's only half an ear left. One pig ear is not enough to buy a whole下酒菜. In short, you嗝屁了, completely done. What salvation are you talking about? Some people are still calling themselves descendants of Abraham, Christians, and members of a victorious church like the Chinese Mingding Destiny . Saying these things is useless. There are only two legs and half an ear left, and they can't be attached anywhere. Peter could stick back the ear of a high priest's servant that he had cut off, but half an ear can only be stuck on a pig's butt. Doesn't that sound like salvation is very unreliable?

If people don't have the set of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph in their hearts, they cannot be saved. We Christians listen clearly, if we don't overcome, we have nothing to do with God. We must overcome no matter what, overcoming the worldly logic system inside us. Stop loving face, and in fact, what face do we have to speak of? Overcome the system of distinguishing good and evil, the system of Jeroboam. Look at which of our words is God's word? Stop always thinking that you are good. The problem is that once a person thinks that they are good, it's troublesome. Always listing to others what good deeds they have done, going to the temple to pray every day, and doing this and that, but it's all useless.

You must understand what is装 in you. If what is装 is a worldly logic system, spread it out and you will find that it is those things I often say that are不上道. For example, some people wear tight pants, step on high heels, and are fashionable with a good figure, but in fact, they have a belly full of 屎, which is useless. Using food, clothing, housing, or the car to support one's own value means that one itself has no value and must rely on these things to support it.

Now what can support our value is the word of God. We can no longer do superficial work. Now we begin to be victorious Christians. No matter what, we overcome those worldly value systems. It's not difficult to拆毁 those things. The most frightening thing is that people认同 those things. Thinking that you are doing well, you may be more victorious than Lamech, able to kill young people and even adults. On the surface, it looks very victorious, but in the end it is still a Lamech. It may also be more victorious than Cain, but Cain's victory does not count.

We must subdue the evil desires and lusts inside us so that God's word can be established in us. No matter how long God takes, we still adhere to God's word, just like Joseph persisted for 13 years, David also persisted for 13 years, and Jacob persisted for even more than 90 years. Those are all偉人 of faith. Now start to know that it is useless to be a descendant of Abraham. It is even more useless to put a label on your forehead that says I am a Christian, or even to attend Sunday service. Only by拆毁 the worldly logic system inside you is it useful. Today, let us hear the words of the LORD attacking you, not letting these words be fulfilled on us, but letting God's blessings be fulfilled on us, Amen!