Dear Christian friends:

It has been over thirty years since we had a famine in our country. And we almost forget and do not understand what a famine is.

In our text God says through the prophet Amos that He will send a famine in the land. But this is a strange famine, not a hundred for bread or a thirst for water, but a hunger to hear God's Word.

When we have a famine (no rain and no food) that is terrible, but it is more terrible when God takes away His Holy Word from us and then in our trouble and fear we seek God and cannot find Him. Because when God takes away His Word He Himself forsakes us, too, and we are left in our trouble and sin.

We don't want this to happen to us, so we should attend to God's warning in our text:


What makes God speak such a warning? God sent the prophet Amos to speak these words to Israel at the city of Bethel about eight-hundred years before Christ's birth. Since the time of Abraham two-thousand years before God sent His Word through the prophets to Israel.

Sometimes they listened and believed and other times they did not believe and went worshipping idols and doing much sin in the land. They went up and down up and down but always a little lower down until now almost all the people gave up faith in God and worshipped idols led by the King Jeroboam II.

They were crooked and cheated the poor and widows. The king and rulers and judges accepted bribes and judged falsely condemning the innocent and freeing the guilty.

By this they showed that they didn't want the true God who judges rightly and shows mercy to the poor and needy who forgives those that humbly confess their sins and turn from them. They wanted to hide their sin and excuse themselves and do proudly and smartly.

Even when God corrected them with wars and sickness and famine they still refused to be sorry and change and wake up and do right. Finally God in His mercy sends Amos to show them their sins and what terrible punishment will happen if they don't repent. But they told Amos to go away to another country and preach there. They don't want to hear his strict words against them.

Although God tried again and again patiently for many years, they stubbornly refused to hear His Word and believe. So God says,

"The days are coming,” declares the Sovereign Lord,
“when I will send a famine through the land
not a famine of food or a thirst for water,
but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.

People will stagger from sea to sea
and wander from north to east,
searching for the word of the Lord,
but they will not find it. (Amos 8:11-12)

Was God right to do this? Or do you think God is wrong to take away His Word and preaching from a nation?

God is very right if He decides to take away His Word. He owes His Word of mercy to no one. When the devil and his angels sinned and fell from heaven God did not give them a second chance. But when Adam and Eve sinned God didn't give them a second chance, He promised them a Savior, Jesus.

Why did He give His Word to Adam and Eve, but not to the devil and his angels? We don't know. Adam and Even did not deserve a second chance anymore than the devil. So the Jews, you and I we do not deserve the second chance God offers in His Word.

If God gives us His Word that is pure mercy, not His debt. That He gives His own dear Son to bear our sin and hell that we may be free. That is only because of His great love and mercy, not His debt to us.

We deserve nothing from God but His wrath and displeasure temporal death and eternal damnation. But in His Word He gives His Son and through Him gives us everlasting life and salvation, peace and joy with Him now and forever. This is wonderful kindness and mercy. He the great God through His Word calls us and forgives us.

Now if we despise that Word of mercy we do the worst crime of all. Suppose a kind Judge says to a guilty murderer: "You deserve to die in the electric chair, but my son volunteers to die for you to let you go free and change your ways." Then the son dies in the electric chair for that murderer and the murderer is free. But after that the murderer is not sorry and continues to lie and steal and kill. You say, "That is the worst man in the world," and you'd be right.

But people who refuse to believe in God's Word are like that. Then God is right, very right to finally take His Word from them.

Now what does God mean for us by this warning? First, this warning should help us to remember that having God's Word is the greatest blessing in the world. We may have good health and riches but that is nothing compared to God's Word.

We may have nice homes and cars but they are no good without God's Word. We may have good friends and jobs but they are worthless without God's Word to tell us that He loves us and forgives us and will take us to live with Him forever in eternal glory.

But it is really terrible to live without God's Word. (verse 12, read it) This shows people in trouble. They want help and salvation, but God is gone. His Bibles are gone, the true preachers are gone, the churches are empty or destroyed. This has happened in Russia and Germany and many other countries of this world.

Once they had God's Word, but they loved sin, crookedness and money and gave up God so God has left with His Word and they have Communism.

It can happen here, too. Many of us in America are loving money and comfort and fun more and more. We don't attend to our Bibles and Churches as we should. We are becoming like the Communists in heart and spirit wanting material things and not interested in doing right, being honest or wanting God. See how we use our time and money!

May this warning from God today help us to see our carelessness and indifference with His Word and preaching. May it lead us to honestly confess our sins and seek His mercy and forgiveness in Jesus' blood.

May this warning lead us to treasure our Bibles and preaching as the dearest things in our life and may it lead us to believe and obey our right kind and wonderful God.

Amen.