Rotting in the Sun — E.A. Johnston

Amos Warns of Imminent Judgment

The prophet Amos was hand-picked by God to bring a message to the people of God that their time was fast running out before God's judgment fell. The prophet's pleas to the people to repent and his predictions of the destruction of Israel made him a very unpopular preacher.

Prosperity and Spiritual Complacency in Israel

Oddly, Amos was called by God to minister to Israel at a time when she felt her least need of Amos' messages as the people were experiencing a season of prolonged material prosperity and political success.

How Prosperity Caused Israel to Forget God

Amos' messages went unheeded because the people saw nor felt any danger as they lived in their carnal security, but their prosperity caused the people to forget their God. In his mercy, God sent them his prophet, whose very name means a burden.

And it was as Amos unburdened his heart to the disobedient people of God that they grew tired of his stern messages of gloom and doom. But a day came to them when the sand in their hourglass was fast running out as we see in Amos chapter 8 beginning in verse 1.

Thus hath the Lord God showed unto me. And behold, a basket of summer fruit. And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, a basket of summer fruit. Then said the Lord unto me, The end is come upon my people of Israel.

I will not again pass by them any more. I will stop there, friends. There are several striking aspects seen in chapter 8 of the book of Amos. First, God withdraws his presence from among them. Secondly, then God withdraws his favor upon them.

The Famine of Hearing God's Word

And then, lastly, God withdraws his prophets from the land. In verse 11 we read, Behold, the day is come, saith the Lord, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord.

It is always serious, friends, and dangerous for people when God begins to remove his mouthpieces, his prophets from the land, and does not replace them. For that is a sure sign. Judgment is about to fall.

America as a Basket Ripe for Judgment

The basket of summer fruit is vivid imagery that Israel is ripe for judgment. I've been praying for America now to see revival for the last several decades. During that time, I've seen God do to America what he had done to the people of Israel in the days of Amos.

God has continually brought remedial judgments to America, and their severity and frequency has only increased. Has the church repented and turned back to the God of the Bible? No, not in the least, since 9 -11.

The Church's Self-Reliance and Loss of Repentance

She has been on a wild building campaign to expand her already bulging campuses. She has built islands unto herself for her own glory and recognition, as the churches have only grown more self-reliant.

If the people of God won't wake up and respond to God in repentance and humility, in a heartfelt return to Him, then how can an evil society have any hope at all when there is no leadership to guide them back to a right relationship with a provoked God?

America's Prosperity Before Destruction

I believe America is a basket of summer fruit sitting out in the sun, enjoying her wealth and prosperity, but completely unaware of her danger, completely ignorant to the judgment that is about to drop upon them in destruction and ruin.

A Final Call to Repentance

One by one, God has been removing His prophets from the land and thus clearing the ground for a major catastrophe to take place. As Israel's doom was nearer than they realized, so too is America's doom.

If she does not repent and turn back to the living God of the Bible, the question is, friends, will we repent and turn back to God, or will we just continue to rot out in the sun? Heaven help us all!