Comparing Israel and the United States

Amos 4:4-8 - Come to Bethel, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years: 5  And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, and proclaim and publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord GOD. 6  And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD. 7  And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.  8  So two or three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD. 

I understand that Israel is not the United States.  The United States was formed under Christian principles, although she has gone away from those principles.  The United States is not Israel "reincarnated".  She never will be.  God deals with the U. S. as he deals with all nations.  If we do good, he will bless, but if we do evil, he will punish us.

Israel and the church are also different.  Israel is God's chosen nation.  The church that Jesus organized during His personal ministry did not take Israel's place in God's heart.  She never will.  God has promised that He will never turn away from His kind of churches like He turned away from Israel.

God is coming back to Israel.  He will cause her to be the greatest nation this world has ever known.  He will sit on her throne, judging this entire world with a rod of iron.

Amos 4:4-8 - Notice the various things God did to Israel in order to bring them back to worshipping Him.  God has done these very same thing to the United States, but they haven't returned to God. 

1. People wonder why Iraq attacked us.  It is because we have done many evil things in the sight of God (It is not that these things happen, it is because we have made them legal and accepted): abortion, homosexuality, adulteries, prostitutions, gambling (gaming),
2. I Samuel 13:19-22 - Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel: for the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears: 20 But all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his share, and his coulter, and his axe, and his mattock. 21 Yet they had a file for the mattocks, and for the coulters, and for the forks, and for the axes, and to sharpen the goads. 22 So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there found. 
3. People wonder why gas prices are so high.  It might be caused by extreme environmentalists, who do not know Genesis 1:26, which states that men are supposed to be over all this world, therefore they do not want us to use the oil on our own territory, but instead import our oil from the mid-east, who can choke us off if they want. 
4. China is interested in producing our weapons, even to the point of buying into Boeing, which produces some of our weapons.  Some in our government are very interested in letting China produce these weapons, because China can do it cheaper than we can here, but they do not understand that China is our enemy, not our friend. 

Amos 5:21-27 - God got tired of the worship of Israel because they only had a ritual of service and didn't worship in spirit and truth from the heart.

THE SADNESS OF NOT KNOWING GOD IS DISPLEASED WITH OUR ACTIONS

II Tim. 2:15 - God commands us to study to show ourselves approved unto God.  If we don't study, we won't understand what God's will is for our lives.

Mal. 1:6-9 - Israel failed to honor God and offered Him polluted offerings, yet they declared they didn't know they had done anything against God.  God says they ought to give those things to their governor they give to Him.  Their governor wouldn't accept their polluted sacrifices any more than God would accept them.

Compare the requirements of a job with the requirements God expects out of Christians.  Employers expect their employees to be on the job, on time, sober, able to work and willing to work.  When churches expect their members to do the same, many church members rebel, declaring they can worship God without all the requirements of the Bible.  Employers force employees to live by certain rules, even to the point of telling them how to dress.  When a church expects her members to live by the laws of God, some church members call them "legalists", and rebel against those rules, declaring God isn't in such a thing.

Mal. 1:10 - Israel got to the point they expected to be paid for every service they performed in the temple.  Some churches are exactly like that today.  Some churches pay all their special singers and musicians.  Some song leaders refuse to lead the singing unless they are paid for their services.

Mal. 1:12-14 - Worship was a weariness to Israel and it is a weariness to many church members today.  That is why some church members only come to Sunday school.  Some only come to Sunday morning worship.  Some believe they have done their service to god when they show up at church one Sunday a month, or maybe just Christmas or Easter. 

Mal. 3:8-12 - Israel was ignorant of their robbing God by refusing to give tithes and offerings.  Many today are ignorant of the fact that God requires the giving of tithes and offerings.  They consider they have given their best when they give their old worn out shoes to be auctioned off by the church!

II Tim. 3:1-7 - The way of people in the last days.  Verse 13 declares evil will wax worse and worse.

Matt. 24:12 - And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.  We need to be very careful because we are living in the last of the last days.  Iniquity is abounding and the love of many is waxing cold.  We must be very careful because our love might be the next to wax cold!

II Cor. 10:12,13 - For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise. 13 But we will not boast of things without our measure, but according to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed to us, a measure to reach even unto you.  Those who measure their performance by comparing themselves to others are not wise.  We need to measure our performance with God's rule.