What Do You See (Prophet Margins – Part II)

Sermon Title: “What Do You See?”

Good News Statement: God guides us to a level faith

Preached: Sunday, July 17, 2022 at Dogwood Prairie UMC & Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSV): Amos 7:7-15 Today’s scripture reading comes from the Amos chapter seven verses seven thru fifteen. Listen to the words of a concerned and confused prophet…

⁷ This is what he showed me: the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. ⁸ And the Lord said to me, “Amos, what do you see?” And I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said,

“See, I am setting a plumb line
in the midst of my people Israel;
I will spare them no longer;
⁹ the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate,
and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste,
and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”

¹⁰ Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent to King Jeroboam of Israel, saying, “Amos has conspired against you in the very center of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. ¹¹ For thus Amos has said,

‘Jeroboam shall die by the sword,
and Israel must go into exile
away from his land.’ ”

¹² And Amaziah said to Amos, “O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there, and prophesy there, ¹³ but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom.”

¹⁴ Then Amos answered Amaziah, “I am no prophet nor a prophet’s son, but I am a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees, ¹⁵ and the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’

 

This is the Word of God for the People of God; And all God’s people said, “Thanks be to God.”

 

Introduction:

A snake goes in to see the optometrist because his eyesight is failing.

“It’s actually affecting my life. I can’t hunt anymore because I can’t see,” hissed the snake. The doctor fits the snake for glasses and the snake immediately notices an improvement in his eyesight. A week later, the doctor calls the snake to check how the glasses are holding up. “They’re fine,” the snake answers. “But now I’m being treated for depression.” “Depression?” the doctor asks. “Yeah, my eyesight cleared up, but it made me realize I’ve been dating a garden hose.”

You might have heard that Benjamin Franklin invented eyeglasses, especially if you have seen the movie National Treasure (2004) starring Nicolas Cage, but it’s clear they had already been around for some 400 years by the 1700s when Benjamin Franklin was living. The earliest depiction of glasses in a work of art appears in a 1352CE Treviso Cathedral fresco painted by Tommaso de Modena. Therefore, if eyes glasses were drawn in a fresco painting[i] in 1325CE, then they must have been around before Benjamin Franklin. As a matter of fact, according historical documents, eye glasses were invented by Salvino D’Armati in Italy during the late 1200s or very early 1300s.

Although giving Benjamin Franklin the credit of inventing eye glasses has dwindled, nonetheless, Franklin is credited for inventing bifocals in the mid-1700s. He split one lens in half, with the upper part being made for distance viewing and the lower part for near viewing. Franklin wrote to London philanthropist George Whatley in May 1785, “As I wear my own glasses constantly, I have only to move my eyes up or down, as I want to see distinctly far or near, the proper glasses being always ready.” Glasses have changed the world.

Last week, we encountered the Prophet Elisha, who took the place of Elijah after he was taken up to heaven: “As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven” (2 Kings 2:11). We encountered Elisha as he was instructing, through a messenger, the great and mighty Commander of King Aram’s army, Naaman, to immerse himself in the Jordan River so that he would be washed and made clean; so that his leprosy and other illnesses would be washed away. Naaman was instructed to visit Elisha by a refugee girl that he captured and made his wife’s servant.

After displaying rage and frustration toward Elisha for not being physically present to cure him of this incurable disease, Naaman’s servants convinced Naaman to do as the Prophet suggested. As the text read, “So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean” (2 Kings 5:14). Naaman’s journey toward restoration and healing began and was motivated by the voices of those weaker than him, less fortunate than him and less powerful than him: essentially, Naaman’s life was changed by the voices of those on the margins—those who we don’t really take the time to listen too. Who did you listen to this past week?

If Elisha wants us to listen, Amos wants us to look, to put on the glasses of God: he wants us to see what God needs us to see. God asks Amos, “What do you see?” (Amos 7:8) and, in that same verse, Amos simply responds, “A plumbline.” What is a plumbline? A plumbline is a device used for determining the true vertical line of a structure. Essentially, a plumbline is what we would call a modern-day level. God is calling Amos to check the vertical line of Israel, to check how level or straight the line from earth to heaven is for the people of Israel. Remember, the people of Israel have wavered from their faith a time or two. They made a golden calf and worshipped idols.  God needs Amos to see what is really taking place, what is really happening on earth.

Nevertheless, what God is asking Amos is what He asks us on a daily basis. What do we see? What do you see around you? God is calling Amos and us to check our vertical faith as we look harder and deeper for the work of God. We have to interpret as we see and understand as we look.

Opening Prayer:

            Let us pray… God of Prophets, You call all of us to be prophets. You make clear the path of goodness and righteousness. You set a plumbline for us to follow. May we follow that plumbline. May my words fall to the ground as Your words settle in the hearts of all those before me. In Your name we pray, Amen.

Body:

According  to the CDC, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 12 million people 40 years and over in the United States have vision impairment, including 1 million who are blind, 3 million who have vision impairment after correction, and 8 million who have vision impairment due to uncorrected refractive error. Furthermore, it has been reported (by blog.eyeglasses.com) that by the year 2050 half of the human population will need glasses. This projection comes from the increase time that we are spending looking at digital screens. It has also been documented that 64% of those needing vision correction wear glasses and only 11% of those needing vision correction wear contact lenses. And lastly, approximately 58% of women wear glasses and approximately 42% of males wear glasses. Ultimately, where would this world be today if glasses had not been invented?

In our text today, we encounter yet another prophet who is on the margins, who is often neglected and seen as someone insignificant compared to the Prophets of Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. The Prophet Amos isn’t a mighty warrior or even someone who had a prominent or eminent presence within his community. But, yet God chose Amos to see what only God could see. God chose someone insignificant to do something extraordinary. God chose someone who needed assistance, quite possibly God-glasses, to save a people.

Our text today ends with a description of the less known Prophet. Responding to Amaziah, an official priest of the royal shrine of Bethel, Amos of Tekoa, a small village in Judah, noted, “I am no prophet, nor a prophet’s son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees, and the LORD took me from following the flock…” (Amos 7:14-15). Amos is a simple herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees—someone who gashed the fruit of a tree with a knife to induce ripening. He isn’t a well-known warrior or highly respected priest. He isn’t an elder of his community and he probably isn’t even on any committee. Amos is on the margins; but God chose him to prophesy to the people. Amos was just like you and me: an everyday person with God given actions.

So being called to engage in prophetic ministry was certainly something he didn’t predict for his life. Amos saw a vision for his own life, but God saw something different. Have any of you had a vision for your own life but then had the vision changed? Have any of you pursued one career and then realized that that career wasn’t for you? Have any of you ever experienced a drastic change in your life that you never expected? Amos is just like you and me; having a plan but having that plan disrupted. After being called and told to prophesy to the people, Amos was a little bit confused. “Why did God choose me and what does God see in me that I don’t see in myself?” are questions that Amos and you probably ask yourself on a daily basis. But the question becomes, “How do you respond?”

Amos is immediately thrown into a character assassination by a corrupt priest, Amaziah. Amaziah was a priest from the House of Bethel, a house known for idolatrous worship. This priest did what many corrupt troublemakers do. He spread rumors; rumors that lead to the destruction of people. Amaziah reports to the King of Israel during this time, Jeroboam, “Amos has conspired against you in the very center of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said, ‘Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel must go into exile away from his land’” (Amos 7:10-11). Amaziah sees Amos as a threat; but God sees Amos as a source of hope and new beginning for the people of Israel.

To this rumor, Amaziah responds to Amos, “O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there, and prophesy there; but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the kings’ sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom” (Amos 7:12-13). Amaziah is warning Amos to leave and if he doesn’t leave there will be consequences. Additionally, Amaziah is downplaying the decision of God in choosing Amos to become a prophet. “Go, flee away to the land of Judah” where you are from, and continue to earn bread by being insignificant and worthless, is what Amaziah is telling Amos. But returning home is not what Amos has been called to do. Amos has been called to see what God needs him to see in order to save the people of Israel and beyond. Therefore, Amos makes a bold move.

He goes to the actual temple at Bethel—which is no longer pure and holy nor tried and true—and tells the people there that God was setting a plumbline. Remember, God asked Amos, “What do you see?” and Amos responded by saying, “I see a plumbline. A plumbline, again, was a string with a weight at the end of it to measure how straight a wall was. Amos informed the idol worshipers and their priest that God was setting a plumbline against the house of Jeroboam and that the king, Israel, and its leadership were likely crooked next to the plumbline: their faith was no longer in line with God’s vision for his people. Their vertical line of faith was knotted, kinked, loose, and quite possibly frayed. Because of their wavering and crooked faith, God says this to Amos, “See, I am setting a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel; I will spare them no longer; the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste, and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword” (Amos 7:8-9).

God is frustrated. God is upset. God is going to destroy the house of Jeroboam with the sword. God is essentially reliving his words from Amos chapter five when he laments for Israel’s sins, “I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.  Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals I will not look upon.  Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps” (Amos 5:21-23). But through Amos, by giving him the ability to see what God needs him to see, God is going to “[L]et justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:24). The question of “What do you see?” is asking something more than what may be seen on the surface: it is a question that is asking all of us to see what God sees and to understand what we see. It’s a question of faith.

Amos, a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees, is chosen by God to see something extraordinary: a plumbline of faith. He was chosen to see God’s creation not for what it is but for what it can be. I would suspect that Amos, after being called upon by God, recited these words from the Psalmist, “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are humans that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?” (Psalm 8:3-4). Amos realized that there is more to life than meets-the-eye: that God has His fingers in everything. As a matter of fact, God is in and part of everything. God is Amos’s plumbline: his faith, his creation, his devotion, and his love towards the one who has called him to do great things for all people. Amos saw what we need to see today: that our faith needs to be straightened. (Amos reminds me of the pictures my nieces draw for me…sermon illustration.)

When you look out your front door, what do you see? Do you see flowers blooming, vehicles and tractors going by, the corn blowing in the breeze, birds flying in the air? When I look outside, I see God’s creation at work bringing us the reminder that He is always present in our lives helping us see the beauty in all things.

What do you see when you open the doors of this church? Do you see people smiling, enjoying a time of fellowship worshipping God; do you see cars in the parking lot, do you see people driving by and not stopping, do see empty pews? When I look at this church, I see hope, potential, committed followers of Christ who are willing to do his work, a space and place where people are welcomed to worship God; and I do not see empty pews but opportunities to grow.

What do you see when you look out into the world? Do you see love, justice, hope, and faith; do you see war, famine, destruction, death, and tears impacting the dry pavement, and concerned and worried looks? When I look out into this world, I see all these things. Not only do I see these things, but I hear them as well. This world is broken but it has a foundation of love; this world is hurting but there is a peace that surpasses all understanding waiting to bring comfort; this world is experiencing war, destruction, famine, defeat but there is hope for a better tomorrow; and this world is filled with death, worry, and impactful tears but it is also filled with encouragement, greener pastures, and people who are here to wipe away every tear that falls. What do you see?

Do you see a plumbline that reveals a strong and level faith that connects this earth to the heavens? I do see a vertical faith that connects us to the heavens, to God’s glorious kingdom; but I also see a horizontal plumbline that embraces all of us with unending love, amazing grace, and eternal salvation. What do you see?

The question that God asks Amos is also a question that Jesus alludes to in the New Testament when he invites Simon to cast his net to the other side of the boat. Simon, also called Peter, couldn’t see the fish that Jesus saw, but yet through his faith, Simon did as Jesus said: “When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to burst” (Luke 5:4-6). The same principle applied when Jesus chose the twelve disciples (Matthew 10:1-4; Luke 6:12-16). The twelve disciples, who came from various backgrounds and occupations, didn’t see what Jesus saw in them, but through their faith, they decided to follow Jesus. We don’t always see what God or Jesus need us to see in ourselves, in others, in our church, in our community, or even in the world, but if we put our trust in Him, then our faith will always be flush against any plumbline.

Conclusion:

If Elisha wants us to listen, Amos wants us to look. Now, it’s true that God didn’t ask Amos to take a stroll around his neighborhood and report what we saw. No, there was a specific vision. God did something, set up something, and asked Amos to see it and interpret it. So, our seeing is a deeper seeing. Where have you seen the handiwork of God? We have to look harder and look deeper. We have to interpret as we see, understand as we look.

God’s repeated word to Amos was, “What do you see?” It was an invitation to pay attention, to take off the rose-colored glasses and really see what was before him. How often do we really pay attention to the world around us? Whether we are going to work, or to school; whether we are running our errands or even trying to get in some exercise, do we really look around us to see the state of the world, our nation, or our neighborhood? What do you see? What is God calling you to do about the things you do see in your life?

Remember, Amos was just a normal person going about his daily life, but God still chose him to see what He sees. You never know, God could be calling you right now to see what He sees. How are you going to respond, and what are you going to say when he asks, “What do you see?” Are you wearing God-glasses?

 

Closing Prayer:

Let us pray…Dear Heavenly Father, help us to see what you need us to see. Help us to answer when you call upon us. Help us to hear those who are on the margins. Lord, we are here to do your will and save your people.  All power and glory is yours, now and forever, Amen.

Benediction:

So I ask you again, “What do you see when you look out your front door; what do you see when you open the doors of this church; and what do you see in the world? If God were to lay a plumbline against your faith, what would He see? May God bless your faith and help you see what He needs you to see. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit go transforming lives as you live well and wisely in God’s world. Amen. Amen. Amen.

 

[i] www.britannica.com/art/fresco-painting – fresco painting, method of painting water-based pigments on freshly applied plaster, usually on wall surfaces. The colours, which are made by grinding dry-powder pigments in pure water, dry and set with the plaster to become a permanent part of the wall. Fresco painting is ideal for making murals because it lends itself to a monumental style, is durable, and has a matte surface.