{"id":10749,"date":"2023-11-25T01:22:52","date_gmt":"2023-11-25T06:22:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/e-krc.org\/?post_type=article&p=10749"},"modified":"2025-07-04T16:55:32","modified_gmt":"2025-07-04T20:55:32","slug":"influence-of-unknown-preachers-like-amos","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/e-krc.org\/en\/article\/influence-of-unknown-preachers-like-amos\/","title":{"rendered":"Looking at the influence of unknown preachers through Amos (Full Text)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cThe Lord God showed me something: After the king cut the plants, the plants grew again; just when they grew, the Lord made the locusts. The locusts devoured all the green plants in the land. Then I said, \u2018O Lord God, please forgive! For Jacob is weak\u2014how can he stand?\u2019 And the Lord relented, saying, \u2018This disaster will be withheld.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Lord God also showed me another thing: He commanded the fire to punish Israel, and the fire consumed the deep abyss, almost burning up the land. Then I said, \"O Lord God, please stop! For Jacob is weak\u2014how can he stand?\" And the Lord relented, saying, \"This disaster can also be withheld.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also showed me something else: There was a wall built with a plumb line, and the Lord was holding a plumb line in His hand, standing beside it. The Lord said to me, \u201cAmos, what do you see?\u201d I answered, \u201cI see a plumb line.\u201d Then the Lord said, \u201cI will set a plumb line among my people Israel; I will no longer forgive them. The altar of Isaac will be ruined, and the sanctuary of Israel will be laid waste. I will raise up the sword against the house of Jeroboam.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, \"Amos is conspiring against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The words he speaks about you are not to be endured; for thus Amos says: Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will surely be carried away captive from their land.\" Then Amaziah said to Amos, \"You seer, flee to the land of Judah and earn your bread there; but do not prophesy again at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary and the king's palace.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amos said to Amaziah, \"I was not a prophet, nor a prophet's son. I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees. But the Lord took me from following the flock and said to me, 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amaziah, now listen to the word of the Lord. You say, \"Do not prophesy against Israel, and do not preach against the house of Isaac.\" Therefore, thus says the Lord: Your wife shall become a prostitute in the city; your children shall fall by the sword. Your land shall be measured and divided with a rope; and you yourself shall die in an unclean land. And Israel shall surely be carried away captive from their own land.\" (Amos 7:1-17)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul\u2019s four missionary journeys often stirred up commotion wherever he served. This apostle, who profoundly influenced European civilization, was accused by his Jewish peers of being \u201clike a plague, stirring up riots among all the Jews throughout the world\u201d (Acts 24:5). Yet from Asia Minor sweeping through various parts of Europe\u2014including Rome\u2014his impact was unprecedented and unmatched before or after! Although Amos lived in a completely different era and context from Paul, this eighth-century prophet, called from the southern kingdom to preach in the northern kingdom, also caused a stir. His presence unsettled the northern religious authorities, leading the priest Amaziah of Bethel to lose his footing and report to King Jeroboam of Israel, falsely accusing the \u201cseer\u201d of plotting rebellion (7:10, 13, using sarcastic and mocking language). Amaziah played the political card to intimidate the prophet into leaving, hoping to consolidate his own religious authority in the northern kingdom. The shockwave of Amos\u2019s message is summed up by the prophet himself: \u201cThe lion has roared\u2014who will not fear?\u201d (Amos 3:8).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Readers might naturally assume this \u201cmighty lion\u201d came from a distinguished background (after all, Paul was a student of the renowned Gamaliel and a Roman citizen). However, when Amos revealed his identity, his presence seemed to lose some of its grandeur: \u201cI was no prophet, nor a prophet\u2019s son; but I was a shepherd, and a dresser of sycamore trees.\u201d (7:14) An obscure shepherd, yet he boldly ventured into the northern kingdom to proclaim God\u2019s message? With resolute tone, he declared the undefeated credential that empowered his daring mission northward: \u201cThe Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, \u2018Go, prophesy to my people Israel.\u2019\u201d (7:15)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reader might think that at this moment, since Amos was a nobody, his influence would be over! But unexpectedly, this roaring lion roared again, and the arrow was aimed directly at the elders of the northern kingdom\u2019s religious community who slandered and threatened him: \u201cAmos, now listen to the word of the Lord. You say, \u2018Do not prophesy against Israel, and do not preach against the house of Isaac.\u2019 Therefore, the Lord says: \u2018Your wife will become a prostitute in the city; your children will fall by the sword. Your land will be measured and divided by line; you yourself will die in a defiled land. And Israel will surely be carried away captive from their land.\u2019\u201d (7:16-17)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the roar of this prophecy lingers in the reader\u2019s ear, it\u2019s worth recalling Amos\u2019s earlier prophecy against the northern kingdom: \u201cAs a shepherd rescues two legs or a piece of an ear from the lion\u2019s mouth, so those who live in Samaria will be rescued\u2014only a little.\u201d (3:12) When the northern kingdom faced the crisis that \u201can enemy will come against the land, decimating your strength and plundering your homes\u201d (3:11), the fate of Amaziah\u2019s family\u2014who despised the unknown preacher sent by God\u2014was just as doomed as the northern kingdom itself: \u201cthey will surely die.\u201d What a fierce lion! Simply witnessing this dramatic effect, who would not be shaken? As the northern kingdom fell into captivity and Amaziah\u2019s family became destined for the \u201cdefiled land,\u201d modern readers cannot help but hold deep respect for this nameless preacher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Big trees attract the wind! Just as Amos was envied and rejected by Amaziah, John Wesley and George Whitefield\u2014two hugely influential figures in England\u2014were also suppressed by the Church of England. As a result, they became outdoor preachers and gospel wanderers. Both \u201cwandered\u201d to America to preach, profoundly influencing the country. Whitefield is considered a leading orator before the founding of the United States and a catalyst for the Great Awakening. At least one in every five American colonists heard his sermons, and his lifelong friend Benjamin Franklin even helped raise funds through newspapers to build an orphanage for his ministry! Whitefield preached over 18,000 times in his lifetime (about ten times a week). Like Amos, he preached like a roaring lion; his voice rose above all noise\u2014including storms\u2014and as many as 30,000 people would quietly listen to his sermons at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Actually, the American Declaration of Independence was inspired by itinerant preachers who spread the spirit of freedom in the colonies. The earliest advocate of equality and freedom in Christ during sermons was none other than Whitefield. Unlike John Wesley, who came from a pastoral family, Whitefield was born into humble circumstances. Raised by a single mother who worked busily in taverns to support seven children, he grew up mixed with drunkards and swindlers. Yet none of this prevented him from becoming an influential preacher\u2014so much so that even the skeptic David Hume was drawn to his sermons! It turns out that humble origins do not hinder one from becoming a vessel in God\u2019s hands. Moody, the most influential American evangelist of the 19th century, only completed four years of elementary school! If a person is willing, God can use them! The reason Wesley brothers, Whitefield, Amos, and others were influential was because of their willingness\u2014despite headwinds, they persevered with steadfast determination without turning back!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The last chapter of the Book of Amos records this \u201cwandering prophet,\u201d called from the southern kingdom to the northern kingdom, who persevered against headwinds to proclaim and prophesy how the righteous God would unleash relentless judgment upon humanity. Let the reader listen to his message \u2014 when God acts, the heavens collapse, the earth shakes, and no one can escape... The prophet\u2019s indisputable tone and overwhelming momentum are like a merciless roaring lion, emphasizing that under God\u2019s righteous judgment, no one is spared:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI saw the Lord standing beside the altar; He said: Strike the tops of the pillars so that the thresholds shake, break them on the heads of the people; and I will slay the rest with the sword, none shall escape or get away. Though they dig into Sheol, my hand will take them; though they climb up to heaven, I will bring them down; though they hide on the summit of Mount Carmel, I will search and seize them; though they hide from my eyes at the bottom of the sea, I will command the serpent to bite them; though they are carried away captive by their enemies, I will command the sword to kill them. I will fix my eyes on them to bring disaster and not blessing. The Lord, the Lord Almighty, touches the earth, and it melts; all who live on it mourn. The earth will be completely dissolved like the Nile River drying up, like the river of Egypt drying up. The one who builds His lofty chambers in the heavens, who establishes the vault over the earth, and who summons the waters of the sea to pour them out upon the earth \u2014 the Lord is His name.\u201d (Amos 9:1-6)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fierce momentum of this roaring lion inevitably brings to mind Jonathan Edwards, the leader who sparked the Eighteenth-Century Great Awakening in America and was influenced by Whitefield. His powerful sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, is said to have moved his congregation to loud weeping during its delivery, forcing the preacher to ask them to be quiet so he could continue speaking:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNow there is a black cloud of God\u2019s wrath hanging over you, filled with storms and thunder; if it were not for God\u2019s restraining hand, it would immediately strike upon your head. The will of God\u2019s powerful authority temporarily holds back this raging storm, otherwise it would violently assault you. Thus, your destruction is like a whirlwind coming upon you; you are like chaff on a summer threshing floor. God\u2019s wrath is like a flood, temporarily held back by a dam; the flood continues to rise, gradually swelling until finally the dam breaks\u2026 As soon as God removes His hand from the floodgates, the flood will instantly rush forward; God\u2019s fierce wrath, like a flood, will surge ahead with unimaginable fury and endless power, coming upon you. Even if your strength were thousands of times greater than all that is now, even thousands of times greater than the fiercest and most violent demons in hell, you would not be able to resist or endure God\u2019s wrath.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, the Book of Amos records that as soon as the prophet began to preach, he delivered a shocking message. He depicted the wrathful God as a roaring lion: \"The Lord roars from Zion and utters His voice from Jerusalem; the pastures of the shepherds mourn, and the summit of Carmel withers\" (Amos 1:2). This brings to mind the well-known story of Elijah praying seven times on Mount Carmel, after which the waters of the Mediterranean seemed to be drawn up into the sky and then suddenly poured down onto the pastures of the Jezreel Valley\u2014a miracle ending a three-and-a-half-year drought (1 Kings 18:41-46; James 5:17). However, the prophet\u2019s opening message is actually completely unrelated to this miracle. Even more, the pastures of the shepherds in the northern kingdom will not just return to the dry, sorrowful state before Elijah\u2019s prayer for rain but will also face a terrible earthquake two years later (Amos 1:1; around 761 BC)! This unknown prophet Amos foretold that the condition of the northern kingdom would be far worse than the drought and famine during Ahab\u2019s reign (1 Kings 18:5)!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dutch painter Hugo van der Goes once said that his motivation for painting was to move people when they look at his works; the motivation of preachers like Amos (and Edwards) was to shock people when they hear God\u2019s word! In contrast to painter Hugo, who used colorful hues to convey the profound emotions in his paintings, Amos\u2014who foretold the reversal of Elijah\u2019s miracle of praying for rain\u2014employed two distinctive Hebrew literary devices: repetition (e.g., \u201cThough they trespass three times, I will not revoke my punishment,\u201d \u201cBut I will send fire\u201d) and parallelism (like a lion roaring repeatedly against the nations surrounding the northern kingdom). Through these literary forms, Amos prophetically announced that the wrathful God, like dark clouds, would soon unleash storms and thunder upon these seven nations:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus says the Lord: Damascus has repeatedly sinned, and I will not revoke her punishment; because she used iron tools to thresh Gilead. But I will send fire upon the house of Hazael, and it will consume the palace of Ben-Hadad. I will break the gates of Damascus, cut off the inhabitants of the Valley of Aven, and the rulers of Beth Eden. The Arameans will be taken captive to Kir. This is what the Lord says. (Amos 1:3-5)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus says the Lord: Gaza has repeatedly sinned, and I will not revoke her punishment; because she handed over captives to Edom. But I will send fire upon the city of Gaza, and it will consume its palaces. I will cut off the inhabitants of Ashdod and the rulers of Ashkelon, and I will turn my hand against Ekron. The remnant of the Philistines shall perish. This is the declaration of the Lord God. (Amos 1:6-8)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus says the Lord: Tyre has repeatedly sinned, and I will not revoke her punishment; because she delivered captives to Edom and did not remember the covenant of brotherhood. But I will send fire upon the city of Tyre, and it will consume its palaces. (Amos 1:9-10)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus says the Lord: Edom has repeatedly sinned, and I will not revoke her punishment; because she pursued her brother with the sword, showed no mercy, was filled with wrath, and kept eternal anger. But I will send fire upon Teman, and it will consume the palaces of Bozrah. (Amos 1:11-12)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus says the Lord: The Ammonites have repeatedly sinned, and I will not revoke their punishment; because they ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead to enlarge their territory. But on the day of battle and shouting, in the time of the whirlwind, I will set fire in the city of Rabbah, and it will consume its palaces. Their king and princes will be carried off together. This is the declaration of the Lord. (Amos 1:13-15)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus says the Lord: Moab has repeatedly sinned, and I will not revoke her punishment; because she burned the bones of the king of Edom to ashes. But I will send fire upon Moab, and it will consume the palaces of Kiriath. Moab will die amid shouting, clamoring, and the blowing of the ram\u2019s horn. I will cut off the judges from Moab, and kill all its princes with them. This is the declaration of the Lord. (Amos 2:1-3)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThus says the Lord: The people of Judah have repeatedly sinned, and I will not revoke their punishment; because they have despised the instruction of the Lord and have not obeyed His laws. Their ancestors followed false idols that led them astray. But I will send fire upon Judah that will consume the palaces of Jerusalem.\u201d (Amos 2:4-5)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Amos was an \"unknown preacher,\" he was by no means an unworldly rustic! From Amos\u2019s proclamations against the surrounding nations of the Northern Kingdom, it is clear that he had a deep understanding of (1) international affairs: indeed, the prophets generally did, as Isaiah chapters 13\u201323 and Jeremiah chapters 46\u201351 also predict the fates of various nations; and (2) the mindset of the congregation: when he repeatedly preached using phrases like \u201ctime and again\u201d and \u201cI will send fire,\u201d the congregation, imbued with nationalist sentiments, would likely have been increasingly approving and nodding in agreement because these nations were enemies of the Northern Kingdom. However, through this indirect preaching technique of \u201cdrawing the snake out of its hole,\u201d he immediately shifts with the same rhetorical style to deliver the final judgment\u2014\u201cshooting\u201d the very congregation most deserving of judgment, the Northern Kingdom itself:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThus says the LORD: The people of Israel have sinned repeatedly, and I will not revoke their punishment; because they have sold the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals. They covet even the dust on the heads of the poor and hinder the way of the humble. Fathers commit adultery with the same woman as their sons, profaning My holy name. They spread out the garments taken in pledge by others beside every altar and lie on them; they drink the wine of those under punishment in the house of their gods.\u201d (Amos 2:6-8)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

God is the sovereign over human history (History is His story). Compared to Jonathan Edwards\u2019 message in Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, which was aimed specifically at America, Amos\u2019 proclamation of judgment, like a machine gun sweeping through, delivers an even more shocking impact. This is because his message reveals God\u2019s justice over the nations and peoples, showing that narrow nationalism cannot bind His prophets (Aristotle said, \u201cI love my teacher [Plato], but I love truth more.\u201d) However, at the climax of the judgment message, Amos directs his strongest fire toward Israel, highlighting that God\u2019s demands on His own people are higher (\u201cTo whom much is given, much will be required,\u201d Luke 12:48). After launching judgment on the Northern Kingdom, Amos\u2019 preaching focuses entirely on the people of Israel, those redeemed from Egypt and led through the wilderness (Amos 2:10).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cO Israel, you are the only family I brought up from the land of Egypt; therefore listen to the words of the LORD who attacks you: Among all the nations on the earth, I only acknowledge you; therefore I will punish all your sins. Can two walk together unless they agree? Can a lion roar in the forest if it has no prey? Can a young lion growl from its den if it has caught nothing? ... Just as a shepherd rescues two legs or half an ear from a lion\u2019s mouth, so the people of Israel who live in Samaria lie on beds at the corners or on couches covered with embroidered cushions; their deliverance is only as much as that.\u201d (Amos 3:1-4, 12)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou who live on the summit of Samaria, who behave like the Bashan cows, listen to my words: You oppress the poor, crush the needy, and say to your masters, \u2018Bring us some wine; let us drink!\u2019 The Sovereign LORD, the LORD Almighty, swears by his holiness: \u2018The time is coming when people will send you away with hooks, drag you off with fishhooks. You will each go straight out through breaches in the wall and be cast into the fire.\u2019 This is what the LORD says.\u201d (Amos 4:1-3)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Amos was not a top student from a \u201cseminary\u201d theological background, he had unique insight and saw that the problem in the Northern Kingdom began with Jeroboam at its founding\u2014the idolatry (1 Kings 12:25-33). Therefore, the investigation of \u201cBethel\u201d and \u201cGilgal\u201d became one of the focuses of his book (Amos 3:14; 4:4; 5-6)\u2014Amaziah was the \u201cfalse prophet\u201d of Bethel. Amos pointed out that although God disciplined them multiple times (4:6-11), \u201cyou still did not return to me\u201d (4:6, 8-11). The root cause of human ignorance and hopelessness is theological: people worship what they idolize, thus falling into the mire of \u201cworshiping false gods as if they were real, and the more you worship, the worse it gets.\u201d No wonder Timothy Keller, who pastored in New York for many years and understands American grassroots culture, pointed out that America\u2019s problem is not superficial issues like politics, economy, diplomacy, or social unrest, but idolatry! To save a nation or a civilization requires this kind of theological insight, even if you are just an unknown preacher!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

European history also testifies to this view. In the eighteenth century, England and France, separated by the English Channel, were both enveloped by the same Industrial Revolution, capitalism, the Enlightenment, and natural theology. Yet, while France underwent a revolution (a massacre!), England was able to pass through peacefully (as Yu Jie pointed out, the English way of life was \u201cGod\u2019s blessing on this just and gentle land,\u201d whereas France was \u201cGod\u2019s curse on tyranny\u201d). The philosopher Alfred N. Whitehead rightly explained that \u201cEngland avoided the tragedy of the French Revolution because of the revival movement led by Wesley.\u201d As Solzhenitsyn stated in his 1983 Templeton Award speech, the tragic twentieth century (especially in Soviet Russia and Eastern Europe) was due to \u201cpeople forgetting God.\u201d From this perspective, the Chinese people\u2014having endured more than a hundred years of calamity\u2014are likely in greatest need not just of revolutionaries in politics, economics, law, or technology, but more unknown preachers with theological insight!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, Amos was by no means a preacher who only cared about heavenly palaces while ignoring earthly realities. In fact, the Northern Kingdom at that time was during the rivalry between Assyria and Aram, with Israel temporarily free from external threats. In terms of national defense, Jeroboam II took advantage of this to recover lost territories and expand borders (2 Kings 14:25). Economically, the kingdom was wealthy (even lavish), but morally extremely corrupt. Therefore, he openly accused them: \"You hate the one who reproves in the gate, and you despise the one who speaks the truth. You trample on the poor and force them to give grain. You build houses with hewn stones, but you will not live in them; you plant pleasant vineyards, but you will not drink their wine. For I know how many are your offenses and how great your sins. You oppress the righteous and take bribes, and you deprive the poor in the courts.\" (Amos 5:10-12) Seeing through their \"beautiful on the outside, rotten on the inside,\" Amos sympathized deeply with the suffering people! His observations of various social injustices, people's luxury, indulgence, and moral decay were penetrating and heartfelt, so he could not stay silent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, Amos was deeply concerned about \u201cyou who say, \u2018The day of disaster is far away,\u2019 who lie on beds adorned with ivory and lounge on their couches, eating lambs from the flock and calves from the stall. You sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and like David invent instruments of music; you drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest lotions, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph\u201d (Amos 6:3-6), and he prophesied, \u201cTherefore, those who are first to relax and indulge will be the first to be taken into exile; those who recline on beds of ease will be exiled\u201d (6:6). He also sternly said, \u201cI 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. Though you bring me choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!\u201d (Amos 6:8-9)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amos used the double entendre of \u201csummer fruit\u201d and \u201cthe end\u201d to sing a lament for the Northern Kingdom, whose end was near like summer fruit already rotten (8:1-3). He explained that the approaching end of the Northern Kingdom was closely tied to social injustice and the oppression of the poor and needy (8:4-6). Therefore, he declared the word of the Lord: \u201cI will make your festivals cease, and all your songs will turn to mourning. I will make all of you wear sackcloth and shave your heads. I will make it like the mourning for an only son, and the end will be like a bitter day\u201d (8:10). Amos further pointed out that when the Lord says, \u201cI will send a famine on the land\u2014not a famine of bread or a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord\u201d (8:11), it highlights even more the urgent need for unknown preachers in Chinese society, rather than only political, economic, or sociological scholars!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To influence the era we live in, we must know the sovereign of human history (Amos chapters 1-2), who is also the Creator who \u201ccreates the mountains, makes the wind, reveals His thoughts to mankind, turns dawn to darkness, who treads on the heights of the earth\u201d (4:13). We must recognize that earthquakes are raised up by Him (1:1; 8:8), the rising and falling of the Nile is under His control (9:5), and that He is the omnipresent, omnipotent Creator whom no one can escape (9:2-3). Therefore, one must willingly become an unknown, hidden preacher! Scottish pastor Alexander Maclaren rightly said: \u201cThe most important thing is for the preacher to hide himself; the messenger should be hidden behind his message.\u201d Amos testifies that the influence of a preacher\u2019s ministry comes from being covered by God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chapter Seven of this book is the prophet\u2019s \u201cmonologue,\u201d recording his three prayers and God\u2019s responses. The first prayer arose because God instructed Amos: \u201cAfter the king has eaten the crops, the new crops appear; at that time the Lord God created the locusts. The locusts devoured all the plants in the land\u201d (7:1-2). At this moment, Amos\u2019 heart was moved with compassion for the poor, sympathizing that after the king collected his taxes (cutting the crops for the king), the remaining harvest, which belonged to the farmers, was entirely eaten by locusts. Under the tyranny, the already harsh lives of the people were made even worse! He prayed to God, and the God who has mercy on the poor heard his prayer and spared the people from the locust disaster. John Stott said, \u201cA person truly living in the sovereign grace of God, when he sees someone living in error, his first feeling is compassion.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amos\u2019 second prayer was similar. When God indicated that He would bring fire to punish Israel\u2014just as He had done to punish Israel\u2019s neighboring nations such as Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, Moab, and Judah by fire (1:4, 7, 10, 12, 14; 2:2)\u2014the prophet knew that if the land of Israel were consumed by fire, it would cut off the livelihood of the poor. Therefore, he prayed and asked God to stop this disaster. The God who had withdrawn the locust plague also heard his prayer and withdrew the fire disaster! When nations face calamity, the most needed and most important people are the devout intercessors! These two disasters clearly reveal the prophet\u2019s compassion that mirrors God\u2019s heart\u2014Amos was truly a preacher hidden under God\u2019s loving kindness. As R.W. Dale said, \u201cOnly Moody had the right to preach about hell because every time he mentioned hell, tears accompanied his words.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the prophet\u2019s third prayer was not heard by God! The reason is that God, like a builder holding a plumb line to measure a wall under construction, revealed that Israel was fundamentally a crooked wall. Therefore, God said, \u201cI will set a plumb line among my people Israel; I will no longer forgive them. The high places of Isaac will be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel will be laid waste. I will raise up the sword against the house of Jeroboam.\u201d (Amos 7:8-9) Jeremiah said, \u201cThe Lord determined to tear down the wall of Zion; He stretched out the measuring line and would not withdraw His hand, causing destruction. He made the ramparts and walls mourn and languish together.\u201d (Lamentations 2:8) At this point, the prophet understood that the righteous God must carry out judgment, and prayer could no longer quell His anger. The only thing left was to preach faithfully\u2014which is why he angered Amaziah, the priest of Bethel (Amos 7:10).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In contrast to Edwards preaching God\u2019s judgment, and at the same time George Whitefield preaching God\u2019s mercy and acceptance! Whitefield\u2019s gentle message melted hearts that had been riddled with wounds from Edwards\u2019 fire of judgment! That is, God uses different servants with different messages, yet all these diverse messages stem from the rich attributes of the same God. Amos\u2019 three prayers perfectly combine the messages of Edwards and Whitefield\u2014justice and mercy, like two sides of the same coin, are revealed in Amos\u2019 private prayers (spiritual life reflects one\u2019s private life)! Just as the cross is the intersection of God\u2019s justice and mercy, an influential unnamed preacher must have both these divine attributes in message and life, like Amos\u2014with the cross of justice and mercy! John Wesley prayed thus: \u201cGod, give me 100 men who are fearless except in sin, and love nothing but You.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The unnamed preacher must not only hide under God\u2019s mercy and justice (7:7-9), but also under God\u2019s sovereignty (7:14-17)! Amos, this hidden unnamed preacher, even after angering the prophets of Bethel, still persevered against the wind, relying on God to preach, proclaiming to Amaziah that the northern kingdom and his household would surely face destruction and exile (7:16-17). His spirit of \u201cthough millions oppose, I will go\u201d is truly admirable! Just as Abraham Kuyper, the Reformed theologian and former Prime Minister of the Netherlands, asserted: \u201cThere is not one inch of the entire world that is outside the sovereignty of Christ.\u201d Kuyper emphasized a Christ-centered ministry to proclaim the gospel and transform society and culture. The prophet Amos seems to reflect this very image. Indeed, history is in God\u2019s hands, and the life of the unnamed preacher is even more so in God\u2019s hands!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

C.S. Lewis said, \"The more one hopes for eternal life, the more one can bring change to this world.\" As long as the unnamed preacher is willing to remain hidden before God, the image of God's love, justice, and sovereignty will naturally be revealed, bringing long-term influence. British missionary Geoffrey Bull, who endured brainwashing torture under the Chinese Communist Party, recalled in his book When Iron Gates Yield that when he was imprisoned in a death cell in Chongqing, the communists confiscated his Bible. But outside the prison cell, a radio suddenly played Beethoven\u2019s \"Emperor Concerto\" (Beethoven was once a baptized Catholic, and this work reveals God's sovereignty), which helped him regain his strength.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amos\u2019s influence extended into the New Testament. In response to the Pharisees\u2019 questioning of Paul\u2019s teaching of \"justification by faith\" during his first missionary journey, the apostles convened the most important ecumenical council in church history. After Peter and Barnabas took turns speaking at the meeting, it was James who, at the critical moment, calmed the potential conflict between the Jerusalem and Antioch churches, as well as the possible opposition between Paul and Peter. The key Scripture that settled this theological, missionary, and pastoral dispute was James\u2019s quotation of the final message from the unnamed preacher Amos\u2019s book:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everyone fell silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul recount the miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. When they finished speaking, James said, \u201cBrothers, listen to me. Simon has related how God first visited the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name. And the words of the prophets agree with this, just as it is written:\n\u2018After this I will return and rebuild the fallen tent of David; I will rebuild its ruins and restore it,\nthat the rest of mankind may seek the Lord, even all the Gentiles who are called by my name, says the Lord, who does these things.\u2019\u201d\n(Acts 15:12-18; Amos 9:11-12)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, the council ended perfectly, the doctrine of justification by faith was confirmed, Paul was able to continue his second missionary journey, and the gospel was spread to Philippi (which later gave rise to European scientific civilization). Chinese believers have also been blessed because of this! Behind it all was this nameless preacher Amos, confirming a very important truth: the more hidden the nameless preacher is, the greater the eternal influence they can have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dixon Edward Hoste, one of the Cambridge Seven who joined the China Inland Mission after coming to faith at Moody\u2019s revival meeting. During the Boxer Rebellion, he was entrusted with leadership following Hudson Taylor, leading the China Inland Mission for thirty-five years. In 1929, with China\u2019s situation perilous and anti-imperialist sentiments threatening foreigners in China, many missionary organizations were considering withdrawal plans. Yet, at nearly seventy years old, Hoste prayed to the Lord to grant the China Inland Mission 200 coworkers. Many regarded this as a fantasy, but God revealed His will, and within three years, God provided 203 coworkers for the mission to continue entering inland provinces where the gospel had not yet reached, especially minority regions in the southwest. Hoste\u2019s secret to service was \u201cLive to be forgotten, so Christ can be remembered,\u201d fully embodying the truth of \u201chidden with Christ in God\u201d (Colossians 3:3). He was a profoundly influential hidden preacher of the 20th century!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit.\u201d (John 15:5)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe said to me, \u2018My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.\u2019 Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ\u2019s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ\u2019s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.\u201d (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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