Amos N
Andy
By Dr. Ken Matto
And Jesus,
walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and
Andrew his brother, casting a
net into the sea: for they were
fishers. (Matthew 4:18)
Then answered
Amos, and said to Amaziah, I
was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son;
but I was an herdman, and a gatherer
of sycomore fruit: (Amos
7:14)
No I am not
speaking about Alvin Childress and Spencer Williams who starred in the comedy TV
series Amos ‘n Andy Show from 1951-53.
I am speaking about two men in the Bible who started out as work-a-day
men and ended up in important positions in the Kingdom of God.
Amos was a herdsman in Tekoa and Andrew was a fisherman in the region of
Galilee with his brother Peter.
Amos started out
as a herdsman who was also a gatherer of Sycomore fruit which was a fruit common
in Palestine, the fruit of this tree was very sweet and good for both people and
cattle. So he may have been chosen
to gather the fruit for the cattle and the herdsman while he worked at that job.
Andrew was a
fisherman in the region of Galilee and no doubt fished on the Sea of Galilee.
Andrew was the one who introduced Peter to the Lord while he was still a
fisherman. One of the lessons we
learn from Andrew is that if you can’t do something for the Lord in a noticeable
manner, then be the best Christian you can be behind the scenes.
Many people see Peter as the father of the disciples on Pentecost which
would make Andrew the Grandfather since it was he who introduced Peter to Jesus.
The point I am
making here is that both of these men were unknowns to the world but they were
known to God. Amos became a prophet
who brought the word of God to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel.
Andrew went from being a fisherman to walking with the Savior.
Andrew was actually the first disciple to be called of the twelve.
Many times we
hear Christians claim that they are not qualified to do ministry because they do
not have a Bible college or seminary education.
The question you must ask yourself is this.
Did Andrew and Amos have formal education?
The answer would be no. They
may have had the basics from their local synagogue when they were young but we
can see from their professions that neither was a theologically based career.
So God chose two men for two important assignments, neither of which had
any formal training.
So true
Christians can learn from these two men that you do not need an advanced
education to perform Christian ministry.
Amos and Andrew bought the word of God.
Andrew had travelled to Greece to bring the word of God.
Amos brought the word to Israel and
pronounced seven coming judgments on Israel and the surrounding pagan nations.
The idea that one needs a Bible college education to do ministry is a
total lie. In fact the more
educated a person is, the more they rely on themselves and their knowledge and
will mix their education and the Bible and will come out with a confused mess.
If a person takes his King James Bible and reads and studies it and
compares Scripture with Scripture, they will be able to answer questions
according to the Bible and not the wisdom of man.
And my speech and my preaching was
not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and
of power: (1 Corinthians 2:4)
The words of Scripture does two things, 1) it shuts down the opposition
with wisdom they cannot match and after that all they can do is just vilify the
messenger, and 2) the words of Scripture convicts the hearers unto salvation,
maybe not at that moment but God’s word does not come back void.
Never ever be
ashamed of the fact that you do not possess a Bible college education because
that is not a necessity to qualify one for ministry.
A Christian is qualified for ministry the moment they truly become saved.
Both William Tyndale and Martin Luther understood that truth firmly.
William Tyndale
– “I defie the Pope and all his lawes. If God spare
my life, ere many yeares I wyl cause a boy that driveth the plough to know more
of the Scripture, than he doust.”
Martin Luther at Leipzig University debating John Eck 1519 – “A simple layman
armed with Scripture is greater than the mightiest Pope without it.”
Reformers like John (Jan) Huss and Martin Luther wanted to see reforms in the
Roman Catholic Church and most of all a return to the Scriptures.
The Reformation, simply defined, was a return to the teachings of
Scripture and the Scriptures themselves condemned the teachings, practices, and
rituals of the Roman Catholic Church.
This is why the Roman Church feared any Bible translation in the language
of the people. They murdered
William Tyndale because his Bible was the first to be translated directly from
the Hebrew and Greek into English.
Tyndale was a scholar of the first degree and he was proficient in French,
Greek, Hebrew, German, Italian, Latin, Spanish, and of course English.
Show me one modern translator today who is proficient in 8 languages!
This is why the King James Translators consulted the Tyndale translation because
they knew of his qualifications.
The times we live in today in 2019 has become just like the Roman Catholic
Church was before the Reformation instead today we have the Protestant Churches
which have departed from the simple faith and the teachings of the true
Scriptures found in the King James Bible.
The Tyndale Bible was the first in a series of 7 Bibles leading up to the
King James Bible in 1611. The
others were:
1525------------Tyndale Version
1535------------Coverdale Version
1537------------Matthew's Bible (John Rogers Printer and
Martyr)
1539------------Taverner's Bible
1539------------The Great Bible
1560------------The Geneva Bible
1568------------The Bishop's Bible
1611------------Authorized Version
These Bibles were all in the line of the true manuscripts which were
unadulterated by any of man’s corruptions.
Unlike the counterfeit Bible versions we have today taken from unbiblical
and spurious sources. Below is an
excerpt from the Translator’s preface to the NIV:
From the Translator's Preface in the NIV
"Sometimes a variant Hebrew reading in the margin of the
Masoretic Text was followed
instead of the text itself."
"The translators also consulted the more important early
versions-the Septuagint; Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion; the Vulgate; The
Syriac Peshitta; the Targums; and for the Psalms the Juxta Hebraica of Jerome.
Readings from these versions were occasionally followed where the Masoretic
Text seemed
doubtful and where accepted principles of textual criticism
showed that one or more of these textual witnesses appeared to provide the
correct reading."
If you notice these modern deceitful translators claim
portions of the Masoretic Text “seemed doubtful.”
Yet it was the Masoretic Text which was the basis for all the Bibles in
the lineage of the King James Bible and all of these 8 Bibles which were
translated from the Masoretic Text were all feared by Rome and this is why the
modern version Bibles falsely discredit the Masoretic Text and use outside
sources including Roman Catholic sources so no offense is given to the Vatican
since all modern versions are made under their authority.
The following quotation is taken from the 27th Edition of the
Nestle-Aland Greek Text (2006) page 45.
The
Introduction to the Nestle-Aland: Novum Testamentum Graece, 27th revised
edition (2006) explicitly confirms this close relationship between the UBS and
the Vatican:
"The text shared by these two editions was adopted internationally by Bible
Societies, an following an agreement between the Vatican and the United Bible
Societies it has served as the basis for new translations and for revisions made
under their supervision. This marks a significant step with regard to
interconfessional relationships." (p. 45)
The modern
translators do not even hide the fact that modern Bible versions are all under
the authority and supervision of the Vatican.
That declaration above has been omitted in the 28th Edition.
I guess they revealed too much information and finally realized it.
Now why did I
include this information here. It is
because the Roman Catholic Church at the time of Luther and Tyndale used the
Latin Vulgate of Jerome. As we have
seen above the NIV translators are using the same false Bible that the Roman
Catholic Church used for 1,000 years.
This is the problem in the modern Protestant Church.
Instead of using the Bible that has struck fear into the Vatican, namely
the King James Bible, the majority of Protestant churches are using Vatican
approved editions which has weakened the church and individual Christians.
Now let us
return to the focus of this article.
I mentioned Amos ‘n Andy not having any formal theological education yet
God used them in a mighty way. As I
previously stated you do not need a theological education to take a grand part
in the Great Commission. All you
need is the right tools for your part and that would be the God blessed King
James Bible which has the blood of many of the Martyrs on it and it is the Bible
that God blesses. God does not
bless these counterfeit versions. I
hear preachers on the radio who preach more about philosophy than they do the
Gospel. Does God use man’s
philosophy to teach his word? The
answer is no and the reason that these pseudo-preachers have to use man’s word
is because they really do not know the Bible instead they sound so smart on the
radio and that is why many of them wind up millionaires because many Christians
who also do not know the Bible can’t wait to send them money.
Luther and
Tyndale had it right. If you have
the Bible then you are better equipped than the Pope and the pulpit prostitutes
who push every false version and the seminary professor who trains the students
in useless disciplines which cannot help anyone but puffs up the professor and
student with pride.
Now as touching things offered unto
idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity
edifieth. (1 Corinthians 8:1)
The true Bible
is the primary tool of the Christian.
It is through the word of God where people are saved and not through the
teachings of man. Why do you think
God never used a Pharisee or Sadducee to bring his word to the nation of Israel?
In fact, in many of the books of the Old Testament it was the religious
leaders that God condemned because of their false teachings which caused the
people of Israel to go astray and go into false religions.
Just as the leaders of ancient Israel caused the people to stray, the
leaders in the modern church are also causing people to stray and that is why
you should never pay attention to those in the church who will try to discourage
you in having a personal ministry.
And he said unto them, Go ye into all the
world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
(Mark 16:15) The Greek
word behind “preach” means to “herald, proclaim, or publish.”
Preaching does not solely mean verbal ministry but you can preach by
means of writing or placing bumper stickers on your car or leaving tracts all
over the place. The essence of
preaching means to proclaim and that means you get the gospel out to the world
the way you are empowered to do so.
The phrase “word
of God” is found 49 times in 48 verses throughout the entire Bible.
Let us look at a few of them which should convince you that to do
ministry your Bible will be your greatest armament.
Purity
Every word of
God is pure: he is a shield
unto them that put their trust in him.
(Proverbs 30:5)
The word of God
is pure because they are divinely inspired from the mouth of God to us.
We live by it
And Jesus
answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word of God. (Luke
4:4)
Physical food
sustains physical life but the word of God gives us the spiritual strength to
proclaim and defend the truth.
People are
hungry for it
And it came to
pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by
the lake of Gennesaret, (Luke 5:1)
People do not
need to hear philosophy, sociology, identity religion, psychology because none
of these fields feed the souls, only the word of God fills the hungry void in
the lives of people.
Word of God
Grows
And the word of
God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly;
and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
(Acts 6:7)
The word of God
has affected millions all around the world and saved them from a Christless
eternity. What has the unscientific
teachings of men saved people from? Nothing
just complicated their lives.
It is
Powerful
And when he had
opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain
for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
(Revelation 6:9)
The word of God
is so powerful that it causes people to give their lives instead of rejecting
the word of God.
It changes
people’s lives for eternity
Being born
again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which
liveth and abideth for ever. (1
Peter 1:23)
The word of God
is so powerful it changes the lives eternally of everyone that becomes saved
through it. No mind-altering
philosophies of man can ever do that, all they can lead to is eternal damnation.
These six
principles from the word of God shows how powerful it is.
Luther, Hus, Tyndale and all the other reformers saw the power of the
word in contrast to the weakness of all the rituals of Roman Catholicism.
We see today how powerful the true word of God is in contrast to the
weakness of the routines of the Protestant Churches.
The modern churches teach a man-centered gospel that the unsaved,
spiritually dead person can tell God to save them, they use Roman Catholic Bible
versions which perpetuate spiritual weakness in the life of the church and the
individual Christian. It is amazing
that we have so many Bible versions today and the church is getting weaker and
weaker, that is because the blessing of God is off those congregations who use
counterfeit versions and then tell others to use them.
Many Protestant churches have gone off the deep end supporting sodomy,
bingo in the churches, women preachers, signs, wonders, and tongues, removal of
the pulpit and replaced with entertainment, pastors dressing like slobs, removal
of the hymn books and replaced with 7-11 songs and now Hillsong music, free will
taught as if it is found in the Scriptures, joining hands with other false
denominations and Christians for worldly ventures, Pastors dressing like Elvis,
or even a church in Virginia where clothes are optional and the pastor preaches
in the nude, etc.
It is 500 years
later and the Reformers would turn over in their graves if they saw what
happened to the modern church.
Today like in 1517, both the Catholic Churches and the Protestant Churches need
to return to the teachings of Scripture.
Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in
the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk
therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk
therein. (Jeremiah 6:16)
The Old Paths need to be sought again and that is the preaching, reading,
and studying of the word of God.
What You Can Do!
1) If you see
your congregation descending into rank apostasy and the Lord has opened your
eyes to this decline, then you need to start speaking with the people about it,
don’t start with the leaders because they will kick you out before you get a
chance to speak with others. You
eventually will be brought before the leadership and then let them have it John
the Baptist and Matthew 23 style but not nastily, only according to the
Scriptures you show them their error.
You will face the same opposition that the Reformers faced but don’t lose
heart. It is better to walk alone
with God than to run with the crowd with their false teachings.
When they kick you out of the church, then they will be held accountable
before God and God will deal with them.
Beloved, when I gave all diligence
to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto
you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was
once delivered unto the saints.
(Jude 3)
2) Start your
own ministry and do not shrink back from delivering the truth.
Personally, I prefer literature ministry because it gives someone the
ability to bring the materials home with them and read them when they are more
relaxed. You can design your own
tract or write your own studies and give them out to people.
Remember, Preaching is also Publishing!
Publish a website where you can refer people to on your literature.
It is cheaper than you think.
I have been on line for 21 ¾ years at this writing and I only pay $209
per year for hosting. Where else
can you get 24 hour per day witnessing for such cheap a price?
While you are sleeping, your website is ministering to people all over
the world. I receive approximately
4,500 people per day in unique visits to my site from over 150 countries per
month and I don’t need some church’s approval to do what the Lord has commanded
me to do. You see ministry is
commanded by the Lord not just for a certain few but for every Christian.
3) Stop
supporting compromised radio and TV ministries.
Radio and TV ministries are all compromised.
I have not heard any of them that do not use a modern version.
If they are willing to forsake the true word of God for a counterfeit,
then they will compromise in other areas also.
The majority of the speakers are just good story tellers.
Many of the heads of these media ministries pay themselves 6 figure
salaries and many place their family members on the payroll at 6 figures also.
If you think I am making this up then go to:
www.scionofzion.com/sg.html
where I have taken many ministries from an on line Charity watchdog site
and placed them in this article and you will see the many 6 figure salaries.
People give to ministries to send forth the gospel not so the head guy or
woman stuffs the money in their pocket.
Instead of supporting these type of ministries, fund your own ministry by
buying tracts, Bibles, or other things for giveaways.
Don’t worry about not receiving a tax deductible receipt from these
ministries because God is your benefactor not the IRS.
There are smaller ministries out there you can support where they produce
tracts for overseas distribution or print Bibles to send overseas or to send to
prisoners. So you can support some
outside ministries but they need to be ministries that are fulfilling the Great
Commission and not sequestering the funds in someone’s yacht or mansion.
No one should be able to become a millionaire off the donations of other
people.
4) My final
point is just as the Reformation was a call back to the Scriptures, in our day
there is a serious need to return to the truth of Scripture.
The church today is failing further every day and there is no return as
along as unqualified pastors with their unbiblical teachings continue to rule.
You must make your ministry Bible based without any additives and what I
mean by that is do not appease the emotions.
Teach straight Bible and people will be offended because the Gospel
itself is an offense since it goes against the pride and arrogance of man.
And I, brethren,
if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the
offence of the cross ceased.
(Galatians 5:11)
And a stone of
stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word,
being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.
(1 Peter 2:8)
Both the cross
and the Lord Jesus Christ himself is an offense because man thinks he is good
enough to get into Heaven but the cross says otherwise and the Lord Jesus Christ
is the only way to Heaven which means no one is good enough on their own. That
is the offense you must make known, that no one is good enough.
This study is
available on line at:
www.scionofzion.com/ana.html