Introduction: During a transatlantic flight the pilot came over the intercom and said, “Ladies and gentlemen, I'm delighted to be your pilot for this plane's flight.
I can tell you the flight is going well. Nevertheless, I have to tell you about a minor inconvenience that has occurred.
The passengers on the right side can, if they look out their windows, see that the closest engine is slightly vibrating.
That shouldn't worry you, because this plane is equipped with four engines and we are flying along smoothly at an acceptable altitude.
As long as you are looking out the right side, you might as well look at the other engine on that side.
You will notice that it is glowing, or more precisely one should say, burning.
That shouldn't worry you either, as this plane is designed to fly with just two engines if necessary;
and we are maintaining an acceptable altitude and speed.
As long as we are looking out the plane, those of you on the left side shouldn't worry if you look out your side of the plane and notice that the engine that is supposed to be there is missing.
It fell off about 10 minutes ago.
Let me tell you that we are amazed that the plane is doing so well without it.
However, I will call your attention to something a little more serious.
Along the center aisle all the way down the plane a crack has appeared.
Some of you are, I suppose, able to look through the crack and may even notice the waves of the Atlantic Ocean below.
In fact, those of you with very good eyesight may be able to notice a small lifeboat that was thrown from the plane.
Well, ladies and gentlemen, you will be happy to know that your captain is keeping an eye on the progress of the plane from that lifeboat below.” And from my point of view you are doing just fine
Sermon !
Today you may feel like one of the passengers on the plane.
Everywhere you look things are falling apart
And it seems that you will surely crash and burn.
You feel like you'll never get ahead
You feel like things are stacked against you
Your marriage is falling apart,
Your career is not where you expected it to be.
Your finances are not what they should be !,
Your kids are driving you crazy
Hello someone
How many of you can testify that your kids are Always in trouble
Or…always costing you money ?
Some of you in here your emotions are all to pieces
You're stressed out all the time
You have no peace in your life
And you feel like everything is falling apart
Way is this happening ?
What did I do wrong ?
My life is in pieces
Can I tell you as your pastor
If it seems that everything in your life is falling apart
You need to know that God is still in control.
He has not fallen off of His throne.
He still loves you, and has a plan for your life.
He still owns the cattle on 1,000 hills
He still rich in mercy
His Name is still Jehovah Rapha (Your Healer)
He is still Jehovah Jireh (Your Provider)
He is still in control of your life …
I’ve come to tell somebody today
That you may feel like your life is in pieces
You may feel like it’s going to end
You may feel like everything is broken…. and falling apart
But I know a God that is working behind the scenes
He is moving in the unseen realm of the heavenly‘s
And He is restoring a way for you right now
He is the God who restores........
I want us to turn to Amos 3:11-12
Here we find a incredible situation how God can restore when things fall apart
11. “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: “An adversary shall be all around the land; He shall sap your strength from you, And your palaces shall be plundered.”
Thus says the LORD: “As a shepherd takes from the mouth of a lion Two legs or a piece of an ear, So shall the children of Israel be taken out Who dwell in Samaria— In the corner of a bed and on the edge of a couch!”
Amos is the best book to look at as a example of the Old Testament minor Prophets.
He, along with the other some other Prophets warned Israel that unless they changed their ways that God’s judgment would sweep in like a fire and devour them.
You see God had chosen Israel to be His very own special People.
He raised them up, took them by the hand and led them out of Egypt.
We all know the story
He feed them …..and provided for them for forty years in the wilderness.
He even gave them a land flowing with milk and honey…..
The Bible even tells us that He drove out all their enemies, before them.
Yet time and time again we find them turning to false gods
We find them worshiping idols
We find them forgetting everything He done for them
Sound for familiar?
It's no different in today Society
There are people who God has touched their life’s
He set them free
Delivered them
Broken changes off of them
Brought them out of tough times
But yet they refuse to live for Him
They refuse to leave the life style they love
Even though He has fed them
Bless them with so many great things
They turn and walk back to the way they used to live….
You know to me what was so sad about the the pandemic last year…?
Was the people who has never been back in the Church since
The ones who gave up without a fight
The ones who never had a real relationship with Him…
Oh they were good at coming in here and playing church
They were good at making you think everything was going well
Then One or two weeks out of church
And they turn back to the way they use to live
When a little trouble hits…….. they hit the road
People who God had healed
People who He had set free
People who He had broken the addictions off of their life's
Set their kids free
Even heal their body
Just walked away …..
Just like then In Amos’s days
But God sent the prophets to warn the people repeatedly
But they refused to listen and continued to worship their idols.
Finally, the breaking point came and Amos prophesied that the Assyrians would invade the land and destroy it and take the people captive.
The destruction would be so severe that what remained of Israel would only be two leg bones and a piece of an ear.
Church we are left with that same thing today
A lot of Gods people have been hit by the enemy and all we are left with are the pieces
Two leg bones and a ear
There's a lot we can learn from the story..
I'd like to show you three points we need to know
Point number one
1. When everything falls apart… remember that God still restores.
In ancient times predators like lions and wolves would often attack the sheep
And all that was usually left were pieces of the sheep.
But the shepherd loved the sheep so much
That he would gather the pisces of the sheep and return what he could to the owner to account for the loss.
Can I tell you this morning that sheep are dumb
Let me explain..
The sheep are dumb because around the shepherd they are safe
Around the shepherd …..they don't have to worry about the wolves
They don't have to worry about not getting feed …
They don't have to worry about getting lost
They don't have to worry about what their kids are doing
When they keep them around the Shepard…
But sheep being a sheep like to wander off
They like to get into trouble
They think the grass is greener on the other side
Some sheep might even be attracted to a younger sheep and follow them
Some sheep like to stay around their favorite watering hole if you know what I mean
They leave the safety of their shepherd
And that's when the enemy strikes
That's when you look up and it's too late you're lost
And the wolves are surrounding you
But can I tell you the shepherd loves you
And He leaves the 99
And goes looking for that which was lost..
He walks through the pastors that look greener
He walks past the favorite watering hole
And 99% of the time the only thing He finds
Are the pieces
Pastor my marriage is falling apart and I don't know what to do
I've slipped back to the way I used to live and addictions that used to control me
I've let the fear back in ………that He delivered me from
I've went back to those friends that He separated me from
My language has changed
I've walked away from the shepherd
There are some lions in my life that have attacked me
I believed the lie of the enemy… and I left the flock
I thought it would be better
I can go out and just casually drink
I thought I could change those friends He didn't want me to be around
No I'm lost and they are coming for me
Now the wolves have surrounding me
They have torn everything apart
And all I am left with are two leg bones and a piece of an ear.
Can I tell you
When everything is falling apart in your life
When everything is torn into pieces
God can take what is left and restore you to a place of blessing and favor.
Nothing is too hard for God.
Nothing is too hard for the Shepherd
Sometimes we think that our problems are just too big for God.
Sometimes we are tempted to think that the problems we find ourselves in are too much for God to handle.
And it is easy to start doubting God’s goodness and His power.
But let me encourage you with something.
Sometimes God waits until you’re down to nothing
In order to show you how great His power really is.
God specializes in nothing.
In Hebrews 11:3 we read,
“By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command,
so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.”
In other words, God took nothing and made something.
You see, when you’re down to nothing God is up to something.
2. When everything falls apart remember God remains.
When a sheep was destroyed by a predator and only a few pieces of its body remained
The shepherd was still there to pick up the pieces.
The flock moved on, but the shepherd remained.
Can I tell you this morning that
We have a shepherd that will never leave us or forsake us.
Though our life might be shattered into a thousand pieces yet God still remains.
Everyone else may leave us and move on
But the Shepherd of our soul will always be right by our side.
He never gives us up
We might give up,
Your friends and family might give up,
But God never gives up.
When everything else falls apart always remember that Christ remains.
3. When everything falls apart remember God redeems.
Listen to this church
The leg bone below the knees of a lamb is dry, bone-only and pretty much worthless.
Even predators would not usually eat the leg bones.
But when the bones were left behind the shepherd would gather them into His arms
Because they were valuable to the owner.
God is the Great Shepherd who God gathers the worthless bones and redeems them because they are valuable to Him.
From two leg bones and piece of an ear God can redeem you
God can take that which seems worthless and of no value and redeem it.
When we put our bones into the hands of the Master
He takes what is worthless and does miracles through them.
The key is that we have to put our bones into the hands of the Master.
We have to recognize that although we are left with only a little
That little is much if we give it to God.
One day the multitudes were following Jesus and had nothing to eat.
The disciples were upset because the people were hungry and they had no food for them.
A young man came to Jesus with five loaves and two fish.
But what was five loaves and two fish among so many?
But the young man put the loaves and fish into the hands of Jesus,
Then Jesus took them, blessed and broke them and the disciples fed five thousand with them.
Not only were the multitudes fed but there were twelve basketfuls of leftovers.
Church Miracles happen when we put what we think is worthless and small
Into the hands of the Lord.
Little is merging His hands
Closing
In my hands a golf club is a sure shank,
But in Tiger Woods’ hands a golf club is 15 major championships.
In my hands a paintbrush is noting but in the hands of Michelangelo it is the Sistine Chapel.
In my hands a basketball is a brick ..
but in the hands of Michael Jordan it is six NBA championships.
In my hands a football is just pigskin
But in Tom Brady's hands its seven Super Bowl rings
In my hands two leg bones and a piece of an ear are worthless,
But in God’s hands they are the building blocks of a new life.
No matter where you are
And where you’ve been;
No matter what failures and mistakes you have made
God can take what is left of the pieces of your life and redeem it for something great.
You may be low today but God is getting ready to do something in your life that will amaze you.
God isn’t finished with you yet.
Two leg bones and a piece of an ear is all you need for God to show His power in your life.
I don’t know where you are right now in your walk with God
I don’t know what battles a lot of you are facing
Or The secret additions you are battling with
I don’t know the lies the enemy is telling you every day
Things like you are no good
You will never fit in
No one likes you
Lies that say you will always be sick
You will never get better
This is going to be the death of you ….
I don’t know the prices the enemy has left your life in
But I know a God
I know a shepherd … who never gives up on us
One who even when everyone has giving up on you
He comes and picks up the pieces !!!
John 10:10 tells us
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
