THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

March 2, 2022

LIFE IN THE FOLD:

I have been teaching on the prophet Amos for Wednesday night Bible study at my church. We have had some really good discussions and it's been very interesting and eye opening, to see the similarities between things that were happening during that time and in our world today.

This is a particular verse in Amos that I had been excited about discussing and could hardly wait until we got to it. It's one of those verses that tends to be overlooked or seen as insignificant. But since the Holy Spirit brought it to my attention a while back, it has been on my mind a lot. When you read the scripture, you're probably going to think, "What in the world?!?"

But before I get to it, here's a little background about what was happening in Israel, at that time. They were experiencing an era of great wealth and prosperity. Many people were living the rich lifestyle, and doing whatever they wanted to do; which also meant that they had forgotten all about God. They were worshipping idols and false gods, just like the other nations around them. They had no regard for the poor and were crushing them into the ground. The poor were seen as having no worth and completely useless. People who were honorable and righteous were treated horribly.

One verse says that the wealthy were selling the righteous and honorable for silver; as well as selling the needy for a pair of shoes. Can you imagine? "Ohh.... I love those shoes and have to have them! Here, I'll trade you this person for that pair of shoes!" Money and material goods meant more to the people of Israel than the lives of those whom they felt were beneath them and served no purpose.

God gave Amos, who lived in Judah, visions of a prophesy to go speak to Israel. God told the Israelites exactly what their sins were, then told them what their punishment would be. No one was going to be able to run fast enough or far enough to escape. The mighty wouldn't have enough strength to get away and the horseman wouldn't be able to save himself. The warriors would flee away naked when the day of judgement and punishment came.

But yet among all of these warnings, God still called them to repent and gave them opportunities to do so. Perhaps the people didn't take God's warnings seriously, or thought since they were His chosen people, He wouldn't really follow through and do what He said. Perhaps they even saw Amos as speaking falsely, because they didn't like his message from God, so chose to ignore him.

Now, here is the verse that I love! Amos 3:12 says, "This is what the Lord says: 'A shepherd who tries to rescue a sheep from the lion's mouth will recover only two legs or a piece of the ear.'"

What?!? When a shepherd is guarding his flock and a lion comes to steal one of his sheep, the shepherd will go after the lion to try to protect the sheep. He wants the lion to know that it doesn't have the right to steal his sheep and eat them. The shepherd will try his best to rescue the sheep. But sometimes all that is left to save is a piece of the ear or a couple of legs.

So what does that mean?

I believe that first of all, God was telling Israel that those who managed to escape would only have a tiny bit left of the wealth and riches that they had accumulated. The later part of that verse says, "So it will be with the Israelites dwelling in Samaria; they will escape with the corner of a bed or a head of a couch."

All that they had worked to attain would be almost totally lost to them. It would be destroyed or stolen away by their enemy. Only a little would be left of all that they had accumulated -- as a people and as a nation.

But I also believe that God was saying that when all of this destruction took place, He would leave a remnant of His people and not all would be destroyed.

Isaiah 43:18 tells us to not call to mind the former things; pay no attention to the things of old. Verse 19 says, "Behold, I am doing a new thing....."

The remnant of people left behind in Israel, after God brought about His judgement and punishment upon the nation, were going to see God do a new thing. They weren't the "leftovers" who had no purpose. They weren't old cloth or old wine being sewed or poured into something new. (Matthew 9:16-17)

They had been crushed and impoverished, and honestly, they were losing everything and everyone around them, and cities were going to be destroyed and everything known to them lost. The circumstances of the poor and righteous left behind after God's judgment would likely seem pretty desperate and hopeless -- perhaps even worse than it was at the time Amos spoke this prophesy.

But God had a plan and His plan included those "sheep ears" and "sheep legs" who seemed useless and of no value to the rest of the nation. It would seem as if they had been leftover and spit out, and as if the "important" parts, the heart and vital organs of Israel (people of power and significance), would be eaten up and devoured by the enemy.

God would protect and keep those few precious people, His people, so that His name would be preserved and future generations would hear of His goodness and be reminded of all that He had done for His beloved people. God's name and His people would not be wiped off the face of the earth, but He would preserve a remnant who had remained faithful so that they could remind their children and their children's children of how He had brought them out of Egypt. People who would teach future generations of all that He had done for them.

We can apply this to our world today. Scripture says that Satan is like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. He tries to steel the sheep (us) away from the Good Shepherd (God). He tries to devour us and kill our souls and spirits.

But God, our Shepherd, will always run after us to rescue us from the mouth of Satan, who is walking around roaring and trying to lure us away from the flock. God will pick up the pieces of our lives that are leftover and can make something beautiful and worthwhile out of our lives.

Regardless of what the world situation looks like, God will always have a remnant of people whom He will protect and preserve. Why? So that people will be drawn to Him and hear of His mighty works. He preserves the godly, even though they may sometimes look like broken sheep legs and ears that the lion (Satan and this world) has chewed up and spit out.

The truth is, the Good Shepherd is the only one who can pull us from Satan's mouth and rescue us. We can't do that in our own strength and knowledge. God can shut the mouth of the "lion" so that Satan can't destroy and devour us.

Be encouraged! Know that God, our Shepherd, always desires to protect and provide for us. Read Psalms 23. Even when we are surrounded by enemies, He will prepare a table for us to sit at and feast on His mercies and goodness. Know that you are important and significant to God and He will always pursue after you to rescue you from the mouth of Satan. But really, what He truly desires is for you to remain so close to Him that Satan, that roaring lion, can't steal or entice you away from the Shepherd's side.

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

The pattern of God's warning, then following through on that warning has been repeated many times. Sometimes the warning is only a short time ahead; sometimes it is years ahead.

And in some cases, the people did repent and God removed His judgement. Ninevah is a great example. They were the enemy. And they were very wicked. God sent Jonah to tell them they were going to be destroyed for their evil. But they immediately repented, and begged God's mercy. And God was merciful.

But more often, the city or nation doesn't repent, at least not most of the people or leaders. And God does carry through on His threats. The people may not see it right away, and think it won't come. Even ones who repented at first may give up and turn back to their old ways.

Most of the punishment is against the entire nation, or the entire city, not just against certain evil individuals. We tend to sit back and ignore the evil surrounding us, hoping that God will pass judgement against those responsible. But when His wrath is poured out, it may be against all of us.

I have seen people who think their lives should be perfect now that they accepted Jesus. But when the first storm hits, their faith is shattered and they turn away. Please be strong. The storm will hit. And it won't be easy. But we should cling tighter to Jesus, not give up. He will be in it with us.

ON THE MENEWE:

Quick and Easy Cookies

Mix the three ingredients together. You can add in chocolate chips, nuts, etc, if desired.

Drop by spoonfuls on cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

This makes delicious vanilla, chocolate, lemon.... really any flavor.... cookies! Buy cake mixes when you find on sale to keep on hand for a quick dessert.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

This is a memory from 2013, when Jax was age 3:

My great-nephew, Jax, just found out a few days ago what pouting was. His mom didn't buy him a toy when they were at the store when he wanted one. She asked if he was pouting and he asked what pouting was. She told him it was when he acted ugly when he didn't get his way. Later after she checked out, he ran over to the door and said, "Mama, I'm pouting now!" She told him fine, but she was going home. Of course, he said, "I want to go with you! Don't leave me!"

A couple days later he was laying in bed with her one evening and wanted to play on her cell phone. She told him no, that she was using it. The conversation went something like this:

"I'm going to pout!"

"Okay."

"Mama, do I cross my arms like this or like this?"

"It doesn't matter -- either way if fine."

"What else do I need to do?"

"You need to roll your lip down a little bit more."

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Sometimes we get so carried away trying to be right, we forget to be kind. - Bob Goff

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org