BOUNCE BACK | OCTOBER 2026 SERMON SERIES

Part 4 | Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III

Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Nashville | October 25, 2026

Watch the full Sunday service: https://bit.ly/4jzlVh0

Prayer

Father, we thank You now. Thank You for this moment that we have come to center on Your word. We magnify Your name. Speak to us, that clarity and understanding may be ours because of what we are about to receive. And God, we thank You for Your power to transform lives. We pray that somebody will be changed forever as a result of what’s about to happen in this place. In Jesus’ name. Everybody said, Amen.

I. INTRODUCTION

Job 42:10 (NKJV)

And the LORD restored Job’s losses

when he prayed for his friends.

Indeed the LORD gave Job twice as much

as he had before.

Today, there is something in all of us that longs for restoration, particularly because we know a God who specializes in restoring.

• A God who can restore what’s broken.
• A God who can heal what is wounded.
• A God who can recover what was lost.
• A God who can give us strength in places we never imagined we might need it.

One of the greatest challenges of faith is learning how to respond when life does not turn out the way you expected it. When life starts lashing, it can challenge even the best of us, because it is easier to praise God when the doors are opening and the money is flowing, the family is doing well, and everything seems to be right where you wanted it to be. But what happens when the same life you prayed for starts falling apart? What do you do with the diagnosis you never expected? What happens when the relationship you invested in starts to unravel? What happens when the people you thought would stand with you start to walk away? What do you do when you’ve been faithful to God, but you find yourself in a season you never thought you’d find yourself in? That’s where the story of Job is today. It is a story about when life starts lashing, what will be your reply?

Job is found in the section of books in the Bible called wisdom literature, where we gain wisdom, both devotional and theological, and we get an understanding of who God is. The books of Proverbs and Psalms and Ecclesiastes and Job all point us to a God who is righteous, a God whose plans unfold before our very lives. The fact of it is that the book of Job wrestles with this tension: why do bad things happen to someone who is righteous? In biblical days, it was clear that the theological premise by which they operated was that whatever one did good, good would be the consequence, and whatever one did bad, they would experience the consequences of their actions negatively. What we learn in the book of Job is that God calls him one who shunned evil, one who was righteous before God, who loved God with all of his heart.

We learn that Job disrupts this whole narrative that doing good automatically brings you good and exemption from bad, because what we learn from this text today is that you can dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s and still experience something you never expected to experience. There are no exemptions from trouble in your life. But what we will discover today, people of God, is that even though you find yourself in a chapter you never imagined you’d be in, that will not be the final chapter of your story. God controls how the story is going to end. And that’s why today, as you hear this word, I want you to remind somebody: just stay tuned, because your comeback is on the way. I don’t care how people have diagnosed it, what people have said about it. Understand, it really ain’t over until God says it’s over.

In this text today we will discover something quite powerful. Job is minding his own business. Now let’s understand something. Let me contemporize the story of Job so you can clearly understand where this is going. Here is a man who has immense wealth. As a matter of fact, if Job were living today, Elon Musk would be looking up to him. Job was incredibly wealthy in proportion to the place where he lived. Job had livestock and cattle. He trusted God. He was a man of great resources. He was a man of great righteousness. Job did all these things right.

And imagine Job just living his best life, and over his head, unbeknownst to him, there was a conversation taking place between Satan and God. It is a cosmic conversation. Satan has gone up and down the earth, and God says, “Where are you going?” And Satan says, “I’m looking for somebody to terrorize. I’m looking for somebody to attack.” And God offers up Job without Job’s permission. God literally offers him up. You would think that God would at least consult with Job and say, “Get ready, this is going to come.” But God never consults with us when He allows stuff to happen to us. “Have you considered My servant Job?” And Satan says, “I thought about it. I really did. But the reason why I could not get him is because You got a hedge around him.”

That’s enough to make somebody shout right there, because the reason why some things did not happen to you was because God had you in protective custody. There were some things that should’ve happened, that could’ve happened, but God kept you with a covering around you.

This was the deal, ladies and gentlemen. Please hear me loud and clear. God says, “I’ll remove the hedge, and I’ll let you attack Job, but you cannot take his life. That belongs to Me. You have limited authority. I will allow you to go and wreak havoc on his life.” And there was a systematic satanic attack upon a man who’s unaware that his destiny is being discussed over his head.

And Satan comes in and says, “I know what’s going to happen. If You let me attack him like that, he’s gonna curse You to Your face. As a matter of fact, God, the only reason why he’s trusting You is because look how You blessed him. The only reason why he’s faithful… look, who wouldn’t trust You with all the things that Job has?”

So therefore, a systematic attack begins to happen. Economically, all of Job’s cattle are now lost. Look at Job’s stock market. Look at his 401(k) fall. Look at Job’s finances fall, go down to nothing. And while that’s happening, now Job encounters a physiological attack upon his body. Now he has a disease whereby boils are all over his body, and pus begins to ooze out of them, but there is no remedy. And when the sheets are on his back, when they come to change the sheets, it rips the skin off of him. It’s an excruciating disease.

Now, coupled with that, he has to deal with a sociological issue, because now his friends have come, and they’re looking at him, and now they are accusing him: “Perhaps you have done something to deserve this.” Now he has to deal with a domestic issue, because his own wife, who is now fed up watching him deal with this excruciating pain, watching this go on, looks at him and says, “You should curse God and die.” Why? Because the wife is not only watching her husband go through that, but now all 10 of their children have died in a mysterious wind. Not one child, but all 10 have died.

And so now, not only does Job deal with an economic issue, and not only does he deal with a physiological issue, not only does he deal with a sociological issue and a domestic issue, but Job now has to deal with a psychological or emotional issue, because that would mess with anybody’s mind. He begins to wonder whether his actual day of birth was even necessary. He curses the very day he was born. And now theologically, he begins to wrestle with God, and he begins to raise questions to God.

Somebody up in here today knows what it’s like to not just have one thing, but one thing after the next thing. Systematically, the devil is trying to break you down, not knowing the whole time that God is gonna use this to raise you back up. Not knowing it ain’t over just because it looks that bad. Somebody up in here today, I need you to hear this word, because God’s gonna give you a word: no matter how bad it looks right now, stay tuned, because your comeback is right around the corner.

II. DON’T CRASH OUT WHEN LIFE CRASHES ON YOU

Job 1:20

Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head;

and he fell to the ground and worshiped.

What does Job teach us in this moment today? What lessons can we learn? I’m glad you asked. Here’s the first one: when life crashes in on you, don’t you crash out. Somebody say, “Don’t crash out.”

Young people have a phrase, and they call it crashing out. Crashing out is when you allow frustration and anger and disappointment and pressure to push you to a place where it causes damage in your future. When somebody allows one painful moment to make them say something that they cannot take back, or to walk away from something they should’ve never walked away from, or to do something that costs them more than their original problem ever did.

• Somebody disrespects you, and you crash out.
• Somebody betrays you, and you crash out.
• Somebody challenges your character, and you crash out.

Life will hit you with one unexpected blow after the next, but just because it hits you like that doesn’t mean you have to crash out. Job teaches us that when life crashes in on you, you don’t have to lose your mind. You don’t have to crash out. All you gotta do is turn to what you’ve been standing on before life began turning on you.

A. God knew you could handle it.

Job 1:21

Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

and naked shall I return there.

The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away;

blessed be the name of the LORD.

Let me talk to somebody and let you know: it’s OK to tear your robe. It’s OK to go through a season where you’re angry. It’s OK to tell God, “I don’t like how this feels.” You don’t have to be so super spiritual that you act like you can’t be real with God. After that kind of loss, after that kind of attack, anybody in their right mind would say, “I don’t like how this feels, Lord. This hurts.” God can handle your pain. God can handle your aggression. He can handle your questions.

But people of God, may I help you understand something? Please hear me loud and clear. Whatever you’re going through right now, God knew you could handle it. God chose Job. Why? Because God saw something in Job. He knew Job would not make Him look bad going through what he was going through. And God saw something in you that you can’t see in yourself. You’re wondering why God chose you to go through this and not somebody else? Because God knew you could handle it. He knew if anybody was gonna make it look good, it was gonna be you. If anybody was going to show up, it was going to be you. If anybody was going to give Him glory, it was going to be you.

Wait a minute. I know some of you are saying, “But Pastor, you don’t understand. I’m going through it right now and I’m crying uncle, and I don’t feel like I’m representing God like I ought to represent God.” But can I tell you something? You can handle this. And the reason I know you can handle it is because you are handling it right now. It has not taken you out. Why? Because you are here, or you are watching me right now, and you’re in your right mind. You ought to give God glory, and give yourself some credit that you are stronger than you ever thought you were. There were some things that should’ve broke you, but you’re still here. Some things should’ve taken you out, but you’re still here, because everything you’ve gone through has prepared you to handle what you’re going through right now. Now God can trust you with trouble, because He knows you can handle what He allows to happen in your life.

B. Worship through it.

Job 1:20

Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head;

and he fell to the ground and worshiped.

Psalm 34:1

I will bless the LORD at all times;

His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

And here is the deal. What does Job teach us? “How do I get through this, Pastor?” I’ll tell you how: you’ve got to worship through it. I need somebody to shout, “Worship through it.” Come on, shout it again and say, “Worship through it.” People of God, Job tore his robe, Job shaved his head, Job sat on the ground, and Job began to worship.

Do you understand what worship is? Worship is not a reaction to what God does. Worship is a response to who God is. And sometimes God may not do what you want God to do, but you don’t fold your arms and put your lip out and have an attitude because you didn’t get your way. Lord, deliver me from all these spoiled believers who only respond to God in transactions.

The way God knew He could trust Job is because Job’s relationship was not transactional. It was rooted in truth. It was not based on consequence; it was rooted in conviction. And when you’re saying, “God, listen. I’m not just responding to You based on what You do.” Because if You don’t do what I want You to do, I’ll disconnect, stop coming to church, have my lip stuck out. “But I understand who You are. Just because I didn’t get the job don’t stop You from being holy. Just because I didn’t get healed don’t stop You from being a healer. So what I’m gonna learn how to do is lift up my hands, hold my head up, open up my mouth, and give You glory because of who You are. Because God, I know who You are. And in the midst of it, I’ve learned how to worship You, God, with tears in my eyes. I’ve learned how to worship You, God. So if You don’t heal me, I’ll still worship You. If I don’t get the job, I’ll still bless Your name.”

Who am I talking to up in here today?

When peace like a river attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well with my soul.

Who am I talking to? I’ve had good days and bad days, hills to climb, but when I look around, all of my good days outweigh my bad days. I won’t complain. God’s been good to me.

You got a choice. You can whine through this, or you can worship your God through this. Somebody needs to know there’s power when you worship through it. With tears in your eyes, worship through it. When it don’t make sense, worship through it.

III. THIS SEASON WILL REVEAL THE STRENGTH OF YOUR RELATIONSHIPS

Job 2:9

Do you still hold fast to your integrity?

Curse God and die!

Job 2:13

So they sat down with him on the ground

seven days and seven nights,

and no one spoke a word to him,

for they saw that his grief was very great.

Here’s the deal. Wait a minute, I wanna go a little deeper and tell you something: this season is gonna reveal the strength of your relationships. People of God, one of the most difficult discoveries in your life is that everybody who stands near you when things are going well may not necessarily stand with you when things go wrong. When you are successful, people wanna be around you. When doors are open, the invitations are flowing, when your name is being celebrated, everybody wants to be on your IG page. They wanna be on your timeline. But you will not discover the strength of your relationships during seasons of celebration. You will learn them during seasons of crisis.

• You find out who can celebrate you when you’re hurting.
• You find out who can encourage you when your heart is broken.
• You find out who can protect your name in rooms when you’re not present.

Your real friends will show up in crisis, because trouble will always reveal your tribe.

And let’s be very clear: Job has to evaluate his relationships. First, at home. Be very careful. Do not be so hard on Job’s wife, because the Bible says in chapter 2, verse 9, she looked at her husband and asked if he still held fast to his integrity, and told him to curse God and die. Please understand, the wife is suffering too. She lost 10 of her children. She’s watching her husband endure excruciating physical pain, and we should not overlook her grief or reduce her to one statement made in a moment of anguish. But people of God, her words show us how deeply tragedy has shaken her. And Job is trying to manage his wife’s emotions while also trying to hold fast to his integrity with God.

And then to top it all, now Job has to deal with his friends, because in Job chapter 2, verse 13, the Bible says that Job’s friends came and sat with him seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word, for they saw that his grief was very great. We’ve got to applaud them, because initially they did the right thing. They showed up. They sat down and said nothing. And may I encourage somebody, and help you understand, that’s one of the most powerful things you can do when people are grieving, when people are hurting. Just show up, sit down, be quiet, and let your presence represent the presence of God.

Where we mess up is we try to put theological language in places where God never told us to. People are hurting, people lost a loved one, and you come and say, “God needed another flower in His garden.” Shut up! Just sit down and be quiet. You’re making it go from bad to worse. God didn’t need no flower for His garden. You’re trying to make it worse. Y’all gotta learn there’s power in just being present. Sit down and pray for me.

A. Manage misunderstanding.

Proverbs 18:13

He who answers a matter before he hears it,

it is folly and shame to him.

The Bible says it actually went from bad to worse, because when they opened up their mouths, they began leveling accusations. Because in their day, they had to assume that if you had experienced something as severe as this, you must’ve done something wrong. “Job, what did you do?” And now they are leveling accusations at Job. And you know what Job does? He doesn’t respond to it.

Because there comes a moment in your life when you cannot give energy to people who do not have the ability to interpret what God is doing in your life. Sometimes you feel the need to try to defend yourself, try to clap back, but you’ve got to learn the power of being quiet. You’ve got to learn the power of not responding to ignant. You see, I’ve learned there’s a difference between responding to ignorance and not responding to ignant. I give you a pass on being ignorant, because that means you have yet to be enlightened. But when you ignant, it means you know better and still don’t want to do better. Can I talk to somebody?

Touch your neighbor and say, “Leave people alone.” Stop trying to respond. Stop trying to do a comeback in the comment section. Turn it over to the Lord and let God fight your battle. God will eventually fight his battle, and tell his friends that God would deal with them based on Job’s prayer.

But can I help you understand something, people of God? There comes a moment in your life that you’ve got to rely on the sovereignty of God. You’ve got to manage misunderstanding. People will not understand, but you’ve got to be willing to manage. You’ve got to be willing to deal with people who don’t know how to diagnose your situation, and still be true to who you are.

B. Trust the sovereignty of God.

Job 13:15

Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.

Job 38:4

Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?

Tell Me, if you have understanding.

And while you’re trying to manage that misunderstanding, you’ve got to trust the sovereignty of God. I need somebody to shout, “Trust God.” Shout it again and say, “Trust God.” “What do you mean, Pastor, when you say the sovereignty of God?” I’ll tell you. The sovereignty of God says that God can do whatever He wants to do, when He wants to do it, and God can impose His will upon our lives without our permission. And there comes a moment when God says, “You can question Me. You can ask Me whatever you want, but I am not obligated to respond.”

May I help you understand: whatever question you have, God can handle it. Whatever you level at God, God can handle it. But you’ve got to be OK knowing that God is sovereign, and whatever God does, even though you may not understand, His ways are always right. You may not understand it now, but we’ll understand it better by and by.

There comes a moment you’ve got to trust God, though you question God. Job begins to have a conversation with God, and that conversation is chronicled in the book of Job. As a matter of fact, God handles every request that Job has. And even though God does not give Job every detail as to why this has happened, God gives Job Himself. In other words: “God, You ain’t got to explain to me why, as long as You keep reminding me who You are. You don’t have to explain to me why this is happening. Just remind me who is in control.” When you know who is in control, you can handle what you deal with, and you can handle how you’re gonna come up out of it.

And do you know what God does? Watch this. I love this. There’s something very powerful in this text you cannot miss, because in chapter 38, around verse 4, God turns the tables on Job. “Job, you’re asking Me questions, but I got a few questions for you. Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?”

“Job, you got all these questions for Me, but can I ask you, where were you when I formed the world? Where were you when I put the sun to work the day shift and the moon to work the night shift? When I flung the stars on the backdrop of the universe, and I put wall-to-wall carpet on the earth and called it grass? Where were you when I created the galaxies of the universe? And I’m holding all of that together. Don’t you know I could hold your little life together? You wonder about Me, but I’ve been holding this universe together. Whatever you deal with, I got the whole world in My hands.”

Somebody up in here today, when you begin to realize that God’s got it under control, you can step back and say, “God, I trust You. I don’t understand it, but I trust You. I got tears in my eyes, but I trust You.” Job looks at the boils on his body. Job looks at the caskets of his children. Job looks at the grief on his wife’s face. And Job looks up at God and says, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.”

There comes a moment you’ve got to trust God. That’s why grandmother used to sing, “I’m gonna trust in the Lord till I die. I’m gonna treat everybody right,” because she understood the power of trusting God. You’ve got to trust Him even when you can’t trace Him.

IV. YOUR LATTER IS ABOUT TO LOOK LARGER

Job 42:10

And the LORD restored Job’s losses

when he prayed for his friends.

Indeed the LORD gave Job twice as much

as he had before.

Job 42:12

Now the LORD blessed the latter days of Job

more than his beginning.

But wait, wait. Let me wrap this up. Let me pull this in, because I wanna get personal. But I wanna make an announcement, and I don’t know who it’s for. Just a moment: your latter is about to look larger.

Job’s story does not end in this crisis. His story does not end with the funeral. The story does not end with boils on his body. His story does not end with accusations from his friends. It does not end with Job’s questions. His story ends with restoration.

Thank You, Jesus. Are y’all getting this? It says now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. But you’ve got to understand this in order to put it in perspective. Some of y’all missed your shout, because restoration is not about money. God was still with His community. His brothers and sisters came to him. People who knew him came to comfort him, and his life continued. The story does not suggest every loss will be reversed in exactly the same way, or that every believer will receive twice as much material wealth. Job’s restoration is a testimony of God’s freedom and God’s power, not a formula that guarantees every circumstance will unfold identically. But it does teach us that suffering does not have to be the end of your story.

A. When you pray for them, God turns it for you.

Job 42:8

Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams,

go to My servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering;

and My servant Job shall pray for you.

For I will accept him, lest I deal with you according to your folly;

because you have not spoken of Me what is right,

as My servant Job has.

Matthew 5:44

Love your enemies, bless those who curse you,

do good to those who hate you,

and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.

Here is the deal: the latter will be greater when you pray for them. God will turn it for you. Pray. Pray for who? When Job prayed for his friends, then God turned his situation around. There are some of you who’ve been asking, “When is God gonna turn my situation around?” And the problem is, God’s waiting to see: are you willing to pray?

• Are you willing to pray for people that didn’t understand you?
• Are you going to pray for people who falsely accused you?
• Are you willing to pray for people who disconnected from you?

Because God cannot take you into the next season with bitterness in your heart. God wants to know: can you love, and can you pray, according to Matthew chapter 5, for those who despitefully use you? Can you do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you?

In this season, you need too much from God not to pray. You need too much from God going into the next season not to pray. Tell somebody, “Pray for them.” Pray for them, for they did not understand the hand of God on your life. They don’t understand that God ain’t done with you yet. They didn’t have the ability to really comprehend the greatness that was on your life. So you’ve got to take the moment to pray.  Just because I pray don’t mean I’ve got to give you access in my life. I just gotta forgive you, and release this from my spirit, so I don’t walk into bitterness and unforgiveness. Pray until God turns that thing around. Somebody knows the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Somebody shout, “Pray.”

B. Get ready for a twice testimony.

Job 42:12 tells us that the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. His livestock doubled. His resources increased. His family life continued, and he lived to see four generations of descendants.

Job 42:5

I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear,

but now my eye sees You.

Wait, wait, I want to leave this with you. I wanna get personal. I want you to hear this. I want you to hear this, people of God: this is the season to get ready for a twice testimony. OK? Get ready for a twice testimony. I can’t give you another interpretation. Look at somebody next to you and tell ’em, “You’re due for double.” OK. Let me get real.

Job 42 tells us that the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. So his livestock doubled, his resources increased, his lifespan continued. But don’t miss this, and he lived, watch this, to see four generations. When you keep hitting four generations: Job lived to see four generations of descendants.

Now, now, I wanna go deeper, because our testimony is not simply being able to say I got back what I lost. It’s being able to testify: I discovered that God could sustain me through what I lost, and He could still give me a future beyond it. Job got to the point of experiencing God for himself. In chapter 42, Job says, based on what he’s been through, that he had heard of God by the hearing of the ear, but now his eye sees Him.

• I heard sermons about You, God, but after all I’ve gone through, I see you for myself.
• I heard You were a healer, but now I see for myself.
• I heard You were a way-maker, but now I see for myself.
• I heard You were a peace-giver and a provider, but now I see for myself.

My testimony is, I don’t just come out with more than I had; I come out knowing God in a deeper way. So I came out with scars, but I also came out with wisdom. I came out with pain, but I also came out with evidence of God’s grace.

And I wanna be careful. Listen to me. Listen, just be seated. I wanna be careful with this idea of double, because Job lost 10 children, and children were not interchangeable possessions. His first 10 children were precious, and their deaths were devastating. The text does not say that the birth of another generation erased the grief of the first. Restoration does not mean pretending the past never happened. For some of us, the comeback is not getting the exact same thing back. It’s being given the grace to live again after a devastating loss. Would you just look at somebody and say, “God is about to make you live again.” It’s discovering joy after grief. It’s finding purpose after disappointment.

A PERSONAL TESTIMONY: MY CHAPTER 1 AND 2

So there are some of you today in this sanctuary, and even around the world, allow me this personal privilege to testify. You have come to know me in my chapter 42. It’s not your fault; you came to this ministry when you came to it, and the timing of when you came, to God be the glory. And you see my chapter 42. But there are people who have been here, who were with me in my chapter 1 and 2. And it’s important for those of you in my chapter 42 to understand my chapter 1 and 2, so you can understand why I’m the way I am in my chapter 42. Because there are people that look at you in your chapter 42, and they have no idea what it was like for you in your chapter 1 and your chapter 2.

In this very pulpit, watching this ministry grow, giving my life to it. The completion and dedication of this building in 2001, to God be the glory. We broke ground in 1999. We marched into the Antioch location in 2003. And that year, 2003, is the year my first wife was diagnosed with neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer. It was a thing that nobody knew but us, and I was preaching to people, thousands of people gathering, and nobody knew until her physical body began to change. And we had to go public with it.

And the chemotherapy began to take her hair. I remember in this very sanctuary at the women’s conference, she walked in with camouflage pants on and boots, with a shaved head. And women in that women’s conference who were dealing with cancer began to take their wigs off and stood with her in a moment of solidarity and strength.

I preached to this congregation and watched the wife of my youth deteriorate in front of me, going between the mountain called ministry and the valley of my personal crisis. Watching her deteriorate with a disease that would not reverse, and praying, and laying hands, and believing God, and having the enemy interrogate me, to tell me, you’re not anointed enough for this. Imagine watching other people get healed, but it was happening for us. Crying on my way to church. Questioning my anointing. Questioning whether or not I had faith enough for it to work in my own home.

2005. I was at Baptist Hospital at 11 o’clock, 11:15. Y’all were having church in this very building, but she slipped away to be home with the Lord at 37 years old. And I was beating on the window while people were dancing in here, unaware that she had passed away. And I was crying, and I was angry, and I was saying, “God, why? Why me?” And I was saying, “Lord, this ain’t fair.”

Nobody understood the depth of that pain, because how could they? Here I am, a man of God, who works for God, who’s been preaching the gospel, who’s been going around telling people that God is a healer. But then I’ve got to look at a wife laying in a bed who did not overcome the disease called cancer. And we buried her in this very sanctuary. The funeral was right here.

I remember it was months later, I slipped into what I understand to be depression. And when you’re a pastor, when you’re a bishop, you don’t tell nobody you’re depressed. You just go home and sit in the dark. You go home and make two or three plates by yourself, and you never tell nobody that Christmas looks like a dark house, ’cause you don’t want nobody to come over, because you want them to think you’re stronger, and you want them to think that you really can treat your own pain. When in fact, I was going through a season when I was questioning whether I believed what I was preaching myself. I was crying in my car.

I was at a point that, even two years in, I found myself at the Jefferson Street location at 11:30 at night by myself, like Elijah under the broom tree, saying, “God, if You wanna take me, You can take me now, because I don’t know if I believe it no more.” And I was going back and forth. Thank God, He kept telling me that I could handle it.

So don’t tell me… don’t tell me that you’re angry with God and you don’t think your pastor understands. But I kept showing up. In that moment I didn’t wanna get up, but I kept showing up. And why am I sharing this with you? Because this is the anointing that you’re sitting under. Because I want you to know my chapter 1 and my chapter 2.

Fast forward three and a half years. God allowed me to randomly be in Florida. I was doing a conference, and a man of God that I respected so dearly spoke into my life. And all of a sudden, I end up in Boston, end up meeting this incredible woman that God sent to me, which was Dr. Stephanie. She didn’t wanna know Bishop. She had decided, no pastor. All she wanted to know was Joseph. She wasn’t concerned about the title. She just wanted to deal with who I was as a person.

And this woman came into my life, and God made us a couple of destiny. And we began to build the whole platform of what it meant to do something bigger than ourselves, still to encourage people about what it meant to be transformed, about being transparent. God began to bless us. And then we prayed and prayed for a child, and God knows we prayed. We tried, and we prayed, and we tried. But thank God, He finally came through for us. And then, if y’all know about that… our first baby came, and she was beautiful. Jovanni Walker. She’s my beautiful girl. She is the perfect between Dr Steph and I. Oh, that’s my baby girl. And watch this: she’s a ballerina. My girl is in the ninth grade now. Y’all, when she went to her first homecoming, y’all I had to get out my shotgun. I ain’t gonna lie, y’all. My heart was moving so fast, ’cause the girl know she fine and beautiful. I said, “God, look at what You did.”

And then we prayed again. I said, “God, You know I want a son.” And Jovannti prayed for a brother. And then God gave us my namesake. Gave us a worshiper. Gave us a son who will pray for his dad before he gets on a plane. When we go out of town, he says, “I wanna cover my daddy.” And that young boy loves basketball. All of a sudden he’s Steph Curry friend and he loves baseball.

If you wonder why Bishop Joseph the Third ain’t out here trying to get a million followers, I’m just trying to do God’s will.

God is a restorer!!

Have a blessed new week with the Lord! ❤️

Bounce Back

Part 3:

Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III

Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Nashville  ·  October 18, 2026

October 2026 Sermon Series  ·  Luke 22:31–32

I.                INTRODUCTION

Watch the full Sunday service: youtube.com/@mtzionnashville

Prayer:

Send a word, God. We will be made better because of what we are about to receive. Now we thank You, God, that Your word is relevant and real. And God, we pray today that we are transformed by what we shall receive today; that we have alignment with our assignment that we have structure for our lives, and that we can grow. We pray that though what we receive, somebody’s life will be changed today. In Jesus’ name. Everybody said, amen.

Luke chapter 22, verses 31 and 32. The Bible says:

And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon!

Indeed, Satan has asked for you,

that he may sift you as wheat.

But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail;

and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

Luke 22:31–32 (NKJV)

Failure. Failure has a way of convincing many of us that our story is over, when in reality God may be writing one of the most important chapters of your entire life. Few things hurt us more than falling short of our own expectations. You know what it’s like to replay that moment. We wish we could change the conversation. We wish we could take back the decision. We wish we’d never sent the text. We wish we never missed the opportunity. We wish we’d handled that person differently. We wish we never dated that person.

Failure carries a weight that will linger long after the moment. Failure whispers that you are no longer worthy, no longer useful, no longer able to do what God has called you to do. And if you’re not careful, you’ll let that one moment become your main identity. You’ll stop introducing yourself by your calling and your story, and start introducing yourself by your mistakes. You start laboring quietly, sitting in the back, sneaking in with your head down. Your posture changed because you are ashamed.

But Scripture reminds us that God specializes in using people who have failures in their past. Some of the greatest people God ever used had moments that would have disqualified them permanently if grace had not stepped in.

• Noah got drunk after surviving the flood.
• Abraham lied because he was afraid.
• Moses lost his temper.
• David committed adultery and arranged a murder to cover it up.
• Jonah ran from his assignment.
• Thomas doubted the resurrection.
• Peter denied the very Christ he swore he would never abandon.

And yet none of those failures got the final word, because God’s grace was greater than their weakness. The enemy points to your failure as evidence that what you have done has finished you, but God points to His mercy to let you know that He’s not done with you yet.

The gospel story is so powerful that it allows us to see the intersection of grace and mercy at the cross, because the very thing that should have brought shame is the thing that produced redemption. And I wanna talk to you, because I want you to understand, as a child of God: God finds utility in what other people throw away. There was something at work in your life. There was something valuable in your life. And I want you to understand: never become a prisoner to yesterday. The enemy may have robbed your yesterday, but God wants to do your tomorrow. So failure, though it scars, the scars have become reminders of God’s hand upon your life, because what did not kill you only made you stronger.

The setting today is Jesus in the upper room with the disciples. Watch this. In the upper room, the night before the crucifixion, the atmosphere is quite sacred. He is there; He washed their feet, broke bread, passed the cup. You know the story. He is preparing them for the darkest hour of their lives. Yet in the middle of all of that, Jesus turns to Peter. After washing feet, after the breaking of bread, preparing them for the darkest hour, He looks him right in the face and says, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked for you. He wants to sift you like wheat.” Simon Peter, don’t you worry about that, because I have prayed for you. I pray that your faith would not fail. But when you return to Me, not if you return, but when you return, I want you to strengthen the brethren.

II.              SIFTING IS SPIRITUAL, NOT PERSONAL

And people of God, this is so interesting, because I need you to understand, as we are talking about bouncing back, you must understand some powerful things here. When Satan comes and talks to Jesus about Peter and talks about sifting, it is important for you and I to never take our sifting personally, but recognize that sifting is spiritual and not personal. Whatever God has allowed you to go through, understand that. And I’m gonna walk this out with you, so follow me.

We make the mistake of believing that what we are encountering is personalized to an individual. But understand something: Jesus immediately shifts Peter’s attention. He does not focus on Judas and what Judas is going to do. He didn’t focus on Caiaphas, who is gonna have that kangaroo court. He says there’s something happening above your head. There’s something spiritual, and I need you to understand what’s about to happen in your life. I want you to understand something, Simon. Please understand: what’s about to happen in your life is bigger than:

• Politics
• A personality
• Public opinion

And the same is true for you and me. In what is happening in your life, God has something He’s gonna do in your life. Please understand who the real enemy is. Don’t ever get it twisted. Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 12:

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood,

but against principalities, against powers,

against the rulers of the darkness of this age,

against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)

I want you to understand something: this is not about making you afraid. It’s about giving you a spirit of discernment. Because the word here matters. What they would do in Peter’s day, they would put it in a sieve. They would literally put wheat in there, and they would shake it, over and over and over. By shaking it, they understood, and watch this, all the bad stuff would go this way, and all the good stuff would remain. I’mma help you: the sifting process was really about separation.

Satan wants to take you through a violent and uncomfortable season. But what I want you to understand is that God says, “I am going to use what the enemy intends to break you to bless you. I’m gonna use it to separate things that are attached to you that do not have permission to go where I’m about to take you. I just need you to survive the season of shaking and recognize I got My hand on it.”

Because please hear me well: Satan has asked for you. When did you ever know Satan to be a gentleman? He’s not a gentleman. But when he’s in the presence of God, he cannot come and encroach upon a child of God’s life without permission. Do you read the book of Job? He said, “Listen, I would’ve messed with Job, but You got a hedge around him. But if You move the hedge, I’ll come in.” Which tells me that God controls the enemy. And even though Satan may have a big bark, he is on a leash, and he can only go as far as God allows him to go.

So here it is. Don’t get it twisted. God says, “I’m allowing it. I’m a permit this. I’m gonna let this happen. I’m gonna let My sovereignty be in motion. I am going to allow him to do it, but his objective is not My objective.”

I’m gonna help somebody, because some of y’all don’t realize that God takes you through the shaking because there are some behaviors, some habits, some people that He has to shake off of you. And you don’t realize it before you go through the shaking, because some people are attached to you in seasons of blessing, seasons of comfort, and you think those are your real people. But then God will allow you to go through the shaking. When you lose your job, when things get rough, now you wonder why they’re not calling you no more. Like, why? Because God said the shaking will reveal what is attached to you for real. And whatever was attached is released out of your life. This ain’t gonna break you, but this is gonna deepen your faith.

A.    Stop Blaming People for Battles That Are Spiritual in Nature

So I need you to stop blaming people for battles that are spiritual in nature. I want you to hear me. I’m gonna drop one for you. You ready? See, if the devil can distract you with a personality, then he can truly keep you from discerning principalities. You’re so focused on a personality that it’s easy now to aim your anger and aim your attack at a person, so that you forget that Satan uses human agency to carry out his wishes. Satan needs a willing vessel, so he does deploy people to do his dirty work.

So wait a minute. Jesus says, “I’m not gonna focus on what Judas is gonna do.” I need you not to be distracted, because it’s easy for you to think it’s your ex. It’s easy for you to think it’s your coworker. It’s easy for you to look up and say it’s my group chat. It’s so easy for you to sit around and try to put your finger on who you think it is.

But wait a minute. Remember Matthew chapter 16. Jesus is having a conversation with the disciples. He says, “I must suffer many things. Y’all, I’m gonna go to Calvary. It’s gonna get rough. I just want to prepare y’all for it.” And Peter stood up and said, “Oh God, no, this will not happen to You. Far be it from You. Not this.” And Jesus looks at Peter, looks at him, and says, “Get behind Me, Satan.”

Wait. Wait a minute. He is not rebuking Peter. He is rebuking the demon that has gotten inside of Peter. Peter still remains in the inner circle, but Jesus talked to the demon. And that’s what you have to learn. Stop clapping back at people and learn how to speak to the demon. Some of y’all got to walk into your house and say, “Devil, get behind me.” You gotta go on your job and say, “I rebuke you; get behind me.” Stop using your voice to cuss back at the devil. You can’t out cuss the devil, but you can rebuke him and tell him to get behind you.

Let me make this make sense. This is why I want you to get this. We wanna work in ministry, we wanna serve, and sometimes we want to tap in. But then you join the team, use your gift, and eventually you’re gonna discover that everybody serving beside you don’t think like you, communicate like you, or lead like you. And if you’re not spiritually mature, you’ll start mistaking difference for dysfunction. One disagreement happens, and now you don’t want to serve no more. Somebody gets on your nerves, and instantly you’re ready to leave the ministry. But you cannot be the body of Christ if you only serve with the people you like.

The reality of ministry is that sometimes your feelings will get hurt. Sometimes you won’t get your way. Sometimes your idea won’t be selected. Sometimes a leader will make decisions you don’t understand. Sometimes people will communicate poorly, and sometimes you’ll be the one who communicates poorly. And there are gonna be times you mess up and you need grace, and times they mess up and they need grace. Just because you’re gifted, you gotta recognize you’re still growing. You’re anointed, but you’re still human.

And you gotta understand: Jesus did not throw Peter away every time Peter got on His nerves. Peter talked too much, spoke too quickly, misunderstood the mission. But watch this: you gotta understand, Jesus saw potential inside of Peter, so He gave Peter the grace to grow.

B.    Being Chosen for Sifting Means You Are Marked for Significance

And you gotta get to a point, even in ministry, even on your job. Sometimes you get frustrated because people don’t buy into the vision. Every time I try to do something to advance, some of y’all on campus trying to advance, some of y’all on your job, I’m always experiencing opposition. You gotta know where the opposition is coming from. It’s coming from the fact that you’re trying to be a change agent, and you got the devil nervous.

And please understand something: being chosen for sifting means marked for significance. The only reason why you’re experiencing that kind of pushback is because the devil is intimidated by what’s gonna happen through your life. The devil didn’t just pick Peter at random. He requested him. He was targeted. And let me talk to you. Come on, testify: you’ve been targeted. You’ve been talking: “Why me, Pastor? Why?” I’ll tell you why. Because whatever attack you’re experiencing from the enemy is never about your right now. It’s about your not yet.

When I first got to Mt. Zion, I was six months into pastoring Mt. Zion church. Back then it was a hundred and some members, and it was a traditional Baptist church, I mean in every facet. They had those Baptist business meetings. You really gotta understand. I’m 23 and I’m just a young preacher trying to do what God told me to do, and they almost ran me away from here. I was done. I had a Jeremiah’s resignation. Elijah, just listen: I’m under the broom tree. I’m like, “I’m done, God. You can have Your people. Send me back home to Louisiana.”

But then God had to remind me, back then in my 20s: “This ain’t about your 20s.” The devil is using human agency because God knows your end from your beginning. He already knows how this is gonna turn out. So the reason why he’s trying to discourage you in school, to make you quit, is because he already sees what God’s gonna do in your life. The reason why he’s trying to get you to walk out on your family is because he already sees what’s gonna happen with your children.

And what you gotta understand: you got to keep fighting and believing God. The devil would not be coming at you if there was not something extraordinary about to happen in your life. People of God, please understand this: God is gonna do something in your life that eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has entered into the heart of man, the things that God has in store for those who love Him. And so here’s the deal: even though it’s going to happen, it’s bigger than this moment.

III.            JESUS PRAYS FOR YOUR FAITH, NOT YOUR COMFORT

And this is what you got to do. Jesus says, “I’m gonna let it happen, but this is how you gonna get through it: I’m praying for your faith, not your comfort. I’m not trying to make you comfortable. No, no, no, no. I’m gonna let you go through this. I am going to allow this, because if I let you have a life of comfort and ease forever, with no struggle and no strain, you’re never gonna know how to navigate through the issues of life. Every now and then you have seasons where I allow you to build a muscle, to have resistance.”

Before he even stumbled, Jesus said, “I prayed for you.” This is something interesting theologically, and I want you to get this. When you think about it for a moment, the Father is hearing the prayers of the Son on your behalf. OK. Can I break this down? Jesus prays for you before you go through it. He’s praying for you while you’re in it. He’s praying for you when you come out. What do you mean, He’s praying for me right now? The reason is because He’s at the right hand of the Father making intercession on your behalf. Talking to the Father about me. Talking to the Father about me: “Lord, don’t let them go off the road. Don’t let them… they don’t know what they’re doing. Don’t let her walk away from her destiny.” Heaven is having conversations about you.

You think I’m making it up? You need some more? Check Hebrews 7:25. There it is, seven and twenty-five. It says:

Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost

those who come to God through Him,

since He always lives to make intercession for them.

Hebrews 7:25 (NKJV)

A.    God Will Allow Pressure But Protect Your Purpose

You know what an intercessor is? Intercession is like an interception. The quarterback goes back to throw the ball. A defensive player sees the play. Interception. He gets in the way. The devil says, “All right, I’m ’bout to throw you off your game.” God sends angels to intercept. There are some things that were supposed to happen to you, but they got intercepted. Anybody know what I’m talking about?

As a matter of fact, there are things happening in the world being intercepted that you’ll never get the memo about, that never make the news. But I’m thanking God for the things in the spirit that should have happened to me but didn’t happen, because we got a High Priest talking to the Father about me. “There’s gonna be a lot of pressure, but I ain’t gonna let it destroy your purpose. I’m gonna let the pressure happen, but I must protect your purpose. Even though you’re going through the pressure, I’m a preserve your purpose in the midst of it. Peter, there’s something I’m gonna do in your life, but this season is necessary for what I need to happen in your life. Please understand, I’m not gonna let you avoid the sifting. I told you plainly that it’s going to come.”

I know some of y’all don’t like that. Come on now. Everybody wants the promise, but nobody wants the process. Everybody wants the diamond, but nobody wants to know how the diamond was made. Everybody wants oil, but nobody wants the crushing. But olive oil comes from the crushing of olives. And shortly after Jesus speaks this, He goes to the garden of Gethsemane, the place of crushing.

You’ve got to look at how God has anointed you and anointed me for what we do. You think the only people anointed are people that preach the gospel? Are you crazy? You are anointed to teach. You are anointed in real estate. You are anointed for whatever career path you have. And when God anoints you, guess what happens? God gives you a certain measure of grace to walk out what you walk out every single day. And when somebody says, “I don’t see how you deal with it;” you remind them: “Because I’m anointed for it.” And when you see me elevated, it came with a greater crushing, because the higher God takes me, the more He allows me to be crushed. Who am I talking to? People hating on you, and you give them your life for one week and they’ll give it back: “I didn’t know you went through all that.” But this cost me something.

B.    Faith May Bend Under Pressure, But It Does Not Have to Break

I prayed about your faith… I didn’t pray that you’d be comfortable. I prayed that your faith doesn’t fail. Can I tell you something about faith? Faith may bend under pressure, but it doesn’t have to break. When it bends, it changes form, but not function. When a thing breaks, it loses function, because the weight that broke it has made it inoperable to do what it was assigned to do. But if it only changes form, it’s just a matter of time before it can function again.

A bruised reed He will not break,

And smoking flax He will not quench;

He will bring forth justice for truth.

Isaiah 42:3 (NKJV)

See, we always think people got to show up full of faith every single day, show up on 100. But let me just testify: I don’t show up every day on 100 in my faith. Some days I’m bending. Who am I talking to? Some of the stuff I go through during the week had me… who am I talking to? I’ve been bent today. Ain’t nothing wrong with you if you have a season where you’re bending. Just don’t let the devil break you. Just because I’m bent don’t mean I ain’t functioning. I’m just having a bad day. I’m just having a bad week. I had a phone call; I’m trying to walk through it. I had to deal with a difficult coworker; I’m trying to walk through it. So I’m bent, but check it out: I’m like the palm tree.

You ain’t tripping when you see the palm tree. Can you testify, palm tree? “Why are you bent?” “I’m bent because I’m facing 200-mile-per-hour winds. But just because I’m bent… look over there, that tree snapped. Look over there, that branch broke.” Now what are you gonna do when the storm is over? “I’m gonna pop back.” I wish I had a witness up in here today. Look at your neighbor and say: “I may be bending right now, but when I come through this, I’m back up. I bent through the storm and the rain, but I made it.”

We got to normalize bending. You try to make people think you got it perfect, that you gotta walk every day in hallelujah and praise. Some days I wake up bent, but I’m still thanking Him, I’m still preaching, I’m still serving. Who am I talking to?

IV.           YOUR RETURN IS ALREADY BUILT INTO YOUR FAILURE

Let me wrap this up. It’s already built into your future. Here are the CliffsNotes. Can I give you the CliffsNotes? I’m gonna give you the CliffsNotes so you can understand it and explain it to your friend.

Jesus is with the disciples. Jesus is talking to Peter. Now, He has had a conversation, perhaps, with Satan. “Satan has asked for you, Peter. Now I know you don’t understand, ’cause this is over your head, but I need you to understand something: this is spiritual. You don’t realize it, Peter, ’cause I know you and the disciples are trying to figure out why I keep dealing with you, ’cause you’re rough around the edges. You are low-key crazy. I know what’s under that robe: you got a switchblade. But there’s something on you that they don’t see. I see something on you that nobody around you sees.

“I wanna help you understand what I’m going to allow to happen in your life. It’s not about your right now; I see you in your future. So don’t you turn on Me. I’m gonna let this happen. It’s gonna be so uncomfortable. It’s gonna be violent, like shaking. It’s gonna disconnect you from things that you never thought you’d be disconnected from. Peter, this is the season of My sovereignty. But Peter, I’m gonna give you this prayer: that your faith will not fail. I will make sure that your faith don’t break, that you’ll only bend. When you come through, and no doubt about it, you are coming through, I want you to come back to Me. Not to Erica, not to Shay. I want you to come back to Me, and I want you to tell the real story to the people that saw you go through it, how you got through it. Because when you tell the real story, it strengthens everybody who hears it.

Can I talk to you? People, listen to me. One of the dangers of the culture is that people think that when we mess up, God changes His mind concerning us. People think that God changed His mind toward you when you messed up. But I’m getting ready to drop some word on you today. Some of y’all, this word right here is gonna be a game changer for you, because you are here thinking, “Maybe God gave up on me. Maybe God ain’t gonna use me. Maybe, I messed up so bad that God just took it.” Here it is, Romans 11:29:

For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

Romans 11:29 (NKJV)

What God placed in your life and on your life, no mistake is gonna take away. God says, “I’m not gonna take it back, because I believe in you when you don’t believe in yourself.” People of God, what makes me give God glory is that even when people may detach from me, God still says it’s irrevocable. You are still gifted. You still have utility.

Wait a minute. So you need an example? I get it, I get it, ’cause that’s kind of hard to conceptualize until you look at Luke chapter 15, the prodigal son. You’ve heard that one. He goes to his father and says, “Give me the goods. Give me my stuff now.” And he goes out with a bunch of money. He goes and blows it, and then all of a sudden, now watch what happens: he ends up in the pig pen, and he has nothing. He’s in shame, and he comes to himself. There’s a moment in life when you will come to yourself.

And it’s there he says, “I’m gonna go to my father. I’m gonna tell my father I’m sorry. I’m not even worthy to be a son; I’ll be a servant. At least they got something better to eat than what I got out here.” And he’s muddy, broken, and he’s going back to his father. His father is on the porch and sees him in the distance. The father takes off running, tells the servants, “Bring me my ring.” That means covenant. “Bring the new robe.” That means covering. That’s a whole sermon by itself. And he said, “This is my son, who was lost but now is found.” He never unsonned him. Even though he blew it and messed up, he still called him his son.

A.    Jesus Saw Your Comeback Before Your Collapse

May I talk to somebody and tell you: God will not unson you. He will not undaughter you, no matter what people do to you. Look at your neighbor: you are still a child of God. You are still God’s possession. God still loves you. There is nothing you can do to outrun God’s grace. Preach, preacher! So where failure tries to put a period, grace puts a comma, because Jesus saw your comeback before your collapse. He saw you coming back.

Wait a minute. As a matter of fact, when Peter messes up over that fire that was burning, when that little girl came and said, “Weren’t you with Him?” after they arrested Him, he said, “No, I don’t know the Man.” “You sound like one of the people that were with Him. Weren’t you with Him?” “I told you, I don’t know the Man.” Jesus is being taken away by the Roman soldiers on His way to the atrocities that would happen. “I’m telling you, girl, leave me alone. I don’t know the Man.” And over in the distance, just like Jesus told you, the rooster crows. You were gonna deny Him.

But wait. Wait a minute. Jesus goes through the atrocities, goes on to the cross, and when Jesus is resurrected, don’t miss this, the angel at the entrance of the tomb gave the women these instructions: “Go tell His disciples, and Peter.” I wish I had a witness up in here today. He singled out Peter, because Peter was still included. I wish somebody would just thank God that God still included you. You may lose your title, but you won’t lose your connection. Tell your neighbor: you may lose your title, but you won’t lose your connection.

B.    You Are Coming Back Stronger So You Can Strengthen Others

Wait, wait, wait. You’re coming back stronger so you can strengthen others. Before the failure, Peter is self-confident, impulsive, and operating in his own strength. After the failure, watch this: he’s humble, patient, prayerful. He recognizes that everything that happens in his life is held up by the grace of God. So years later, watch this, years later Peter writes these words in First Peter chapter 5, verse 8:

Be sober, be vigilant;

because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion,

seeking whom he may devour.

1 Peter 5:8 (NKJV)

Y’all don’t catch this. You miss the scripture, ’cause a lion doesn’t walk around roaring. A lion stalks, and then pounces, and then roars. “Roaring lion” is a description of the nature of a lion, but he’s saying be sober, be on the lookout, because Satan is stalking you, waiting for the opportunity to catch you slipping. I’m going somewhere. Wait, wait a minute. This is important, because he’s saying, “Years before, I was told Satan wanted to sift me. So I’m gonna strengthen you by telling you: be sober. Have your mind clear. Don’t be out here slipping.” And then two verses later, watch what Peter writes in verse 10:

But may the God of all grace,

who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus,

after you have suffered a while,

perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

1 Peter 5:10 (NKJV)

• Perfect you: that means mature you.
• Establish you: that means put you where you need to be.
• Strengthen you: that means give you muscles you didn’t have.
• Settle you: so you ain’t all over the place.

I thank God that whatever you go through, you come out of it better than you went into it. Am I talking to anybody here today? So the apostle Paul put it this way in Second Corinthians 1:4:

Who comforts us in all our tribulation,

that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble,

with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

2 Corinthians 1:4 (NKJV)

The greatest ministry will come out of your greatest misery. “So are you telling me, Pastor, that God uses my story to strengthen somebody else?” Yes.

This is why community is so important. It’s homecoming weekend. I know a lot of folks are streaming, y’all. I know you’re just waking up. Hey, it’s all good. But we all here; we here virtually; we up in here today. You know why community is so important? You know why church is so important? Can I tell you why? Because you cannot go through this kind of stuff in isolation.

It’s a trick of the enemy for the culture to say, “I don’t need church. I don’t need people. I just need me and Jesus.” Well, OK, that’s cool, but He did not make you to live and do life by yourself. You have to do life in community with other people. Let me break it down for you. The reason why we do life like that is because we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony.

There’s something fascinating: if you ever go to California, look at the giant redwood trees. They grow over 100 feet tall. Those redwood trees are amazing. They are beautiful. But the roots are not deep. Their roots don’t go down; their roots go out, and they connect to each other, tree to tree. So when windstorms come, the reason why the redwood trees continue to remain for thousands of years and don’t break is because their roots, their network, are tied to each other. And some people look at how you’re able to survive what you survived; it’s because you got the right network. You got the right connection. Look at your neighbor and tell them, “I’m glad we got each other. We need each other, because we need you to be strong.” I thank God I got a community. I got somebody I’m connected to.

For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.

But woe to him who is alone when he falls,

for he has no one to help him up.

Ecclesiastes 4:10 (NKJV)

Wait a minute, wait a minute. Let me close. Let me close this way. Remember the story of Samson and Delilah? Remember that story? Samson was not supposed to cut his hair, and his strength was tied to his hair. And Samson falls for a girl named Delilah, and she’s fine. And you know she was sent by the Philistines to find out about him. And all of a sudden Samson puts his head in her lap. It goes from conversation to conversation, and he ends up in her lap, and that’s a whole other sermon. It’s always progressive. It’s always in stages.

And she cuts his hair, and when she cuts his hair, he loses his strength, his supernatural strength. The Philistines put his eyes out, took his vision. That’s a whole other sermon too. And he’s grinding at the mill like an ox; that’s a whole other sermon. But what we miss is something very powerful. Even though Samson blew it, Judges chapter 16, verse 22, I’m gonna shout by myself right here:

However, the hair of his head began to grow again

after it had been shaven.

Judges 16:22 (NKJV)

After his great mistake, after we see him in public shame, God still let his hair grow. I’m trying to tell somebody: I don’t care what you did, God will still let it grow back. Am I talking to anybody here today?

So here’s the deal. Wait a minute, wait, wait a minute. Then there’s this thing, Pastor, that’s in Hebrews 11. In Hebrews 11, I’mma give you something greater than Facebook, greater than IG, and greater than TikTok. I’m about to give you heaven’s TikTok. I’m gonna give you some tea right quick. Ready? In Hebrews 11:32, the Bible speaks of all these different people who messed up.

And what more shall I say?

For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak

and Samson and Jephthah,

also of David and Samuel and the prophets.

Hebrews 11:32 (NKJV)

Noah messed up, but the Bible never talks about his drunkenness. Noah is in Hebrews 11, because it’s called the hall of fame of faith. People, praise God. I know that he was drunk, but He never mentioned that. Guess who else is in there? Abraham’s in there. Guess who else is mentioned? Rahab. It does not mention she was a prostitute in the world. In verse 32, Samson is in there, after the mistake he made, and it never mentions the mistake. It just mentions he’s in there. Tell somebody, “I’m in here too.” Ain’t nobody talking about what you used to do. That’s why you want to give God glory, that you’re still in here.

I tried to tell you, when I opened up this series in Micah 7:8:

Do not rejoice over me, my enemy;

When I fall, I will arise;

When I sit in darkness,

The Lord will be a light to me.

Micah 7:8 (NKJV)

Y’all hearing me? Why? Because of Micah 7:19:

He will again have compassion on us,

And will subdue our iniquities.

You will cast all our sins

Into the depths of the sea.

Micah 7:19 (NKJV)

Here’s the deal in your comeback. So let me close with this. We are all pieces. David has pieces of himself. Jonah has pieces of himself. All throughout the Bible there are pieces. Peter shows up with a lot of pieces. And there are pieces of you, pieces of you that if people knew about them, they would literally get up and change seats right now. There are pieces of you that, when you think about them, you ask yourself in your own mind, “What was I thinking?”

All of us have certain pieces of ourselves. We are made up of the fragmented pieces and mistakes of our own lives. But what this sermon teaches us is that there is still utility and function in us, that God has value in us, even if there are pieces in us that we want to throw away. So I’m telling you, this is not the season to try to sanitize your testimony, trying to show up like you squeaky clean. That don’t benefit nobody. What benefits people is understanding that sometimes your greatest ministry will come out of your greatest misery, because of what you’ve gone through.

So what you went through, brokenness on your job, and you went bankrupt, and you’re trying to act like you ain’t never went through it, ’cause you don’t want nobody to know about your past: let somebody know what happened, so when they look at how God brought you back, they’ll see the whole testimony. So if you went through a season of depression, and you had contemplation, possibly “suicidal contemplation”, and you was in church getting the word but you were also struggling with mental health and somebody didn’t know that… somebody’s sitting in here going through the same thing, thinking, “I’m in this by myself.” But when you open up your mouth and testify, when you share it with somebody else, they’ll know they’re not the only one going through it. If you were that person that was acting the fool and doing crazy stuff, but God changed your life, tell your real testimony. Stop walking around like you squeaky clean. Talk to somebody and tell them what you really been through, piece by piece.

I like quilts and stuff. And this quilt here, this quilt is made up of pieces. It’s just pieces. Before it started looking like this, I’m sure it was just random little square pieces sitting around. Each one of these pieces has a different story. And if you saw one of these pieces just sitting around, you probably wouldn’t pay any attention. You’d probably say, “What is that random piece doing there?” But every one of these pieces has a story, and somebody one day meticulously decided to put these pieces together and create a tapestry that created some kind of beauty.

And so now you’re not focused so much on the individual pieces; you see that these pieces have been sewn together. And so even though they are disjointed pieces, they still have function. Even though by themselves they represent some failure, together they represent some function. And so now you look at the quilt and you begin to think about this. When you are cold, you’re not worried about where each piece came from. All you’re worried about is, will this quilt cover me? I’m not concerned about where it came from. Does it still have function?

And here’s what I’m trying to tell you, people. Look, the reason why I preach like I preach is because I ain’t nothing but a bunch of pieces that God put back together again. And I’m talking to somebody: I don’t care how many broken pieces you had in your life and how many mistakes you made in your life. When God puts you back together again, you realize something:

And we know that all things work together for good

to those who love God,

to those who are the called according to His purpose.

Romans 8:28 (NKJV)

CLOSING INVITATION

Look at your neighbor and tell them, “You still have value.” Tell them, “You still have function. God still can use you.” It doesn’t matter what you’ve done; God will still use you to bless somebody else.

Satan has asked for you. He wants to sift you because he knows what’s gonna happen in your family. Young man, he wants to sift you. He wants you to have anger issues so your son will grow up with anger issues. Young lady, he wants you to have issues so you’ll pass issues down to your children’s children. He wants to sift you. He wants you to get so frustrated that you call home and say, “I’m coming home; I can’t do it,” so you will live in regret, because he knows what God wants to do in your life.

The next Supreme Court justice is in the room. The next governor  is in the room. The next multimillionaire is in this house, and you’re sitting up about to walk away from what God told you to do, ’cause you can’t handle the shaking. But God loves you even beyond your mistakes. You gotta get to the point in your life where you can say, “Yeah, that was me, but look at God. I’m a product of God’s grace.”

This is a no-judgment zone. God loves you. Who would come after somebody like that? Lift your hands all over this place today. Who would do that? Just think about it. Who would do that for you?

Have a blessed new week with the Lord!