God Searches for the Lost When Leadership Fails

Apr 26, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: The Shepherd Who Seeks

Jesus told of leaving ninety-nine sheep to find one lost in the wilderness. Ezekiel 34 shows God doing the same—searching mountains, ravines, and distant lands for scattered sheep. Bad shepherds had fed themselves while the weak grew thinner, the injured went untended. But God declares, “I myself will search for my sheep.” No delegation. No half-measures. Divine hands get dirty restoring what others broke. [51:23]

This passage rebukes every leader who prioritizes comfort over care. God doesn’t outsource redemption. When systems fail, He steps into the gap personally—binding wounds, carrying the weak, confronting those who trampled the vulnerable. His justice repairs what exploitation destroyed.

You’ve known leaders who scattered instead of gathering. Maybe a boss, pastor, or parent whose neglect left you stranded. Hear God’s promise: He tracks your specific ache. He navigates the thickets where you’re stuck. Where have you stopped expecting anyone to come looking?

“I will seek the lost, bring back the strayed, bind up the injured, and strengthen the weak.”
(Ezekiel 34:16, ESV)

Prayer: Ask God to reveal one area where you’ve felt overlooked—and to help you trust His pursuit.
Challenge: Write “He searches” on a sticky note. Place it where you’ll see it hourly today.

Day 2: Muddy Waters, Clean Springs

Fat sheep in Ezekiel’s flock shoved others aside, trampling pastures into mud and fouling drinking holes. God condemns this hoarding—not just by leaders, but by everyday people. The problem wasn’t scarcity, but greed. Some gorged while others starved. Justice meant restoring access: “I will feed them with good pasture.” [57:55]

Communities fracture when we prioritize our comfort over shared thriving. Hoarding resources—whether money, time, or empathy—contaminates the waters for everyone. Jesus modeled distributing bread until all ate their fill, never rationing grace.

Examine your “pasture.” Do you monopolize conversations? Cling to convenience while others struggle? Guard routines that exclude? God calls us to leave margins—literal and figurative—so others can drink deeply. What system are you propping up that keeps someone else thirsty?

“Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest?”
(Ezekiel 34:18, ESV)

Prayer: Confess one way you’ve muddied waters for others. Thank God for His cleansing.
Challenge: Donate five non-perishable items to the food pantry today—specifically ones you’d buy for your own family.

Day 3: Scars at the Table

The risen Jesus showed His wounds to disciples hiding in a locked room. He didn’t hide the marks of betrayal or downplay their failure. Instead, He ate broiled fish with them—a tangible sign that brokenness finds healing at His table. [01:08:00]

Christ’s scars validate our pain while proving death doesn’t get the last word. His table welcomes those still trembling from harm—no pretense required. When we offer bread instead of blame, we become living proof of resurrection.

You’ve known both betrayal and locked doors. Who needs an invitation from you this week—not to a perfect feast, but to a real one? Where can your scars make space for someone else’s story?

“He showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.”
(John 20:20, ESV)

Prayer: Thank Jesus for a specific wound He’s redeemed in your life. Ask Him to use it today.
Challenge: Text someone who’s felt excluded: “I saved you a seat at lunch/Sunday service/my porch.”

Day 4: Tending the Fallow Ground

God’s people in Ezekiel had become “scattered over all the face of the earth.” Yet He promised to regather them on Israel’s barren heights, making the desolate land “a rich pasture.” Restoration starts in unlikely soil. [15:20]

Crossroads’ community garden—planted in a grassy patch behind the church—mirrors this hope. Fallow ground becomes fertile when hands till it. God specializes in reviving what others dismiss: fractured relationships, neglected neighborhoods, weary souls.

What “barren” place have you written off—a strained friendship, a dormant dream, a social issue that feels too complex? Roll up your sleeves. Grab a shovel. How might planting one seed disrupt despair?

“I will make them and the places around my hill a blessing, and I will send down the showers in their season.”
(Ezekiel 34:26, ESV)

Prayer: Ask God to show you one fallow area He wants to till through you this month.
Challenge: Spend 15 minutes clearing trash or weeds in a neglected outdoor space near you.

Day 5: The Unstoppable Invitation

Jesus chased Thomas past doubt, Peter past shame, and Paul past persecution. The pastor’s story echoes this: fleeing church, only to be cornered by a cantata invitation, a parking lot address, relentless grace. God’s pursuit outlasts every “no.” [54:30]

Salvation isn’t a one-time transaction but a lifetime of being found—in ER waiting rooms, pride festivals, ICU units. The Shepherd who left heaven to retrieve us won’t quit when we wander. His love is louder than our resistance.

Where have you stopped expecting God to show up? In the addiction? The political fray? The quiet ache for belonging? He’s already there, grilling fish on the shore. Will you recognize Him?

“I will seek the lost, bring back the strayed… I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered.”
(Ezekiel 34:16, ESV)

Prayer: Name one person who feels beyond reach. Beg God to intercept them this week.
Challenge: Mail a postcard to someone who’s left your community. Write: “You’re missed. No reply needed.”

Sermon Summary

Crossroads Church frames its life around radical inclusion and practical care. The congregation prepares to become a reconciling church, committing to welcome people across gender identities, sexual orientations, races, ages, abilities, and social circumstances while also intentionally pursuing justice alongside the marginalized. That commitment shows up in concrete projects: a food pantry, an upcoming community garden, a blessing box, Pride sponsorship and shirts, and plans for hygiene support for unsheltered neighbors. Prayer life threads through the community, naming specific needs and holding persons and leaders before God with honest vulnerability.

Theologically, the community centers Ezekiel 34 as a corrective to failed leadership. The text indicts shepherds who feed themselves, scatter the flock, and ignore the weak, and it announces God’s decisive intervention. God will search for the lost, bind wounds, strengthen the weak, and set a shepherd over the people who models care rather than domination. That divine movement refuses to outsource healing to committees or wait for institutions to reform. Instead God enters the mess, gathers the scattered, and calls the people to join in that work.

This vision reshapes how the congregation understands ministry and authority. Leadership must be accountable, systems must be corrected when they harm the vulnerable, and every member shares responsibility for restoring health within the flock. Communion and welcome become signs of that theology: an open table where all receive the same loaf, and a call to practice inclusion in everyday life. New membership and shared liturgy reinforce that identity, while invitations to serve and organize practical projects invite participation beyond words. The congregation sends people out with a dual confidence: that God pursues those who have been hurt, and that God calls the gathered to be present in the same hands‑on way.

Key Takeaways

1. God enters the mess actively God refuses to stay at a distance when leadership fails. Instead of delegating repair, God searches for the lost, binds wounds, and restores the scattered. That divine proximity reframes grief from abandonment into one of presence and rescue, calling the hurting to trust a God who gets into the dirt and stays. [62:42]
2. Leadership must care not control Authority becomes legitimate only when it protects and feeds the vulnerable rather than serving self. Ezekiel’s indictment highlights how spiritual and civic leaders betray trust when they hoard resources or use power to exclude. True leadership assumes accountability, prioritizes restoration, and accepts judgment when systems harm the flock. [49:16]
3. Justice and compassion are entwined Care and correction belong together; God judges between the fat and the lean to restore fair access to pasture and water. Justice here is not abstraction but concrete redistribution that prevents trampling and muddying of common life. Worship that neglects neighboring justice loses integrity; faithfulness requires both mercy and structural repair. [57:33]
4. Open table invites all in The meal acts as a public theology: one loaf for everyone, not separate but equal offerings. Communion practices embody a conviction that grace arrives through shared bread and hospitality, dismantling barriers that exclude seekers. The open table becomes a test and training ground for broader inclusion in word and deed. [74:50]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[10:30] - Visitor Connection and Contact
[11:20] - Reconciling Church Commitment
[13:37] - Food Pantry and Service Opportunities
[15:02] - Community Garden and Outreach Plans
[16:04] - Shared Prayer and Needs
[26:32] - Corporate Prayer and Intercession
[49:16] - Ezekiel 34: Failed Leadership
[51:23] - God Searches and Restores
[62:42] - Call to Join God in the Mess
[67:41] - Membership Welcome and Communion
[74:50] - Open Table Invitation
[85:05] - Closing Blessing and Service Opportunities

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Ezekiel 34:11-16 (ESV)
For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak…

Observation Questions

In Ezekiel 34:11-16, what specific actions does God take to care for the sheep? How does this contrast with the failed leadership described earlier in the chapter?
The sermon highlights projects like the food pantry, community garden, and hygiene support for unsheltered neighbors. What do these initiatives reveal about the church’s understanding of God’s call? [13:37]
How does the open communion table reflect the idea of "one loaf for everyone" mentioned in the sermon? What barriers does this practice aim to dismantle? [01:14:50]

Interpretation Questions

Why does God emphasize personal intervention in Ezekiel 34 (“I myself will search…”) instead of delegating restoration to others? How does this challenge common assumptions about divine distance in times of suffering?
The sermon critiques systems that “harm the flock” and calls for accountability. How might “fat sheep trampling the pasture” (Ezekiel 34:20) manifest in modern communities or churches? [57:33]
The open table is described as a “public theology.” How does sharing communion unite practical care (e.g., feeding the hungry) with spiritual inclusion?

Application Questions

God refuses to outsource healing to committees or wait for institutions to reform. Where have you seen or experienced “hands-on” divine care in messy situations? How could you join in that work this week? [01:02:42]
The sermon warns against leadership that “hoards resources or uses power to exclude.” In your spheres of influence (work, family, church), how can you prioritize protecting the vulnerable over self-interest? [49:16]
Justice and compassion are described as “entwined.” What is one practical step you could take to address both immediate needs (e.g., hunger) and systemic issues (e.g., inequity) in your community? [57:33]
The open table invites everyone to “meet Jesus” without barriers. Who in your life feels excluded or unwelcome in spiritual spaces? How could you extend tangible hospitality to them this month?
Reflect on a time when you felt scattered or hurt by a leader or institution. How does Ezekiel 34 reshape your understanding of God’s response to that pain? What would it look like to trust God’s nearness in that memory?

Sermon Clips

38s

#GodSearchesYou

“``God says something radical. I, myself, will search for my sheep. I'll not send a memo. I'll not form a committee. I'll wait until leadership gets better. God says, digging in. I'm diving into the mess. And that is the heart of this text today. Because Ezekiel 34 isn't about failed leadership. It's more about god's refusal to abandon people when leadership fails. This passage speaks directly to people who've been hurt.”

47s

#GodComesCloser

“So if you take nothing else with you today, take this. When leadership fails and it will. God does not disappear. God comes closer. God comes closer than you expect, closer than you feel, closer than the systems that failed you. Because god is not distanced. God is not detached. God is not waiting but god is searching for you. God is gathering you in. God is healing. God is walking straight into the mess. And God is calling us to do exactly the same.”

55s

#JoinGodInTheMess

“God is already searching. God is already gathering. God is already binding up wounds that you didn't think anyone else saw. God is showing up. And here's where it gets real. If we're going to follow god, we don't get to stand at a distance either. Because the same god who walks into the mess calls us into the mess too. Not to fix everything, not to have all the answers but to be the people who are seeking the lost, who are welcoming the strays, who are binding up the injured, who are strengthening the weak, who refuse to participate in systems that push others aside, who refuse to contaminate or muddy the waters to become even in some way a reflection of the shepherd we follow.”

47s

#RestorationOverAccountability

“But here in Ezekiel, that's not what it says. It says, harm has been done by bad shepherds and that that's on the shepherds. And that god will hold them accountable. But god doesn't stop at accountability. God moves into restoration. I will seek the lost. I will bring back the stray. I will bind up the injured. I will strengthen the weak. It's not this distant abstract care. It's not this. I don't it's over there and yeah, I care about it but I'm not really doing anything about it. This is a put my hands in the dirt, roll up my sleeves right in the middle of the mess kind of care.”

38s

#GodShowsUpNotAfraid

“This is the same god who in Jesus walks with a leper who sits at tables with the outcast, who touches the wounds of those who are are hurting, who weeps at graves. This is not a god who manages from a distance. This is a god who shows up and god who calls you into, who wants you to be a part of, and won't let you walk away. But then Ezekiel pushes us even further because god doesn't just address broken leaders. God addresses broken systems within the flock itself.”

46s

#LeadershipIsCareNotPower

“Because god's leadership looks different because it's not about power over. It's about care for. It's not about getting ahead. It's about making sure that no one is left behind. It's about god's care and justice being tied together. God feeds the sheep and corrects the systems that cause them. The first 10 verses of Ezekiel are not a part of today's reading but they provide the necessary background. God condemns the supported shepherds slash leaders of Israel. These leaders have not truly led the people. They have allowed the people or the sheep to scatter and to become prey.”

46s

#LeadersFeedOrFail

“Ezekiel 34 is concerned with the leadership. It's concerned with the issues of leadership and uses this imaginary idea of shepherds and sheep to talk about leaders and people. God looks as the leaders as shepherds and basically says, you've been feeding yourselves instead of feeding the flock. You've ignored the weak and you've scattered people and your whole system is broken. It's kind of funny how this story of ancient Israel maybe feels close right now.”

29s

#OneShepherdHope

“And here's the hope. The hope that holds it all together. At the end of this passage, god says, I will set over them one shepherd. For Ezekiel's audience that pointed toward restoration and hope. For us, it echoes clear something more, a shepherd who doesn't exploit, a shepherd who doesn't abandon, a shepherd who lays down power to lift others up. So if you take nothing else with you today, take this.”

Ask a question about this sermon

Crossroads Church of Fayetteville This sermon · AI assistant

How does God respond when leadership fails?

What does Ezekiel 34 teach about shepherds?

How are Christians called to join God's healing?

God Searches for the Lost When Leadership Fails

Devotional

Day 1: The Shepherd Who Seeks

Day 2: Muddy Waters, Clean Springs

Day 3: Scars at the Table

Day 4: Tending the Fallow Ground

Day 5: The Unstoppable Invitation

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

God Searches for the Lost When Leadership Fails

Share