By

Shelby G. Floyd

God’s spiritual children do not need to worry about our security. Almighty God protects us with his everlasting wings. King David alluded to this idea in Psalms 91:1-4:

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”
3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler
And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

FATHER AND MOTHER EAGLE STIR THE NEST

Father and Mother eagle protect their children with their wings. But they also stir the nest when it is time for the baby eagles to fly! Therefore, God our Spiritual Eagle will stir the nest when it is time for his children to be active in the work of the spiritual kingdom—the church!

There comes a time when the baby eagles have grown considerably and are ready to start flapping their wings. This creates the situation where it is time for father and mother Eagle to stir the nest! If you have never heard of that we will explain it to you. The Eagles build the nest out of thorn briars and sticks and then line it with the skins of animals and fur. So, the little baby eagles have had a very comfortable home for quite a while. They have grown and now are ready to start flapping their wings. But the baby eagles are not ready to learn to fly and leave home.

In order that they may not stay at home forever, father and mother Eagle “stir the nest!” That means that they hover over the nest and with their powerful wings they start flapping the nest and tearing it all apart. The baby eaglets do not enjoy sitting on thorns and thistles, so they are ready to start flapping their wings in learning to fly.

When Moses repeated the giving of the law, he used the figure of speech “stir the nest” to indicate that is what God did when he brought Israel out of Egyptian bondage and marched them toward the promised land.

As an eagle stirs up its nest,
Hovers over its young,
Spreading out its wings, taking them up,
Carrying them on its wings (Deuteronomy 32:11).

In some homes today we have young men and women still living with mom and dad, sometimes even into their 30s and 40s! That is not good. They were meant to become adults and accomplish something good. How should you take care of that matter? Learn from the Eagle. Stir the nest! Make it uncomfortable and they will be ready to leave home and become productive adults!

EAGLES TEACH THE YOUNG EAGLES TO FLY

The baby eagles were born to fly. How do they learn to fly? The baby eagles are in no hurry to leave their home nest. Father and mother Eagle must now teach the young eagles to flap their wings and learn how to fly. When they flap their wings, they rise up somewhat out of the nest. The Eagle parents soon encourage them to hop on their wings and they take them for a test flight. Soon the baby eagles learn to fly high in the sky!

And God the Father Eagle is teaching all of his spiritual children how to fly to our eternal home in heaven. And that is what God was doing when he brought the children of Israel out of Egypt and pointed them toward the promised land. And God called Moses from the mountain, saying,

“You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine” (Exodus 19:4).

And the same thing is true today in our service to God through our Lord Jesus Christ. The apostles of Christ wrote letters encouraging God’s people to lift up their hearts and minds toward heaven. The apostle Paul wrote the Ephesians to fly to heavenly places because God “… raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6-7).

Paul also encouraged the Colossian Christians to make that spiritual flight to the heavenly places by setting their minds on that which is above and not on the things of the earth: “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory” (Colossians 3:1-4).

When all of God’s people make this our aim in life, we manifest that we have some of the spiritual Eagle in each of our hearts. Dwelling with the Almighty throughout eternity should be our all-consuming interest and goal!

THE EAGLE MOLTING STAGE

Next, we look at what is called the molting stage! What is that? Every Eagle must go through what is called the molting stage once each year. It is a time of humility, renewal, and restoration. Why is each Eagle required to go through this humbling period of life? Because they need to be renewed. Their feathers have changed from constant use. They are not like they were. And they have lost their sheen and shine. Also, their beak has become weak. They have used it so much that it has lost much of its power to puncture and pursue food. And their talons also have lost their strength.

And so, each year the Eagle must come down from his lofty perch on the mountain to the ground. They humble themselves to the ground. During this period, they grow new feathers. And with their talons the strip the old beak completely away. And they grow a new powerful beak. And finally, they also grow new strong talons.

The Eagle humbling experience during the molting stage also teaches us a valuable lesson concerning our service to God. The Bible teaches that God’s people must humble themselves in the sight of the Lord.

The prophet Jeremiah had something to say about this,

“Your fierceness has deceived you,
The pride of your heart,
O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock,
Who hold the height of the hill!
Though you make your nest as high as the eagle,
I will bring you down from there,” says the Lord. (Jeremiah 49:16 NKJV).

Therefore, God was saying to Israel, “you are puffed up with pride, you have exalted yourself to heaven, but I am going to bring you down!” I will humble you in order that you may truly serve me in the right spirit. The prophet Obadiah basically said the same thing to the people of God because they were rebelling against him,

Though you ascend as high as the eagle,
And though you set your nest among the stars,
From there I will bring you down,” says the Lord. (Obadiah 4).

There are many different reasons why God sometimes must humble us in order eventually to raise us up to heaven. We may lose many things during this life, friends, family, and riches. But we do not want to lose our soul. King Solomon said,

“Will you set your eyes on that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away like an eagle toward heaven” (Proverbs 23:5).

The whole gist of our lesson today is that when God humbles us, we should look upon it as a favor. Because it is necessary for us to renew our spiritual strength so we can fly to our heavenly home on our spiritual wings of an eagle. Like an eagle God can satisfy our mouth with good things, so that we can renew our youth like the Eagle (Psalms 103:5).

And when we are ready to leave this earth, we can fulfill the words of the prophet Isaiah:

But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31).

Copyright © 2024 Shelby G. Floyd, All Rights Reserved

Shelby G. Floyd delivered this sermon, "Eagle Christians," February 25, 2024, at the Heartland Church of Christ, 1693 West Main Street, Greenwood, Indiana 46142.