What if One was Lost?

The pastor called the house and the little boy answered the phone with a whisper, “Hello” Is your dad there? Yes, but he is busy. Mom? She’s busy to. “There looking for me”

Luke 15:1-7 (HCSB)  1 All the tax collectors and sinners were approaching to listen to Him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes were complaining, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them!”

3 So He told them this parable: 4 “What man among you, who has 100 sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the 99 in the open field and go after the lost one until he finds it? 5 When he has found it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders, 6 and coming home, he calls his friends and neighbors together, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost sheep!’ 7 I tell you, in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who don’t need repentance.

The Despicable and the Devout.

To see this in the historical context we must notice who was present when Jesus spoke this parable.

The Despicable ones were the tax collectors and sinners. The tax collectors were the worst of the worst when it came to people. They were licensed from Rome to collect X amount of taxes and whatever they collected above that, they would stick in their pockets.

The “Devout” Pharisees and scribes were the religious of the most religious, the epitome of what religion is.

• Jesus called them whitewashed tombs full of dead men’s bones
• They thought they were right with God because they were descendants of Abraham, but Jesus called them liars and said their father was the devil.
• Jesus rightly accused them of following the traditions of men and ignoring the word of God.
• Jesus called them hypocrites

They were appalled that Jesus (proclaiming to be from God) was associating with the despicable tax collectors and sinners.

Notice the difference – the Despicable ones were approaching to listen to Jesus, the Devout ones came to complain.

In regard to this parable, spoken by the Lord, Alexander Maclaren said:

It is an unveiling of His deepest heart, and therein a revelation of the very heart of God. It touches the deepest things in His relation to men, and sets forth thoughts of Him, such as man never dared to dream. It does all this by the homeliest image and by an appeal to the simplest instincts. The most ordinary shepherd looks for lost sheep, and everybody has peculiar joy over lost things found.[1]

The Lost

Three parables in a row are told in Luke 15 and all of them illustrate something that is lost. In this parable, Jesus refers to the sinner as a lost sheep.

All people are like lost sheep

The most despicable, the loathsome, the thugs, the liars, the cheats, the sinners and tax collectors… were all lost sheep of Christ. It is Jesus who laid down His life for the sheep, all of them… the sacrifice He made was for all of the lost sheep… I am the Good Shepherd… and He says,

John 10:16 (HCSB)  16 But I have other sheep that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice. Then there will be one flock, one shepherd.

The sinners that have repented and turned from themselves toward God are really ‘lost sheep that have been found.’ Anyone that acknowledges Jesus as Lord of their lives are lost sheep that have been found.

Psalm 100:3 (HCSB)  3 Acknowledge that the Lord is God.

He made us, and we are His— His people, the sheep of His pasture.

The Lost Sheep

Notice the sheep. A silly little creature, not going anywhere in particular, but finding a sweet tuft of grass here, it munches that down; then on to a soft patch of ground that is soft for walking; maybe a warm spot in a gulley that is a nice place to nap.

• Not meaning to, but step by step, the sheep strays away from the hillside… then the helpless sheep will bleat, fluttering and excited, it will rush into thorn bushes, or get stuck in a mud hole
• Helpless, not knowing its way back, until someone comes and rescues it.

Illustrate: Lost in Woolworths. I was very young… so young that I only have a vague memory of what happened, but I was with my mom in Woolworths and I started wandering around the racks of things that interested me… toys, cars, whatever caught my eye I caused me to take a few more steps away from Mom.

            When I turned around to see my Mother… she wasn’t there. I had inadvertently wandered away from her. I clearly remember the panic feeling of being lost.

            Somethings are evident from the illustration… I hadn’t really done anything bad… I wasn’t mean to my sisters, I didn’t steal anything and try to hide… I only went wandering after the things I liked and didn’t listen to Mom when she said stay close to me.

The Lord says to us, “there are many of you that do not mean to go wrong;

• you are not going anywhere in particular,
• you do not intend to go either way, of doing right or wrong,
• you are not keeping near God, or intentionally going away from Him,
• but you simply go where the grass is sweetest
• but you go where the path is softest
• but you go where you think you will be happy
• YOU have got away from Him.

Later in Chapter 15 the Lord tells the parable of the prodigal son, where the son deliberately walks away from God and voluntarily makes an effort to go on his own… away from God. The wandering sheep seems so innocent compared to the lost son…

• But the wandering sheep and the lost son end up in the same place… AWAY from God!
• In a world like this, if a person does not know very clearly where he/she is going or does not determine to follow God and do His will… they will certainly wander from everything good and right.
• There is no excuse like, “I didn’t mean any harm” or “I never meant it”

The Seeker

We often talk about mankind being lost, and how sinners need to be saved… but I think it is incredible that in this parable, the Lord gives us a snapshot into the heart of God.

He goes after the one that is lost

Christianity is the only religion where God seeks after people. All of the other religions are people seeking after a god.

• God became flesh and dwelt among us
• He left heaven to seek after us lost sheep
• He gave up glory, became like a servant, to find us.
• He gave His life for us

John 10:11 (HCSB)
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

And notice in our passage today…

Luke 15:4 (HCSB)  4 “What man among you, who has 100 sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the 99 in the open field and go after the lost one until he finds it?

• Rod: Have you found religion? No, I found Jesus… Really, Jesus found you.

Festivity for the Found

I have a new hobby: crashing remote control airplanes. I would like to be able to fly them, but so far… crashing them is a lot of fun. Brendon and I went to the park to fly a wooden model that I had built… it was a spectacular crash. After we got home, I noticed that my favorite pocket knife was lost. I told Chris, “I have to go find it. I don’t know if I could find another one like it.” Oh, how happy I was when I finally found it!

Luke 15:6-7 (HCSB) 6 and coming home, he calls his friends and neighbors together, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost sheep!’ 7 I tell you, in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who don’t need repentance.

According to the Scriptures, God parties when one sinner repents! The three parables in chapter 15 say the same thing… There is a party in the presence of the Almighty God, the Creator of the universe, the Everlasting Father and all of His angels celebrate.

If one was lost… I’ve heard people say that Jesus would have died for just one person. I aways thought that was an odd thing to say. But according to this passage; if just one was lost… Jesus would come for that person… even if it was just one. Are you that one?
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[1]Maclaren, A. (1998, c1995). Sermons for All Seasons (electronic edition.). Logos Library System; Pulpit Legends. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers.