Finding what is lost…

Luke 15: 8-10

“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins  and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.’  In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.”

 Look how diligently she searches for what is lost!  When we lose something of value, we search and search everywhere until we find it.  Look at the energy involved!  Now compare that with the energy we spend on ‘finding’ lost souls for the kingdom of God… When we lose something and begin our search for it there is an urgency, especially if it is a wallet or a set of keys!  How much more valuable is someone who is lost for eternity!  What kind of effort do we put into reaching others with the Word of God and sharing what it can do in their life; now and forever?

 Make heaven rejoice as we take on the seriousness of the search for what is lost and its reclamation.  Make the heart of God sing as we catch the flame of urgency to be faithful in our sharing; daily, by the minute.  We have contact with others all day long – how are we treating them? What does our speech reflect?  Are we  keeping our thoughts clean and clear since we know our actions and words are an outward expression of the inner person?

 We can only impact the lost if we are found; found to have the presence of God in and with us, found to have the same sense of urgency to seek, and share.  Be the cause of rejoicing in heaven.

The lost among us…

Luke 15:1-7

Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach. This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such sinful people—even eating with them!

So Jesus told them this story: “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!

 Sinner:  one who has strayed away, one who  is not righteous.  The commonly held belief here is needing to get cleaned up and ‘righteous’ prior to coming to the Lord.  Jesus often pointed out the misconception that the perceived ‘righteous’ were in need of cleansing as well.  Today we still hear the statements like this; when I quit…. (fill in the blank) or when I have more time, or when I’m older.  All of these imply a need to ‘clean up’ before beginning a relationship with the Lord.  These do not lack in knowledge of the Word, they suffer from ‘lostness’  brought on by misconceptions, poor teaching, skewed perceptions, or more.   This one who is found was already part of the flock.  The Pharisee and many of us like the Pharisee, was unwilling to associate with the ‘sinner’ because they weren’t ‘clean.’ 

 This is the image of exclusivity the world often places upon Christian groups.  Are we guilty of the same distaste the Pharisees are exhibiting?  Are we willing to reach out and ‘touch’ someone perceived as ‘unclean’ with the Word of God, or do we stay within the comfort of our common groups of believers? 

 How do we treat the lost among us?