When I first got my driver’s license all I had was Mapquest. I never even heard of Google at the time. Google Maps I don’t think even existed. I couldn’t read an actual map so before I went anywhere I had to type an address someone gave me into Mapquest, and hopefully it worked. Results varied. On one particular occasion, I was given the address to a house in one city and ended up driving to an abandoned lot under a bridge in another city. So I called the person who gave me the address and he couldn’t believe where I was. I ended up being two hours late to his house. In the first two parables of Luke 15, Jesus tells a story about a lost sheep wandering around and a lost coin collecting dust.

Verses 1-7.

Like the parable of the Good Samaritan, two of the three parables in Luke chapter 15 are unique only to Luke. These stories are so profoundly vivid and engaging in their imagery and meaning and have been taught and analyzed the world over. What these three stories reveal is how incredibly loving and intentional God is towards people who are lost in sin. Our tendency is to lean pharisaical or prodigal. We may be very proud of our allegiance to God and look down on others who have been caught up in the world. Or we may be prodigals ourselves and find ourselves trapped in licentious living. 

Both types of people were present when Jesus told these three parables. The tax collectors and sinners were attracted to Jesus because worldly living obviously wasn’t giving them what it promised. The pharisees and scribes were disgusted that Jesus ate with them. In the ancient world, eating with people indicated your acceptance of them. Religious leaders of the day divided people between the righteous and the unclean, and would do their best to live completely separated from the unclean. Some rabbis wouldn’t even preach to them. 

But Jesus would. The first parable appeals to the fondness the Pharisees and scribes have towards their animals. Notice that He uses examples of livestock many times to teach this group a lesson. A flock of 100 sheep would have been considered medium-sized and one sheep goes wandering off. A lost sheep will not of its own accord return back to the fold. It must be sought out and in the parable the shepherd leaves his 99 sheep that are accounted for just to find one lost sheep.

When he does find it, he actually puts it on his shoulders and rejoices with his neighbors that he found it. You might wonder why he was so excited about this sheep. After all, he had 99 others. And the one that got lost, didn’t it deserve it for being so dull? It seems like a lot of work for the shepherd to leave 99 just to look around for one. 

Sheep are described throughout Scripture. In Genesis four, Abel offered the best of his sheep as a sacrifice to the Lord. Sheep are the primary animal of sacrifice in Levitical law. Jesus is the ultimate sacrificial lamb. But He’s also the Good Shepherd who looks after His sheepfold. In the New Testament, pastors are also called shepherds whose primary job is to take care of their sheepfold which is the congregation in which they serve. 

In this parable, Jesus allows His hearers to see His heart for those who are lost. Many rabbis believed that God only received sinners who sought repentance. But not only is Jesus willing to go search out a hapless sheep, He is ecstatic when He finds it and all heaven rejoices. 

Jesus’ love even goes further. In John chapter 10, Jesus says He is the Good Shepherd who not only knows and protects His sheep, but willingly lays His life down for them. Some people wonder if Jesus would have come to earth to die if it was for just one person. I believe this parable teaches precisely that. Jesus came to earth and found lost sheep wandering aimlessly everywhere. And by picking up His cross and laying down His life, He picked up all the lost sheep of this world and brought them into heaven where there is great rejoicing.

Even if God uses you to rescue just one lost sheep, then know that there is great rejoicing in heaven. This parable teaches us that we ought to never feel unworthy of rescuing and that Jesus has better things to do. He laid down His life for His sheep in order to carry us to heaven. 

Verses 8-10.

Have you ever lost something valuable? I’m sure several things are coming to mind. It could be a favorite toy you had as a kid, or a paycheck, or perhaps a wedding ring God forbid. Did the lost item alarm you enough that you turned your whole house over looking for it? Everytime I lose my car keys my whole world stops and I start to wonder why I didn’t sign up for Triple A. Then I breathe a huge sigh of relief once I find my keys and decide to look into it later. 

In this second of three parables Jesus tells in Luke 15, a woman loses something valuable enough to her that she lights a lamp, grabs a broom, and sweeps the house in order to find it. The item she loses is a silver coin called a drachma, whose worth was equivalent to a day’s wage for a laborer. More than a financial loss, though, the coin was probably part of a ten-piece garland worn by a woman to signify she was married, similar to a wedding ring. No wonder she turned the whole house over looking for it and was excited to tell people once she found it. 

There was a religious saying in Jesus’ day that said, “there will be joy in heaven over one sinner who is obliterated before God.” Yet Jesus flips this by saying, “there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (10). God wills that none perish but all come to repentance. In fact, Jesus will traverse the wilds just to find one meandering sheep and will sweep the house to find one lost coin because He loves the lost. Then the angels will have a party if just one person repents. 

God is not out to get you or trample on your grave. He finds no pleasure in punishing the wicked. God is the final lawgiver and judge but He does not want to pronounce any person guilty. Hell was designed for Satan and his angels. Not for us. God sent His Son to rescue lost sheep and find lost coins at the expense of Jesus’ own life. Do not let anyone tell you you’re worthless. If angels throw a party every time someone repents, just imagine how special you are to God?

Questions:

1. How does the parable of the lost sheep illustrate the length God goes to save people? 
2. Have you ever lost something valuable? How relieved were you to find it and what does this teach you about God?
3. Why is repentance necessary for salvation?