What comes
to mind when you think about the word “lost.”
Sure, a long
running TV show that had a very strange ending springs to mind. But for me, the
image that comes first is Jesus talking about the lost sheep.
I’m sure you
know the parable. 99 are in the fold and the one, well, it’s out and about in
the wilderness. Crying out to be found. If you think about it you can hear the
heart wrenching cries as it tries to call to the Shepherd.
I close my
eyes and I can see it, tangled in briars, or jammed into a crag, unable to
move. When I think about that I am brought close to Christ, knowing that on
some days I feel very much like that sheep. Lost.
“Rejoice
with me,” Says the Lord, “For I have found my sheep which was lost!” (Luke
15:6)
But the
parable isn’t just about sheep. We are told in Luke 15 v7 that “there will be
more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous
persons who need no repentance.” These are the Lord’s words.
Can you hear
the sting in the tail? O, the ninety-nine righteous. I am reminded of Abraham,
standing beside the Lord as they gaze down into the valley at Sodom. “If I find
fifty righteous ones, within the city of Sodom…” And yet none are found and the
city of Sodom burns with fire as a result!
Do you
wonder if those in Sodom thought themselves safe? Was it in their minds to
consider themselves in the number of 99 in the fold? Who among us needs no repentance
at all? Righteousness itself comes from God, no one else, and it comes through
faith in Jesus Christ. There is no other way to secure it! Paul is adamant in
Romans 3:23 that we all fall short of the Glory of God. That means that we are
all lacking in our claim to be righteous. What does that mean?
It means
that we have to rely on Jesus to bring us to a place where we can be whole, and
forgiven, a place where He can present us to Father God as that gift for which
He dies on the Cross.
Think about
that for a minutes. Jesus sets himself the agony of the cross in order to give
us as His gift to Father God. God gives us as His gift to Himself. I don’t know
about you but that just blows me away.
The 99 then,
whom Jesus appears to be questioning, do they indeed have righteousness in His
eyes? The Shepherd leaves them on their own so that He can go and find the one
who is lost. The one who is there who wants to be saved, the one who is calling
out to the Lord! Bleating in the cold and the dark, heart broken.
And the 99
think they are safe and secure. Are they? On initial reading of this verse the
answer would be yes. However, note the barb in the tail of verse 7. Heaven
rejoices over the one that is lost and who is found. The one who comes back to
the Lord. The one who is now repentant. The one who is now saved and can count
on the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. A room has been prepared for them in
Heaven.
The other
99? Who need no repentance? But that’s not what Paul is saying. Paul very
clearly tells us that none of us can claim righteousness. Who then are the 99
other than those who think they have it sewn up? There is no need for them to
repent. Or so they think. Why? We have it sorted, they say.
In verse 7
bring to the front of your mind the role of the Pharisees in Jesus life. Think
of their hypocrisy. Jesus is telling us that He will always go for the one
sheep who is in genuine need, rather than the 99 who are faking it. They will
still be there when He gets back, but what happens to them after that?
Who is it
that you can think of who is lost? More to the point, who can you say is open
to being drawn into the embrace of Christ? That one sheep will bring Heaven to
its feet with resounding cheers!
I think we
have all experienced “lostness.” We have all felt it. Even in crowded rooms. Being
alone, and without hope. The key is recognizing we are lost and calling out to
be found.
In the end
the 99 don’t know they are lost, and stand silent, and think everything is OK. Yet,
that one person who is lost, that we can bring back to Christ. O, how wonderful
is that to achieve?
Amen.