Transcript:
good evening guys hello I’m Nathan and today we’ll be looking into Luke chapter 15 verses 1 through 10 before I get into that that I’d like to just share a little story that happened to me a while back um I was at home alone barbi was working and I don’t know if you guys know this but I actually have five dogs now the two bigger dogs are on runners I think that’s what run it and I had went outside to go check on him and you know one of them was unusually quiet I when I went out there she was gone and I was pretty worried about it so I think I was freaking out and calling people and looking her I’m running around town looking for trying to find her I love my dog okay um turns out later on she had went into the store and somebody knew that she was my dog and they had held her there for me and I was able to get her back and for me it was just this joyous moment to get my dog back because I was so worried about her and I think that anyone that has something that they really care about if you lose it you’re gonna look for it and when you find it you’re gonna be joy and that’s kind of what these stories today talk about so I’m gonna go ahead and jump right into the text and we’ll discuss it a little bit um so Luke 15 verse 1 it says now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to him to listen to him the him here is Jesus by the way um both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble saying this man receives sinners he probably had that funky bass – so he told them this parable saying what man among you if he has a hundred sheep has lost one of them he does not and does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go for the one which is lost until he finds it and when he has found it he lays it on to his shoulders rejoicing and when he comes home he calls his friends together and his neighbors saying to them rejoice with me where I found my sheep which blocks I tell you that in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who hence then over the 99 righteous persons who need no repentance and the second a little short story is about the loss point and here it goes in verse 8 for what woman if she has 10 silver coins and loses one does not light a lamp and sweep up the house and search carefully until she finds it and when she’s found it she calls together her friends and her neighbors saying rejoice with me for I have found the coin that I have lost in the same way I tell you there is joy in the presence of angels in the angels of God over one sinner who repents and today we’ve come to two parables of Jesus the first parable of the lost sheep and the parable of the lost coin these two parables are very practical stories that communicate a great spiritual truth while the two parables are different they both vividly illustrate the truth in John 3:16 and that is that God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life it’s me this evening I’m gonna cover three main points and the first point is something is lost second point there is a search for the lost thing and the third thing there is joy when the lost is found now I won’t kind of discuss some of the practical implications for us God’s children in the first parable a sheep is lost and in the second parable a coin is lost now don’t dwell on how they were lost it’s not important to the parable what is important is that the owner knows that they’re lost it’s important because it reveals that the lost items are actually missed because they are considered valuable and precious by their own okay on the care and the concern of the woman and the shepherd illustrates God’s care and concern for his children the Shepherd knows that his sheep knows his sheep and God knows his okay woman knows how many silver coins belong to her and we rejoice that her Heavenly Father knows who our hits can see that in second Timothy chapter 2 verse 19 these parables show us that our Heavenly Father knows us and thus is very concerned about our world okay so let’s go we’ve covered something’s lost it’s kind of step into what the search looks like so the first parable tells us that the Shepherd leaves he leaves the ninety-nine in the open country and goes after the one that’s lost until he finds it and then the second parable it tells us that the woman who’s lost the coin she likes a lamb and she sweeps out the house and she diligently seeks it until she finds it okay here we see the love for the love and the value for the lost that are put into action as the owners actively seek the loss this is the opposite mentality that I think sometimes we we have with just simply I’ll leave them alone and they’ll come home it’s not doesn’t line up with what we’re seeing here in the text the truth is that sinners will not come home on their own there must be a going there must be and I won’t read it right now but just take a look at Romans chapter 10 verse 14 the intentional search for the law serves as a great illustration of God’s pursuit percent just as a shepherd searches oh and his search was not easy and then just like the woman searched was diligent so – God pursuit of the simple man God cared and his diligent and he it’s demonstrated to us on the cross Jesus Christ Jesus is the shepherd who is not content with the 99 being safe but he is concerned for that one that’s lost Jesus pursues and will go after the one that is lost until he finds it we see that at verse four Jesus is the one who will sweep the house and seek diligently until he finds it we see that in verse 8 and it is God who shows his love for us that while we were still sinners Christ died for us that’s Romans 5:8 if you didn’t know because God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life John 3:16 and I said it before Peter wrote about this great and costly search for the lost when he wrote you were ransom not with perishable things such as silver of gold but with the precious blood of Christ like that of the lamb without spot or blemish you can see that in 1st Peter chapter 1 verses 18 and 19 now we’re gonna move on to the third section in the third section it is kind of the best part of it all this but we actually get to see the joy of it the joy for the lost thing being found in both garbles we read that when the loss is found there’s great rejoicing jesus said that when the man tongue man found his lost sheep he lays it on his shoulders rejoicing and not only that when he comes home he calls his friends together in his neighbors and says hey let’s rejoice I have found my lost sheep and the same thing goes with with with the woman who found her last point she calls her friends together and her neighbor saying rejoice with me for I found that point that I have lost both the shepherd and the woman rejoicing and finding that was say a loss and and as it wish others to share in that joy they turned to their friends and say rejoice with me the love that compels them to care for what they have compels them to seek what is lost it compels them to for Joyce when they are found now I rejoice when I found my dog and I did hey actually I didn’t have a party okay but I actually did call up some friends and say hey oh my god I thought my dog I was somewhere and I did rejoice in that way so I think this is a translatable concept for us if there’s something of value then I’m sure everyone out there has lost something of value and got it back at some point and got to experience that joy and that joy is the joy that that Christ has in heaven each time single sinner is sick the joy that is communicated in the parables illustrates a great joy of God it’s a great joy that God has when a lost sinner is found we read that there is no more there will be more joy in heaven over the one sinner who repents than over the 99 righteous persons who need no repentance and there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents all of heaven rejoices when a person commits their life to Jesus Christ and enters the kingdom of heaven the mission is what Jesus is what Jesus is committed to and this misses mission is what Jesus has called us to his children – and these two parables are practical stories that communicate a great spiritual trip while these two parables are different they both vividly illustrate the truth of John 3:16 that I mentioned before everyone who reads this passage has a decision to make for those who are non-christian confession of sin and faith in the Savior needs to take root in their heart and transform them into disciples of Christ for those who are Christians there needs to be a daily awareness of the gospel in our lives this daily remembrance of our need for a savior is what keeps us dependent and humble before our saving it also reminds us that we must commit that we must be committed to his mission to seek the loss we must also remember that if we are truly disciples of Jesus Christ we will rejoice and what he rejoices it the Pharisees and scribes grumble they’re saying this man was seen since with them tried blinded their hearts they look down on the city when Jesus said there is more joy over the one sinner who repents than over the 99 that need no repentance he was rebuking the prideful religious leaders for thinking that they didn’t need repentance Christian’s like Paul knew that Christ had come into the world to save sinners of whom I am the foremost you see that’s a book from first Timothy chapter 1 verse 15 I’m Andy here is that do we look down on sinner or do we seek out the sinner has lost to be found now I’m gonna challenge you guys this week we all know people that are lost and that need Christ’s love in their life so my challenge to you this week is to go out and to show that love price low not only in your own life but until the lives of those around you that might be a neighbor to be a long-lost friend or family that you can somehow communicate was over the phone whatever that looks like in your life I challenge you to just dive in knowing that God is leading it I like to just pray Lord God just pray for each person out there listening to this message that you would just be with each person that you would strengthen them that you would give them the courage and boldness to step out into a new place and to speak for you Lord speak through them lord I just pray for just safety as we continue on in this crazy world I pray that you would just protect us as we move for lord I just thank you for all the things that you do in our lives you bless us you constantly take care of us and you move us in your life so I pray that our lives would be glorifying to you I thank you and your name
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