The Parable of the Lost Sheep

15 Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. ² And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

³ So he told them this parable: ⁴ “Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? ⁵ When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. ⁶ And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ ⁷ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

The Parable of the Lost Coin

⁸ “Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? ⁹ When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ ¹⁰ Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

Through the wonders of social media and its ability to make miles seem insignificant, I have had the pleasure of keeping up with friends from high school I haven’t seen in almost 30 years.  Through FaceBook, I have been able to see pictures of family events, pray for friends in trouble, celebrate new life and laugh at Throwback Thursday posts.  I have been able to keep in touch in a way that didn’t even seem possible when we graduated, even with my friends of friends or folks who have the same shared memories of homeroom or after school activities.  I also share myself with them, and we have learned more about each other as we have grown into our closer to middle age years than we did in the three years of high school for sure.

One of those folks is a gal whose mom was one of my favorite teachers in high school, my 10th grade English teacher.  She was a year behind me in school, so we didn’t run in the same circles (why is that such a big divider in high school and non-existent as a barrier in adulthood???), but I have enjoyed seeing her kids as adults and hearing about her life, especially her life of faith.  She married her high school sweetheart, but as those things sometimes do, it didn’t work out for the long run.  She remarried a man and through the wonders of electronic media, anyone could see how close they were and she spoke of him with respect and love, sounding grateful to have found her life partner.

A few months ago, tragedy struck this family and her dear husband of not enough years long passed away unexpectedly.  As these things happen, I found out from our mutual friends who were posting condolence messages which prompted me to investigate this mystery loss from across the country.  I learned he died and was very sad for her, a tragedy and loss that is inexplicable to those of us standing by on the sidelines.  But in true form, she began posting status updates that read like chapters in a “Surviving Grief through Faith” book, baring open her soul about her love for her husband and the devastating loss. She told of her husband’s life of finding and living in Christ, alluding to pretty rocky places before giving his life to God.  It is touching to read her posts – they are raw, painful to read and yet always filled with the faith that has kept her afloat during this incredibly difficult time.

When I read today’s Gospel reading from Luke about the lost sheep and the lost coin, I immediately thought of her stories about her husband’s journey to faith.  A constant thread in her posts has been about how grateful she is that she is able to be confident in her husband’s presence fully with Christ now.  She has actually been able to write about that as a celebration, which has been remarkable when you consider how incredibly sad she must be every day without her best friend.  But he has been united with God, was lost and then found, and she finds strength in that because his destiny has been fulfilled. She has shared this story with her friends and neighbors (virtual and in the vicinity) to give all the Glory to God.  God wants nothing more from us than to walk with him in our lives as a constant companion.  These parables make the same point in two different ways.  The first is to celebrate the repentance of a sinner – in the presence of some previously identified sinners in the Pharisees.  The second is to celebrate the loss of something less important than a human, but something that we ourselves can find.  I see these two parables as showing us that God mourns for each lost soul and we should do the same, as if each person is as precious as our belongings and “stuff.”  God charges us to go do everything we can, sweep all the hidden corners, shine light into their darkness and keep searching until we find the ones who need to be found.  God values us more than any amount of money, but the second parable hits home because we don’t always have the same value of human life as our Lord does, and Jesus’ story brings it to our simple level of human trappings.

My high school friend is celebrating the joyful reunion of her husband with Christ.  Can we all do the same under her circumstances? Can we celebrate when we ourselves repent and return to him, knowing that we are bringing joy to our Lord by fulfilling our end of the covenant?  How hard are we looking for ways to bring others to Christ?

Forgiving Lord, thank you for celebrating our return to you when we are found and repent.  Help us as your followers to bring more people to Christ and to not stop looking until all are found.  Help us tell out the Good News in your world.  AMEN.