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William H. Banegas
Scripture: Luke 15
Theme: Rejoice With the Lord, for He is Finding the Lost
Introduction:
Today, I want for us to consider from Luke 15 how we must Rejoice with the Lord for He is finding the Lost.
Transition: Before jumping right into the text of our passage today, I believe that it is best for us to get a bit of context that will serve as the catalyst for several of Jesus’ parables.
Context
Our passage begins with referencing how the tax collectors and sinners were listening to Jesus.
A critical piece for us to understand concerns what it was that they were listening to.
Luke 14 concludes with referencing the cost of discipleship.
Jesus demonstrates the cost of discipleship by emphasizing the priority of a relationship with Christ over all other relationships (Luke 14:25-26).
In other words, Jesus is Master.
Another way of understanding Jesus’ use of the term ‘hate’ concerns that of preference.
In Genesis 29, the same term is used to describe Jacob’s preference for Rachel over Leah.
Similarly, Jacob’s preference for Joseph is explained in the same terms in Genesis 37.
Thus, while I do not believe that we are to neglect any of these relationships, Jesus is to take priority of these relationships in being our Master.
Notice, also the use of a list consisting of 7 items.
Father, mother, wife, child, brother, sister, and self.
Jesus is underscoring how completely He must supersede even the closest of human relationships.
Jesus identifies the cost of discipleship is one’s own life (Luke 14:27).
The inescapable correlation of the cross with execution and losing one’s life was inevitable.
Jesus illustrates the cost of discipleship through 2 parables
In the parable of the builder, Jesus emphasizes the role of planning.
In other words, one must consider what it costs to follow Jesus.
What relationships must take a backseat in order to follow Christ?
In the parable of the nations, Jesus underscores the role of sacrifice.
In other words, what must I give up to follow Christ.
What possessions am I holding onto that pose a threat to following Christ the way that He deserves?
Jesus’ last parable transitions into His final point on the cost of following Him: possessions.
The term rendered ‘give up’ is a term that is translated elsewhere as a goodbye or farewell.
In other words, this attitude is a willingness to part with one’s possessions.
When it comes down to it, the things we own are all His anyway.
Thus, He has the right to establish for us what we should do with them for His glory.
Jesus concludes His discussion on the cost of discipleship by a comparison.
Jesus may have been referencing a kind of salt that was farmed nearby.
Most salt from this time came from around the Dead Sea.
In the event that it was carelessly processed, it had a poor taste.
It had to be discarded since it was not good for anything, but, instead, a liability.
In other words, just like useless salt, a follower of Jesus who prioritizes other relationships, personal desires, and things before Jesus is not good for anything or is not really following Christ.
Another way of looking at this concerns the fact that Jesus deserves this kind of priority!
Transition: In considering the cost of discipleship, I want to go ahead and summarize what we have considered so far.
Summary:
Jesus is our Master and deserves relationship preference over all others.
Jesus is worthy of any personal sacrifice that we can make of our wants and desires.
Jesus is the Master over our possessions, therefore, we relinquish them as necessary to follow Him.
Our Response:
He is worthy!
If He calls us to follow Him as Master, give up our lives, and turn away from holding too tightly to this world’s possessions, then He must be far greater than that which He calls us away from!
In other words, He’s worth following, no matter what.
We need to humbly recognize our dependence on Him to do this transforming work in our heart.
We want to value other relationships.
We don’t want to sacrifice because it hurts.
We want to hold onto possessions.
If Jesus is going to be our Master, if we are going to sacrifice for Jesus, if we are going to let no possession hinder us from following Him, then we need His power to transform our hearts.
Jesus’ audience.
There’s a striking distinction that is being made.
The tax collectors and sinners are seriously taking to hear what Jesus has said about the cost of discipleship.
Jesus concludes with encouraging others to hear and understand (Luke 14:35)
Luke 15:1 opens with this group listening/hearing Jesus.
They’re doing what they and everyone else is supposed to do: listen and receive God’s Word.
However, what are the Pharisees and Scribes doing?
Grumbling
Wouldn’t you know it that this phrase is used in the Old Testament, in Exodus, Numbers and Deuteronomy to describe the nation of Israel in grumbling/murmuring against the Lord.
In other words, nothing has changed in their hearts.
They claim to know God’s Word in the Law but they are still grumbling against the Lord.
Notice, though, does Jesus outright correct their evaluation?
You see, Jesus was not associating with tax collectors and sinners to be like them.
Instead, He was associating with them to give them the Gospel and the opportunity to repent and follow Him.
Transition: Sinners considering the meaning of discipleship and what it costs to follow Christ and those who would grumble against God’s Word forms the backdrop for the three parables before us in our passage today.
Let’s continue by looking at …
The Parable of the Shepherd who Sought and Found (Luke 15:3-7)
For the parables that follow, it’s best to consider their name after the chief character in the content.
Each chief character is referenced first in each story.
Each chief character is referenced multiple times in each story.
Thus, our first parable should be entitled the parable of the Shepherd.
The next parable should be entitled the parable of the woman.
The final parable in our chapter should be entitled the parable of the father.
What we have presented here is how diligently the Lord finds the Lost.
There’s a word combination here that is very important to recognize.
It’s the combination of the words ‘until’ and finds.
This word pair was used in Genesis 44:12 to describe the search that Joseph undertook for his treasured cup that he placed in Benjamin’s belongings.
In other words, there is a great effort to search every in a detailed fashion.
Consider how the shepherd’s diligence remains undiminished when he finds the sheep.
Upon finding the lost sheep, he places it on his shoulders.
Such an action may have been prompted by the sheer exhaustion of the sheep in having wandered from the flock.
In other words, the sheep likely had no remaining strength to make the return on their own.
Transition: There's a great deal of overlap between the conclusions of these two parables, that I want for use to go ahead and consider the next parable and then reflect on the overlapping elements.
The Parable of the Woman who Searched and Found (Luke 15:8-10)
A drachma was a silver coin that was equal to a denarius or a day’s wage.
In other words, this woman had saved up about 10 days’ worth of wages.
The emphasis here concerns the value that is invested in the coin.
Notice how the passage builds in imagery.
She lights a lamp in order to see.
She undertakes a physical activity to uncover the lost coin.
The term used just makes us feel every movement of the instrument employed in the sweeping.
We can almost hear the instrument touch the ground and brush up against it in hope of uncovering the cherished coin.
‘Search carefully’ concerns great effort to search.
It carries with it every conceivable effort that one would voluntarily undertake to search for something.
No effort is spared to find the treasured item.
What we have presented here is the demonstration of how no obstacle can hinder the Lord from finding the Lost.
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