Sunday 4/27/25

Relentless Grace: Grace That Pursues

Luke 15:1–7 NIV

Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

The setup —> to fully understand this parable we have to look at what comes before it.

Luke 15:1–2 ESV

Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

In that day and time there were 3 classes of Jews

—> the teachers/rulers/religious elite

—> the “good” jews

—> “The People of the Land”

—> This last group was unclean and anyone who would associate with these sinners would also make themselves, unclean.

—>Yet these are the vary people Jesus chose to hangout out with, to teach, to minister to, and to eat with.

—> The Pharasees and teachers of the Law would rather see these people cast out of eternity than welcomed into Heaven, yet Jesus wants to love them on earth so that they may repent and reach heaven.

—> These “lost” people as Luke calls them throughout his gospel is certainly who Jesus is talking to but he is also confronting the self-righteousness of the Pharissees more on that to come.

—> Now onto the sheep…

—> I think all of us to some degree have an understanding of pasturing livestock. We either have cows or have atleast seen cows in herds in these fenced in pastures. Munching on bales of hay or on nice green grass. Isn’t that a nice picture.

—> Well throw that image out. Because that is not what Jesus or the people he is talking to see in their minds when he is tells this parable.

—>The livestock is not cows but sheep. A little smaller and a lot dumber. There are no fences only open harsh country. There is grass but it would have been on a narrow plateau with desert and rocky cliffs on either side.

—> The herd of sheep also would not have belonged exclusively to the shepherd watching them. In fact in a herd of 100 as we see here the chances are it would have been a communal herd belonging to a village and there would have been 2 or 3 shepherds watching.

—> Now we have a better context for our parable.

—> Luke 15:4

Luke 15:4 NIV

“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?

—> Jesus acknowledges the obvious truth there are people who are lost.

—> There are people who are caught in lives of sin and have wandered far from God.

—> Jesus also acknowledges that we don’t leave the lost but instead we go after them.

—>How long do we go after them?

—> until he finds them

—> This is an example of the grace offered to us through Jesus Christ.

—>We aren’t expected to make it back to the herd on our own, we have a good shepherd, Jesus, that comes for us.

—>He isn’t waiting back saying well I hope that sheep finds me.

—> He goes out and is actively looking, seaching, seeking the lost.

—> And when he finds them, he doesn’t make them walk back on their own tired legs but instead he carries them to safety. He carries them home.

—> And there is much rejoicing.

—> Now friends there are 2 places and only 2 places we can find ourselves in this parable. We are either the sheep or the seeker.

—> If you find yourself this morning as one that has been found. You know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you are part of the group that is with the 99. Then we need to be looking for the 1.

—> Who is your 1 today? who are you trying to reunite with the flock to bring into the herd? Who in your life is lost? We can’t just lay back and say well maybe they’ll come to the flock someday. No we need to be actively engaged in the pursuit with Jesus.

—> We pray for them

—> We show the way to the flock. We demonstrate what it is to be with the shepherd.

—>We rejoice when they are found

—> maybe today you are the 1

—> can I tell you that you aren’t alone

—> every single person here today has been the 1 at some point in their life.

—>the one that Jesus has been looking for the one that Jesus wants to bring back to the flock.

—> You are wanted. You are loved. You are cared for.

—> We want you to come home.

—> We want to celebrate because you have been found!

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