20080831 - Parable of lost sheep and coin

Sunday 31 August 2008

Luke 15:1-10 (Matt 18:10-14)

Aim: We are challenged to reach out to sinners and to joyfully welcome any who respond.

Intro:

Context:

·        Vs 1: Situation – tax collectors and sinners around Jesus

·        Vs 2: Pharisees mutter

·        3 parables:

o       Owner/Father

o       Recognising item is lost

o       Careful search

o       Rejoicing

·        Old brother muttering

1st parable fits in easily with the whole chapter 15.

1st parable justifies Jesus behaviour – in some sense, Jesus is performing the act of God in the first two parables.

5:31-32 – Read: It’s not the healthy who need a doctor…

So, Jesus

Reaches out to those who are sick & in need of a doctor. i.e. The sinners and outcasts…(5:31-32)

·        Has anyone lost something of value? – How carefully did you search for it?

o       Vs 8 woman searched carefully & diligently

·        When have you been aware of God searching for you?

o       My story (Gal 5:16-end)

·        Who do we as the church, focus on?

o       Mission place is where you live, work, spend your waking hours

o       As a body, we also focus on the school.

·        But too often the church is more like a club: Parable of life-saving station

·        Do we want the Father’s heart for the lost?

·        Vs 10: God is no more content with what remains when some of his people are lost in their sin, than the woman is with her 9 coins.

·        The force of the parable comes from the challenge to each of us to recognise that were the loss our own, our behaviour would quite likely be the same.

·        Therefore, we need to have a heart for the lost and to reach out to them.

But what do we do when we find them?

Joyfully welcome:

The parables all echo the theme of joyful celebration:

·        Has anyone lost something of value? – How did you feel when you found it?

·        Yet, if a smelly tramp were to come into the church…

·        The moment Poppy heard Andy’s voice, she shot out of the hedge – Today, through Jesus, God is calling us.

o       Have you experienced the joy of being united with him?

Conclusion:

So,

·        Where do you find yourself in this story? Which character do you identify with? The sinner, the Pharisee or the owner?

·        Jesus had a preoccupation: He [had]:

o       An outward looking concern for the winning of sinners

o       Participation in the joy of those who are successfully involved in such outreach.

·        First parable challenges the church to reach out to, and joyful welcome of, the sinner who is outside.

·        The shared joy theme is to encourage in the church the example of Jesus.