Lost? Jesus Notices You!

Sermon Series Intro

Have you ever felt LOST?

--Tell story about Alabama game--

In that situation it would have been extremely helpful to have Google Maps telling us where to go

Wouldn’t it be handy if we had a Google Maps App for our lives???

Something that could:

Tell us exactly which decisions to make and when to make them

Lets us take a sneak-peak into the future, so we don’t have to wonder what’s going to happen next

Helps us avoid roadblocks in life

Automatically tells us what to do when we have made a bad decision

In the next four weeks, we will be studying ONE chapter of the Bible that’s going to show us how to navigate our lives when we are LOST

LUKE 15

There are 3 parables in this chapter that are going to show us how Jesus deals with the lost

There are people that are physically lost, emotionally lost, and spiritually lost; but, even if you don't feel lost right now, you WILL have to deal with being lost at some point in your life!

Luke 15:1-7

What is a parable?

The first TWO verses in this parable set the tone for the rest of the chapter...

The FOUR Groups Jesus is Talking to...

(v1-2): The mindset that we have when we approach Jesus means so much

Pharisees- Religious extremists; people that devote their entire life to being right and pointing out the flaws in others; interested in self-glorification

Scribes- Like the Pharisees, their entire livelihood is spent trying to obtain perfection, and they know the scriptures VERY well (again, its their job); were often portraying themselves as better than others because of their knowledge/achievements

Tax collectors- Spend their entire life trying to trick and scam innocent people; looked down upon by all walks of life; generally known as unlikable people.

Sinners- People who are known by their community as evil/wicked people; usually people who are aware of their mistakes/shortcomings;

Pharisees and Scribes came COMPLAINING

BUT

Tax collectors and sinners came LISTENING

To Jesus the posture of their hearts in the PAST did not matter.

What Jesus cherished was the posture of the hearts in the present!

No matter what your past looks like Jesus STILL seeks to have a relationship with you

(v3-6a) JOYFULLY CARRIES YOU HOME

No matter how lost you think you are Jesus is willing and able to joyfully carry you home

(v6b-7) READ AND END

JESUS NOTICES YOU!