Luke 15:1-32
Buckle up! These blog takes the entire chapter. However, this is something that the Holy Spirit brought across my radar and I feel that it is important.
Today, we are going to look at losing things. Yep. Losing things.
I strongly detest losing things. In fact, at my house, it isn’t really lost until Mom can’t find it. That is true for my husband as well. I like to know where every thing is at any given moment. When we moved, the moving company thought I was weird by wanting to know where my household goods were going to be stored. I’m a bit neurotic in that way.
When I was going through one of my Bible studies, the author looked at this chapter in Luke 15 and discussed the 3 different ways things were lost here and how they were found and what it meant to each person involved.
Losing a sheep (vs. 1-7)
So this shepherd had 100 sheep and lost one. He left the 99 to go and find the one sheep that had munched his way away from the fold. Yep, that poor little sheep got so caught up with the yummy grass that he kept munching and chewing and following that green, green grass until he was all alone. The shepherd left everything and everyone to find this sweet little lamb. And when it was found, party time! Invite everyone you know! Time to celebrate! You see, the loss here was because the sheep turned aside to distractions. It let the yumminess of the tender grass carry him away from what was best for him. How many times are we like that today? We let things in the world carry us away from the One person who truly has our best in mind. But, here is the great part – He (Jesus) comes looking for us. He knows we have a tendency to get lost in our own selfish desires. He knows that all it takes is one tender and green clump of grass to lead us away from the safety of the group. And when we let Him find us, all of Heaven rejoices because we have come back home – home to His loving arms.
Losing a coin (vs. 8-10)
And then there is the lady that loses a coin. Now, how many pennies or coins have you lost or your couch eats? How many of you rejoice when you finish a tube of lip balm just because that means you didn’t lose it? You know who you are! Well, this lady had carelessly lost something important to her. However, she didn’t stop until she found it. Then, she called everyone she knew to let them know that what was lost has been found. Once again, rejoice! Who reading this has not called your closest friend to let them know when you found something that was bugging the snot out of you because you could not find it? Yes, I said snot. You know it happens! We all sometimes get careless. We all can be careless when it comes to our time with the Lord. We keep putting it off and putting it off until it feels like a distant memory that we may sometimes remember. Oh friend, this ought not be. We need to find that closeness that we all know that we need and want deep, deep down inside and rejoice with other believers when we make the choice to find it!
Losing a son (vs. 11-32)
We all know the story of the prodigal son. We know how he wanted something that he thought he deserved and when he got it, he squandered it away. When things got tough, he decided to go home and beg for his father’s forgiveness. He didn’t even make it to the door when his father ran to him and embraced him as his son. The father knew that one day his son would return. He watched for him every day. He anticipated his actions. He wanted to forgive his son. He just needed the opportunity. And then when the day finally arrived, he forgave and through a party. (Are you seeing a theme yet?) However, not everyone was ready and willing to celebrate. The older brother was more than a little upset. My, oh my – there are so many applications here! Let’s look at the younger son, the one who left. He was the one that lost and was lost. He was the one that intentionally walked away. He was the one who let his foolish pride get in the way, and he was the one that made the decision to walk down that road. He was the one that lost every thing he had been given. He was the one that had to end up, literally, in the mud before he realized how deep he really was. Yet, he was also the one that was humbled and recognized HIS mistake. He was the one that had to repent. His father was the gracious and merciful one. Do I need to parallel this to a life you may know or live in? Sometimes, we are the ones that have to wake up in the mud of life and repent and run back to the Savior. Being lost in the world is terrible especially when there is Someone waiting for you to come home.
You know, you can lose your relationship with Jesus in any of these 3 ways. You can turn aside to distractions that lead you away from Him. You can be careless with your relationship and misplace it for a terrible time. Or, you can intentionally walk away from Him. But what I do want you to know and understand, He keeps looking for you no matter what. No matter what caused you to walk away or be lost or distracted, He keeps looking. And when you let Him find you, He rejoices! He is so elated that you are back! You! You, the one that thinks that you mean nothing. You, the one that believes that you are not good enough. You, the one that just can’t do this right now. You are the one that He is looking for.
Go home. Go back to Him. Don’t wait for the mud and muck to get you in up to your nose before you make a change. Even little things can drag you away quicker than you think. Keep it close. Keep it open. Keep it.
The Princess Project 