The Parable of the Wandering Sheep - Matthew 18
The Parable of the Wandering Sheep
10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. [11]12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.
Reflection: Someone said, "Lost people matter to God and they should matter to us!" In the last story we saw God's concern for "little ones" and the stern warnings for those who cause them to stumble. And today we see that when one sheep wonders off, the owner of the sheep calls for an all our search to find the lost one. And to do this he has to leave the ninety nine who are not lost. Someone might say that is not very smart, risking 99 for the sake of one lost one? What gives?
What gives is the intrinsic and non-negotiable value of that one sheep. And we see that God's heart is moved after that one lost sheep. Again the term "little ones" is used so it is still in the context of the previous passage. Meaning the ninety nine are taken care of, but there is no one to care for this little one, which is why an all out search is warranted.
Translate this to the church. Often times we can spend all of our time, energy and effort on the 99 who are not lost. But what the one who has wandered off. Who is going to go out after that person? And of course your answer is the pastor right? I mean that's what we pay them to do, look after lost sheep and find them when they are missing. And in some sense that is true. As a pastor I am always reaching out to those who have left our church. Sometimes they go to other churches, sometimes we don't know where they go. But guess what? The job is too big for one person. We need more people with shepherd's hearts. People who care about sheep who have left the fold.
We need to work harder to get people in groups where they are cared for and nurtured so that when they are missing the leaders of the group can go on an all out search. Jesus saw fit to disciple 12 guys and even he lost one. Who are we to think we can shepherd 500 or more?
One thing we know is that all heaven rejoices when one who is lost is found. And we should rejoice in that too. And we should rejoice that God uses us to go after lost sheep, every one of us. Who do you know that has left the flock? Have you reached out to them? If God is not willing for any to wander off, let's not be willing to get comfortable with it either!
Jesus you are the great shepherd of the flock of your own redeeming. Give us a heart for lost people who matter to you and may they matter to us as much as well. Amen.
10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. [11]12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.
Reflection: Someone said, "Lost people matter to God and they should matter to us!" In the last story we saw God's concern for "little ones" and the stern warnings for those who cause them to stumble. And today we see that when one sheep wonders off, the owner of the sheep calls for an all our search to find the lost one. And to do this he has to leave the ninety nine who are not lost. Someone might say that is not very smart, risking 99 for the sake of one lost one? What gives?
What gives is the intrinsic and non-negotiable value of that one sheep. And we see that God's heart is moved after that one lost sheep. Again the term "little ones" is used so it is still in the context of the previous passage. Meaning the ninety nine are taken care of, but there is no one to care for this little one, which is why an all out search is warranted.
Translate this to the church. Often times we can spend all of our time, energy and effort on the 99 who are not lost. But what the one who has wandered off. Who is going to go out after that person? And of course your answer is the pastor right? I mean that's what we pay them to do, look after lost sheep and find them when they are missing. And in some sense that is true. As a pastor I am always reaching out to those who have left our church. Sometimes they go to other churches, sometimes we don't know where they go. But guess what? The job is too big for one person. We need more people with shepherd's hearts. People who care about sheep who have left the fold.
We need to work harder to get people in groups where they are cared for and nurtured so that when they are missing the leaders of the group can go on an all out search. Jesus saw fit to disciple 12 guys and even he lost one. Who are we to think we can shepherd 500 or more?
One thing we know is that all heaven rejoices when one who is lost is found. And we should rejoice in that too. And we should rejoice that God uses us to go after lost sheep, every one of us. Who do you know that has left the flock? Have you reached out to them? If God is not willing for any to wander off, let's not be willing to get comfortable with it either!
Jesus you are the great shepherd of the flock of your own redeeming. Give us a heart for lost people who matter to you and may they matter to us as much as well. Amen.
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