Tag Archives: Lost

Daily – Sermon on Luke 15:1-10 for the Third Sunday after Trinity

Luke 15:1-10

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Luke 15 is a well-known chapter with three parables. Even though you only heard the first two today, you know the third one—the parable often called “The Prodigal Son.” It would probably be better if it were called “The Merciful Father” or something along those lines. The three parables belong together as one unit.

One of the common misconceptions we can have about these parables is that they only deal with conversion. But Jesus makes it clear—especially when He makes His concluding comments on these first two—that they deal with repentance, not just conversion. Of course, repentance is present in conversion, but it is also present in the daily life of a Christian. Before the confession of sins in our service, we regularly refer to 1 John 1:8-9, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” Not only is John writing that to Christians, he also includes himself in that statement. “If we say we have no sin…” The Apostle John recognizes that he has sin, and if he were to say otherwise would mean that the truth is not in him.

Today, I want to consider these two parables in that light because it helps us see that each and every day of our lives, we are that one lost sheep and one lost coin. We’re going to do that based on what we believe, teach, and confess from Luther’s Small Catechism from the section on Baptism. In your bulletin, you’ll find that I’ve printed the fourth question and answer. I’ll read the question, and I’d like all of us to read the answer that is drawn from Romans 6:4 and its context.

“What does such Baptizing with water signify? It signifies that the old Adam in us, together with all sins and evil lusts, should be drowned by daily sorrow and repentance and be put to death; and that the new man should daily come forth and rise to live before God in righteousness and holiness forever.”

The Christian life is marked by daily repentance. Christian, as long as you still have breath in your lungs, you have a need to repent. The old Adam in each of us needs to be drowned daily. These parables aren’t just about unbelievers; they are about us.

This is clear from v. 1 of the text, “The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear Him.” Notice why they are coming to Jesus. They aren’t just coming to be close to Jesus or have a meal with Him. They do get those things, but that isn’t the purpose of their coming to Jesus. They are coming to hear Him. What sort of things would they be hearing from Jesus?

Jesus wasn’t teaching only about love and acceptance. He was clearly showing and declaring God’s mercy. He taught that He was going to suffer, die, and rise for sinners (Lk. 9:22, 44-45; 12:50; 13:32-33; 17:25; 18:31-33). So, yes, He was teaching them the Gospel. But that wasn’t all He was teaching. Jesus was also clearly teaching the Law.

If you just look at the context of what Jesus had been teaching right before this chapter, you get a better idea of what these sinners and tax collectors were hearing from Jesus (Lk. 14:26-33). Christ was teaching, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father,” (happy Father’s Day) “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple” (Lk. 14:26). Jesus goes on to talk about counting the cost of following Him (Lk. 14:27-32). And He concludes by saying, “Any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be My disciple” (Lk. 14:33).

A lot of people today—especially in the month of June—will say, “Jesus loves you just the way you are.” There is some truth there, but it’s only a half truth, which is very dangerous. Sure, Scripture teaches that Jesus loves you just the way you are, but the full truth is that Jesus has no intention of leaving you just the way you are. That full truth is much, much better news. Jesus loves you even though you are a sinner. Sinners are enemies of God, and Jesus came to reconcile sinners to become friends and sons of God who are made holy and blameless (Ro. 5:10; Col. 1:21-22).

The Pharisees and scribes were grumbling (Lk. 15:2) because they wrongly thought that Jesus was simply welcoming sinners without calling them to turn from their sin. But that wasn’t the case, was it? No! Not when we see these parables in their context. Jesus knew exactly what kind of people were coming to hear Him. That’s why He proclaimed both the Law and the Gospel. He knew the gravity of their sins—the cheating, the waste, the lies, the pain they caused others and God.

Take that idea into these two parables—especially as they describe how the shepherd and the woman seek to find the lost sheep and the lost coin. The shepherd doesn’t wait for the sheep to feel lost or to bleat for help. It’s possible that the sheep didn’t even know it was lost. The woman doesn’t wait for the coin to ask for help from the dusty crack in the floor. The coin definitely didn’t know it was lost. Both the shepherd and the woman do whatever is necessary to find what was missing. And they both do it with joy.

Again, this seeking and finding is not a one-time event for unbelievers. This is the daily rhythm of your life as a Christian. Jesus does whatever is necessary—again and again—to find you when you go missing in the wilderness and cracks of sin. He doesn’t wait for you to feel your lostness. He doesn’t sit back and wait for you to take the first step. He takes the initiative daily, and He does it with a divine heart full of mercy.

In Ezekiel, God asks, “Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?” (Ezk. 18:23). In Jeremiah, God speaks about His wayward child, “As often as I speak against him, I do remember him still. Therefore my heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him, declares the Lord” (Jer. 31:20).

Theologians will use a term to talk about how God calls sinners out for their sin through the Law. They call it God’s “alien” or “strange work” (Is. 28:21) because God describes Himself as merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness (Ex. 34:6-7). When God threatens, judges, and calls to repentance, He does that so He can do His “proper work” of forgiving, restoring, and delivering His mercy (1 Sam. 2:6), which is the work He delights to do. Even though His work through the Law is His “alien work,” He does it joyfully because His heart longs for you to be His own. He remembers you with mercy even though it means that He must speak against you and your sin through His Word.

That is what is happening every time you gather together here and every time you hear God’s Word. He is seeking you even while your old, sinful nature clings to you and needs daily drowning. He doesn’t wait for you to be sufficiently sorry or desperate. He comes to you in the preaching of His Word (Ro. 10:17). He seeks you out wherever you are—in whatever desolate wilderness or dusty corner your sins have led you. He picks you up, lays you on His shoulders, and rejoices to bring you home.

Dear saints, God does not expect you to become like the ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance (Lk. 15:7) or like the nine coins that never get lost. Those are the ones who falsely imagine they have moved beyond the need for daily repentance. Every day, you are the one. Every day, you are the lost sheep who is carried home. You are the coin He searches for diligently. And your Savior has great joy in daily seeking and restoring you.

Here, Jesus teaches that what brings joy to heaven is not your consistency or your record of good works—even though God delights in the fruit of faith. But what moves Christ and all of heaven to rejoicing is when you receive God’s forgiveness. When you believe the Absolution. When you receive Christ’s Body and Blood that forgive you and strengthen you.

Dear saints, your Savior does not merely tolerate your daily repentance, He seeks it. He gives it (Act. 11:18, 5:31; 2 Ti. 2:25). And He rejoices in it with exceeding joy. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Php. 4:7). Amen.

Dirty Work – Sermon on Ezekiel 34:11-16 for the Third Sunday of Easter

Ezekiel 34:11-16

11 “For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. 12 As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. 13 And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. 14 I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. 16 I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.

Alleluia! Christ is risen! 
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

One of the most common metaphors that the Bible uses for how we relate to God is the relationship between a shepherd and his sheep. It’s not the most common image, but it’s toward the top. It’s probably merciful that God didn’t make it the most common one because it isn’t overly complimentary. Sheep aren’t strong or fast or smart or impressive animals. Sheep are needy and, honestly, stupid. They get themselves into all kinds of dirty, sticky messes. The imagery isn’t meant to be flattering, but we don’t need to be flattered. God be praised that He doesn’t expect us to be anything more than His sheep.

When you’re the sheep, the image is very comforting. That’s why Psalm 23 is so popular. When you’re the Shepherd, it’s a lot of work – in fact a lot of dirty work. That’s why this text from Ezekiel 34 isn’t as well-known as Psalm 23. The context of this passage is that God is speaking against the shepherds (i.e. the rulers and religious leaders) whom He had called to shepherd His people. He is speaking against them because they hadn’t been faithful (Ezk. 34:1-10).

These shepherds failed to do what God called them to do. They had been feeding themselves instead of the sheep. They had fattened themselves by devouring the sheep. They had not strengthened the weak; they had not healed the sick; they had not bound up the injured, brought back the strayed, or sought the lost. Because of these failures, God’s sheep had been scattered over the face of the earth. God’s sheep had become food for the wild beasts, wandered all over the mountains, and were scattered with no one to search or seek them.

So right before our text starts, God says to those shepherds, “I am against you and will require My sheep from your hand.” God says that He’s going to put a stop to their neglect and lack of care for the sheep. He Himself will rescue them.

One of the classic children’s stories that I enjoy is “The Little Red Hen.” You remember how it goes. The little red hen finds some wheat seed and asks her friends, the dog, the cat, the duck, and the pig a series of questions. “Who will help me plant the seed, water the seed, harvest the wheat, grind the grain, bake the bread?” To each question, there’s the rhythmic reply, “’Not I,’ said the dog, ’Not I,’ said the cat, ’Not I,’ said the duck, ’Not I,’ said the pig.” So, the determined hen says, “Then I will do it myself.” Then, when the bread is finally out of the oven, the little red hen asks, “Who’s going to help me eat the bread?” And of course, the dog, the cat, the duck, and the pig are all eager and ready to eat, but she says, “No, you didn’t help me plant, water, harvest, grind, or bake. I will eat it myself.” And she did.

This passage has a similar tone to it. The shepherds had not done their job, and so God says, “Ok. I will do it Myself.” And He does. He did exactly what we needed as His sheep.

God says that He, Himself, seeks us, rescues us from all the places we’ve been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. He brings us out from the peoples, gathers us from the countries, brings us into our own land, and feeds us with good pasture. He makes us lie down, seeks us when we’re lost, brings us back when we’re strayed, binds us up when we are injured, strengthens us when we are weak. He does all the dirty work that sheep need from their shepherd. God’s frustration here is not directed at the sheep – it’s directed to the shepherds. God willingly does all of these things out of His love, care, and compassion for you, His sheep.

When Jesus calls Himself the Good Shepherd in our Gospel reading today (Jn. 10:11-16), He says that He is that Shepherd. His work of seeking us lost ones, bringing back us strayed ones, binding up our injuries, and strengthening our weaknesses – all of this happens as He lays down His life for us. That is how He is your Good Shepherd.

You are His sheep. He cares for you and does all the dirty work of being your Good Shepherd. Christ does all of this dirty work for the joy set before Him (Heb. 12:2) of having you as His sheep. Your Good Shepherd fully knows that you need to be fed, found, brought back, bound up, and strengthened. In other words, He knows you are His sheep who need His care.

But don’t miss the fact that, as your Good Shepherd, He knows what tasks and responsibilities you can handle. So, He calls you to be His under-shepherds. Just because you are an under-shepherd doesn’t mean you are no longer His sheep. You are always a sheep. But He, as the Good Shepherd, entrusts the care of His sheep to you. Can you imagine a parent saying about their kid, “That’s God’s child, not mine”? Of course not! A parent recognizes, “That’s my child that God has given and entrusted to me.”

Dear saints, every relationship you have is a calling from God to care for His beloved sheep. Be faithful in those callings whether you are a parent, a worker, a student, a friend, a sibling, whatever. You are an under-shepherd.

In our Gospel reading, Jesus calls us hired hands (Jn. 10:12-13). Jesus doesn’t say that all the hired hands are cowards who run away at the sight of the wolf simply because they are hired hands. He says that the ones who flee do so because they don’t care about the sheep. Christ has given you callings and wants you to have the same care for His sheep that He has entrusted to you. Again, the context of this passage from Ezekiel is clear that God intends that His under-shepherds be faithful in doing the dirty work of caring for His sheep. So, be a good under-shepherd.

Dear saints, you have been called to follow Christ’s example (1 Pet. 2:21). Imitate and follow Him. Your Good Shepherd has joined you to His cause of bringing back the strayed to the Shepherd and Overseer of souls (1 Pet. 2:25). Jesus is the Shepherd who clears the path before you, His sheep. Christ is also the janitor who cleans up after you when you fail as His under-shepherd.

Dear saints, you are called to do the dirty work of being shepherds, caring for God’s flock, and ministering to all the different needs of God’s sheep. You are to bind up the injured, bring back the strayed, and strengthen the weak.

I want to close with these verses from 1 Pet. 5:2-4 where the Holy Spirit says to all of us, “Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.” And listen to the conclusion, “And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.” 

God be praised that Christ Himself is our Good Shepherd who both leads us and follows after us as He cares for all His sheep. Amen.

Alleluia! Christ is risen! 
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.