Sermon September 16, 2007
Pastor Wesley Howell

LOST

Sometimes Jesus told stories, parables, in order to give us better insight into the nature of God. At other times, Jesus not only told us parables, but he also became a parable, a revelation of the nature of God. In today's gospel, Jesus is both. He is both the parable and the one who tells parables.

The trouble begins when Jesus' critics charge, "This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them."

Their accusation is well documented. Over and over in the Gospel of Luke that is exactly what Jesus did. He welcomes sinners, and not only that; he eats with them, sharing their table. In response to their criticism, Jesus tells this wonderful parable of the shepherd who wouldn't rest until he found the one lost sheep. God is like that, Jesus says.

Of course, the irony is that Jesus' critics don't think they are lost. They are religious, righteous people who are resentful of the sort of company Jesus keeps. So they grumble, "This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them."

Think about the parable and your reaction. Did it crop up in your mind…”Hey, WAIT. This is rather foolish! Leave the 99 in the wilderness to go after the one. What about the 99?” We would think that wouldn’t we. (Sheep voice) “Hey wait! What about us! Don’t you care about us? Aren’t you there for me? What about MY needs. How dare you leave me to go off after a worthless sheep that gets himself lost. Lord…don’t you love me more?” I can just see Jesus, the Shepherd. “Will you guys just chill. Take care of yourselves for a while. YOU CAN DO IT. You ALL count, do you get it. ALL count. I’m off after the one.”

Maybe the worst sort of "lost" is to not know that you also need being found by God!

So the parable is a message for both kind of sinners, those sinners who presume that we have been found, that we are safe in the fold, best friends with God, and those sinners who are still lost, who have yet to hear the saving words of the gospel in such a way that they know that they have been found. They think they’re just fine and dandy, thank you, until the wolves of disease , family crisis, financial ruin, then suddenly they see just how lost they are.

Who are you? There's a message for both groups of sinners here. As Paul put it in today's epistle, "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners." Jesus came, taught, lived, died and rose, only for one group of people - sinners.

Which is all of us? When will we get this straight? Christianity is not about a set of better rules to follow, a higher standard of righteousness. It is not about striving hard to have the right attitudes, proper behavior.

It is about being found, about God seeking you out and embracing you, running all the way back home shouting to any who will hear, "Come rejoice with me, my sheep that was lost, has been found."

As a child, have you ever been lost? When I was in Kindergarten my family lived in Pullman. Dad was finishing school. One day, late summer, just after lunch I met up with some neighborhood kids. Hey, said one, found a cool fort. Off in a field about a half mile from our house. Let’s GO!

Did we tell anyone? Why?! We were fine. We were having a great time. Played and played…then it started to get dark, storm clouds on the horizon, so we bundled up our stuff and started back. We’d gone a few blocks and we could hear voices calling, “Sally! Johnny, Wes!” There were all our folks standing in the parking lot at the school. Screaming our names. “Hi…here we are!” I don’t think I’ve ever seen both my parents so freaked, relieved and furious all at the same time! “Do you have any idea!?” By now lightening from pitch black clouds was flashing. Dad? Can you throw my trike in the car? “NO, you’re going to ride it home. Gosh…I can still close my eyes and I’m there, riding my tricycle as fast as I could. Lightening zishhhh, thunder kaboom! I was screaming...total terror, heart pounding so fast. “I’m going to DIE and then you’ll be sorry!

Do you remember? Do you recall what it meant to be found, when at last you were discovered, and embraced?

Something like that has happened to each of us. God in Jesus Christ beat a path to our door. God went out looking for us and didn't stop until we were found. What is more, God sent each of us, having been found, to go out and to seek and to save the lost with Christ.

"This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them. Do you have ANY idea what good news that is?