The Lost Sheep and The Lost Coin.
The Lost Sheep and The Lost Coin are well known parables that illustrate important spiritual truths. Once again, Stephen March explains.
The Image of the Good Shepherd
Among the images of Christianity is that of the Shepherd, the good shepherd, who carries his lost sheep home in his arms. That’s the parable that will be the subject of this episode, and it’s found in Luke’s Gospel, chapter 15.
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” So he told them this parable: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Luke 15
Pharisees and Sinners
And here we are once again, with a contrast between the Pharisees and the sinners. And, once again we see the Pharisees acting indignantly toward the sinners and tax collectors. Here they are grumbling because Jesus interacts, even eats with these people.
Taking a look at the big picture, we can understand that this is later in Jesus ministry, and by now there are large crowds gathering around him, even following him. They have been praising him, and calling him things like Rabbi, and teacher. They are treating him like a hero, and the Pharisees are getting jealous. These are honours that they should be receiving. After all, they have devoted themselves to learning the scriptures, they are the ones who interpret the law, oh, and they never associate with the unrighteous, or sinners.
Was Jesus a man of God?
We saw in the parable of the two debtors early in this series, that a Pharisee named Simon even pondered that if Jesus were truly a man of God he would have known the woman that came to him was a sinner, and would have no dealings with her. This was a challenge for the Pharisees. If Jesus was from God, as many were saying, surely he would want to be associated with them, honoring them even for their adherence to the law, their spiritual leadership over the people. But he wasn’t, in fact, most often when he dealt with the Scribes and the Pharisees it was to rebuke them for their thoughts and actions. They thought they were close to God, but the reality was they were far from Him.
The Lost Sheep and The Lost Coin Help
These parables, the lost sheep and the lost coin, are an attempt to help the Pharisees see that. Let’s take a look at the first one. The focus here is split between the man who owns the sheep, and the lost sheep. The ninety-nine only have a passing mention. The man, is a picture of Jesus, and the one lost sheep is actually representative of all mankind.
The Bible says in the book of Isaiah that “all we, like sheep, have gone astray. We have turned, everyone to our own way.” It’s a condition of man that is the result of sin, the aspects of our life and character that go against God’s nature. Those actions, words, even thoughts we have that don’t align with God’s perfection and holiness. God’s position where mankind is concerned, is that anyone who is lost needs to be found. That’s the essence of this parable.
So, if we are all supposed to see ourselves as the lost sheep, who then are the ones that didn’t go astray? They are a picture of those who feel they do not have sin that needs to be forgiven. Looking at the parable again, they are in the most dangerous situation. We may be inclined to say the lost sheep is, but let’s take a closer look.
The Ninety Nine in the Open
The man leaves the ninety-nine in the open country. They now have no protector, no guide. They are on their own. If a predator, or thief comes, they are completely defenseless. Now the lost sheep is also defenseless, the only difference is that it is the lost sheep that has the attention of the shepherd. The lost sheep is being pursued. And that’s how it is with us, God wants us to be saved, to be found by him.
The Bible says it is not his desire that anyone should perish, but that all should come to repentance. However, for that to happen, we need to recognize that we are lost, that our souls are in danger. If we deny that, and as a result deny him, he will allow us to fend for ourselves, to face our own judgment, which no human being can endure. This is not to say Jesus does not care about the flock, he does. But this parable is not about those who don’t recognize their need, it is about the ones that do.
Turn to Jesus
That’s why God wants us to turn to Jesus, he wants us to know we are lost so that we can be found by him. Jesus said in Luke 19:10 that
..the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.
Luke 19:10
It’s for that reason, in the parable, the man representing Jesus rejoices when he finds and returns with the lost sheep. It is a picture of heaven rejoicing over one sinner who repents, one person who accepts God’s gift, one person whose soul will never be destroyed, because they now have the everlasting life that comes through faith in Jesus Christ.
And, it makes perfect sense that all of heaven would rejoice. God loved the world so much that He sent Jesus to save us. He doesn’t want us to perish, but to know Him as our heavenly Father. You are so loved, so valuable to God, that He wants to have a relationship with you, where He provides everything you need. He is seeking you for this right now.
The Second Parable
The second parable here, is very similar, and conveys the same message to us. This time it is a woman who has lost a silver coin, the Greek word is drachma, and it was worth about a full day’s wage, so not an insignificant amount of money, probably about $100-$150 today.
Naturally, she searches high and low to find it, and when she does, she rejoices. She invites her friends and neighbours and they celebrate together because what was lost has been found. Again, Jesus closes the parable with the reminder that all of heaven, even the angels, rejoice whenever even one sinner repents, and believes in His Son.
Consider this today, the God of the universe, the maker of all things, will rejoice when you recognize your need for him, and believe in Jesus for the forgiveness of sin, and everlasting life. Not because it adds anything to Him, God does not gain credibility or popularity when someone believes. He can’t become greater because of the number of people who follow Jesus, he is already the greatest, in everyway there is nothing higher than Him. He rejoices because He loves you deeply, and He knows that when you are found by Christ, you are forever safe in His care.
Do you feel like a lost sheep? What is your response to Jesus’ parables? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Stephen March
Stephen March is the President of FBH International and HopeStreamRadio. He graduated from the Broadcasting Program at Niagara College in 2001, and has previously worked in television production and post-production.
Stephen lives in St. Catharines, Ontario, with his wife Corinne and their four children.
Read and hear more from Stephen March on his contributor’s page. Stephen currently has 5 Programs on HopeStreamRadio:
- Please Forgive Me
- Isolation Chronicles
- Faith By Hearing – The Twelve
- Bibles and Baseball
- Bible Tech Talk
More Podcasts Below:
More Blogs:
Palm Sunday, The Coming King, and the Last Week of Christ
Images courtesy of:
Sheep – Kaatjem
Coin – geralt
Lost Coin – Free Bible Images
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