Luke 15:1-3 1“Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach. 2This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that He was associating with such sinful people - even eating with them! 3So Jesus told them this story:”
Be That Somebody Who Keeps Looking
a) Keep Looking For Lost Possessions
Luke 15:3-6 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’”
Luke 12:15 “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”
Luke 15:7 “In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!”
Luke 15:8-9 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.’”
Luke 15:10 “In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.”
b) Keep Looking For Lost People
Luke 15:11-13 “To illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: ‘A man had two sons. The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die.’ So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. ‘A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living.’”
Luke 15:17-19 “When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! I will go home to my father and say, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, 19and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.’”
Luke 15:22-24 “His father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began.”
Acts 16:30-34 “Then he asked, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with everyone in your household.’ And they shared the word of the Lord with him and with all who lived in his household. Then he and everyone in his household were immediately baptized 34and he and his entire household rejoiced because they all believed in God.”
The big idea: You are that somebody!