God loves sinners. This is what we will be talking about today and for the next several lessons. God loves sinners. The Bible says, “God demonstrated His own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” He didn’t wait for us to get better before He committed His Son Jesus to die on the cross to pay for our sins. He sent His only Son while we were still sinners.
The text we are about to look at graphically illustrates this truth. God not only loves sinners; He pursues the sinner. Even one lost soul has immeasurable value to God.
Luke 15:1 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him.
The grouping of the words “tax collectors” and “sinners” is significant. Tax collectors were hated men in those days. Not just because they demanded taxes from the people—that would be enough to dislike them. But because they were Jews hired by the Roman government to collect taxes from their own people.
They not only collected taxes due to Rome, they added a surcharge that they kept for themselves and this surcharge was not regulated by Rome—thus they were getting rich off their own countrymen.
The “sinners” noted in verse one were not only those, who like us, are sinners by nature, but they were sinners by practice. They were guilty of the more common weaknesses of the flesh, and were notorious sinners, covetous, prostitutes, extortionists, oppressors of the poor, and generally very wicked people who had bad reputations. These were not the kind of people that one would expect Jesus to receive.
Luke 15:1 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him.
What did the sinners and tax collectors come to hear? They came to hear Jesus preach and to teach. Perhaps some came out of curiosity and others came to hear because they heard Jesus in the past and came to hear more. Maybe some of the crowd arrived because they wanted to be able to tell others that they “heard the Man from Galilee preach”…they wanted to be where the action was.
This scene in Luke begs for the question we need to ask ourselves, “Why did we come to hear the words of Jesus?” “Why did we come to hear the Word of God preached and taught?”
More than likely, some of those who came to Christ were aware of their sinfulness and need for salvation.
In Luke chapter five we are introduced to Matthew, who left everything, including his tax-collecting business, to follow Christ (Luke 5:27-32). There was also another tax collector, in Luke 18:13, who was unwilling to lift his eyes to heaven, crying out, "God, be merciful to me, the sinner!"
I remember in the mid-80’s attending a church where a homosexual repented of his sin and turned to Jesus for salvation. He started attending this church and many in the congregation had trouble accepting him as a brother in Christ. In verse 2 of our text we find a similar thing happening:
Luke 15:2 And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, "This Man receives sinners and eats with them."
The Pharisees and Scribes had their own opinion about who God loves and doesn’t love. This is how the Pharisees were reasoning: “Why is Jesus spending time with sinners when He should be spending time with spiritually cultured people like ourselves.”
They also had a way of thinking among themselves that says. “God has no interest in the rift raft of society, the downtrodden, the sinner; God only cares people like ourselves who go to church and are dressed in religious attire, who sing His praises and pay their tithe.”
I wonder how many Christians have formed a similar theology when it comes to who God chooses to set His love upon? Do we at GraceWay gravitate toward those in the church who appear to have it all together while ignoring the oddball, strange and weird?
Have you formed your own theology when it comes to who God chooses to love?
In our Bible lesson, Jesus offers three parables in rapid-fire-order to refute the viewpoint of the Pharisees and the Scribes and to show the extent of God’s love for people.
Luke 15:3 So He spoke this parable to them, saying:
Luke 15:4 "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?
Verse four starts out with, “What man of you…” having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?
This question has an expected answer. The expected answer is “anyone who knows anything about shepherding would go out after the one lost sheep and keep looking for it until he found it.” That is just how much a shepherd cared for each of his sheep.
In each of the three parables, the intent of the Holy Spirit seems to be to get us to see how much God loves the sinner and the extent He is willing to go after the sinner to save him.
In the first parable, the shepherd leaves the ninety nine and goes after the one lost sheep.
Now don’t think that the shepherd leaves the 99 all alone. Shepherding was never done by one person. They were always in groups of two or three. So the one shepherd would head out into the wilderness to find the lost sheep while his helpers would drive the 99 back to the safety of home, where eventually the seeking shepherd meets them.
It would be a dangerous mission to head out into the rocky countryside alone, at night. Thieves could be present, as could wild animals.
The shepherd would be vulnerable. Yet he goes. He simply can't go back and say - "It's only one. We still have 99 more."
We now see this kind of thing more often than we want on the evening news. Years ago the world heard about the parents of Natalie Holloway traveling across the world to a small island called Aruba to search for their daughter who had been missing. If you were a parent in this situation, you just don’t say, “Oh well, I have two other kids…”
In our parable, each sheep counts. Each is precious to the shepherd. The loss of even one is a terrible tragedy to the herd, the shepherd and to the community. Yes, community, because a flock of 100 sheep never belonged simply to one person. They were grouped together – they were the sheep of the entire village.
The shepherd heads out immediately. He searches and when he finds he gets overjoyed about two things:
The first is when he finds the sheep - Luke 15:5 "And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
The amazing thing about these words of Jesus is that when found, a lost sheep will lie down helplessly and refuse to budge. The shepherd is forced to carry that animal over a long distance. And yet - knowing that much hard work is ahead of him - he rejoices!
The second is when the sheep is brought home - Luke 15:6 "And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'
Here we find a celebration by the entire community (friends and neighbors) because the shepherd has returned home safely and the lost sheep is found.
When the shepherd went out to search for the lost sheep, he would be exposed to the hazards of the wilderness. Sheep were a common possession of not just one, but many in the community. Losses were felt by all, joys were shared by all—so there would be joy in the community.
As members of GraceWay we need to begin to act on the truth that God has set us in this community, even the Baltimore metro area to seek the lost. We are talking about the “one sheep(s) of our family, neighborhood, workplaces…
…if God chooses to save one person during the Sunday service, we all should rejoice.
…if God chooses to save one person during our week of VBS, we all should rejoice.
…if God chooses to save one lost person during our Spirit Fair, we all should rejoice.
…if God chooses to save one lost person during a LIFE Group, we all should rejoice.
And, like this shepherd, we need to be willing to go out in our wilderness to claim God’s lost sheep.
In this parable, when the shepherd finds the sheep, he rejoices, but he doesn’t stop there. What he does is throw a party! He calls together his friends and neighbors and invites them to rejoice along with him because his lost sheep was found!
Luke 15:7 "I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.
“who need no repentance.” A reference to the Pharisees, who thought they needed no repentance. In Mark 2:17 Jesus says, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."
The Parable of the Lost Coin
Luke 15:8 "Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?
A pastor was giving a lesson on giving to his farmer friend.
He asked the farmer, "If you had one hundred horses, would you give me fifty?"
The farmer said, "Certainly."
The pastor asked, "If you had one hundred cows, would you give me fifty?"
The farmer said, "Yes."
Then the pastor asked, "If you had two pigs, would you give me one?"
The farmer said, "Now cut that out, pastor; you know I have two pigs!"
In the Parable of the Lost Sheep the potential loss was 1 out of 100 but in the Parable of the Lost Coin it is now 1 out of 10. The loss is much greater.
The woman in our parable has ten silver coins and loses one. We need to understand that this was more than just a coin; it was kind of like a wedding dowry.
In that day there were 10 coins a married woman would wear around her headdress or around her neck. So this wasn’t just any coin—losing it would be like losing the diamond in your wedding ring.
The silver coin Jesus referred to was the drachma, mentioned only here. It was worth what an average laborer would make in about a day.
Since floors were made of dirt in those days, the coin could have easily found its way under some surface dirt. The woman swept the dirt until she found the coin.
Luke 15:9 "And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!'
As with the shepherd who found the lost sheep, this woman valued what she lost as well. When she found it, she invited her friends and neighbors over to celebrate with her.
Luke 15:10 "Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
Jesus' choice of words in verse ten lets us know that not only were the angels rejoicing over one sinner who repents—God was rejoicing!
You may not see this in your translation but the more literal ASV translation says, "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God" indicates the angels were in the presence of someone else doing the rejoicing. That someone else was God rejoicing in their presence.
We’ve looked at the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, let’s look at one more parable that communicates the love of God for lost sinners.
The Parable of the Lost Son
Luke 15:11 Then He said: "A certain man had two sons.
Luke 15:12 "And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.' So he divided to them his livelihood.
What you may not know is that this is a parable of two lost sons. Notice at the end of verse twelve that the father divided the wealth between "them"-- apparently both were present at the time of the request, with the younger serving as the spokesman.
According to the customs of the Middle East, demanding an early inheritance was a show of great disrespect to one's father. But the father was gracious and gave them their inheritance.
Luke 15:13 "And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.
Luke 15:14 "But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want.
Luke 15:15 "Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.
Luke 15:16 "And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.
He ended up feeding pigs—“unclean animals” according to Jewish ceremonial law. He became so hungry he wanted to eat pig feed, but apparently he could not do it. The Bible says that no one gave him anything to eat, so apparently, he was starving.
How many of us have ever been in this man’s shoes? Not many of us. Though you may not have experienced the poverty this man went through, you may have experienced the poverty of your soul and spirit. Even now some of you may be starving spiritually.
You have been out of the will of God and you know it. You are in a far country and no one gives you anything. You are famished spiritually—you have no joy and no peace. The circumstances of life are beginning to overwhelm you and you are thinking about going back home to get right with God.
You are tired of eating from the garbage cans of the world. The world has swindled you of your inheritance; some of it you spent up willfully. The flesh and the devil have picked your pockets until they are now empty—all that you started out with you have run out of.
You think back to the time when things were going better for you. It was better when you were in the Father’s house. It was better when you were regularly in the Father’s presence.
Maybe for you this was when you were a child. You remember attending church and Sunday school and you felt the peace of God.
Perhaps for others this was only months or a few years ago but all the spiritual habits you practiced back then—prayer, Bible study, fellowship, witnessing—you have laid aside and now you are reaping what you have sown—you are spiritually broke.
Maybe you’ve never given your life over to Jesus Christ and followed Him but you know someone who did and you want to experience the forgiveness of the Father they have.
This was the case with the younger son. He had spent all and lost all. He went from a prince to a pauper in a short amount of time.
His predicament gave him some time to think up until the Bible tells us in verse 17 that, “he came to himself.”
Luke 15:17 "But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
Luke 15:18 'I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you,
Luke 15:19 "and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants."'
The younger son realized if he did not change his situation, he would die (perish with hunger). The Bible says in Romans 6:23 that “the wages of sin is death.” The younger son realized if he did not change his circumstances he would die.
Do you know that God is the God of circumstances? Nothing happens in our lives without His permission. In fact, God sometimes allows pain into our lives as a form of discipline in order to get our attention and bring us back to Himself. Listen to Hebrews chapter 12:
Heb 12:9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!
Heb 12:10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.
Heb 12:11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
The prodigal son went through the following phases that are common to those who are on their way to salvation and forgiveness:
* Bankruptcy - Luke 15:14 - After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need.
* Applying a fleshly solution to a spiritual problem - Luke 15:15 - So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs.
* Learning that the fleshly solution doesn’t work - Luke 15:16 - He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
* Repentance - A change of mind - Luke 15:17 - When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!
* Repentance - A change of direction - Luke 15:18 - I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
Out of his suffering circumstances came the beginnings of repentance for the younger son. He began to accept responsibility for his condition: I will ... go.... I will say to him.
This is where many fail. There is why in many of our lives there is no change. This is why many people who call themselves “children of God” are still in the pigpen—there is no “change of mind” and as a result, no “change of direction.”
Some are sorry for their circumstances and sorry they were caught in the pigpen but few are sorry for offending the Father.
Luke 15:20 "And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.
Luke 15:21 "And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.'
He first admitted that he had sinned against "heaven" (God). Secondly, he admitted he had sinned against his human father. God’s law requires men and women to honor their parents and live righteously.
Let me stop here and say that if we continue to read this parable focusing on the younger son’s actions we miss the point. This parable is not about the younger son as much as it is about the father’s love.
Luke 15:20 "And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.
Yes we can identify with the son—“all we like sheep have gone astray.”
Yes many of us can identify with the son’s introspection and remorse and repentance—we all have “been there and done that.” But…
* The son would have still been in poverty if the father would not have had compassion on him.
* The son would probably have died of famine—if the father would not have forgiven him.
* The son’s life would have been short-lived if the father would have not received him back as a son.
I’ve heard some preachers say that verse 20 gives some indication that the father had very likely been looking everyday for his son’s return.
He could have been working in the front yard and occasionally looking out over the plain.
He could have been in the house and occasionally looking through the window.
The father would arise from his bed in the morning thinking, “maybe today.”
Luke 15:20 "And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.
Notice that the father didn’t wait for the son to reach the house. He ran to his son and hugged him and kissed him!
Notice in verse 22-24 the father’s display of love and forgiveness to the repentant son:
Luke 15:22 "But the father said to his servants, 'Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.
Luke 15:23 'And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry;
Luke 15:24 'for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' And they began to be merry.
* robe – mark of honor
* ring – pledge of love & sign of authority
* sandals – a sign of sonship
* fatted calf – a sign that it’s party time
The rest of this parable we meet again the older son who is filled with jealousy.
Luke 15:25 "Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing.
Luke 15:26 "So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant.
Luke 15:27 "And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.'
Luke 15:28 "But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him.
Luke 15:29 "So he answered and said to his father, 'Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends.
Luke 15:30 'But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.'
Luke 15:31 "And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.
Are there any among us who act like the older son when someone comes to faith in Christ? Are there some among us who act like this when new members join the church.
“They haven’t been here but a week and already they are being allowed to do such and such!”
Perhaps when someone leaves the church and then returns; how do we treat them?
Sometimes I’m tempted to think to myself, “Oh no, here they come again.” But if they come repentant like the prodigal son, I must receive them like the prodigal’s father did.
The prodigal’s father is given to us so that we might know the heart attitude of our heavenly Father when a sinner repents.
The prodigal’s father says in Luke 15:32, “It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.”
We need to have the same attitude as the Father!
In each of these parables we see something of the Father’s love for those who are dead in their trespasses and sins. We learn something of the Father’s love for those who are lost.
The Bible tells us that the younger son came to his senses and arose and came to his father. Luke 15:20 says, “But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.”
If there is someone in your life that you have witnessed to and are praying for each day with the expectation that one day, you will look up and see them in church or pick up the phone one day and hear their voice saying, “I want to be saved.”?
Is there someone at work that you hope and pray that one day they will come into your cubicle or tap you on the shoulder and say, “I’ve given my life to Jesus.”?
Is there someone in your neighborhood you are hoping and praying will one day knock on your door and say, “Tell me more about this Jesus you are always talking about.”?
* Are you going after those “lost sheep” with the intensity and passion that only a shepherd’s heart could have?
* Are you looking for lost sinners with the tenacity one would have when looking for a lost payroll check?
* Are you praying for those who do not know Jesus with the regularity and fervency of a mother or father of a lost child?
C.S. Lewis has this really neat illustration. He says that in the incarnation, (God becoming man) Jesus was like a diver. He is God in heaven looking down into this dark, slimy, murky water. That’s our sinful, polluted world. God dives in, he gets himself wet. And then God came up again, dripping, but holding the precious thing he went down to recover.
That precious thing was a lost sinner—it was you and me. He dove in to save sinners like us. That’s how we get out of the slime of tax collecting, or cheating, or lusting, or hating, or whatever other self-destructive sin we are buried in.
God in Christ descended down into the slime and rescued us. Resolutions and vows to be better won’t help; we don’t have the power to keep them. We are stuck on the sea bottom. We have no power of our own to get up or out. All we can do is cry out for God’s grace to lift us up, to rescue us.
Jesus saves us because he is seeking the lost.
