Don’t Be A Lost Sheep (Bible Study) – What Is A Lost Sheep? Series

Download Sermon PDF for easy reading and printing:

https://myprayernotebook4life.wordpress.com/sermon-pdfs/

Password: SermonCentral

(If you are the pastor, start praying ahead of the series about assigning jobs in the church. Your congregation is called by God to work in the church. As they start to pray, they’ll start to volunteer. Take a step out in faith, and write a list of jobs.)

(The last study, I recommend doing communion. Ask a couple people to bring bread.)

We’re starting a new study on The Lost Sheep. The Holy Spirit has given us some a revelational interpretation of two parables; the ten virgins (what the oil is exactly, why they can’t share it, and why it can be purchased) and also the talent parable (why they had different amounts, and what the table of exchange means). I can’t wait to get right to those parables, but we’re going to take the scenic route so this can be a life impacting study for you, your family, and those that you love. For that reason, you need to bring a notebook to take notes. I will give you a handout at the end to help you, but it won’t replace weekly notetaking.

Overview: Today we’re going to study what is a lost sheep and a little of God’s Plan. Next two weeks or so, we’ll study God’s Plan by looking at scripture and then focus on His Plan for our lives. After that, we’ll look at those who chose not to seek God’s Plan or start His Plan and then stop. As a warning, I am going to suggest you buy a “God’s Plan” notebook for yourself and one for each family member. One subject cheap notebooks are perfectly fine and encouraged!! You need space to add to and eventually rewrite everything after your page is crossed out and marked up. If you have one of those fancy leather-bound notebooks, you’ll be more concerned about making it neat and conserving pages. There may very well be times you’ll write through tears and have to rewrite it. A cheap notebook and a cheap or free pen are perfectly fine. Finally in this study, we’ll look at judgement day and go over the handout. I’d like to do communion for the last study, so if you’d like to bring a celebration loaf of bread (fancy and sweet) keep that in mind.

Let’s jump right into the study…

Who are the lost sheep in the Bible?

Luke 15:1-7 NKJV

1 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” 3 So He spoke this parable to them, saying: 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? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 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!’ 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.

The Pharisees and scribes complained that Jesus was receiving and eating with sinners. In our modern mind, we think of these “sinners” as unbelievers. That’s not so! Before we dig deeper, let’s see what Jesus said to the Canaanite woman with a demon possessed daughter…

Matthew 15:24 NKJV

But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

These people Jesus was eating with are lost sheep of the house of Israel, or lost sheep of the House of God. The Jewish people were the chosen race, the chosen people, and their righteousness was performance based as opposed to the New Testament righteousness through Jesus. But they were still lost from The House of God. Notice that we read Jesus said, “sinner who repents,” and didn’t say that they should become a Jew or should believe in God, because they did!

What does this mean to us?

What this means to us is that these “sinners” weren’t doing what they were supposed to be doing, not following their instructions. Repentance means sincere regret or remorse, which indicates that you plan on stopping that action and doing what’s right. So, these men were of The House of God, but doing something else other than what they were called to do. God didn’t create them and give them skills to hurt others. It’s difficult for us to understand salvation was in their race and actions, because our salvation is in Christ. BUT we, like these sinners, can still be lost sheep, busy doing what we weren’t created to do. We’ll see this reflected in Jesus’ teaching and revealing Heavenly judgment in later chapters.