Ok, good morning! We have two items of business to take care of before we get started this morning. First, we have to wish Laurie and her husband Jim a Happy Anniversary for this coming Thursday. Last week it was her birthday and this week it is her anniversary.... so she pretty much gets all the gifts knocked out at one time. So, Happy Anniversary, Laurie.
Second, a baby update. Anne went to the doctor this past week and the doctor said the baby is doing fine...heart rate is fine...the only problem is that Anne is quite gaining the weight she needs to gain. So, the doctor told her that she needed to eat more and to feel free to eat ice cream and other high calorie foods. She told me that and the first thing I thought was that would be the happiest day of my life. I would be like "Score!" I guess that’s why us guys don’t have the babies. Seriously, my doctor tells me to cut back on that stuff...if he ever gave me permission to eat like that...man...I just get a smile on my face thinking about it. So...if you see her bringing a tub of Ben and Jerry’s to church you’ll know what’s going on.
We’re starting a new series today and for this whole month we’re going to be taking a look at some of the parables of Jesus...but we’re going to try to take a fresh approach to them. Most of us know what a parable is...if you grew up in church you might have heard it defined in Vacation Bible School as "an earthly story with a heavenly meaning" or something like that.
The truth of the matter is.... stories are some of the most powerful teaching tools. As human beings we have a natural desire to be entertained. Think of the countless hours that we spend watching TV...whether it is sports, documentaries, or regular series. Or how about reading...I can read a fiction novel a lot easier than I can read history or a biography. We all love stories and good teachers realize that.
I don’t consider myself to be one of the best teachers...but I recognize that if I don’t mix in some stories and illustrations than all we would have every Sunday would be a slumber party.
Jesus, however, he was the master teacher. He used parables to teach...he used them because they were entertaining and also because they would stretch the minds of his listeners...often his own disciples wouldn’t even understand the parables that he told them and they would come to him needing an explanation. We aren’t told so in the Bible but I bet Jesus made them think about it awhile before he answered their questions. All good teachers make their students think about things before explaining them.... and Jesus was the Master Teacher. Stories are an invaluable tool to a teacher. So for the next four weeks we are going to take a look at some of these stories that Jesus told.
We’re going to be working today out of Luke 15 so if you have your Bibles with you today then go ahead and be turning over there. We’re going to be talking about "lost" things today.... namely Jesus’ parable of the Lost Sheep. Now, we have all lost something at one point in our lives. Maybe it was our keys...mine are usually in my hand when I’m looking for them. Maybe it was our kids...I told you all a story a little while ago about when Anne and I thought we had lost Suzy...some of you may have been happy that you lost your kids, I don’t know. We don’t know if they were happy about it but here’s an example of some parents that lost a child....
The boss of a big company needed to call one of his employees about an urgent problem with one of the main computers. He dialed the employee’s home telephone number and was greeted with a child’s whispered, "Hello?"
Feeling put out at the inconvenience of having to talk to a youngster, the boss asked, "Is your Daddy home?" "Yes," whispered the small voice.
"May I talk with him?" the man asked. To the surprise of the boss, the small voice whispered, "No."
Wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, "Is your Mommy there?"
"Yes," came the answer.
"May I talk with her?" Again, the small voice whispered, "No."
Knowing that it was not likely that a young child would be left home alone, the boss decided he would just leave a message with the person who should be there watching over the child. "Is there anyone there besides you?" the boss asked the child.
"Yes," whispered the child, "a policeman."
Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee’s home, the boss asked,
"May I speak with the policeman?"
"No, he is busy," whispered the child.
"Busy doing what?" asked the boss.
"Talking to Daddy and Mommy and the Fireman," came the whispered answer.
Growing concerned and even worried as he heard what sounded like a helicopter through the earpiece on the phone, the boss asked, "What is that noise?"
"A hello-copper," answered the whispering voice.
"What is going on there?" asked the boss, now alarmed.
In an awed whispering voice, the child answered, "The search team just landed the hello-copper!"
Alarmed, concerned and more than just a little frustrated, the boss asked,
"Why are they there?"
Still whispering, the young voice replied (along with a muffled giggle), "They are looking for me!"
Oh, it’s so easy to get lost!!!!! But it’s not always easy to find your way back when you are lost. I found that story on the internet but the source wasn’t cited...I had seen it before...maybe in Reader’s Digest but I can’t say for sure. So, I can’t tell you where it came from. Let’s see what Jesus had to say about this subject of "lost things." (Read verses 1-7).
I told you at the start of today we are going to try to look at these parables a little bit differently then we usually do. Whenever we read and study this parable we usually look at it from the standpoint of the shepherd who has gone out to look for his sheep. We are going to do that today...but we are also going to look at it through the eyes of the sheep. Now, I have never really talked to a sheep so I don’t know how they think and what their worldview is...but we’re going to try. So, before we look at the shepherd let’s deal with the sheep.
We have all seen sheep before...they aren’t exactly the kings of the jungle. According to the Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association they are easy prey for predators because they can’t protect themselves and they are easy to catch.... and if you think about it.... that is only common sense. Have you ever went to a rodeo and watched what they let kids ride instead of bulls? They ride sheep.... sheep are gentle...docile.... harmless.
Now, going back to what Jesus is talking about here...in his story.... who are the sheep? The sheep are you...the sheep are me...the sheep are the ones that he has come to seek and to save. So, we, the lost ones, the sheep, we are defenseless and we are easy to catch.... and while we are often very mean-spirited to each other, we are, in fact, quite docile and harmless when it comes to the spiritual world, aren’t we? If the match is between the sheep and the wolf...the wolf will win. If the match is between us and the evil spiritual powers that are out there trying to take us away from the shepherd...the evil forces will win. It is an awful thing to be lost...the sheep must have a shepherd.
Not only are sheep harmless, docile, and defenseless.... they are also very gullible. Now, I realize that gullible implies the capacity for rational thought...but, on the whole...sheep can be led anywhere as long as there is a food supply. In his novel Animal Farm George Orwell portrays the gullible followers of Communism as sheep. They blindly follow the whims of others...being taught to believe by one thing by one animal and then quickly changing their beliefs when they are taught something else.
Now, isn’t that a description of us lost sheep of the human race? We are brought up to believe one thing but when someone else comes along and teaches us something else...we adopt that belief. We are easily led astray by our appetites...our appetites for things of this world. We blindly follow someone else...not questioning why...just simply doing so because the rest of the herd is doing it or because it just feels right...or it feels good.
Need proof? In 1692 one of the most famous historical examples of mob hysteria in our country’s history occurred in Massachusetts...and we have come to call it the Salem Witch Trials. Just a brief synopsis of what happened in those months: Two girls...ages 9 and 11 began to act strangely and no medical reason could be found for it...their behavior included "blasphemous screaming, seizures, and trance-like states." I’m not a doctor but it sounds kind of like Tourette’s Syndrome to me...but again, this was 1692 and Dr. Tourette began his work in 1884 so they had no way of knowing. Anyway, since they concluded that there was no medical reason the doctors concluded that the girls were under the influence of Satan. These girls eventually identify three women as witches who put them in this condition...one of the women confesses to witchcraft and the ball rolls from there. In all, 20 people died because of the trials.... an example of "sheep mob" justice. We, as sheep, are gullible, ready to follow the crowd. It is an awful thing to be lost...we, sheep, we need a shepherd.
So, now we have a picture of what it is like to be the sheep in Jesus’ story here...we’re defenseless...we’re gentle...unable to stand up to our predators...and we’re willing to follow anything and anyone. WE NEED A SHEPHERD.
Lucky for us...in the story...one comes to find us.
We read in Jesus’ story here that there is a total of a hundred sheep...and only one wanders away. But, instead of just being content with having the ninety-nine safe and sound...the owner of the sheep...he goes off to find the one who was lost and when he finds it he comes back celebrating. It’s a nice story for us today...but, if we look at it from the standpoint of a First Century Jew...which is who Jesus is talking to here, it makes even more sense. We learn so much from these few verses if we look at it through the eyes of the ones who heard these words pass from Jesus’ lips.
First, we have to understand the economics of that time. Number one: sheep were the most important livestock of all. They didn’t eat a lot of meat back then because meat was expensive...but when they did eat meat...it was sheep. This was partly because it was the lambs that were sacrificed so they would obtain meat from them...but, regardless, sheep were the main source of meat. But, they were even more important because of the wool that they produced. It was obviously used for clothing and other things. So, we aren’t just talking about any animal here...it was a very valuable animal.
Continuing on the economics theme...the guy here with 100 sheep...he was rich. He had to be rich to have that many sheep. It takes a little bit to arrive at this conclusion but it we work at it we can come to it. First, there was virtually no middle class in the Jewish culture then. This was pointed out to me in one of the classes I’m taking now. You were either rich like the Sadducees and other rulers or you barely scratched enough together to eat. So, you were either rich or you were poor. Number two... we read in Leviticus 12 that when a Hebrew woman gave birth she was declared unclean and she had to go to the temple to be purified. When she got to the temple she had to offer two sacrifices...one of which was a lamb. If she couldn’t afford a lamb then she had to bring two doves or two young pigeons. Hopefully it’s starting to come together for you now...a poor person certainly would not have owned 100 sheep. Jesus’ family wouldn’t have...we read in Luke 2 that Mary had to offer the poorest offering. So, the one who goes out looking for the sheep is rich.
You see...he wasn’t content to just write the lost sheep off as a business expense or loss...he didn’t look at what he had but what he had lost. To a poor person...they definitely would have gone out and looked for the sheep because it was their only one. But the rich man here...he had others. The point Jesus would have been making to the Pharisees would have been clear.... God isn’t content with the sheep he already has...he isn’t just concerned with the "religious" like the Pharisees he is talking to here...God wants to return the "sinners" Jesus is eating with to the fold as well.
Aren’t we like that sometimes? We have so much that when we lose something it isn’t that big of a deal? I read this week about an actual Ebay listing for a 1962 Ford Thunderbird Convertible...it had 5,487 original miles...in perfect showroom condition. A man called about it and he asked the seller why it had such low mileage. The answer? The owner had lost the key in 1963.
Now, I don’t think that any of us are that rich...but we all have a tendency to do that. We focus in on what we still have and forget about what we have lost. Whether it be in the church...we have our core group...we’re good. Maybe it is in our business...our employees are unhappy and leaving but look at our bottom line! Or, sadly, in our families and our marriages...now I’m finally free to move on to someone else!!! Who cares what I have lost…look at how much I still have!
You know what? The shepherd...he’s not like that. He worries about the sheep he has lost and he goes out to find it. Notice that the shepherd is not passive here...it says that he "goes after" the one who is lost. He just doesn’t sit back and wait for it to return home because, guess what...sheep aren’t homing pigeons. Sheep have to be found ...and Jesus, he realizes that. No one comes to him unless he comes looking for them...every conversion that has ever occurred has been initiated by him coming after the one who was lost.
Finally, after the shepherd finds his lost sheep...he brings it home...and starts to give it a guilt trip for running away...he beats it for being such a bad, wayward sheep...he never let’s it forget how bad it messed up and how it had better never leave again, right? No, that’s not what it says at all...he comes home and throws a party over the one who was lost and now is found. He is so happy over the return of this wayward sheep that he doesn’t care about the trouble it has caused him...he only wants everyone to know about the return of the sheep and to celebrate with him. There’s no guilt...no reminders.... just acceptance.
That, my friends, is exactly how it works when the shepherd, Jesus, finds you. He only wants to celebrate your return...no reminders.... no "I told you so’s." Just one big party.
You know what...you need a shepherd...and so do I. I’m to much of a sheep to make it on my own...I’m weak, I’m defenseless...and I’m gullible. I need a shepherd and so do you.
The good news is...he’s already looking for you. His trip into the wilderness to find you started almost 2,000 years ago and it was on the road to Calvary...and he carried a cross while he began his search and he won’t quit looking until he has found you or you run away. That’s the really interesting thing about this shepherd...he won’t force you into your arms. There’s no traps, no ropes, nothing to force you to come...you, as the sheep, have to come to the shepherd...oh, but once you come he will carry you home. That’s not to say that the road home won’t be rocky, but the shepherd, he will carry you every step of the way. So, what’s stopping you from coming to the open arms of the shepherd? What one thing are you chasing that is leading you away from him? Let me encourage you...quit chasing those temporary things and turn to the shepherd.... turn to Jesus. Even if he has already brought you home once and you left again.... he is ready to bring you back...you just have to come to him.
