CHRIST RECEIVETH SINNERS
Luke 15:1-2
INTRO. (Describe the hypocrisy of the Pharisees.) They wished to monopolize religion for their own set group. They were the most religious people of their day, devoted keepers of the Mosaic Law and yet they were the worst of the enemies of Jesus. Instead of rejoicing in that they were in the presence of the Son of God they sought to find means to kill him. Rather than rejoice that God would love and save all men from their sins these self-righteous, spiritually proud hypocrites wanted to exclude all but their own kind from the grace of God. When Jesus preached and taught, He attracted vast crowds of the kind of people the Pharisees considered undesirable. They murmured, "This man receiveth sinners and eateth with them." Praise God! Jesus receives sinners! Not only does He receive them but then He joins in sweet fellowship with them!
The story is told of a little girl whose parents never went to church. However, they insisted upon her
attendance and what is more is that she had to be able to recite the preacher’s text for the day. One morning she rushed home excited: "Oh mama, my name is in the Bible." "That’s not likely," responded her parents. "But it is! The pastor read it this morning. ’This man receiveth sinners, and Edith with them."
This is more than just a mispronunciation. There is a beautiful truth here. Can you put your name
there? "This man receiveth sinners, and __________ with them."
I. WHAT IS A SINNER?
A. The Bible says a sinner is one who transgresses the Law of God.
1. (I Jn. 3:4) - "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law."
2. Webster defines a transgressor as "one who exceeds the boundaries of the law.
3. Consider the sinners of the world. Is not the action of sinners the very acts of lawlessness? Murder, riot, rape, war or even any of the so-called lesser sins such as stealing, gossip, or lying. These are all acts which indicate lawlessness.
B. But being a transgressor of the Laws of God is a characteristic applicable to all men, not just those who get caught in their lawless deeds.
1. Some, like the Pharisees would have the world believe they have always been inside the bounds set by the Laws of God. The Bible calls such people liars. (I Jn. 1:8) - "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."
2. The Bible says we are all born sinners.
a. Romans 3:23
b. Romans 5:12
3. You may be like the woman who was saved one morning and asked to address the church; "All my life I have been saying I am not a sinner. This morning I realized that if I am not a sinner then Jesus can not save me, "For this man receiveth sinners."
C. Jesus will receive sinners of all ages.
1. He said He would receive those who would seek Him in their youth and that we are to permit little children to come to Him.
2. But He also loves those of mature age. The most difficult thing I have had to face in preaching is to convince folks that a person never gets so old that Jesus does not love them. You are not so old that Christ can not save you.
D. Jesus loves and receives sinners from all stations of life.
1. God showed mercy to royal Manasseh and King Nebuchadnezzar as well as the blind beggar, Bartimaeus. He saves rich and poor alike.
2. Jesus healed a nobleman’s son and a rich man’s daughter and He healed a poor mad man in Gadera who lived in the tombs. Your station in the world will not affect the love Jesus has for you, be you bank president or ditch digger.
E. Jesus will receive sinners of all degrees.
1. The rich young ruler was outwardly moral and Jesus loved him. The adulteress of Samaria and Mary Magdeline were equally received by Him.
2. No matter how you may have abused God’s goodness or taken His name in vain or sinned against Him still He loves you.
3. Saul of Tarsus consented to the murder of Stephen. He himself, murdered and imprisoned many Christians and deserved to die for his sin. I Tim. 1:12-15
F. He will accept you because that is what He does and that is who He is. This man receiveth sinners.
II. HOW JESUS RECEIVES SINNERS.
In response to the murmuring of the Pharisees, Jesus chooses to reveal a portion of himself in a very special way.
1. He does this by speaking a parable to them. Note that "parable" (vs. 6) is singular. This is important because it means that what we have in the next 28 verses is actually three aspects of one parable.
2. The main points of all three stories remain the same...(a) something is lost, (b) someone is looking for it, and (c) there is great joy in the finding of it. Everything else in these stories is secondary to these 3 main points. And in this Christ reveals to us just How He receives sinners.
A. He Receives Sinners In Pity With Compassion And Tenderness. (vs. 4-7)
1. (Explain the parable of the lost sheep). Jesus starts off with a story that is rather simple to interpret. The lost sheep represents lost sinners and the shepherd is Jesus Christ. (Jn. 10:11) "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep."
2. Now, the natural question would be, "If the shepherd still had 99 sheep in the fold, why would he be so troubled by the loss of one? This may well be the logic of sinful man but it is not the logic of holy God.
a. What a comforting thought. Though God has billions of human beings under His providential care. He cares for each individual soul as if that individual was the only one in the world.
b. We might as well say, "For God so loved me that He gave His only begotten Son." Which leads us to another thought.
3. Have you ever noticed that the one great peculiarity of the Christian faith is this; it is the only religion among men that represents God as seeking out man. Other religions represent man as seeking God, which is not true.
a. (Rom. 3:11) - "There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God."
b. It was not the sheep that sought the shepherd, but the shepherd who went after the sheep. And I believe that it is important to note that the lost sheep was of no value to anyone except the shepherd.
4. Out of his pity for the plight of the sheep, the shepherd continues his search until he finds it.
5. Then when He finds it, he does not punish the sheep for it’s wanderings but rather, with compassion and tenderness, he lifts it up and carries it to his home on his own shoulders. Then, when he is home, he calls his neighbors to join in his rejoicing that the lost one has been found.
a. If you are without Christ as your Saviour, this is a picture of you. You are this lost sheep and the good shepherd is calling to you. If you will repent of your sin, the Lamb of God will lift you up and, in His strength, He will guide you safely to His home.
b. He then goes on to say that there is more rejoicing over the repentance of one lost sinner than over all the good works of those who think that they have no need of repentance.
B. He Receives Sinners Faithfully With Patience And Diligence.
1. The next aspect of this great parable is found in verses 8-10. It is the story of the lost coin.
2. Again, this is not difficult to interpret. The woman of the house is representative of Jesus. The lost coin is representative of lost sinners.
3. Now we can see that this lost item would be of a little more value than the last (sheep) because the sheep was only 1 out of 100. This is 1 out of 10.
a. But even so, this coin was only the equivalent to a Roman penny. So why all the fuss?
b. Once again, the emphasis is placed, not on the actual value, but on the supposed value. This coin would not be worth looking for to anybody but the woman who owned it.
c. In those days at a wedding, instead of a gold ring as today, the bridegroom presented the bride with a necklace of ten silver coins. To lose even one of those pieces was considered as equal to, or at least suggestive of, her unfaithfulness. So when she discovered her loss she naturally became distraught.
4. You know what she was feeling, if you have lost your wallet or purse. The drivers license, credit cards, and money can all be replaced easily enough. But the pictures are of more value to you because they hold precious memories and they are not easily replaced.
5. So being the faithful wife that she was, she grabbed a candle and a broom and diligently and patiently began to search and clean the house from top to bottom until she had found the coin.
6. Even though mankind has turned his back on Jesus, still Christ is faithful to His love for the souls of man.
a. With great diligence, His righteousness shines as a light in a dark place.
(Jn. 12:46) -- "I am come as a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness."
b. And with great patience, the truth of His Word brushes away the clouds of fear, doubt, confusion, and legalism that surround the so-called religions of man.
7. And so again, we have a beautiful picture of Christ faithfully, patiently, diligently seeking out those who are lost in the darkness of sin.
C. He Receives Sinners With Divine Love In Forgiveness, Mercy, and Grace.
1. The last aspect of this great parable is probably the most familiar of the three. It is the story of the prodigal son (vs. 11-32)
2. The lost son is representative of lost sinners. The concerned father is representative of Jesus Christ. (briefly explain vs. 11-16)
3. We are not so much interested in the demand for his inheritance or his riotous living. Rather, we are concerned with his pitiful condition at the pigpen.
a. The wages of sin is always the same...death and separation from God.
b. Sin might be likened to a beautiful prostitute who sings to you of her pleasures and delights. Only to use you and leave you diseased, broken and destitute.
c. No man starts out with the intention of ending up in a spiritual or moral pigpen. Yet that is exactly where the lost sinner is. Covered with frustration and despair. Trying to feed his soul with worthless scraps and garbage.
4. But as this young man surveyed his situation, he began to realize how sad his state of affairs had become. It was then he thought to go to his father and apologize and ask to be employed as a servant.
5. (read vs. 20)
a. I can tell you from personal experience what a wonderful blessing it is to have a father who loves you enough to forgive you.
b. It is obvious that the father had not given up hope on his wayward son. He continually watched for his returning boy for, "when he was yet a great way off his father saw him".
c. And in a glorious act of mercy and grace the father ran to meet the boy and then restored him to his proper place and there was great rejoicing in the house.
6. I know that Jesus loves you because "God is love". And in that love He longs to receive sinners -- to forgive them of their sin, to grant them mercy, and to shower them with His grace.
a. (Jn. 6:37) - "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out."
b. (Jn. 1:11-12) - "He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name."
c. see Eph. 1:3,5,7
7. And we may very well say that He has run out to meet you through all that He accomplished at Calvary.
a. He sacrificed his perfect life as a payment for your sin because He knew that without that sacrifice you would never have any hope of being received into the family of God.
b. (Eph. 2:8-9) - "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; Not of works, lest any man should boast."
D. Would you like to be among those who are so lovingly received of Jesus Christ? You may say, "Yes, but how can I, in my sin, enter into relationship with Him?"
III. HOW YOU MAY BE RECEIVED BY JESUS.
A. The answer to this question is also found in the parable.
1. Note vs. 7 ("repenteth")
2. Note vs. 10 ("repenteth")
3. Note vs. 18 (this is a recognition of the need for repentance)
B. The key to being received by Jesus is found in the idea of repentance.
1. It was the message preached by John the Baptist. ("Repent, for the kingdom of heaven...")
2. It was the first sermon preached by Jesus. ("Repent, for the kingdom of heaven...")
3. It was preached by Peter and the Apostles -- (Acts 3:19) - "Repent ye and be converted that your sins may be blotted out"
C. What is repentance?
1. The word literally means, "a change of mind and attitude toward sin itself.
a. There are many misconceptions about this very important aspect of salvation. In fact, some have quit preaching it altogether.
b. True heart-felt repentance is more than superficial tears. It is more than good intentions or solemn vows.
c. Repentance is not even, necessarily, the leaving off of sins. That is to say, a person may experience reformation without true repentance.
d. A good example of repentance can be found in Isaiah 6:1-5. As Isaiah found himself standing before Almighty God, he was forced to look at himself in the light of God’s perfection.
2. You must stop comparing yourself with other sinners, they are no better than you are. You must compare yourself with God who is holy and righteous. When you do this you will see just how badly you come short of the glory of God.
3. Then turn from your sin and turn to Jesus. We see this in the prodigal son, after he came to himself and recognized his pitiful condition then he came to his father.
D. Confess your sinful state to God. Once again, the prodigal confessed in all humility to his father, "I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am not worthy to be called your son."
1. (Rom. 10:9) - "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."
2. (I Jn. 1:9) - "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
E. Then trust that Jesus will receive you as He has said that He would. "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord SHALL BE SAVED."
CONCLU. If you are yet without Jesus Christ as your redeemer and Saviour, let me tell you that you have been lost for too long. The One who is the total sacrifice for sin is calling to you. He longs to receive you into His glory. Will you repent of your sin and place your trust and hope in Him?
