Three Things Needed For Reaching The Lost

Three Things Needed for Reaching the Lost

Luke 15:1-10

Intro: I’ve heard about a little six-year old boy who was struggled to listen to a rather lengthy sermon. After the service, the little boy asked the question that sooner or later most "church kids" ask.

"Dad" he asked, "what does the preacher do the rest of the week?"

The dad replied, "Son, he’s a very busy man.

He takes care of church business.

He represents the church in the community.

He studies the Bible and writes sermons.

And he has to take time to rest up. You see, preaching in public is not an easy job."

The little boy thought about that and said, "Well, listening ain’t so easy either!"

The truth is that listening really is NOT very easy.

So, Jesus often taught lessons through what were called parables or stories.

Let’s look at what these three parables are about.

In all three of these parables something of value is lost.

The thing lost, was a sheep, a coin, and someone’s son.

All three are valuable or very important.

The sheep had a particular value to the religious leaders.

Especially lambs as an offering or

A sheep could provide milk, and cheese, or be cooked for meat.

It is something that if even one is lost you would put forth every effort into finding it

and would rejoice when you did.

The coin we are told was one of 10 silver coins.

I knew a person who had taken money out of the bank for Christmas.

When he got home he stuck the money between the pages of a magazine he was reading.

When his wife came home she had brought in the mail.

She was cleaning up the house and since the mail included the newest magazine,

She tossed the old one in the garbage along with the money.

What is funny about this is we have probably all gone through the garbage

searching for something we have lost.

The bible says when the woman realized that one of the coins was lost she got a lamp for light.

She got a broom and swept the house searching until she found the one coin.

Since this is true about things that are lost, the sheep, the coin,

then shouldn’t it also be for people who are lost?

The term "lost" refers to those who are spiritually lost,

to those who are not Christians, who are outside of the household of God

but God desires to come home.

You can see this in the story of the Prodigal Son where the father says about the son who has repented and returned home "he was lost and is found (verse 31)."

These three stories all represent the spiritually lost.

We should respond to people who are lost in the same way or even a greater way than we would to lost things.

We are to put forth effort, and perseverance in searching for them.

And we would be filled with joy at there being found.

The reason for these parables is to remind Christians of how we should respond to the lost.

You could also interpret these parables as illustrating how God responds and searches for the lost.

Read Luke 15:1-2

1. The first thing needed for reaching the lost is compassion.

Jesus had the "tax collectors and sinners" gathering around him.

These are lost people who were not running from Jesus

but rather running to him.

They were not avoiding him, ignoring him, or even hostile towards him.

Verse 1 says that they were "gathering around to hear him."

Why were sinners so willing and even eager to listen to Jesus?

Why did the "lost" seek out Jesus rather than run from him?

I believe the answer is that the lost saw in Jesus his compassion.

Jesus loved them

Jesus showed that he saw value in each of them.

They mattered to Him.

Everyone is important to Jesus.

People could feel the concern, the kindness, the caring, and love.

The Bible says in verse 2 that Jesus "welcomes sinners and eats with them."

One of the definitions for the Greek word translated as "welcomes" in this verse is to "receive as a friend."

This was Jesus attitude toward those who were lost in sin.

Jesus welcomed them;

he was compassionate and accepting of them despite their sins and faults.

He was a friend and treated them like his friend.

What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!

What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer.