THIS FELLOW WELCOMES SINNERS!
Luke 15:1-10
Seeing. Sometimes it's a struggle. You can't find your glasses - only to discover that they are already on your nose. You just put your keys down. Now you can't see them any place. Trying to find one little lost lamb in the wilderness was a big job. Trying to find one thin coin in the clutter of a home took time, even with the best of eyes, even in the brightest light.
Even if you see clearly, which few of us do without lenses, bifocals or trifocals in front of our eyes. What and how we see, or don't see, defines in many ways how we perceive ourselves, how we perceive others, and how we perceive our place in the world. We're a visual people. What we see becomes who we are. What we see is what we get.
The disciples of Jesus were taught that they lived in a world where the Son was the Center of Everything, and where lost, soul-sick humans were the object of his searching and persistent love. That's what today’s scripture lessons are all about: the persistence with which the Shepherd pursues the sheep. No little lamb escapes his attention.
READ LUKE 15:1-10
We ought to take comfort that God has sought us out, and considered us worth the effort. What's surprising is that we often don't seem to attach as much value to ourselves as God does. We use masks and false pride to maintain an illusion, a myth that God's search-and-rescue mission isn’t quite necessary, at least not for us. We're doing okay by ourselves, thank you very much.
The hand of God clutched us by the wooly scruff of the neck while we were clinging to a rocky crag of unbelief, and we're now safe in the fold. But we're either not too happy about it, or we don't know what all the fuss is about. Many Christians, situated in church as they are on Sundays, and doing their best from Monday to Saturday, have a hard time seeing how to improve, how to detect the black holes and blind spots, how to - as some preachers would put it - move from being saved to being sanctified, how to move from being holy to living holy.
And that brings us to mirrors. The larger the mirror, the more we can see. Now here is the problem in the two stories Jesus tells. The lamb is lost, and so is the coin. Both the shepherd and the woman hunt and rummage around until they find what's missing. One lost lamb is a little thing to find in so vast a wilderness. One lost coin is a tiny object to find in a whole house.
To find any lost object takes light. You can be sure the shepherd didn't wait until night to seek the sheep. No, he looked for the lamb during the daylight hours, and the woman, if it was dark in her house, lit a lamp to look. To see almost anything clearly we need light, and plenty of it. This is true of distant stars; this is true of our own souls. To see the state of our souls, we need to do so in the light of God, and plenty of light at that. The more light we let in, the more light we can see by.
Fortunately, the Word of God is both the mirror we hold up, and the light by which we see our soul reflection. "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path," says the Psalmist (119:105). Looking at this another way: Since the function of a mirror is to gather and reflect light, we should turn our attention to our soul mirrors and check the magnification factor. In astronomy, the more we see the more we know. The same is true of us: The more divine light we let in, the more likely we are to see ourselves as we truly are, and less as we think we are. The more light we gather into our souls, the more we will see our gifts as well as our blemishes.
And as for those blemishes, those stains. We need a mirror and light to see what all needs cleaned. In the old days, ashes were sometimes combined with other ingredients to make soap. Isn't it amazing that something as dirty as ashes can be used to cleanse our body? Even more amazing is that our sinful ashes combined with repentance and the power of God can cleanse our soul!
We all have piles of ashes, you know. It could be alcohol, marriage problems, job difficulties, addictions or abuse. It does not matter what happened or who is to blame. The only thing that matters is what you do next. Who will you turn to? Where will you go?
1. The first step to a restored relationship with God is to admit the stupidity of staying where you are. We are such prideful people! We will stubbornly stay stuck in a bad place rather than admit we made a mistake and then seek to correct it. Before we can be restored to a joyous relationship with God, we have to come to our senses and admit that the life we’ve been living and the direction we’ve been going is not only foolish, it’s not working!
It amazes me how many people are not willing to come to this conclusion. Life is falling apart all around them and yet they try and convince themselves that life is good. The amazing thing is how many of us, even though our lives are a mess, are still trying to hold on to that life and make it better. Maybe you have experienced one failed relationship after another, maybe you never have enough money, maybe you’re depressed and without peace in your life. And yet we can’t or won’t face the truth about ourselves. Instead we say, "My life isn’t so bad; I just need to get a few things straightened out."
I say, “Come to your senses, your life is a mess!" This is not to discourage you but to get you to examine your lives truthfully and in God’s divine light. I want you to acknowledge the reality of your existence so that you will run with all your hearts to God.
The first step is to admit the stupidity of staying where you are. Satan is out there filling people’s minds with lies. He is trying to keep them from coming to their senses by convincing them that life is not that bad. If we honestly take a look and be honest with ourselves and each other, we will see that the direction we sometimes go can only end in ruin.
2. The second step to a restored relationship with God is to return to God with the repentant, humble attitude.
Some people admit their life is a mess but never actually do anything about it. Some people even say, "I need to get my life right with God" but never actually do it. Our attitudes are the first thing that has to change to “get right with God.” We can’t minimize our past behaviors as no big deal. Just like the Prodigal Son, we need to say, "I have sinned against heaven and against you." He took full responsibility for his decisions and actions. No one else was blamed and he didn’t ignore or downplay his own sinfulness.
Sometimes we just need to get down on our knees and say, “I’ve blown it, Lord. I am not worthy to be called your child.” God doesn’t owe us a thing and He is not obligated to bless us in any way. We don’t come to God making excuses or making demands but rather we come acknowledging our wrongdoing and asking for mercy.
3. The third step to a restored relationship with God is to recognize that God will lovingly welcome you home.
Do you remember the popular song "Tie a Yellow Ribbon?" It tells of a man who’s been sent to prison. He’s served his time and is now coming home on the bus. But he admits that she who once loved him has every right to reject him. He’s to blame. So he’s written to tell her that if she forgives him, she should "tie a yellow ribbon ’round the old oak tree." If there’s no yellow ribbon, he’ll just go riding by on the bus without stopping.
As the miles roll by, all the man thinks about is that oak tree. When he gets home, will there be a yellow ribbon on it? The song ends in triumph with the entire busload of people cheering as the man sees not one but a hundred yellow ribbons on that old oak tree! His lover not only forgives him, but she exuberantly welcomes him home.
Like the man on the bus, we’re fearful of not being lovingly welcomed home. We know our own hearts, and we wonder if God will really forgive us, let alone celebrate our coming. In the song this man was looking for a sign that, despite his terrible behavior, he was welcome at home. He got his sign in abundance. In a similar way, people who have blown it in their relationship with God also need to know that God will accept and welcome them home lovingly. Many times people who have really messed up are unwilling to come home to God because they are unsure they are welcome.
I know I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating over and over again. Nothing you can do with make God love you less. There is no sin, no mess, no mistake too bad or too big to keep us from His love. The Apostle Paul wrote, “I am convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor rulers nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)
3. The third step to a restored relationship with God is to recognize that God will lovingly welcome you home.
God wants you in a right relationship with Him and is looking for you to take any step in his direction. And it’s not a “I’ll meet you half-way,” thing. God will close the distance between him and you in a blink of an eye—just take that first step. And then God’s forgiveness and restoration of those who come to him with a repentant and humble attitude is 100% complete!
Like the little lamb, maybe you have drifted away from God without even realizing it. Maybe you’re beginning to experience some of the consequences of living on your own strength or seeking fulfillment in some form of sin. The good news is that today you can be restored to a right relationship with God in three easy steps:
1. Admit the stupidity of staying where you are.
2. Return to God with a repentant, humble attitude.
3. Recognize that God will lovingly welcome you home.
A recent promotion by H. R. Block Inc. offered walk-in customers a chance to win a drawing for a million dollars. Glen and Gloria Sims of Sewell, New Jersey, won the drawing, but they refused to believe it when an H. R. Block representative phoned them with the good news.
After several additional contacts by both mail and phone, the Sims still thought it was all just a scam, and usually hung up the phone or trashed the special notices. Some weeks later, H. R. Block called one more time to let the Sims know the deadline for accepting the million-dollar prize was nearing and that the story of their refusal to accept the prize would appear on an upcoming NBC "Today Show."
At that point, Mr. Sims decided to investigate further. A few days later he appeared on the "Today Show" to tell America that he and his wife had finally gone to H. R. Block to claim the million-dollar prize.
Mr. Sims’ final words were: "From the time this has been going on, H. R. Block explained to us they really wanted a happy ending to all this, and they were ecstatic that we finally accepted the prize."
You are forgiven. Accept the prize.
Please pray with me the prayer printed in your bulletin: God, I did not know how much I mean to you, that I am like a precious coin, worth searching for when one is lost. Help me to remember that you love me and care for me and know me. Help me to live in your abundant blessings. Amen.
BENEDICTION: Rejoice with Jesus and the angels that you have been found, basking in the light of God's love and grace. Go in peace, knowing that you belong to the Good Shepherd, who will never stop looking out for you. Amen.
Sources:
Berman, Bob. "Mirror, mirror, who's the sharpest of them all?" Discover, July 2000.
Source: Harold L. Myra, Living by God’s Surprises (Word, 1988); quoted in Men of Integrity (January/February 2001)
Source: NBC "Today Show" (7-09-01); submitted by Loren McBain, Tucson, Arizona
