Luke 15, verse 1 and 2, Then drew near unto him all the
publicans and sinners, to hear And the Pharisees and the scribes,
the religious leaders, murmured, saying, why, this man receiveth
sinners, eats with them. Someone said, many true words
have been spoken in ridicule, and many times real tribute is
paid by the tongue of hatred. And that's what we find right
here. These religious leaders saw our Lord eating, visiting
with these publicans and sinners, and they said, wow, this man
receives sinners, eats with them. And they thought that they would
brand him with shame. That's what they meant to do.
They thought they would hold him up to ridicule before the
people. That's what they intended to
do. They thought they would bring reproach upon him forever by
declaring, well, this man is a friend of sinners. He eats
with sinners. Behold, a gluttonous man, a wine-bepper,
a friend, a genuine real friend. to the fallen, to the weak, to
the despised, to the lowly, to sinners. Oh, how blind they are
who think they see. Their own words reveal their
total blindness. This man, this Savior, receive
sinners, is the friend of sinners. Well, that's why he came into
the world. Paul wrote, this is a faithful saying, this is a
true saying, this is worthy of acceptation by all men, that
Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, of which I am
the chief. His incarnation reveals his love
and compassion for sinners he identified with us in the lowest
of states. The Son of Man is come to seek
and to save that which was lost. His name, when the angel gave
to Joseph his name, he said, you call his name Jesus. For he'll save his people from
their sins. His name indicates his love for
sinners. His chief office, what is his
office? His prophet to declare good news
to the poor. Priest, what does a priest do? He deals with sin, he deals with
sacrifice, he deals with blood, and he's a priest forever after
the order of Melchizedek, a mediator. There's one God and one mediator,
but a mediator is not of one, it's of two. The offended and
the offender. If any man sin, we have an advocate
with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. That's his office.
That's why he came. That's his name. And his death
on the cross. His death on the cross can be
summed up in one verse of scripture. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities.
The chastisement of our peace was laid on him, and by his stripes
we're healed. And while hanging on that cross,
our sovereign Lord Our suffering substitute and Savior gave this
crowning example of his great love for sinners when he was
pleased to awaken and to call and to reveal himself to a dying
thief. The outcast whom the world decided
was not fit to live, so they nailed him to a cross Our Lord
Jesus Christ loved him, chose him, called him, and took him
to glory with him. He said today, you of all people
will be with me in paradise. Come ye sinners, poor and needy. Weak and wounded,
sick and sore, Jesus Christ ready stands to save you, full of pity,
love, and power. Now don't let conscience make
you linger, nor fitness fondly dream, because all the fitness
he requires is to feel your need. of a savior of sinners. That's
all you need. What is our difference with these
men? They saw our Lord visiting, talking, eating with sinners,
publicans. The public I'm going to talk
about tonight was hated by the Jews more than anything. They always identified publicans
with harlots. They were Jews who collected
Roman taxes from their own people. They hated publicans. But our
difference with these men, these religious men and their charges
against Christ, what they consider bad news, this man, Edith with
sinners, we call good news. I'm glad he does. I couldn't
have any part with him. of him and in his presence because
I'm a sinner. What they call his shame, God
calls his greater glory. What is your glory, Moses said?
My glory is my goodness. I'll be merciful to whom I will
be merciful. I'll be gracious to whom I will
be gracious. That's his greater glory. The
rock, that to them was a stumbling stone. That same rock to us is
a sure foundation, a triad stone, a precious cornerstone, and all
that rest upon him and build upon him will never be ashamed.
That's our chief cornerstone. Their stumbling stone is our
cornerstone. The crucified Savior, which to
them is foolishness, The preaching of Christ crucified to them who
are perishing is foolishness. It is to this world in which
we live. It's foolishness. It's nonsense. It's to us the
very wisdom and power of a sovereign God. Well, how does he react
to these people? Let's see what our Lord says
to them. In verse 2, they said, they murmured, they were upset.
They were really upset. They were holy people. They wouldn't
be identified with these sinners. But they said, this man receiveth
sinners, and eateth with them. All right. So it says in verse
3, and he spake this parable unto them. Who's speaking? He's speaking. This is all, again,
in my message of the words of Christ, our Lord Jesus Christ. To whom? He's speaking this to
those who criticize his love and identification with sinners. His love for sinners and identification
with them. They're criticizing him for his
love for sinners. That's people to whom he's speaking.
What does he speak? Look, and he spake this parable. Not three parables, or these
parables. This is one parable. That's all. All right, here it is, verse
4. What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he lose one of them,
does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after
that which is lost, until he finds it? And when he hath found
it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes
home, he calls his friends together, and his neighbors, saying unto
them, Rejoice with me. I found my sheep which was lost.
Now, to you, The Lord is calling our attention
to somebody special. Who is that somebody? Is it the lost sheep? No, sir. Is it the ninety and nine? I
know a lot of preachers preach on this and get sidetracked on
the ninety and nine, but he's not talking about the ninety
and nine. Is it the neighbors? No. It's the shepherd. Did you notice when I read that
the word he Is there seven times and I once? What man among you having a hundred
sheep, if he lose one, does not leave the ninety and nine in
the wilderness and go after that which is lost until he finds
it? The leading character in this part of the parable is the
shepherd, the shepherd seeking the sheep. And when he finds
it, he puts it on his shoulder and brings it home. Now the shepherd
here is the Lord Jesus Christ. He's speaking of his love for
his sheep. He has a hundred sheep and he
loves them. One of them is lost, he loves it so much he leaves
everything that he owns and goes and hunts that one sheep. He's
talking about he's called the good shepherd, he's called the
great shepherd, he's called the chief shepherd. And like this
man here, he owns all of those hundred sheep, they're all his.
The ones that are found, the ones that are home, the ones
that are in glory, the ones that are safe, and the ones that are
lost, they're His. Let's look at that over in John
chapter 10. What man among you having a hundred
sheep? One of his sheep are lost. He
leaves the ninety and nine and goes and finds the one that's
lost. This is the shepherd. He's a kind and loving and good
and chief and great shepherd who loves his sheep. Now look
at John 10, verse 14. I'm the good shepherd, I know
my sheep, and I'm known of mine. I know every one of my sheep.
I know every one of them. How long has he known them? From
all eternity. He knows them, and they know him. If they don't
know him now, they will know him. But he knows them, and they
know him. And another shepherd they will
not follow, another voice they will not hear. They're his sheep. Alright, look at the next verse,
15. Even so, even as the Father knoweth me, and I know the Father."
How does he know his sheep? He knows his sheep like the Father
knows him and he knows the Father. My sheep and I have the same
relationship my Father and I have. That's right. I know my sheep,
they know me, as my Father knows me and I know my Father. That's
the relationship they have. And listen, and I lay down my
life for my sheep. They're the ones for whom I came.
They're the ones for whom I went to the cross. They're the ones
for whom I obeyed the law. I lay down my life for my sheep,
not for this world, for my sheep. And notice this, and I'll be
successful, verse 16. And other sheep I have, which
are not of this fold. And them I must bring, I must. The Son of Man must go through
Jerusalem. The Son of Man must be lifted
up. The Son of Man must find his
sheep. He cannot fail. Them I must bring,
and they shall hear my voice. I'll not leave them in the wilderness,
I'll find them. And I'll lay them on my shoulders
and I'll bring them home. I must. And there'll be one fold
and one shepherd again. Now look at verse 29, where did
he get these sheep? Verse 27 says, My sheep, hear
My voice, I know them, they follow Me, and I give them eternal life,
and they'll never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out
of My hand. My Father, which gave them Me,
He gave Me to them, and them to Me. The Father, My sheep are
a gift of My Father. He prayed in John 17. He said,
Father, the hour has come. Glorify thy Son, that thy Son
may glorify thee. Thou hast given me power over
all flesh, that I should give eternal life to as many as thou
hast given me. I pray not for the world, I pray
for them which thou hast given me. They are thine, and all thine
are mine, and mine are thine. The Father gave him these sheep.
The Father gave them. My Father which gave them me
is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of
my Father's hand. Who's the chief person in this
part of this parable? It's the shepherd. Now notice
in verse 5. This search, in verse 4 and 5
together, this search is a personal search. It says that which of
you having a sheep, verse 4, does not leave the 99 and personally
go after that sheep. He didn't send somebody after
that sheep. He didn't call a hireling to go find a sheep, because a
hireling whose sheep is not to shepherd, they won't follow.
He comes himself. The Lord Jesus Christ goes after
that which is lost. And what's the second thing?
He goes into the wilderness. It's a costly search. Where is
the wilderness? It's this world. God's glory,
God's heaven is perfect, immaculate glory, holiness. Christ left
heaven, that's probably where the 99 are, and came into this
world. Old Testament saints came into
this world, the wilderness of sin, and endured all that that
wilderness put upon him, a man of sorrows, acquainted with greed,
tempted in all points as we are, yet without sin. Our Lord endured
the wilderness, and he endured it personally, suffering, and
he persevered. He, listen, and he goes after
that which is lost. How long does he pursue it until
he finds it? The shepherd will never come
home without that sheep. You see, the Heavenly Father made
him our servant, put us into his hands, and sent him into
the world to redeem a covenant people. And he'll not come home
until he's bought them, found them, called them, every one
of them. And then the cry is, lift up your heads, O ye gates,
even lift him up, ye everlasting doors, the King of glory will
come in. Who's this King of glory? He's
the Lord of hosts, the Lord of many, the successful, triumphant,
victorious, redeeming Lord coming in, bringing his sheaves with
him. That's right. Personal, it's costly, it's persevering,
and it's unaided. And when he found it, he put
it on his shoulders. He doesn't leave one of his sheep
to a caretaker, a counselor. to some of these people that
in religion to make their own way, he personally puts that
shade on his shoulders and he bears it all the way through
life. Cast your care on him, he cares for you, don't cast
it on somebody else. He cares for you. He puts that
sheep on his shoulder and brings it home, and it's successful.
And when he comes home, verse 6, he calls his friends and his
neighbors, saying, Rejoice with me! I found my sheep, lost and
out of them, ruined by the fall. I found every one of them. Now
you come and rejoice with me. And there's joy in heaven over
one sinner, one lost sheep, one of the Lord's own. whom the shepherd
brings home. But he doesn't stop there. He's
talking to these people, said he's a friend of Senator. Yes,
he's the chief shepherd. They're his sheep. But he brings
somebody else into the picture. Either what woman, having ten
pieces of silver, and she lose one. Does not light a candle,
sweep the house, and seek diligently till she finds it." Now, who's
the chief person? And when she finds it, she calls
her friend. Now, who's the chief person here?
It's the woman. It's not the coin. The coin's
lost. Doesn't even know he's lost. Lying there in the dust,
satisfied. He doesn't care whether he's
in her hand, in her purse, or on her cabinet, or in the desk.
What difference does it make to him? But he's lost in her
house. And we're lost in his house.
This is my father's world. The earth is the Lord's and the
fullness of the world and all they that dwell therein. He raises
up the wicked even for the day of his purpose and power. It's
her house. And she calls for a light. She
needs something in her hand. to find this colon. Now I know
the shepherd, that's the Lord Jesus Christ, goes out and finds
his sheep. He doesn't need anything or anybody.
It's just his suffering. He found it and brought it home.
But this woman's the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit needs a light
when he goes seeking for sinners. This is the light. Thy word is a light unto my path
and a lamp unto my feet. The colon is fallen. in the dust,
as we are. The coin is lifeless and ignorant
of its state, as we are. The coin is valued by the woman.
It's important to her, and she's going to have it back. So she
lights a candle, and she sweeps the house, and she goes around
with that candle, till that candle zeroes in on that coin. There's
my coin. There's my coin. Turn to 1 Thessalonians
chapter 1. This person pictures the Holy Spirit,
and this light is the Word of God. It says here in 1 Thessalonians
1 verse 4, knowing brethren your election of God, I know your
God's elect. How? Because our gospel came
not to you in word only, it came in power, in the Holy Ghost,
and much assured. It came in word, but it came taught and revealed and enlightened
by the Holy Spirit who brings that Word. It's the Spirit of
God. It's not by might nor power,
it's by my Spirit, saith the Lord. So you have two things
in the birth of a sinner. You have the Holy Spirit and
you have the Word. Born of the Spirit and the Word. Turn with me to Ephesians 1.
Ephesians chapter 1. Verse 13, in whom you trusted,
Ephesians 1 verse 13, in whom you trusted after you heard the
word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also
after you believed you were sealed with the Holy Spirit upon us.
The Holy Spirit comes with the word. Like Lydia came down by
the seashore. by the riverside, where they
were meeting to pray. Paul the Apostle came, and he
preached the word. It doesn't say much about many
of those women, whether they heard or not. Actually, they
heard with these ears. But Lydia, whose heart the Lord
opened, attended to the things spoken by Paul. The Holy Spirit
came with the word, with the light. She was found. Whosoever
shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, but how
shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how
shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And
how shall they hear except there be a preacher? Who is that preacher? Well, God uses men, but here's
the preacher. I want you to turn to John 16.
Here's the preacher. Here's the one with the lamp.
Here's the one that makes it effectual. Here's the one that
makes it regenerating, illuminating, enlightening. Verse 13, John
16, verse 13. How be it when he, the Spirit
of truth, is come? John 16, verse 13. When the Spirit
of truth is come, he'll guide you into all truth. He'll not
speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he
speak, and he'll show you things to come. He'll glorify me. He'll receive a bond and show
it to you. There's the one. So what our
Lord is saying here to these people, the shepherd is the Lord
Jesus Christ who came to redeem his people. The woman seeking
the coin is the Holy Spirit using the Word. Without the Word, there's
no light. All is darkness. Without the
Word, there's no opening of the mind. You know, I may have eyes,
but I can't see if there's no light. A person with no eyes can't see
with light or anything, but a person who has eyes can't see if there's
no light. We can't know who God is unless
he tells us. We can't know who we are unless
he tells us. We can't know who Christ is,
what he did, why he did it, where he is now, unless he tells us.
Got to have light. And that light's got to be in
the hands of the Spirit of God. And there's joy in the presence
of the angel over one lost sheep, one lost coin. All right, let's
get to the next part of this parable. And he said, still talking to
these men, a certain man had two sons. Well, you know the
story here, the younger one. I'll read it later, but not right
now. But who's the chief character,
the special person in this? It's not the son. It's the father. That's right. This is an account
of the love and mercy and grace of the father in receiving those
whom the son brings, whom the spirit finds and enlightens. I've heard preachers preach this
part of the parable here as an account of a man's conversion,
but this is not an account of a man's conversion. It's the
account of our heavenly Father's love for his children, his loving
kindness even when we're lost and dead in sin and have offended
him so greatly, and his willingness to receive us, to accept us in
Christ and to welcome the the prodigal back to the house. You
say, Preacher, this is not account of a man's conversion. No, there's
no seeking Savior here. There's no cross of suffering
here. There's no one gone into the wilderness to find him. There's
no Holy Spirit here. There's no Holy Spirit conviction.
There's no light of revelation. There's no gospel preached. If
you just read this part of the text only, without the Savior
who died and the Holy Spirit who regenerates and taken as
this man coming to himself. Well, you've got sinner save
yourself. That's what you've got here. You have to preach. He's out here and didn't hear
anything. Had no influence on him. No one seeking him. No one
hunting him. No one coming to save him. He
just came to himself. I'm going back home where things
are better than out here. That's not how we come. We don't
just say, things are better over at the house, you know, and if
I still had my money, I'd stay where I am. No. No, that's not
right. He's got to want to go home,
and that's the sheep has got to be found. The coin has got
to be enlightened. This is a story of the Father.
Let's see here, beginning with verse 17. He came to himself. And he said, how many hired servants
in my father's house have bread enough and to spare? And I'm
perishing. It's strictly a physical thing here. It's strictly being
upset over a physical thing. I'm going to rise, and I won't
go home. Nobody found him. Nobody put him on his shoulders.
Nobody brought him home. He walked home. Now, that's not
conversion. You see what I'm trying to point
out to you? That's not conversion. And I'm going to say this and
say that and say the other, you know. But now here's the great
thing. Great story here, verse 20. And he arose and came home. But
here he's a great way off. This focuses on the Father. And
we're talking about a great way off. He must have been coming
over a hill somewhere. A great way off. What's the Father
doing? He's looking for him. He's looked
out that window ever since that boy left. Never stopped loving
him. Never ceased to love him. Never
stopped hoping he'd come home, he just kept looking. And one
day he saw a familiar figure coming over out here. His father
saw him a great way off and had compassion. Just suddenly, well,
there's that renegade coming back. Oh, he wept over, many
a tear over that boy. Saw him coming home, had compassion,
always had compassion. Our God is full of compassion.
And he literally ran. He literally walked out that
door and ran out there, ran out there, and fell on his neck and
just covered him with kisses. Now what's that saying to you?
That's saying one thing right here. We're talking about a son.
We're not talking about a stranger. We're talking about a son. This
is this man's son. His father saw him, loved him. and ran and fell on his neck
and kissed him. And you can expect, I don't care
how far out in the wilderness you've gone and how far into
sin, you can expect, when the Lord Jesus Christ brings you
home, the Father will accept you. He's been looking for you.
That's right. Have compassion. Well, the son
said, Father, I've sinned. I said, well, in your sight I'm
not worthy to be called a son. But the Father paid no attention
to that. It's not time for confession
here. It's time for reunion. It's time for embracing. It's
time for rejoicing. Time for rejoicing. My son's come home. And he turned
to his servants and said to them, bring the best robe. That's the
righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ. When a sinner comes,
when a sinner's found with a shepherd, redeemed with a shepherd, Brought
home by the shepherd, and the Holy Spirit's given him a love
for the shepherd, and an understanding of his sins, and an understanding
of who saved him. And the Father will cover him
with the best robe, the righteousness of Christ. Put a ring on his
finger. What's the ring mean? He's an heir. The king wears the crown of the... The ring of state and the prince
wears it too. Somebody said that ring means
the love of God never stops, it's constant, no edges. But this is airship, the love
of God. Put shoes on him, the best shoes. Shoes on his feet. He's going
to walk in paths of righteousness, walk with God. That's going to
be his walk from now on, he's going to walk with God. and bring
him to the fatted camp. Got to have a lamb, hadn't we? Got to have a table of the Lord. We got a robe of righteousness,
we got a ring of sonship, airship, we got shoes to walk in paths
of righteousness, and we come around the table of the Lord
and take the bread and the wine and say, we live by his love,
live by his grace. That's it. This man receives
sinners, and so does the Holy Spirit. And bless your heart,
so does the Father. Embraces them, receives them,
and loves them forever, because he always has. There he is. And I want you to always remember,
when you look at this parable, he wasn't looking for volunteers
or strangers. He was looking for his sheep.
and his coin, and his son. And they do get lost, don't they?
We can testify to that, every one of us. But he'll find them.
Other sheep I have which are not of this foal, them also I
must bring. And they shall hear my voice.
They'll be one foal, one shepherd. My father gave them to me. And
they're not only in my hands, they're in his hands, and nobody
can fuck them out. That's good news. What those
fellas saying? Bad to them, that's good to us.
Shame to them, glory to us. I'm glad my Heavenly Father loves
wayward sons. That's right, because that's
the only kind He has. And that's the only kind you
have too. That's right, daughters too. The only kind you have.