Tuesday 14th March
Read Luke 15:1-10
“Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering round to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, ‘This man welcomes sinners, and eats with them.’
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 ‘Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbours together and says, “Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.” 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need to repent.” (NIVUK)
This beautiful parable in response to the muttering of the Pharisees and teachers against Jesus welcoming and eating with sinners has much to teach us and much could be said. But spend time today dwelling on just this. The single-minded pursuit of one lost sheep.
The sheep is ignorant of its lostness – it is simply seeking the next green patch to satisfy itself. The owner of the sheep, knowing it is lost, pursues it with determination, forgetting all else, including the majority of his possessions! The seeking is all his. The sheep contributes nothing but hassle. The effort required in bringing the sheep back is all the work of the owner of the sheep. The sheep is laid upon his shoulders with joy. The burden borne joyfully. The celebration equally so. And this celebration arises over the return of one lost sheep. Amongst one hundred. No loss is tolerated. How ferociously are those who belong to the shepherd pursued and returned! What comfort lies in this parable for those sinners who realise they are lost only when Jesus finds them and saves them.
Some may wonder about the apparent reckless abandonment of ninety-nine sheep but I am content with Luther’s reflection on that aspect of the parable: “The learned and idle may determine the meaning of the ninety-nine in the desert. It is enough for us to learn the main thought of this Gospel.” That ‘main gospel thought’ is articulated by Jesus elsewhere. He will do everything needed, himself, to bring that one lost sheep home…
“‘I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. 13 The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 ‘I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me – 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father – and I lay down my life for the sheep.” (John 10:11-15) (NIVUK)
