Luke 15:1-10; Lost and Found

"Now all the tax-collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.’

3 So he told them this parable: 4 ‘Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? 5 When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbours, saying to them, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.” 7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance. 8 ‘Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? 9 When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbours, saying, “Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.” 10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.'"

Introduction

These briefly-expressed but beautiful parables are often considered solely in context with 15:11-32, the parable of the prodigal son, but I would like to suggest that they first be understood in reference to ch. 14. Recall Jesus' rather harsh and tough words in 14:25-34? That those who come after him must "count the cost"? Well, we normally read the "count the cost" advice in the context of the words just spoken ("hate" mother and father, etc.). But, I think we ought to read "count the cost" also with what follows, which is these two parables. That is, counting the cost before following Jesus takes two things into consideration: (1) the new definition of family; and (2) God's rich mercy. Thus, the concept of "counting the cost" is removed solely from its rather ascetic connotation and given a new "life" in the grace of God. I think that is a good emphasis.

These parables address the theme of the diligence and care of God in searching out and finding lost things, and the divine joy when they are found. Three times in this chapter, and twice in our reading, the refrain or idea behind the refrain appears: "more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than in X (number) who don't.." In telling his parables to the crowd, some of whom want to catch him in his words and others who seem to appreciate his words, Jesus puts his listeners in the place of God. Think about that for a moment. Rather than identifying with those who are the lowly or oppressed, his listeners here are to put themselves in the divine shoes.

We can profitably divide the first ten verses as follows: (1) the grumbling of some people; (2) the structure and meaning of the parables; (3) the joy at finding. Or, if you are looking for a pnemonic device, we have: (1) Complaint; (2) Care; and (3) Celebration. Let's go with the latter.

I. Complaint

If people found fault with Jesus, people can find fault with anyone. And they did. Framing these two parables of divine grace are grumbling words. The grumbling comes from a sample of all types of people (tax collectors, Pharisees, etc.) and it is to the effect that Jesus "welcomes sinners" and "eats with them." What an indictment! Jesus seems to practice what he preaches. Recall that in the previous chapter Jesus encouraged those holding feasts to welcome the lame, blind, maimed and poor (14:12-14). Apparently he was "guilty" of doing that himself. The word for "welcoming" is a word frequently appearing in the Bible for "showing hospitality." Jesus was, in the minds of his opponents, building a "power base" among the disaffected. I am sure that had Jesus lived in the 20th century, those "in charge" would have accused Jesus of having "revolutionary" or communistic" impulses. He simply wasn't a guy who easily affirmed the status quo. How many times do we have to "hear" that in Luke's Gospel until we accept it as true?

II. Care

The heart of the these parables, however, is the mercy of God. In the course of ch. 15, Jesus tells three parables, each with a rising proportion of things lost to total things in the parable. The parable of the sheep tells of a 1/100 ratio between lost and "non-lost" sheep; the parable of the coins gives us a 1/10 ratio, while the prodigal son story is a 1/2 ratio. The structure of the verbs in vv. 3-10 is also striking. A table will help:

Lost Sheep

Lost Coin

leave

light

sweep

find

carry

find

call/rejoice

In other words, the action is portrayed with a similar list of verbs. In the parable of the lost sheep more emphasis is placed on the care toward the sheep after being found while with the lost coin the stress is on the diligence of the search. Thus, care and diligence are the essence of the search.

Notice, too, that the parables are each one sentence in the Greek. This means that they are, as it were, rushing along until they reach the climax in the calling together of friends and the rejoicing at the end. Though action includes the searching and finding, the direction of the parable is the joy at finding.

III. Celebration

Or, the other way of putting the previous sentence is to say that the direction of the whole is towards a celebration. A party is what is called for. Notice there is a celebration not because something new is attained or acquired. This isn't a party where one person says to friends, "Come on over and see my new boat; my newly remodeled kitchen; my new car, etc." In contrast, the parables here celebrate something that the person already possessed. We usually confine our celebratory parties to things that are new or just accomplished; the Biblical parables focus on something that is "rediscovered." Isn't that a suggestion for us to consider? Why not celebrate the return of something lost, the recapturing of a feeling, a relationship, an image, a thought? Could you imagine throwing (or attending) a party where the major reason for its being held was that the host had found something? What if, for example, a person had recovered health or an idea that had left the person for a while?

Conclusion

By putting the listeners in the place of God, Jesus is subtly doing even more to undercut the power of the Pharisees and other opponents. People gladly put themselves in the divine "place." And by so telling these stories, Jesus makes his opponents look small, indeed. We are left with the lingering question of whether petty will triumph over gracious. For a while, it looks like it will...

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