If you don't know that you are lost, can you really be found?
Okay, it's a hypothetical question, one that probably can't fairly be answered. In Luke 15, Jesus tells three stories about lost things. One is a lost sheep that the shepherd goes to find, leaving the 99 safe and secure in the pen. The next is a lost coin, one out of 10 that a woman has, and she sweeps her whole house to find that lost coin, presumably keeping the other 9 in a safe place. Then, Jesus follows up with the longest story, that which is commonly known as the prodigal son. A son asks for his inheritance, leaves home, squanders what he was given, comes home, and dad throws a party, to which the older son seems to refuse to be part of.
Naturally, in these stories, we have a tendency to focus on the lost object, and to identify ourselves with that lost object. And yet, for people like myself, who were washed in baptism at a very young age and who know no other life than that of being part of God's Church, the question above may speak very appropriately to us: if you don't know that you are lost, can you really be found?
Right away, the first answer has to be, yes, you really can be found. After all, it is God who rescues us in Jesus' life, death, and resurrection for us, and in God's gifts of grace given to us. In a sense, that's where the stories I mentioned above come in. The primary person in each of the stories is not the lost object, nor the ones who were safely kept, but the one who did the searching. It's the shepherd going out to find the lost sheep. It's the woman looking for her lost coin. It's the father who joyfully receives his son into the family of his origin. The point of the stories is not the lost one, it's the one who finds and receives and celebrates.
Yet, we can lose that sense of being a lost one. Many, like me, have been "found" for so long that we don't truly comprehend the depth of what it means to be lost. We have lived our lives knowing that God loves us, that Jesus saved us, that God wants to do good for us. It seems shocking to suggest otherwise.
But perhaps that is where most of the people that we encounter daily actually are. Perhaps they wonder if God is even there, much less if God wants to do good things to them. They see the hardships of life, and think that God, if He exists, must have it in for them. They may know the name Jesus, but overall, society points to Jesus more as a good teacher and moral man than Savior, and so they don't know that they have been rescued from the futility that they experience in life. They see God as waiting with thunderbolts in hand, and if they walk through the door of that church, won't He throw it at them, since only "good" people go there?
In some ways, it's hard for someone like me to relate to someone who truly feels lost and separated from God. But that's not even the point. The point is, I also am lost, no matter how much I may not experience it. My sin, which may not be as bad as theirs from a worldly standpoint, is just as deadly in God's eyes as theirs. I am truly lost and fear standing before a wrathful God, even if my worst sin is a simple white lie to my wife, or that paper clip I stole from work.
Do you know what a good cure is when we find ourselves not able to relate to those who truly seem to be experiencing that lost sense? It's to go out there where they are, to see their life without passing judgment on it, to get to know them and care for them, and see where their struggles are. Not doing it as an outreach, but doing it out of Christian love. Our hope is that God's Spirit works both in us and in them, growing us in our care and concern for them, and drawing them to their Savior through our interactions with them.
Perhaps that's the answer to the question. If those who are found don't sense their lostness, perhaps going out and experiencing life with those who are lost will help deepen our faith and appreciation for the lengths our God goes to on our behalf.
Okay, it's a hypothetical question, one that probably can't fairly be answered. In Luke 15, Jesus tells three stories about lost things. One is a lost sheep that the shepherd goes to find, leaving the 99 safe and secure in the pen. The next is a lost coin, one out of 10 that a woman has, and she sweeps her whole house to find that lost coin, presumably keeping the other 9 in a safe place. Then, Jesus follows up with the longest story, that which is commonly known as the prodigal son. A son asks for his inheritance, leaves home, squanders what he was given, comes home, and dad throws a party, to which the older son seems to refuse to be part of.
Naturally, in these stories, we have a tendency to focus on the lost object, and to identify ourselves with that lost object. And yet, for people like myself, who were washed in baptism at a very young age and who know no other life than that of being part of God's Church, the question above may speak very appropriately to us: if you don't know that you are lost, can you really be found?
Right away, the first answer has to be, yes, you really can be found. After all, it is God who rescues us in Jesus' life, death, and resurrection for us, and in God's gifts of grace given to us. In a sense, that's where the stories I mentioned above come in. The primary person in each of the stories is not the lost object, nor the ones who were safely kept, but the one who did the searching. It's the shepherd going out to find the lost sheep. It's the woman looking for her lost coin. It's the father who joyfully receives his son into the family of his origin. The point of the stories is not the lost one, it's the one who finds and receives and celebrates.
Yet, we can lose that sense of being a lost one. Many, like me, have been "found" for so long that we don't truly comprehend the depth of what it means to be lost. We have lived our lives knowing that God loves us, that Jesus saved us, that God wants to do good for us. It seems shocking to suggest otherwise.
But perhaps that is where most of the people that we encounter daily actually are. Perhaps they wonder if God is even there, much less if God wants to do good things to them. They see the hardships of life, and think that God, if He exists, must have it in for them. They may know the name Jesus, but overall, society points to Jesus more as a good teacher and moral man than Savior, and so they don't know that they have been rescued from the futility that they experience in life. They see God as waiting with thunderbolts in hand, and if they walk through the door of that church, won't He throw it at them, since only "good" people go there?
In some ways, it's hard for someone like me to relate to someone who truly feels lost and separated from God. But that's not even the point. The point is, I also am lost, no matter how much I may not experience it. My sin, which may not be as bad as theirs from a worldly standpoint, is just as deadly in God's eyes as theirs. I am truly lost and fear standing before a wrathful God, even if my worst sin is a simple white lie to my wife, or that paper clip I stole from work.
Do you know what a good cure is when we find ourselves not able to relate to those who truly seem to be experiencing that lost sense? It's to go out there where they are, to see their life without passing judgment on it, to get to know them and care for them, and see where their struggles are. Not doing it as an outreach, but doing it out of Christian love. Our hope is that God's Spirit works both in us and in them, growing us in our care and concern for them, and drawing them to their Savior through our interactions with them.
Perhaps that's the answer to the question. If those who are found don't sense their lostness, perhaps going out and experiencing life with those who are lost will help deepen our faith and appreciation for the lengths our God goes to on our behalf.
Thanks Pastor Scott, very thought provoking. A distillation of God's plan of salvation for us. With the prodigal son, the father shows us his endless love and compassion, another thing we sometimes lose during our busy lives. Sometimes I need to step back and contemplate, meditate, and figure out how to help those that are lost. Keep on sharing
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