The Lost Sheep, the Found Sinner
O God, because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
The Collect for today expresses the heart of the gospel reading: God is the Good Shepherd who seeks the lost, who leads us with love and patience, who forgives us and brings us to the feast of joy. All of us know the experience of losing and finding something precious. A child feels relief when a lost toy is found. Families rejoice when they meet a loved one after many years. Even finding a misplaced item can bring freedom and peace. These moments are not only about the object itself, but about the restoration of relationship, the return of stability, the confirmation that what was lost still matters.
Today’s gospel reveals this truth in our relationship with God. The difference is this: we are not the ones searching. God is the one who seeks. And what is lost is not an object, but our very lives.
Luke 15 shows that Jesus’ actions shocked his society. Tax collectors and sinners gathered to hear him, but the Pharisees and scribes complained:
“This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.” (Luke 15:2)
In the world of Jesus, a shared meal was not just food. It showed who belonged and who did not. To sit at table with sinners was to cross social and religious boundaries. Jesus was not only being kind; he was announcing a new order of God’s kingdom. He showed that God does not divide people into pure and impure, but welcomes all. To explain this, Jesus told the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin.
In the first parable, the shepherd leaves ninety-nine sheep in the wilderness to look for the one that is lost. From a human perspective, this seems foolish. Yet in this action, we see God’s love. In Scripture, God is often pictured as a shepherd. Psalm 23 begins, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” In Ezekiel 34, God promises, “I myself will search for my sheep… I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak.”
When the shepherd finds the lost sheep, he lifts it with joy and carries it home. This shows what true community is. No one is left behind. When even one is missing, the whole body suffers. But when the
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one is found, the whole community is strengthened. The ninety-nine also learn that they will never be abandoned. This trust builds unity and hope. To seek even one lost life is not a small gesture; it is the way a community is kept alive.
The second parable shows the same truth in a different picture. A woman loses one silver coin out of ten. For her, this is not just money but security for her household. Losing one coin threatened her stability. So she lights a lamp and sweeps the house carefully until she finds it.
This persistence reveals God’s unfailing love. Even if we wander far, God does not give up. God searches every corner until we are restored. And when the coin is found, the woman calls her friends and neighbors to rejoice with her. What was at risk was not only her possession, but her peace and stability. Its recovery restored her sense of security, and her joy could not be contained.
So too, when God restores one lost life, the whole community rejoices, because everyone is bound together. Psalm 139 gives voice to this truth:
“If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast.” (Psalm 139:9–10)
No matter where we go, God’s hand is already holding us.
Our world today often feels broken. Violence and hatred still tear communities apart. Just last week, many were shaken by the news of a young political leader who was shot and killed at a university in Utah. Regardless of political stance, we grieve the way fear, suspicion, and hostility can erupt into deadly violence. Such tragedies expose the deep divisions and wounds of our time. The prophet Jeremiah once cried out:
“My people are foolish, they do not know me; they are stupid children, they have no understanding. They are skilled in doing evil, but do not know how to do good.” (Jeremiah 4:22) Jeremiah’s harsh words came from deep sorrow over the blindness of his people. Yet he also saw that even in destruction, God’s steps were still approaching—not to destroy, but to call his people back. Just as parents discipline a child out of love, so God’s judgment is not only punishment but also an invitation to return. Even when the world seems to collapse, God does not abandon us. God comes as the shepherd searching for the lost, as the woman determined to find what is precious.
At the heart of both parables is repentance and joy. When the shepherd finds his sheep or the woman her coin, they invite neighbors to celebrate. Jesus says:
“There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous 2
persons who need no repentance.” (Luke 15:7)
God’s joy is not in the ruin of sinners but in their return. The world celebrates success and achievement, but God rejoices in restored life and renewed relationship. Every time we celebrate the Eucharist, we share in this heavenly joy. The table of the Lord is not for the perfect, but for all who turn back in faith.
The apostle Paul is a clear witness to this grace. Once a persecutor and violent man, he became a servant of the gospel. He called himself “the foremost” of sinners, yet he received mercy so that Christ’s patience could be shown through him (1 Timothy 1:15–16).
These parables are not only stories from long ago; they are God’s invitation to us today. They call us to restoration. When the lost return, their place in the community is renewed, and the whole body is made complete again.
They also call the church to go beyond safe walls. The mission of the church is not only to care for those inside, but to seek those left out: the forgotten, the voiceless, the powerless. To embrace them is not optional; it is what makes the church truly the church.
Finally, these parables invite us to share God’s joy. God rejoices when even one life is restored. When the church welcomes back the lost, it becomes a sign of that joy for the world.
God’s heart is always turned toward the one who is lost. This persistent love gives life to the whole community. The ninety-nine also gain hope because they know they will never be abandoned. Even when the world seems to fall apart, God still seeks us. When the church becomes a community that searches for the lost and refuses to give up on one another, then it becomes a witness of God’s joy. And in that joy, the world may glimpse the very heart of God.
Amen.
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