Until He Finds It
WHEN WE LOOK AT JESUS — PART 3
What Jesus Says About Being Lost
“…go after the lost sheep until he finds it?” Luke 15:4
Missing, Not Unwanted
When someone we love is missing, we don't stop caring just because we can't see them. We want them with us, so we look because we love them.
Jesus tells us about a shepherd searching for one sheep and a woman searching for one coin. Neither stops because finding what is lost has become inconvenient.
They search until they find it.
Still His
The sheep belongs to the shepherd while it is lost.
The coin hasn't lost its value, and the son in Jesus' next story doesn't stop being a son because he has left home.
He returns ready to ask for a servant's place. His father runs to embrace him and calls for a celebration.
The son is preparing to negotiate; his father is already welcoming him.
What Jesus Is Showing Us
If we want to know what the Father is like, we look at Jesus.
These are the stories He chooses to tell us about being lost and found.
I can become so caught up in how far I've wandered that I forget whose heart Jesus is revealing.
Abba isn't deciding whether I'm worth loving; His love is the reason He wants me to know the joy of life with Him.
Welcome Into The Joy
Being found is more than discovering the way back.
It is discovering how deeply we are wanted, and learning to receive and share that welcome.
Lost has never meant unloved. We don't return to persuade the Father to care; we return to discover the Love that has loved us all along.
Reflection
Where have I confused feeling lost with being unloved?
What do these stories reveal about Abba's heart?
Who might experience His welcome through me?
Prayer
Abba Father, help me receive Your welcome and share it with someone who feels forgotten. Amen.