Welcome to this new episode of the Gospel for the Nations podcast. This podcast has been brought to you by Pastor Kareem. Our desire is to open the Word of God with you and to speak in a way that is clear, simple, and full of grace. Wherever you are listening from, we pray that the Holy Spirit will touch your heart through his word, strengthen your faith, and draw you closer to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01So what a great joy to meditate together on this beautiful parable of Jesus. The parable of the lost sheep. So many of us have heard many times before this parable. But do we truly understand its meaning? If we approach it only on the surface, we might simply conclude that Jesus knows his sheep. And that is certainly a biblical truth. Jesus knows his sheep. For scripture teaches that he has known his own from before the foundation of the world. But this parable also reveals something more. He comes to seek them. Because they cannot come to him on their own. He comes to gather his sheep, the ones whom the eternal father has given to his son. It is through the sovereign and mighty work of God that the sinner is sought, found, called, and brought to salvation by his grace. So Jesus clearly shows us that God, in his infinite love, compassion, and mercy, is calling sheep today to come to him, to hear his voice, and in doing so to be saved. And when we repent, when we turn away from the ways that are contrary to God's ways, with a humble and sincere heart, God, in his faithfulness, welcomes us and brings us into his kingdom, carried like a sheep on the shoulders of our good shepherd, Jesus Christ, his only and one only Son, who gave his life for all who believe in him. Amen. This is what God is calling us today. Let us now read together this wonderful parable, full of love, grace, and truth. Shall we? Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, This man receives sinners and eats with them. So he told them this parable. If he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the one that is lost until he finds it. Just so I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons who need no repentance. Amen. I think everybody knows this parable, right? It's in the three gospels. So we are going to examine this passage verse by verse so that we can better understand what Jesus is teaching us here. Verse 1 and 2. Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, This man receives sinners and eats with them. So this is the context of the parable. In the religious context of that time, Jesus was recognized as a rabbi, a teacher, not only by his disciples, but also by the crowds. So from the perspective of the religious leaders, it was unthinkable that Jesus would draw near to sinners and spend time with them. It was impossible. They were unclean, kind of cursed also. These men and women who likely drunk, stole, lived in rebellion, or behaved in ways that society considered shameful. So the tax collectors worked for the Roman Empire, collecting taxes from their own people. They were despised by the Jews, regarded as traitors, and often accused of enriching themselves dishonestly. In the eyes of religious leaders, they were the kind of people who were worthless, lost, and despised. People they considered unworthy of God's grace and blessings. But yet these people were drawn to Jesus because he drew near to them. He was approachable and never hesitated to meet them in the darkest places, even in their lives. Though he himself was fully God and fully man and without sin. So this attitude and words of these legalistic religious leaders are not what God desires from us. He calls us to go to those who are broken and lost, to those who are spiritually sick in their sins, so that we may bring them the light of Christ through his life-giving word, the gospel of salvation. As the apostle Paul says, so faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. But it's also through our actions that we demonstrate our identity as children of God. To be an ambassador for Christ is to live out what the Master, our Master, teaches in the scriptures. So if we do not share the good news of salvation in Christ, how can we be living witnesses of the grace of God? The grace that He has shown us. How? When Jesus ate with them, he was sharing moments of fellowship, closeness, and communion. He drew near to these lost sheep, to sinners who needed to hear and see the love of God displayed through his word. This reminds us that whenever we go where people are spiritually and physically broken, God glorifies himself through Christ. In turn, he calls us to do the same, exactly the same. Jesus laid the foundation to his entire healthy ministry. And then his disciples continued that work by faithfully proclaiming and leaving out the gospel of Jesus. And if we are here today, it is not by mere chance. Perhaps God is calling you to come near to Jesus and to understand who he truly is. Do you hear his call? So do not harden your heart, but listen to his voice. For even today, the good shepherd is calling his sheep to come to him. Even today. So he told them this parable what man of you having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the 99 in the open country and go after the one that is lost until he finds it. So here Jesus asked the people around him a question by using the example of a man who wants a flock of sheep. So in that region, sheep were a common part of everyday life, making this a simple and familiar picture that everyone could understand. So our Lord deliberately uses the image of a shepherd with a flock of 100 sheep to reveal a heavenly reality that was unfolding before their very eyes. So through this picture, Jesus reveals the love and mercy of God. Even though the ninety-nine sheep are safely accounted for, the absence of just one is enough for the shepherd to immediately go in search of it. Immediately. What is missing? So Jesus wants us to see how precious that one sheep is in his sight. You are precious. Not at all. It is the lost sheep that the good shepherd comes to seek, so that he may bring it back into his fold with the rest of his sheep. In this passage, several verbs deserve our attention. And be careful of what he says. So let's break it down. Having the word having reminds us that the flock belongs to a shepherd. I know my own, and my own know me. Just as the father knows me, and I know the father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not in this fold. But I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock and one shepherd. Amen. The other one is losing. From a human perspective, a sheep that wanders away is truly lost, right? From a human perspective. Yet the true sheep of the good shepherd can never be lost forever. Because God knows his sheep. And he will bring every one of them in the flock. Jesus also said in the Gospel of Matthew, it is not the will of my father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. One of those. Rather, he leaves them in safety while he goes to search for the one that is lost. I leave the 99, they are safe. I will go to the lost. And going. This verb points us to the very mission of Jesus. Who came to seek the lost sheep of the house of Israel? And by extension, it also shows us the path we are called to follow as disciples of Jesus Christ. To go to the ends of the earth and proclaim the gospel of salvation. This is a command of our Lord that has been given to his disciples, but also to us. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that they have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age. And finding this is an important one until he finds it. The shepherd finds the sheep that had wandered away. This reminds us that God does everything necessary to seek and save lost sinners through Jesus. Though he himself was without sin, Christ endured death so that the sinners might be reconciled to God and brought into his flock, his kingdom. The prophet Isaiah says, All we like sheep have gone astray. All we have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. And when he has found it, he lays it shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost. So you notice that the text does not say, if he finds it, but rather when he has found it, there is no certainty. The shepherd finds his sheep. In the same way, it is certain that the Lord calls his sheep. He has been doing so throughout the centuries. And he continues to do so today. And will continue until he returns. What a great joy! What a grace! What a privilege. The picture of a shepherd placing the sheep on his shoulders with joy is a beautiful one. He carries the sheep because it has gone astray, so that he will not become even more exhausted. A sheep can grow weary from wandering. It may lose its way among the mountains and valleys, searching from the right path but never finding it. Until all its strength is gone. So when Jesus declares that he is the good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep, he once again confirms both who he is and what he came to accomplish among the people of God. And he is still accomplishing that saving work today, calling his sheep. Then the shepherd returns home. When there is a great rejoicing, hallelujah. Friends and neighbors to celebrate because the lost sheep has been found. This home points us to the kingdom of heaven, where the redeemed and the angels rejoice together in the glory of God. Where Jesus reigns as King. Amen. Those whom he calls his friends become fellow heirs with him. And will share in that heavenly inheritance forever, eternally. The shepherd's joy in finding his sheep also reminds us that salvation is never the result of chains. Never. It rests upon the eternal purpose of God. So if you are here today, it's not by chance, by coincidence, it's a divine appointment for your life. Before the foundation of the world, God choose in Christ those whom he will found, he will save by his grace. Ephesians 1, 3 to 6 says, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus. Even as he chooses us in him before the foundation of the world. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself, as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace. But likewise he says again, for those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son. And those who he predestined, he also called, and those whom he called, he also justified. And those whom he justified, he also glorified. Romans 8 29 30. And the last one. Colossians 3 12, the apostle Paul says, put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. So when the good shepherd finds one of his sheep, he's perfectly fulfilling the sovereign plan that God established from all eternity. And that is why heaven rejoices. Because we don't belong to this world anymore. We belong to a greater kingdom. Just so I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons who need no repentance. So when Jesus says, I tell you, we can sense that he's speaking directly to them with authority. I tell you. When he speaks of the 99 who need no repentance, there are two main interpretations of this verse. The first interpretation understands Jesus to be speaking ironically to his audience, referring to the Pharisees and scribes, who believed that had no need of repentance. In contrast, he goes to seek the lost sheep of Israel, the convicted sinners who recognize his need and repentance without resistance, his sheep. And the second interpretation understands Jesus to be referring to those who already belong to the flock of the Good Shepherd. They have already experienced the repentance that leads to salvation and now live in fellowship with Christ. But this interpretation best fits the broader teaching of Scripture, which consistently describes Christ's sheep as those who have already repented and now belong to Him. So, yes, once again, this joy in heaven also marks the fulfillment of God's saving work. Whenever a soul is saved by grace, according to God's sovereign purpose, heaven and the angels rejoice. It is the moment when the lost sheep is brought back into God's flock, of which Jesus both is the door and the shepherd. He is the door through whom we enter the way, the truth, and the life. And he is the shepherd who watches over his sheep from his throne at the right hand of the Father. Yet there is one thing God calls us to do here, repent. For there is no salvation without repentance. At this point, we might ask, if repentance is necessary for salvation and entrance into the kingdom of God, why does scripture also say that we are saved by grace and not by works? We have to do something, do we? So if we return to the picture of the lost sheep, the answer becomes clear. When Jesus calls his sheep, they hear his voice and return to him because they know they cannot save themselves. They are wandering. They are exhausted. They are hopeless. So repentance is not a work, a work that earns salvation. It is the heartfelt response of the one who God is calling back to Himself. It is a response. There is a call, and we have a response. Amen. So to repent is to leave our own path and return to God's. It is to turn away from sinful ways and walk in his holy and righteous ways. It is to acknowledge our weaknesses, confess that we have gone astray, and sincerely seek God's forgiveness. Because we have lived like rebellious children before our Creator. The Almighty God who is holy, holy, holy. And because of our sin, we are opposed to His holiness. The Apostle Paul reminds us of the importance of repentance toward God. It is an attitude of heart that leads us to acknowledge and confess our sin, so that we may turn away from it through the help of the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. We cannot do it by our own flesh. It's impossible. It's only through the work of God within us. Act 20, 2021 says, I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ are the two responses God produces in our heart of the sinner, so that he may be reconciled to him and receive the forgiveness of his sins. So in our daily lives, when we realize that we have wronged someone that we love, it is natural to ask for forgiveness, right? Yes. How much more should that be true when we have sinned against God? To return to the foot of the cross, to lay everything before Christ and to ask his forgiveness for life lived apart from him should fill us with even greater joy. Because through Christ we have been restored to fellowship with our Heavenly Father. But this doesn't mean that the believers no longer need to repent. So we repented once and for all for our past, present, and future sins. It's fine, no problem. But this is not what Jesus says. Repentance remains a daily part of a Christian life. It is how we continually submit ourselves to the Holy Spirit. And therefore to God and his holy sovereignty over our lives. Each day we acknowledge our sins, confess them, and return to our Lord, not in order to be saved again. We're not talking about salvation here, but because we are already his children and desire to walk in holiness. The Bible says that we have to confess our sins with each other, and this helps to grow with one another. So, to conclude this message, today the Lord Jesus Christ is calling his sheep. He desire that they come to him without delay. He is calling. So let me ask you this question in the name of Jesus. Where are you? Sheep, where are you? Will you hear his voice? Will you turn away from your rebellious ways and return to the ways of the living God? Where are you? Let us not neglect this gracious invitation from God. Let us not refuse the blessing of the eternal rest that is freely offered to us in Jesus Christ. It is a gift of grace that will last forever. Yet one that was purchased at a priceless cost through the blood of Jesus shed on the cross of Calvary. So at the same time, this parable is also a message of encouragement for those of us who already belong to Jesus, his church. There may be times when, for various reasons, we drift away from our good shepherd. We may lose sight of his ways and expose ourselves to real spiritual danger to the attacks of the enemy that is roaring as a lion who seeks to devour and destroy. We may also become discouraged or face many different temptations and at times even fall into them. Yet our God, in his infinite love, provides a gracious solution filled with mercy and compassion, which is repentance. He calls us back to the sheepfold, back to his ways, so that we may leave the darkness and walk again in his marvelous lights. Amen. I wanted to share a scripture before we are ending. For this is you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds we have been healed, for you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the shepherd, overseer of your souls. Sheep, where are you? Amen. So what can we learn and apply? Four simple sentences. The lost sheep recognizes his shepherd's voice. So I ask you again, where are you? Amen. Praise God. So let's pray. Heavenly Father, Almighty and Sovereign God, we thank you for your word, for your grace, which enables us to know you, to worship you in spirit and truth in this place, Lord. We thank you because you are a merciful and compassionate God, we ask you to deepen our conviction that Jesus Christ is the good shepherd, the one and only Savior. We surrender everything to you, Lord, everything in your hands, trusting you completely and choosing to walk by faith. Keep us in the narrow path, your path, and continue to sanctify us, transform us into the likeness of your Son, Jesus Christ. We thank you, O Lord, our Lord and Savior, the good shepherd of our souls, and the head of this church. We pray all these things in the mighty name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Hallelujah. Praise God.
SPEAKER_00Thank you for listening today. If the Lord used this message to bless you, feel free to share it so others can also be encouraged and strengthened for the coming days. Keep seeking Him, keep reading His Word, and keep trusting His grace every single day.