Jesus Pursues The One, And We Should Too

You can feel it in the room when someone remembers where grace first met them. That’s where we begin—owning the messy, specific ways Jesus changes a life—and then we widen the lens to what a church looks like when it beats with the same pulse. Luke 15 becomes our map: a Shepherd who risks for the one, a woman who tears the house apart for a single coin, and a heaven that throws a party louder than our skepticism.

We talk candidly about a subtle drift that happens in churches when a platform defines the culture instead of the Savior. Holiness-by-distance was the Pharisees’ strategy; holiness-by-presence is Jesus’ way. He sat with people we’re tempted to avoid, learned their names, and loved them before they knew what to do with it. That’s not soft on sin; that’s strong on rescue. We unpack why belonging must precede becoming, how baptism embodies freedom, and where self-help cannot carry the weight that only the cross can hold.

From there, we get practical. What does a Luke 15 culture look like in your week, not just on a Sunday? It looks like one more chair at your table, one more text to the person who wandered, one more patient conversation where shame has been loud. It looks like remembering we were the ones on the ledge or lost under the dresser—and refusing to write anyone off. Jesus built his movement with people the religious world called “not good enough.” If he could entrust them with the world, he can trust you with your street.

If this resonates, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs hope today, and leave a review to help more people find these stories of rescue and renewal. Your “one” might be waiting for an invitation you can give.

Transcript

Church Culture Versus Christ’s Heart

Luke 15: Jesus With Sinners

SPEAKER_01 1:05

So if you're here last week, you got a fairly emotional me, right? And not there's anything wrong with that, but but I do try to find myself balanced. Because my my concern is, especially when we have new people, if they see me up here sobbing, they might never come back. Because they're gonna be like, that is way too big of a man to be shedding that many tears. But but I I needed to share part of my testimony because I need you to understand how important the message of the gospel is to me. Jesus has radically changed my life. And I cannot overstate that. And so listen, that that brings up in me, and it should, this this feeling of grace and humbleness and humility. And it overwhelms me. Because it is only by the grace of God that I've been found. It's only by his mercy that he has saved me. I I didn't do anything to earn this. If anything, most people probably have written me off. But God looked at me and said, that's him. That's the one that I want. And so for me, that is incredibly it's an emotional moment for me because I've been giving my life to Jesus when I was 15, so almost 25 years, 25 years ago. It's I still think about that. And I and I pray that the older I get, the more that becomes who I am, because that that defines me, right? And and so one of the reasons I think that's important is they say culturally, when you look at a church culture, the church culture tends to follow the minister, the preacher, which by the way, I think is crazy. Because I shouldn't be you shouldn't be following me. You should follow Christ. I'm just a guy. My name's Jason. Hi. I'm broken, I'm flawed. I did not die for you. I probably would for some of you. You take that however you want. Some of you might push me in front of a bus. That's okay, right? But but I didn't die for you. And Paul says this as I follow Christ, so you follow him. Right? And so the culture of the church should not be defined by the person in the pulpit, it should be defined by the heart of the Savior. Jesus created this church, that is his church. This belongs to him. You and I are just vessels. I think about this when I think about King Saul. King Saul was only in power because God let him be. Every church across, listen, I to all my minister friends out there, I love you. You're wonderful. Understand that the pulpit you have is because God has given it to you for right now. That's his choice. He has decided to allow me to be in this place. And so my goal is to try to be as much like him as possible and to create a church that is as much like him as possible. And so that's where Luke 15 comes into play. You know, it's interesting because so it starts out, it's pretty ordinary day. Jesus is going about his business and he's teaching. And so the Pharisees, the Pharisees, as always, are confrontational in everything that Jesus does. So Luke 15, chapter 1, says, now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus, but the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, This man welcomes sinners and he eats with them. So the Pharisees coming, they see Jesus sitting around sinful people. What's up, Stacy?

SPEAKER_02 5:19

How are you? I'm good.

SPEAKER_01 5:21

This is Stacy and Dan, in case you guys don't know them. Um, two years ago, right? You guys been here two years, almost three? Yeah. So I had the privilege, I baptized both of them, and then same day went to their house and married them on their front porch. Coolest thing I've ever done. And they've been here every day. Like when they're not in this seat, if you guys aren't here, I don't know what to do. Right? They're faithful, right? But they're sinful. This is the kind of people that Jesus sat around. Yeah, the grinders. I love the grinders. I didn't tell you guys I was gonna do this, but hey. Rob and Casey, fantastic. Casey makes this dessert. What's it called? The one with the whipped cream and the caramel?

unknown 6:12

Snicker salad.

Naming Names To Make It Real

Why The Pharisees Missed It

The Lost Sheep Explained

The Lost Coin And Heaven’s Joy

Salvation, Baptism, And Freedom

Religion That Excludes Versus Love That Pursues

Remembering We Were The Lost Ones

The Culture We Must Build

Found By Jesus, Not By Self-Help

SPEAKER_01 6:13

Snicker salad. If you told me that every time I ate that, it made me a diabetic, I would still eat it. I would risk it. Rob's a fantastic cook. Nolan knows more about baseball than anyone I've ever met in my entire life. And that might be include Cody, but he didn't hear me say that. So you take that up with him. Yeah, Candy wrestles. He has a Bible study that he does at his house. But they're sinful. They're sinners. They're not perfect. Right? And so this is the point that Jesus is trying to make. He's looking at all of these people. He's sitting them. He's getting to know them. He's building relationships with them. And so the Pharisees, and it's very telling what they do because as they mock him, as they kind of scoff, they say he sits with sinners. That statement alone tells me everything I need to know about them. They consider themselves as not being sinful people. They have convinced themselves that in their mind they do all the religious things, and surely they don't need a savior. But here you have the Messiah, the Son of God, and he's walking around and he's spending his day. People like Dave and Alicia. Good family, by the way. Big in the Cub Scouts. I think Dave is the only one. So Rob and Dave both have smokers. I think you both should have a smoke off because I think it's worth seeing who's better. But but this is what Jesus did. He sat with people and he met them in their life, and he got to know them and he learned about them. But guess what? They're still sinful people. Because they're they're broken. Where's Glenda? I think Glenda went downstairs. Amanda and Glenda are the reason why this building looks so pretty. It's not me. I don't do it. Right? But but this is what Jesus did. He he came and how you doing? How's your life? How's your family? He knows who they are. Listen, the difference between me and Jesus is Jesus knows all your sin. By the way, if any of you thought I was gonna sit down and start like calling out your sins, I wasn't gonna do that, I promise. But this is what he did. He sat among people, he got to know them, he built relationships with them. And so the Pharisees come along and they see this and they scoff at him. And they say, who is this guy, this this messiah, this son of God, sitting with tax collectors and sinners? We can be like that sometimes. Sometimes we're careful who we talk to. We're careful who we associate ourselves with. You know, because if we're honest, some people fit our idea of a good person more than others. It's not Jesus. Because to Jesus, you and I are on the same playing field. Now, some of us might have it more together. Some of us are our brokenness might be more evident, but Jesus didn't care. He sat among people who were lost and who were hurting, and the Pharisees stood off at a distance mocking him. That's the problem. That's the problem then, and that's the problem now. We we oftentimes make it as if church is only the only place where perfect people can come. And and listen, we in in whether we mean to or not, we have this expectation in our mind that if I gotta go to church, I've got to have it all together. I've had people tell me this, like like I can't come to church until I have it all figured out. I'm like, have what figured out? And they give me a list. Or I like I like what I do in my life, so I have a couple different roles, and a lot of people know that I'm in ministry. And and one of my I think it's funny, but people bust around me and they're like, Oh, I'm sorry. I'm like, who do you think I am? I'm not God. By the way, you shouldn't cuss, but I'm not God, it's not my place. Or and I sit among crowds, and and and and I've had this conversation with people not here, but other churches, that why are you hanging out with them? Because Jesus would. Because Jesus found himself sitting among the most undesirable people of the day because the Pharisees were failing them. So Jesus has this interaction in Luke 15 with the Pharisees, and like Jesus, he he tells three parables, and we'll start with two. He starts with the lost sheep. And it's fitting that he talks about the lost sheep. Most of the the crowd he's talking to, they're they're farmers. So Jesus starts the parable and says, Listen, listen, listen, come in, scoot in. I I always think that Jesus, when he told stories, he was probably like the guy that come up like closer. Closer. So what if you, if you had you guys had sheep, if you were in charge of a hundred sheep and ninety-nine of your sheep were safe, and one wondered on, what would you do? Right? He he immediately puts it in their perspective and says, You you have these, and one of them is lost. And if you are a good shepherd, you will do everything you can to securely keep the ones who are the 99, right? So you want to secure them in place. You're not gonna leave them wandering, you're gonna protect them. But once they're safe, you will do everything you can to go find the you will sacrifice your time, your energy, your money, your resources, everything. Because if you're a good shepherd, you're gonna pursue them. Then he says, when you find sheep, you're gonna pick it up and celebrate. Because although you have 99, man, you found the one. That's what you do. You, being human, would celebrate the finding of one sheep. What in the world when I not celebrate the finding of one person who needs me? Right to the Pharisees. There's a slap in their face. You're over there protecting yourselves, making yourself holier than thou, and I'm sitting among the very people God sends you to find, and you're doing nothing for them. How can you belittle me when I'm sitting among my people? They need to know who I am. Yes, they're living sinful lives. Yes, they're doing things they're not supposed to be doing. But someone has to love them because you aren't. That's the heart of the gospel. Jesus says, This is who I am. I'm a good shepherd, I'm a great shepherd. I will leave everything just to find the one. When I find them, when someone finds me, the angels will rejoice louder than anything else. Because this son, this daughter of mine was lost. Now they've been found. He says, okay, hold on. Let me give you another example in case that one doesn't resonate with you. He says, imagine that you have money. There, there's a lady among you that has money and she's lost one of her coins. She will tear apart her house to find it. She will do whatever she can. You guys ever lost something so valuable that you literally look like someone robbed you when you're done looking for it? Because it matters to you. You will pour your heart and soul and time and effort. You will do whatever it takes to find this one thing. And when you do, what do you do? You she calls her friends and she celebrates this coin that I have lost, that I have found. And if she has good friends, they'll celebrate with her. The bad friends will be like, what coin? But but he says, listen, this is what God is like. As one of these people, as one of these lost, sinful people, find me. The angels rejoice. The angels rejoice. Can you like imagine that? The the angels themselves, they sing. Every time someone gets baptized in this place, I love the fact that we do made for more. But every time someone gets baptized, and every time they come by the water, God has never given me the ability yet. But I would love to see the heavens open up. To see the rejoicing that is happening in the moment that someone who is lost is found. Because that's what Jesus is arguing for. He says, You call them sinners, you call them broken, you call them awful, you you won't sit with them, you won't talk with them, you won't touch them. You mock me because I'm holy. I'm the Son of God. I'm the only one who has every every right to reject them, and I don't. Because they are broken. God sent you Pharisees here to tell people about Him, to bring my people to Him. And instead, you make it more difficult than ever. You turn them away. You have all these religious practices because you don't love my creation like I do. That's the heart of Jesus. That's why Luke 15 is so important. The gospel summed up comes down to the fact that Jesus loved us so much that he pursues us relentlessly. He comes for us. He came to this earth. He died for us. While we were still yet sinners, he gave up his life. That's why. That's why I get emotional. Because while I was still very much broken and very much lost in my way. Paul talks about it in Romans 6, and we talk about baptism, that we are buried into his death so that we can experience his resurrection. It sets us free. The salvation that Jesus offers, he took our place when we give our life to him, when we commit our life to him, when we when we're obedient to him, and we do what he calls us to do, we accept what he's done for us. Right? I love having this conversation with younger kids when we talk about baptism and the need for it. And one of them said to me the other day, I just don't want to be sinful anymore. And it breaks my heart because you shouldn't understand what that is. But you live in a world that we see brokenness, right? We we see what it is when things aren't right, when we know things aren't right in our mind, the way we act, the way we live. And the only way to be set free from our sin is by accepting the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. That that's it. So that's what Jesus is saying to the Pharisees. Listen, you had an opportunity to sit among these same people. And yet all you did was make them feel more like an outcast. You told them that they had to do this and dress this way and act this way and follow all these rules. And if they could somehow clean their lives up, God would accept them. And Jesus says, here I am, sitting among the crowds. The crowds that you detest. Because you have failed to realize that they can never save themselves, but that I've come to save them. Jesus stepped into a very broken world. Still is. But he stepped into a very dark time, especially for the people of Israel. Rome was oppressive. The Pharisees were even more so. People were lost and hurting and broken. And and yet he saw these sinful broken people. He knew that there was hope for them. Some of them saw it. Some of them didn't realize it until much later. Easter's coming up, by the way. Some of them understood the resurrection. Some of them it took them a minute. But I think it's the same for us, right? Like we talk about Easter. We talk about the resurrection of the king. We talk about how Jesus died for our sins and he saved us. And then we go outside and we treat our neighbor like they don't deserve it. Like somehow you and I get to decide who Jesus died for. Can you imagine that? Seriously. Can you imagine every time someone would accept Jesus, God was, hey, uh, hey Rob. What do you think? Yeah? No? Maybe in the middle? If that's the case, there's a lot of people that would have given up on me a long time ago. There's a lot of people in this room that people would have given up on them because it's not up to you and I. Jesus came, He lived, He died. A perfect sacrifice. We are always going to be the lost sheep that have been found. We are always going to be the lost coin that are found. Listen, it's not that we don't celebrate being found, we shouldn't. But we can never forget where we started. You and I only have what we have because the king of all of creation, the Son of God, stepped down into the world to seek the very people that could not find him on their own. When you talk about a church culture, man, that's the culture I want. We've done a lot of cool things here. We have a lot of great plans for the future. I don't know what God's doing. Sometimes I think I do. Sometimes I just sit back and watch. Faith, right? Trust Him. We've done a lot of cool things. There's gonna be a lot of changes moving forward. And we've already seen some of those things. And Lord willing, when we build up on the property, there's gonna be changes like we're ever evolving. That's a wonderful thing. But the one thing that can't And not change. The one thing that has to define us is our pursuit of the loss. Always. That's what Jesus came for. That's what he started the church for. That's what he's given us the ability to do is to reach people in this community who do not know him, to be salt and light in a world that is desperate for him. We are not a country club, nor will we ever be. The only access to the kingdom is through him. The only way the church in the world today makes sense is if our one priority and our one hope and our one focus is to point people to Jesus. I've said it before. I don't want people coming here because I preach here. That's don't do that. Please don't. Don't put me up on a pedestal, man. I don't want that. The only reason people should come here and the one thing that should keep them here is because they find Jesus, they find his salvation, and they find his transformation. And you and I, as we continue, like the people I sat with today, by the way, I know I didn't sit with everyone, don't take it personal. I don't have all the time in the world, but I thought about it. But the people that I've sat with, my heart and my prayers as they go into the world outside of this place, they understand the importance of taking the message of the gospel to somebody else, of bringing somebody else in, of helping people understand that yes, you might feel like you're lost. Yes, you might feel like there's no hope. But let me tell you about the God of changing my life. Let me tell you about the God who continues to transform me. Let me tell you about how lost I was. Because I need you to understand that I didn't find me. He found me. I didn't find myself in a self-help book. I didn't find the right answer in therapy. Listen, I'm not saying these things are bad. I didn't find myself at the bottom of a bottle. I didn't find myself in this relationship. I didn't find myself in titles or money or any of that. I was only found by the one who saved me. He gives me purpose. He he took my life. He took this broken 15-year-old kid. By the way, would you guess that when I was 15 years old, the last thing that I ever wanted to do was public speaking? I hated it. I didn't want to be in front of people. People stare at you. It's weird. People make un unweirdly like eye contact because they stare at you. I didn't want that. I didn't want any of this. I just want to live my life. And then God found me and it changed me, and I realized that I didn't want any of this, but he wanted me, and now I want everyone else to know that he wants them to. Not because I'm special, not because of who I am, not because of my background or my family connections.

SPEAKER_00 26:06

Only because the Son of God stepped into the world and chose to find himself among sinful people like me.

A Call To Sit With The Least

Nobodies Who Changed The World

Mission Over Metrics

SPEAKER_01 26:31

In this moment, the Pharisees have a choice to make. And he challenges them. He says, listen, I'm sitting among these people because you aren't. But you should be. These are the people who need me. These are the people that are lost. These are the people that are, yes, they're sinners, yes, they're broken, but but I've come to save them. And their reaction to him is quite telling. They get even more upset. A couple other gospels, they they start to plan ways to crucify him. Imagine, imagine, imagine this, right? That Jesus tells you that you need to seek lost people more. And your first reaction is, I should kill that guy. Because he was a threat. He was making the kingdom available to them in their mind to nobody's. Sinners, tax collectors, prostitutes, what is he doing? That's the point. The only thing good in me is Christ. That's that's what makes me good. The spirit of God in me that continues to push me to love and to be like him and to be transformed and work on things in my life. It's Christ in me that's good. It's not my theology, it's not my wisdom, it's not my stature, it's not my skills. The only thing good in me is Christ. And so many people outside these walls are missing him. Because either we've made it too hard for them, or the world's convinced them they're just not good enough, or maybe they can just get it together. And Jesus sits among the tax collectors and the sinners and says, Okay, you can't do it, but I can. I mean, I think about the 12 disciples. He used them to change the face of the world. These 12 nobodies. By the way, you know why they were fishermen in the lot? Because they weren't good enough to be Pharisees. You know that? They, at some point, you know, you're as a Jewish young man, your goal was to grow up and be a religious leader. That's the goal. But they weren't good enough. So they chose a trade instead. To the day, at the time, they were not good enough to lead people to follow God, and here they are changing the world. Paul, listen, Paul being the exception, because Paul was a Pharisee among Pharisees, but man, God radically changed his life too. But God used these nobodies to grow the kingdom. You and I stand here, sit here, worship here today. Because twelve nobodies not only understood salvation and embraced grace, but they took the call to share that message faithfully. They went into the world telling people of this Jesus that they found. This guy who used to eat with us, drink with us, sit with us, the Son of God used to sit at my table. And when I couldn't save me, when I couldn't save myself, he did. The pursuit of the loss has to be our goal. It's not to build a church, it's not to have the coolest worship, it's not to have a good preacher. Those are important. But the mission of our church, the mission of the church as a whole, has to be and will always remain. We are seeking those who Jesus loves. We are sitting among the broken, the tax collectors, the Pharisees, the adulterers, the addicts. We sit among them because we know that we were sinners just like they were. That's where the Pharisees messed up. Sits with sinners. Yeah, like me. Some 15-year-old kid that had no purpose, no focus, no value. Felt that way. God used some 15-year-old kid from Stoonville, Ohio, and I have been here, I've been lived in other places, I've been in other countries. I I've shared the gospel on more continents than I ever thought I would in my entire life. I I have worshiped in Africa. I walked in the Dominican Republic. I spent time with a man who spread the gospel everywhere that he went. I have been places, I have done things that I never thought I would do in my life. I've been to Greece. I walked through one of the very first churches that Paul planted. Listen, I'm not I'm not saying this to brag. I'm telling you, this is what God can do when someone gives their life to him. It's not because it's me, it's not because I deserved it. I didn't earn it. Don't be so quick to write someone off.

SPEAKER_02 33:47

Because who knows what God can do. Some fifteen-year-old kid.

SPEAKER_01 34:09

This is why we love people. This is why we meet people where they are. This is why we share the gospel everywhere we go. Because everyone deserves to be found.