The Father’s Heart [Lost Sheep]
3rd FEBRUARY, 2021
“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?” [Luke 15:4] NKJV
From as early as the days of Abel (Genesis 4:2), sheep have depended on shepherds to survive. It can’t be helped: sheep are clueless and often defenceless creatures. If you’ve ever seen a sheep cross the road, you’ll recognize that these gentle beasts stand no chance without a shepherd.
Every once in a while, a sheep would innocently wander off, and according to Jesus, in our opening text for today, God’s immediate response is to leave the remaining 99 and go after that 1 lost sheep.
It’s often hard for us to relate to this idea for two reasons:
1. We are not that lost sheep. We’re comfortable in our safety and don’t need extra saving. Or…
2. We are not shepherds. We cannot relate to the effort that goes into raising a single sheep.
Before slaying Goliath, David related to King Saul how he chased down and killed both a lion and a bear to save his lambs. Do you see how weird that sounds? It’s because you’ve never tended a sheep. The constant feeding, guiding, shearing, and treating of diseases; all these efforts are foreign to us in our urban settings. This is why we can easily say, “But it’s just one sheep.” Where we see one sheep, a good shepherd sees investments of blood, sweat and tears.
This is why Jesus cannot help but pursue lost sheep. Everything He suffered on the cross was in exchange for that one lost sheep; the Lamb of God’s life in exchange for a lost lamb — me, you, and even the souls we have given up on.
We need the Father’s heart! In this Kingdom, we don’t give up on lost sheep. The Lamb deserves the full reward of His sacrifice. Are you a lost sheep? We would love to help you find your way home.
Heavenly Father, thank You for loving us so dearly. Even when we wandered away from Your fold on our own accord, You did not abandon us to the wolves. Thank You for coming to find and save us. We pray that You will work through us to also find the many who are still lost, Amen.
Further Reading: Luke 15:1–7 / 1 Samuel 17:34–36
Bible In One Year: Exodus [15–18]
