When we say "we love and we care" for the lost, this must include loving and caring about their souls. As Christians, we need to love what God loves. We need to hate what God hates. We need to delight in what causes God to rejoices! In these two parables, we learn that God delights in the repentance of sinners. Heaven’s joy at the repentance of one sinner is like the rejoicing in these two stories. God delights in the repentance of sinners.

Luke 14 ends with Jesus saying, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Luke 15 begins with the notice that all the tax-gatherers and sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him. They had ears to hear what the Saviour was teaching. But the Pharisees and scribes were grumbling, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

It is clear that these tax collectors and sinners who are coming to fellowship with Jesus, want to hear Him because they understand their need and they long for what only He can give them through His life and through His death on the cross in their place. They are hanging on every word but not the Pharisees and scribes. They’re not listening because they don't understand their need. Do you understand your need? We should examine ourselves to see if we have truly repented.

Our text this morning is Luke’s account of two parables, each of which describes the finding of a lost item, and each of which describes the joy and celebration which resulted. Jesus takes this common experience we have all had in life and He applies it to a very important spiritual use.

Discussion Questions

1. Where’s the balance between “bad company corrupts good morals” (1 Cor. 15:33) and spending time with sinners?
2. Should all Christians be seeking to spend time with the lost, or just those with the gift of evangelism?
3. Jesus maintained His holiness and yet sinners seemed comfortable in His presence. How can we do the same?
4. Some argue that you can have saving faith without repentance. How would you refute this biblically?