REJOICING OVER ONE REPENTANT SINNER

Passage: Luke 15:1-10

Key verse: 10

NIV

The Parable of the Lost Sheep(A)

15 Now the tax collectors(B) and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”(C)

3 Then Jesus told them this parable:(D) 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?(E) 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’(F) 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.(G)

The Parable of the Lost Coin

8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins[a] and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’(H) 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”(I)

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Footnotes
  1. Luke 15:8 Greek ten drachmas, each worth about a day’s wages
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

15 Now (A)the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes (B)grumbled, saying, (C)“This man receives sinners and (D)eats with them.”

3 So he told them this parable: 4 (E)“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, (F)if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine (G)in the open country, and (H)go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, (I)he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for (J)I have found my sheep that was lost.’ 7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who (K)repents than over ninety-nine (L)righteous persons who need no repentance.

The Parable of the Lost Coin

8 “Or what woman, having ten silver coins,[a] if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? 9 And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ 10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before (M)the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

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Footnotes
  1. Luke 15:8 Greek ten drachmas; a drachma was a Greek coin approximately equal in value to a Roman denarius, worth about a day's wage for a laborer
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

Jesus’ high-level discipleship did not chase people away. On the contrary, tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear him. They knew he received them as they were and was working to heal them (5:31-32). Even though Jesus had explained it to them, the Pharisees still could not understand why Jesus welcomes tax collectors and eats with them. Jesus tried another angle: three parables to help them understand God’s perspective towards sinners.

Losing one sheep out of a hundred seems like a small loss. But to a shepherd each one is precious. The shepherd does anything to find the lost sheep. The joy of finding it elicits a celebration worthy of sharing with all. God’s joy for each of his righteous ones is immeasurable. Yet, his joy over one sinner who repents is ninety-nine times greater!

The woman’s loss of one coin out of ten is tragic. Yet she does not despair. She overturns everything, cleaning from top to bottom until that one lost coin is found. The joy of finding it outweighs all the labor of searching and is so great that it must be shared. Likewise, God’s rejoicing overflows from heaven when we repent.

Prayer: Father, I’m amazed at your joy at one repentant sinner. Help me to be quick to repent, and quick to share your joy when others do.

One Word: Rejoice with God when the lost are found