Pointing Others to Jesus, Our Good Shepherd
Sunday’s Verse:
From Luke 15:4 ESV
(Jesus said) “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, 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?”
Jesus tells this parable to a group of Pharisees and scribes who are complaining that He receives sinners and eats with them. But what to them is scandalous, He declares to be grace.
The shepherd does not abandon the ninety-nine to go find the one lost sheep. He doesn’t leave them alone in the wilderness to go search for the lost. It’s not neglect. It’s not foolish. It’s love. It’s the heart of God.
God doesn’t sit around waiting for us to find our way back to Him. He leaves the ninety-nine and goes searching for you and for me. Jesus went searching for you and for me, and that’s our Savior.
And this is the Gospel: that we are not only called to believe this, but to live it. If we say that we are followers of Jesus, then we are also called to love what He loves. And He loves the lost.
We do not simply spread the Gospel with our words, but with the way we live. In humility, in compassion, in integrity. We live it by crossing the road to help the hurting, by forgiving those who don’t deserve it, by risking comfort in order to speak truth in love.
The world doesn’t only notice what we preach, it notices whether we live like we believe it. Christ didn’t rescue us to live a safe and silent life in the sheepfold. He sends us out into the world to seek the one, to be the reflection of His mercy, and to point others to the Shepherd who still saves.
Prayers
A Prayer for Today:
Lord Jesus, You came to find the lost—and that was me. Thank You for not giving up on me. Please help me to live in a way that honors the Gospel I confess. Give me courage to speak of You and compassion to love like You. Let my life point others to the Shepherd who seeks and saves. Amen.
Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Luther’s Morning Prayer:
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.
The photo above was licensed through Unsplash+