Focus : Youth and Temptation
Day 2 : Sunday
Let the Celebration Begin
Some months ago I preached on the
Intentionality of God’s Grace and what it does for all human beings; many
persons turned their lives over to Christ. After the service, my wife and I
stood at the door with others and greeted the congregants as they left the sanctuary.
Twenty-four-year-old Juan was one of the young men who responded to the alter
call. He told us that he was a second year University student who had not been
to church for many years but recently it had been on his heart very strongly
that he needed to return to the Lord. He woke up that morning, and just had a
feeling that he should attend church; he took three buses to get there that
Sabbath morning He passed many churches along the way, but ended where he felt
the Spirit of the Lord led him. He said he was satisfied that he attended the
right church at the right time. He was over just bubbling with joy to learn
that Grace included him in God’s plan”. We eventually introduced him to the
pastor and one of the elders of the Church. He stayed for lunch at church and
spent the rest of the day there. He participated in the afternoon Bible Study
conducted by the Church pastor, and enjoyed the special youth service that
followed; one of the elders took him home after the meetings. Introduction “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? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying
to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ Just so, I
tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than
over ninety–nine righteous persons who need no repentance” (Luke 15:4–7). This
parable as told by Jesus is a hypothetical story that does no disregard the
ninety–nine that remain in the pasture. In fact the ninety–nine plus the one
comprises the entire flock of sheep and is representative of the whole
membership of the church. He used this parable because in the uplands of Perea,
raising sheep was a common occupation, and many of His listeners were shepherds
so it resonated very well in conveying the message He wanted to communicate.
While the emphasis of this parable seems to be on the lost sheep, we must not
lose the inherent messages about a) the ninety–nine grazing sheep, b) the one
lost sheep away from the flock, c) the shepherd, and d) the celebration. The
Ninety–Nine Grazing Sheep We have chosen to focus on the ninety–nine grazing
sheep before the one that was lost. Luke 15: 7, “Just so, I tell you, there
will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety–nine
righteous persons who need no repentance.” There is a comparison made in this
verse between the ninety–nine grazing sheep and the one lost one away from the
flock. Impression may be gleaned that there is no care for the sheep that is in
the fold and that greater emphasis is placed on finding the lost and rejoicing
upon the occasion of the recovery of the lost. If Jesus’ use of this parable
was intended to represent the Church and hence the Kingdom of God, then the
ninety–nine are significant because they have the function of making the
shepherd significant. They are the flock for Him to boast about and take care
of. They make the shepherd pleased about them. They are his treasure. God is,
after all, also pleased with the members of the Church who remain. He is
pleased with the righteous (Luke 1:6) or those who aspire to be righteous.
Ellen White said, “The Son of God stooped to uplift the fallen. For this He
left the sinless worlds on high, the ninety and nine that loved Him, and came
to this earth to be “wounded for our transgressions” and “bruised for our
iniquities” (AA. P. 432). This parable is more concerned about the joy of the
Lord than the attitude of the sinner. When a young man or a young lady or
anyone for that matter, re-mains in the
faith and lives the repentant life every day, there is joy in heaven.When all
the members of the church live that sanctified life, joy is multiplied in heaven
every day. Everyone is special and significant to the Lord. Conversely, Jesus’
message conveyed through Luke’s theology is that only those who repent will be
saved and not the seemingly righteous; joy is now in heaven over the repentant,
rather than just at the final judgment. It must be noted, that among the
ninety–nine that remain, there are those who think they are righteous and have
no need to repent. They are so self–assured and self–confident that they see
all the faults in others are able to determine who is converted and those who
are just playing church, and how the Lord has already spewed them out of His
mouth. There is a relevant story of a man who developed an affinity for sheep
and wanted to become a sheep. He went to the shepherd and told him he would
like to become a sheep and inquired what shape–shifting actions he needed to
achieve such metamorphoses. The shepherd took it for what he thought it meant
and moved on as he thought the man was just gloating in his love for mythology.
However, at his insistence, the shepherd told him he had to look like sheep so
he went and got himself dressed in sheep’s skin and went among the sheep. When
he approached them, they ran, so he went back to the shepherd in disgust. This
time he told him he had to walk like the sheep. He watched them, practiced the
walk and then went walking among them. Again they ran. He went back to the
shepherd who told him he had to talk like them. He practiced and again, when he
went into their presence they ran. Back to the shepherd he went, who told him
he had to eat like them. That he did, but the reaction of the sheep did not
change when he went into their presence. Exhausted and disappointed, he went
back to the shepherd who finally said to him, “You look like a sheep, you walk
like a sheep, you talk like a sheep, you eat like a sheep, but you are not a
sheep. That is why they reject you.” Among the ninety and nine who are the
members of the church, there are those who are like that gentleman. They do
everything like Christians. They read the scriptures, they pray, they attend
the various services of the church; they may even have leading roles in the
church and are vegetarians. Some are
prayer warriors. They may be supporters of the church financially, return tithe
and offering and always contribute to various initiatives of the church and so
do not see themselves in need of anything. Yet they lack that heart conversion.
That total commitment to Jesus. They fail to spend time alone with Him and are
more concerned about fame, popularity, conceit, and secular things. Because we
grew up in the church and have never left does not mean heaven is rejoicing
about us. Are our lives testifying to the glory of God? Are we sharing our
faith in meaningful ways to others? Are we genuine? Can people take our words?
Do our words and our action match up? What happens when we are out of the sight
of others, what is our deportment like? There are some sick sheep within the
fold among the ninety–nine who need the attention of the shepherd. He is
reaching and calling and beckoning by means of the Holy Spirit, and the sheep
need to respond. There are those who consider themselves among the ninety and
nine who are actually aware that only their physical presence are there, but
their minds and thoughts are away from the flock. The others must do what they
can to nurture them. Not to push them away. Everyone’s conversion experience does
not come the same way and at the same time. That is why the sanctifying
experience of those in the faith should serve as an influencing catalyst to the
weaker vessels. That is why Jesus said “Let both grow together until the harvest:
and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘Gather up first the
tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my
barn’” (Matthew 13:30). The difference between the actual wheat and human
beings is that the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit is able to transform
the unconverted into powerful disciples. The Christian community is replete
with stories of young people who were shallow and frivolous in their spiritual
walk but who are stalwarts of the faith today because they remained in the
company of the ninety and nine and were inspired, influenced and motivated by
the Holy Spirit, the Grace of Christ and the encouragements of the spiritual
community. He is also interested to see repentance among the ninety and nine by
sharing the joy of the Lord in celebrating the salvation of sinners.In this
parable, Jesus was also emphasizing that ninety–nine self–righteous people who
keep all the rituals, festivals, and rules bring no joy to heaven, but one
sinner who confess his sins and repent sets off party time in heaven. God is
concerned about the lost that will admit they are lost and through the aid of
the Holy Spirit return to Him. He wants to help all of us put our sinful life behind
and follow Him. Pharisees or hypocrites will never do this, because they do not
realize they are lost! They always count themselves among the saved, even
though they have never repented of their sins. Today, the ninety–nine need to
get the party in heaven going. We must repent of our sins and be saved, not
just the one lost sheep away from the flock. Jesus wants the whole flock, one
hundred, not ninety–nine and neither is he only interested in one. Nonetheless,
to get to the one hundred, He begins with one!
The One Lost Sheep Away from the
Flock
In
telling this parable, Jesus did not specify if the lost sheep away from the
flock was a ewe or a ram. However, He wanted to emphasize the Shepherd’s interest
in those sheep that go astray irrespective of their gender. He specifically emphasized
one that developed an interest in other pastures and whether suddenly or
gradually left the company of the ninety–nine. Bowe Robert Bergdahl is a US
soldier who was held captive by the Taliban–aligned Haqqani network in
Afghanistan from June 2009 until his release in May 31, 2014. The circumstances
under which Bergdahl went missing and how the Taliban captured him became a
subject of intense media scrutiny. While there were numerous theories about his
disappearance, the facts suggested he was captured off base. Under Taliban
control, he knew he was captured, he knew the circumstance of his capture, he
was indoctrinated controlled and oppressed by his captors and had even lost the
ability to speak his own language fluently. However, the United States was
committed to leave no soldier behind and went in search until they entered in
an exchange deal to get him back into their ranks. This is an apt illustration
of what happens to many young people of the Church. While God did not enter
into an exchange, he sent His only begotten Son whom He loves dearly (John
3:16) to come in a combat situation to reclaim them all. What Love! And what
great rejoicing when they return. In one Sabbath School lesson that we studied
many years ago, it was explained that in a flock of sheep, it was normal for
each one to remain with the flock for up to eight or nine years, which was long
enough for the shepherd to name them and for them to recognize their shepherd’s
own signature call. Every night when the flock enters the fold, the shepherd
holds his rod across the entrance a few inches above the ground. As each sheep
passes under the rod, the shepherd inspects it for injuries and illness. In
that way, the shepherd identifies his own sheep very quickly. John 10:3 (NIV),
which corroborates this reasoning, says, “The gatekeeper opens the gate for
him, and the sheep listens to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and
leads them out.” It was further explained that the shepherd also counted his
sheep and would know immediately if even one was missing. The Clear Word
Devotional Bible renders Luke 15:4 accordingly: “If you owned a hundred sheep,
wouldn’t you be concerned if one of them were missing? Wouldn’t you leave the
ninetynine who are peacefully grazing in someone else’s care and go looking for
that one lost sheep until you found it?” Jesus knows every member of the Church.
He knows us by name. He knows our special marks and temperaments. He knows our
desires and aspirations. He knows our tests and our trials. He knows our
strengths and our weaknesses. He knows what makes us happy and what makes us
sad. We are His and He is our shepherd. When one goes missing, He does not
leave the ninety–nine unprotected to go in search of the one. However, He goes
in search! Let us remember that Jesus the great shepherd is omnipresent. He can
be everywhere at the same time. He is omniscient, there is nothing that He does
not know and He is omnipotent, there is nothing that He cannot do. None of us
needs to feel that because He is attending to the other sheep, He does not have
time for us. “For this is what the LORD Almighty says: “After the Glorious One
has sent me against the nations that have plundered you—for whoever touches you
touches the apple of his eye” (Zechariah 2:8, NIV). All members of the Church
are under the watchful protective care of the great shepherd and that is good
news. Nothing happens to us except it happens in His presence. He will defend
us and vindicate
His name and authority.
In
Jesus’ parable, the sheep away from the flock knew that it was lost. It was
crying for help. It apparently wandered away from the flock. Like many young
people and older Christens, it was probably looking for greener grass. Probably
tired of the set order of the daily routine and as one youth said to us some
years ago, she “needed new experiences and more exciting and interesting
things”. It may be that the pressure of work or study or discouragement brought
on by inactivity or some social realities made them so tired that one Sabbath
they decided to stay home and sleep and eventually, never recovered from that
intoxicating temptation. It may even have been a sexual experience that caused
the eyes to open in a wrong direction. Some are away because they suffered indignity,
abuse, unfair treatment, and neglect that aroused their desire to wander. Many
young people who are getting cold and wandering from the fold of the Church
still believe that the seventh day is the Sabbath and should be kept holy. They
still be-lieve that the Seventh–day Adventist Church is the fold to which they
belong. They still are being bugged by their consciences every day to return to
the fold. However, the indoctrination and intoxication to which they have become
addicted influences them to become spiritually indifferent, careless, and
absorbed with the cares of everyday life. Sheep have a strong instinct to follow
others in front of them and so are young people. They will follows, even if it
is not a good decision, sometimes even to the slaughter. If one sheep jumps
over a cliff, the others are likely to follow. They often times know where they
are, that they are not in the right place but returning is not the easiest
thing. To come back the sheep needs help and encouragement. Those who are of
the ninety–nine must be deliberate in contacting and wooing them back to the
fold. Aw members of the Church, we need to go in search of the lost sheep away
from the fold. We go in our prayers. We go by contacting them through social
media. Send them a text, write on their wall, mention them in a tweet, and send
them an e–mail. Keep in touch through WhatsApp! We must go after those who have
left the faith and love them back to the Church. This is where they belong. The
church must be open and warm and caring and forgiving, and accepting. We must
plan intentionally to find them and bring them back. What did the shepherd do?
Ellen White said, “The sheep that has strayed from the fold is the most
helpless of all creatures. It must be sought for by the shepherd, for it cannot
find its way back. So with the soul that has wandered away from God; he is as
helpless as the lost sheep, and unless divine love had come to his rescue he
could never find his way to God” (COL. P. 187).The ShepherdFrom the question
that Jesus asked in Luke 15:4, the shepherd went in search of the one sheep. In
stating that the shepherd left the ninety–nine, Jesus was intent on emphasizing
that the shepherd was diligent, thorough, purposeful and intentional about
bringing back the one lost sheep. None is to fall by the way. None is to be
lost. All must be in the protective, loving care of the master. He wants all.
This parable more than any of its emphases, focuses on the caring, loving shepherd.
How interesting to note that the shepherd did not hire laborers to go in search
of the lost sheep. It was a personal search. He went himself and did not give
up until he brought back the wandering sheep. How persistent was the shepherd.
Jesus is persistent in His search for all the young people who are wandering
from him. It may not be that some of us have been absent from church for one
Sabbath or for any of the services of the church. We may even be active leading
in the Adventurer Club, serving as counselors and instructors in the Pathfinder
program. Some of us might even be the senior youth leader, winning the Bible
Bowl and are champion youth in the cause of the Lord, doing innovative and
creative things and are active in community impact, yet in our relationship
with the Good Shepherd, we are that lost sheep. It is time to take stock. Time
to do that introspection to evaluate our standing with our Savior. He wants to
and He will celebrate with all those who allow Him to take them back to the
fold.
The Celebration
There
is always a partying in heaven! Jesus said, “That’s the way things are in heaven.
When one sinner sees that he’s doing wrong, confesses his sins, and decides to
change his life, the celebration in heaven over this one person is something
you can’t imagine. The rejoicing is over the one who repents, and not over the
ninety–nine who are at home and don’t need to repent” (Luke 15:7, Clear Word
Translation). The ninety–nine need not worry because they had their rejoicing
and they are enjoying the trip to the kingdom and the fellowship of others in
the flock. It is now time to rejoice with those who have just returned. No time
now for self–pitying. It is time to celebrate the return of those who wandered.
Young people, you are special in heaven and on earth. The church loves you and
is in need of you. Come with your talents; you have a vital part to play in the
finishing of the gospel and in helping to nurture others in the faith.You who
have returned to the fold of Christ, welcome to the celebration! It is in two
dimensions and there is a third. It happens now in heaven as you return. It is
happening in the church as each member is overjoyed to see you return to the
faith, but the greater part of the celebration is yet to come. Jesus will be
coming back for you, for all. He will not come alone, but with retinue of
angels. We will be taken together to the kingdom and receive the crown of glory
at a great coronation that will happen at the gate of the city. Ellen White
said we will also receive our harp from the hand of the Savior where we will
join the heavenly choir in singing the song of the redeemed, “Home at Last”!
Yes, we will walk the golden streets of heaven and what a great reunion it will
be with family, friends, and loved ones. To look in the face of the lovely
Jesus and see the scars in his hands which were just for our salvation. What a
celebration it will be when we take up residence in the mansions He is now
preparing for us. It will be an eternity of celebration!Let the celebration begin!
Welcome home! Welcome home! Welcome home!
Appeal and
Prayer:_______________________________________________________
Suggested Closing Song: There
Were Ninety and Nine
Benediction: ______________________________________________________________
References
Butler,
T. C. (2000). Vol. 3: Luke. Holman New Testament Commentary (249). Nashville,
TN:
Broadman & Holman Publishers
Marshall,
I. H. (1978). The Gospel of Luke: A commentary on the Greek text. New Interna-
tional
Greek Testament Commentary (602). Exeter: Paternoster Press
Stein,
R. H. (1992). Vol. 24: Luke. The New American Commentary (404). Nashville:
Broad-
man
& Holman Publishers
The
Holy Bible: English Standard Version. 2001 (Lk 15:4–7). Wheaton: Standard Bible
Society
White,
E. G. (1911). The Acts of the Apostles. Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press
Publishing
Association.
White,
E. G. (1900). Christ’s Object Lessons. Review and Herald Publishing
Association.
Discussion Questions
1. What do you think is the
attitude of heavenly beings toward those who re-main actively committed to
Jesus in their lifestyle and consecrated hearts?
2. Explain how young people who are
actively engaged in the mission of the church can be among the lost sheep of
the flock.
3. What are some temptations young
people face today that influencethem to display visible signs they are on the
verge of straying from Christ and what can be done to rescue them before they
fall by the way?
4. Identify some ways that the
members of the Church can celebrate the spiritual birth and experience of the
new, returning, and standing members of the faith.
5. How do good shepherds go in
search of young people who have who wandered from the flock today?
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