Spiritual Formation- Going after the One
I was just having some quiet time with God this week, seeking His counsel for the direction of Hope Living Church, and really just reminding Him of my total dependence on Him.
It really isn’t too big a thing to state truths like, ‘In my weakness, He is strong’, and
‘In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.’
During this time, as I was open and listening, I felt Him saying ‘go after the one’. I immediately knew he was referring to Matthew 18 where Jesus is telling the
Parable of the Wandering Sheep.
12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish. Matt 18:12-14
To regress a bit, one of the things that convinces me of the reliability of the Bible is the crazy characters- too goofy to be made up! If you were going to make up a bunch of stories to start a new religion, wouldn’t you invent characters that were cool, sharp, and have it all together? Let's just say the disciples didn't and weren't!
I can relate to their humanness!
In setting up the context of this story by Jesus, let’s back up a few lines to the beginning of Chapter 18:
18 Vs 1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
You can almost hear Jesus say “Really guys? Oy, vey!”
You’re talking to the guy who was born in a stable to an unwed teenage mother! His dad didn’t have the pull to line up a room for his pregnant fiancé. Oh yeah, and He’s the Son of God!
To put their silly question in perspective he does this:
2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them.
3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5 And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.
So, Jesus begins this lesson by turning their understanding upside down. He’s conveying kingdom principles that go against conventional wisdom.
If you want to win with God, prepare to lose the things you think are all that. If you want to be truly great, be humble and gentile. Of course there’s so much more!
But back to the beginning, and the sheep…
12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?
This sounds ok at face value, but think like a business man. I was watching a show with Breezie on Netflix about a Vet. He is in a small, rural AG town. On this episode, he’s helping a dairy farmer. One of his cows has some kind of illness that is costing him money because its not producing milk while its being treated. It’s the second or third time the cow has been sick. The farmer tells the Vet to treat the infection so he can send the cow off to the slaughter house because it was costing him too much money! The vet shrugs and says ‘business is business’.
Back to the sheep- Jesus was saying that He’s not like some distant business man. He’s not going to say, too bad for that one, I gotta cut my losses and hang on to the 99.
13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.
We know that Jesus is conveying a truth beyond sheep and cows and little children!
Our Earthly mindset gets stuck on this lower level of existence- we forget our higher calling, our position as brothers and sisters of Christ.
Our Father’s love goes beyond the relationship of Creator/ Created things. If any of you are parents, you get this instinctively. Your kids can be made to obey you and forced to live by your rules. Most are for their own good. But you can’t make them love you.
When they spontaneously show you affection/ kisses/ hugs/ and make you homemade works of art, you get great pleasure, right?
That’s what we do for God! We bring Him that same kind of pleasure!
It’s not too big a stretch to see that this loving God has to give us free will and enough of a leash so that our love back to Him is not forced or coerced or bought.
Because he cares so deeply for us, he will gently pull us back when we’re in the place of that one that wanders off!
My personal favorite scripture is Psalm 23. I’ve told the story a bunch of times before, so briefly, Before I became a Christ follower, I was 19 and in a very desperate place and I found a Gideon’s Bible in a desk drawer and turned to the only thing I knew in the bible, Psalm 23.
I didn’t know much about how to pray, so I restated the words back to God.
Psalm 23
1
The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want. (Ok God, I’m wanting!)
2
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters. (sounds like a good place)
3
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake. (I need that God, if you’re there)
4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell[ in the house of the Lord forever.
I didn’t know it at the time, but I was like that lost sheep, calling out to the Good Shepherd. He came and pursued me, and several months later I found myself in a church giving my life to him!
John 10:14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me,
In John 10 - Jesus describes in more detail his role as the Good Shepherd, laying down his life for the sheep. He also calls us to imitate him, to lay ourselves down and go after the list ones.
So then, to detail this, I believe that God want us here at Hope Living Church to be all about going after that lost sheep!
We need to ask ourselves a few questions:
Who are the lost sheep? We need to ask God to show them to us. They are hurting friends and family, maybe even co-workers, strangers, or that lady with the cardboard sign.
2. 'What can I do? Pray for them! If you feel inspired to, talk to them, just be there. Ask God to open the conversation and give you the words!
3. Where are they? Again, probably right in your circle of family, friends and acquaintances.
4. When is the best time? Now? You can even ask God for ‘divine appointments’ where He brings the unexpected!
5,How? I’d say ‘baby steps’. You know that God will give you the words, especially when you pray for them. Look for opportunities!
6. Why? Well, I’ve used the Titanic analogy before, and that’s still good, but as our inner person grows to be more like Jesus, we just get a joy that defies description when we are used by God to help get one of those lost sheep back where they belong, Amen?
