WEBVTT 00:00:06.969 --> 00:00:21.429 Matthew chapter 18, verses 11 through 14. We'll 00:00:21.429 --> 00:00:23.649 read through these few verses and then we'll 00:00:23.649 --> 00:00:30.190 pray and get started. For the Son of Man has 00:00:30.190 --> 00:00:35.380 come to save the lost. What do you think? If 00:00:35.380 --> 00:00:38.780 a man has 100 sheep and one of them goes astray, 00:00:38.920 --> 00:00:43.079 won't he leave the 99 on the hillside and go 00:00:43.079 --> 00:00:46.759 and search for the stray? And if he finds it, 00:00:46.820 --> 00:00:51.280 I assure you, he rejoices over that sheep more 00:00:51.280 --> 00:00:56.159 than over the 99 that did not go astray. In the 00:00:56.159 --> 00:00:59.600 same way, it is not the will of your Father in 00:00:59.600 --> 00:01:03.240 heaven that one of these little ones perish. 00:01:04.159 --> 00:01:07.000 Let's pray. God, we come to you. We thank you 00:01:07.000 --> 00:01:09.599 for a good day today. We thank you for your good 00:01:09.599 --> 00:01:12.540 words. I pray, dear Lord, that you would free 00:01:12.540 --> 00:01:15.879 us of the distractions and the worries and the 00:01:15.879 --> 00:01:19.040 thoughts of this world. I pray that in these 00:01:19.040 --> 00:01:21.219 few moments that your Holy Spirit would speak 00:01:21.219 --> 00:01:24.200 to us, Lord. There is no good word that I can 00:01:24.200 --> 00:01:26.560 speak today, God, if it does not come from you. 00:01:27.299 --> 00:01:29.909 And so I pray that you would just... Take away 00:01:29.909 --> 00:01:32.510 any fear or pride that is within me today, dear 00:01:32.510 --> 00:01:34.870 Lord, that I would humbly preach and teach your 00:01:34.870 --> 00:01:37.629 word. I pray that you would help us to be able 00:01:37.629 --> 00:01:41.290 to understand it and to live it, dear Lord. God, 00:01:41.349 --> 00:01:43.450 perhaps if there are some today who have gone 00:01:43.450 --> 00:01:46.209 astray, that they would humble themselves before 00:01:46.209 --> 00:01:49.670 you, dear Lord. That they would be found by you 00:01:49.670 --> 00:01:52.430 and that they would find you. And I ask these 00:01:52.430 --> 00:01:59.530 things in Jesus' name. Amen. Jesus! used this 00:01:59.530 --> 00:02:01.890 illustration a couple of different times, and 00:02:01.890 --> 00:02:04.349 I believe it was probably different occurrences 00:02:04.349 --> 00:02:07.109 in which this took place. We see it also mentioned 00:02:07.109 --> 00:02:10.889 in Luke chapter 15, the story of about someone 00:02:10.889 --> 00:02:14.469 who has a shepherd who has 100 sheep and one 00:02:14.469 --> 00:02:17.729 goes astray. We see a similar story in Luke 15, 00:02:17.849 --> 00:02:21.150 and that story is followed not long after by 00:02:21.150 --> 00:02:24.729 the story of the prodigal son, but In that instance 00:02:24.729 --> 00:02:27.889 and in this instance, Jesus is using this illustration 00:02:27.889 --> 00:02:31.050 in a little bit of a different way. In some way 00:02:31.050 --> 00:02:33.889 it's similar, but I believe it's probably two 00:02:33.889 --> 00:02:37.490 different occurrences of Jesus using this example 00:02:37.490 --> 00:02:41.469 of a lost sheep. But to really understand what 00:02:41.469 --> 00:02:44.909 Jesus is saying, we need a little bit of context. 00:02:45.229 --> 00:02:48.069 Now that's always important. I will always encourage 00:02:48.069 --> 00:02:52.039 you when you read the Word of God. Always try 00:02:52.039 --> 00:02:54.580 to read the verses before it, maybe even the 00:02:54.580 --> 00:02:57.199 chapter before it or the chapter after it. We 00:02:57.199 --> 00:02:59.460 really need to understand kind of what's going 00:02:59.460 --> 00:03:04.099 on in the whole of chapter 18 at the beginning 00:03:04.099 --> 00:03:07.180 here to really understand what Jesus is saying. 00:03:07.379 --> 00:03:11.919 So why is Jesus speaking this parable about the 00:03:11.919 --> 00:03:15.360 lost sheep? Well, he gets to it in kind of a 00:03:15.360 --> 00:03:18.180 roundabout way. What we see at the beginning 00:03:18.180 --> 00:03:22.860 of Matthew chapter 18, verse 1, is this. At that 00:03:22.860 --> 00:03:26.800 time, the disciples came to Jesus and said, who 00:03:26.800 --> 00:03:31.919 is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? Now, 00:03:31.979 --> 00:03:34.340 I don't think they were just asking this question 00:03:34.340 --> 00:03:36.159 for knowledge. I don't think they just had a 00:03:36.159 --> 00:03:38.379 curiosity. Oh, we just love to know who's the 00:03:38.379 --> 00:03:40.879 greatest in heaven. No, when we begin to look 00:03:40.879 --> 00:03:43.879 at the disciples on other occasions, their concern 00:03:43.879 --> 00:03:46.770 was not just who was the greatest, but Am I going 00:03:46.770 --> 00:03:48.490 to be the greatest? I want to be the greatest. 00:03:48.569 --> 00:03:50.770 I want to be seated at your right hand in heaven. 00:03:51.250 --> 00:03:54.469 And the disciples, they probably were not so 00:03:54.469 --> 00:03:58.669 unlike us. We kind of like to think we're the 00:03:58.669 --> 00:04:02.330 best. We like to be the teacher's pet. We probably 00:04:02.330 --> 00:04:03.830 are a little better than the one sitting next 00:04:03.830 --> 00:04:05.629 to us. I mean, they might be pretty good, but 00:04:05.629 --> 00:04:07.729 we probably pray a little more. We probably know 00:04:07.729 --> 00:04:09.389 the scripture a little better. And we're probably 00:04:09.389 --> 00:04:11.990 a little smarter and a little faster. And there's 00:04:11.990 --> 00:04:15.509 something in us. We kind of seek that greatness. 00:04:16.189 --> 00:04:18.829 It's just part of our human struggle, and maybe 00:04:18.829 --> 00:04:20.709 some of us struggle with it more than others, 00:04:20.810 --> 00:04:25.069 but I suspect all of us, to some degree, we struggle 00:04:25.069 --> 00:04:28.410 with that idea of wanting to be the greatest, 00:04:28.610 --> 00:04:31.990 to want to try to outdo everybody else just a 00:04:31.990 --> 00:04:33.730 little more. I'll give you a good example of 00:04:33.730 --> 00:04:35.589 this. Yesterday, I went and played golf with 00:04:35.589 --> 00:04:38.470 my dad and my uncles. Man, you get out there 00:04:38.470 --> 00:04:40.709 on the golf course, and you're waiting for them 00:04:40.709 --> 00:04:42.689 to take their shot, and a couple of them hit. 00:04:43.160 --> 00:04:45.800 And they hit a good long drive off the tee, long 00:04:45.800 --> 00:04:48.319 and far. And then you get up there and you say, 00:04:48.399 --> 00:04:50.860 I want to hit it further than them. I want to 00:04:50.860 --> 00:04:52.779 be greater than them. And so you swing a little 00:04:52.779 --> 00:04:55.439 extra harder in hopes that it'll go right down 00:04:55.439 --> 00:04:58.879 just a little past them. But usually it goes 00:04:58.879 --> 00:05:00.959 off in the water, left or to the right, in the 00:05:00.959 --> 00:05:03.860 woods. But there's this desire in us that when 00:05:03.860 --> 00:05:07.040 we see somebody do something, there's a part 00:05:07.040 --> 00:05:08.920 of us that wants to outdo them a little bit, 00:05:09.000 --> 00:05:12.019 to show them up a little bit. We want that affirmation 00:05:12.019 --> 00:05:14.519 that we're... a little better, that we are the 00:05:14.519 --> 00:05:17.100 greatest. And that's kind of what started this 00:05:17.100 --> 00:05:20.160 whole conversation. It's his disciples said, 00:05:20.220 --> 00:05:22.139 well, who's the greatest? Who's the greatest? 00:05:23.019 --> 00:05:25.579 And Jesus took this as a teaching opportunity. 00:05:26.639 --> 00:05:29.279 And Jesus took it as a teaching opportunity to 00:05:29.279 --> 00:05:34.199 say, you need to understand what you're asking. 00:05:34.300 --> 00:05:37.139 You need to understand what really matters. And 00:05:37.139 --> 00:05:41.180 it's not about striving to be the greatest. It's 00:05:41.180 --> 00:05:45.860 about striving to be And that's what Jesus is 00:05:45.860 --> 00:05:48.699 trying to teach us throughout this passage and 00:05:48.699 --> 00:05:50.819 ultimately with this parable of the lost sheep. 00:05:51.000 --> 00:05:53.680 They said, who is the greatest in the kingdom 00:05:53.680 --> 00:05:56.480 of heaven? Who's the greatest in the kingdom 00:05:56.480 --> 00:05:59.980 of heaven? And Jesus is saying here, I believe, 00:06:00.259 --> 00:06:02.720 you want me to tell you about the kingdom of 00:06:02.720 --> 00:06:04.279 heaven? You want me to tell you about the kingdom 00:06:04.279 --> 00:06:07.379 of God? Well, let me tell you who's going to 00:06:07.379 --> 00:06:10.639 be in the kingdom of God. It's not going to be 00:06:10.639 --> 00:06:13.000 those who... who strive to be great in themselves. 00:06:13.300 --> 00:06:16.360 It's going to be those who humble themselves 00:06:16.360 --> 00:06:20.339 and recognize their need for God, who recognize 00:06:20.339 --> 00:06:23.680 their need for a Savior. See, there's a problem 00:06:23.680 --> 00:06:27.480 in our life. When we strive to be the greatest, 00:06:27.540 --> 00:06:30.579 there's some pride often that comes along with 00:06:30.579 --> 00:06:34.180 that. And we kind of become consumed with being 00:06:34.180 --> 00:06:36.180 the greatest and being the best and being the 00:06:36.180 --> 00:06:38.920 greatest and outdoing everybody in what we do. 00:06:39.060 --> 00:06:42.060 And Jesus teaches us throughout the scriptures 00:06:42.060 --> 00:06:47.579 that's not a good heart for us to have. Because 00:06:47.579 --> 00:06:50.759 that heart leads to pride. And man, that pride 00:06:50.759 --> 00:06:54.560 leads us to not treat people in love and to treat 00:06:54.560 --> 00:06:56.620 people in the way that God desires for us to 00:06:56.620 --> 00:07:00.490 treat people. And so Jesus says, look, it's not 00:07:00.490 --> 00:07:03.370 about being the best. It's not about whether 00:07:03.370 --> 00:07:05.649 somebody in this world pats you on the back and 00:07:05.649 --> 00:07:08.810 tells you how good you are. Or the rest of your 00:07:08.810 --> 00:07:10.870 golf mates say, man, that was the greatest drive 00:07:10.870 --> 00:07:13.250 I've seen all day. You really smoked us. It's 00:07:13.250 --> 00:07:16.110 not about that affirmation. Jesus says the kingdom 00:07:16.110 --> 00:07:21.389 of God is worth so much more than that. And Jesus 00:07:21.389 --> 00:07:24.850 teaches us that the kingdom of God is entered 00:07:24.850 --> 00:07:29.319 into. Not by those who seek to be great, but 00:07:29.319 --> 00:07:34.480 by those who seek to be humble. And so when they 00:07:34.480 --> 00:07:37.120 ask Jesus this question, the scripture says that 00:07:37.120 --> 00:07:41.060 he takes a child that is nearby. And he said 00:07:41.060 --> 00:07:43.519 if anyone wants to enter the kingdom of heaven, 00:07:43.579 --> 00:07:46.680 he has to be like a child. Now there's a certain 00:07:46.680 --> 00:07:51.040 beauty and innocence to a child. Man, a child 00:07:51.040 --> 00:07:56.110 is just there to just kind of... They just kind 00:07:56.110 --> 00:07:58.170 of do what you say, however you lead them, whatever 00:07:58.170 --> 00:08:00.610 you tell them, they just accept it. There's a 00:08:00.610 --> 00:08:04.430 certain innocence and a certain purity, and that's 00:08:04.430 --> 00:08:07.470 a beautiful thing. And they don't question anything. 00:08:07.610 --> 00:08:10.410 They just see a mother, they see a father, and 00:08:10.410 --> 00:08:13.069 what you tell them or what you do, they just 00:08:13.069 --> 00:08:17.129 believe it, and they just follow you. And Jesus 00:08:17.129 --> 00:08:19.670 says this is the type of faith that we need to 00:08:19.670 --> 00:08:23.370 have, that we need to have a childlike faith. 00:08:24.199 --> 00:08:26.779 That we are those who hear the word of God, that 00:08:26.779 --> 00:08:28.620 we are those who hear the teachings of Jesus 00:08:28.620 --> 00:08:32.039 Christ and we accept those teachings and we live 00:08:32.039 --> 00:08:34.340 on those teachings and we just trust that God 00:08:34.340 --> 00:08:38.559 has our best interests in mind. You notice he 00:08:38.559 --> 00:08:41.539 doesn't say have faith like a teenager. He doesn't 00:08:41.539 --> 00:08:43.279 say those who are like a teenager are learning 00:08:43.279 --> 00:08:46.269 the kingdom of God. Because, man, kids are so 00:08:46.269 --> 00:08:48.309 good and they're so fun and you can have a good 00:08:48.309 --> 00:08:49.649 time and you can laugh and cut up and you can 00:08:49.649 --> 00:08:50.590 tell them what to do and they're like, yeah, 00:08:50.629 --> 00:08:52.970 let's do it. And a teenager, like, all of a sudden 00:08:52.970 --> 00:08:54.929 they have a mind of their own and he doesn't 00:08:54.929 --> 00:08:57.529 say those who are like teenagers will enter the 00:08:57.529 --> 00:08:59.970 kingdom of heaven. He says those who are like 00:08:59.970 --> 00:09:03.610 this child, who are innocent and who are humble 00:09:03.610 --> 00:09:10.549 and who are pure in some way. And he uses this 00:09:10.549 --> 00:09:13.009 example and he continues on with this illustration 00:09:13.009 --> 00:09:16.850 about... This little one. That those who are 00:09:16.850 --> 00:09:21.190 God's children are like children of the world. 00:09:22.049 --> 00:09:24.669 That there's a certain purity and a certain innocence 00:09:24.669 --> 00:09:27.269 and a certain humility and a certain dependence 00:09:27.269 --> 00:09:30.169 that we learn that we have on God. You know, 00:09:30.250 --> 00:09:33.649 when a child is born, they are completely and 00:09:33.649 --> 00:09:37.870 totally dependent on an adult. And that's how 00:09:37.870 --> 00:09:41.100 we are with God. We need to recognize that. That 00:09:41.100 --> 00:09:43.740 we are completely and totally dependent on God. 00:09:44.320 --> 00:09:46.480 That everything that there is has been created 00:09:46.480 --> 00:09:49.759 by God. That God is the one who takes care of 00:09:49.759 --> 00:09:51.779 us. That God is the one who strengthens us. That 00:09:51.779 --> 00:09:54.500 God is the one who will be with us. That God 00:09:54.500 --> 00:09:56.940 is the one who will encourage us. That God is 00:09:56.940 --> 00:09:59.120 the one that through His Son, Jesus Christ, will 00:09:59.120 --> 00:10:02.019 forgive our sins if we would trust in Him. We 00:10:02.019 --> 00:10:04.960 are completely and totally dependent on God, 00:10:05.059 --> 00:10:08.620 not just for help in this life, but for salvation 00:10:08.620 --> 00:10:14.169 in the life to come. So we need to look at our 00:10:14.169 --> 00:10:18.669 life today. And we need to say, man, am I like 00:10:18.669 --> 00:10:22.590 a child? And my desire to just follow God and 00:10:22.590 --> 00:10:25.970 be dependent on Him and to humble myself before 00:10:25.970 --> 00:10:29.309 Him and just to allow God to be the Lord of my 00:10:29.309 --> 00:10:33.129 life? Are we those who are seeking greatness 00:10:33.129 --> 00:10:38.169 on our own, in ourself? Because it feels good. 00:10:38.759 --> 00:10:41.000 When you can be really good at something in this 00:10:41.000 --> 00:10:43.320 world, and you can be great at something, whether 00:10:43.320 --> 00:10:46.019 it's a sport or whether it's your job or whether 00:10:46.019 --> 00:10:47.960 it's singing or whether it's playing an instrument, 00:10:48.100 --> 00:10:51.159 it feels good to be great in those ways. It feels 00:10:51.159 --> 00:10:54.399 good for people to tell you how great you are. 00:10:56.460 --> 00:11:00.480 But those things lead to pride. And those things 00:11:00.480 --> 00:11:03.620 can become our God. Our own desire for greatness 00:11:03.620 --> 00:11:08.029 can become our God. And Jesus says, look. It's 00:11:08.029 --> 00:11:11.330 not about who is great. The kingdom of God is 00:11:11.330 --> 00:11:14.629 made up of those who are humble, who are like 00:11:14.629 --> 00:11:19.809 that child that Jesus gathered to him. Now, I 00:11:19.809 --> 00:11:21.549 think certainly in the context, he's probably 00:11:21.549 --> 00:11:24.509 talking about children, physical, literal little 00:11:24.509 --> 00:11:27.870 children. But I also think that Jesus is probably 00:11:27.870 --> 00:11:30.669 making a connection there. That when he talks 00:11:30.669 --> 00:11:32.669 about the little ones or the little children, 00:11:32.750 --> 00:11:35.669 he's not just talking about kids that we see. 00:11:36.299 --> 00:11:39.220 I think he's talking about his followers. Those 00:11:39.220 --> 00:11:42.480 who enter the kingdom of God have to become like 00:11:42.480 --> 00:11:46.860 a child. We see similar language in the letters 00:11:46.860 --> 00:11:49.659 of John. I believe in 1 or 2 John. I don't remember 00:11:49.659 --> 00:11:51.799 the exact verses, but I believe it's 2 John. 00:11:51.980 --> 00:11:55.120 He refers to little children many times. Little 00:11:55.120 --> 00:11:57.279 children, little children, little children. And 00:11:57.279 --> 00:11:59.659 he's talking about Christians. He's talking about... 00:11:59.870 --> 00:12:02.330 followers of Jesus Christ. And I believe in some 00:12:02.330 --> 00:12:05.429 way that Jesus is using this phraseology, this 00:12:05.429 --> 00:12:08.649 term little ones, not just talking about the 00:12:08.649 --> 00:12:11.450 children, but also those who are his followers, 00:12:11.610 --> 00:12:14.870 those who are going to enter the kingdom of God. 00:12:15.830 --> 00:12:19.009 So we kind of begin to see what Jesus is working 00:12:19.009 --> 00:12:21.570 on here. And he gets to this parable of the sheep 00:12:21.570 --> 00:12:23.330 kind of in a roundabout way because they're asking 00:12:23.330 --> 00:12:25.169 who's the greatest. And Jesus says, no, no, no. 00:12:25.250 --> 00:12:27.769 Let me use this as an opportunity to teach you 00:12:27.769 --> 00:12:31.620 about humility. And that God loves those who 00:12:31.620 --> 00:12:34.519 humble themselves, not those who hold themselves 00:12:34.519 --> 00:12:39.120 as something great. And that's where he says 00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:40.820 in the verse that we looked at this morning, 00:12:40.960 --> 00:12:45.679 For the Son of Man has come to save the lost. 00:12:45.960 --> 00:12:48.940 Now that's a beautiful verse right there. That's 00:12:48.940 --> 00:12:52.240 a beautiful verse that Jesus Christ has come 00:12:52.240 --> 00:12:56.740 to save the lost. Now that's good news for you 00:12:56.740 --> 00:12:59.019 and I. Maybe you don't even know it's good news, 00:12:59.100 --> 00:13:00.919 but I want to tell you it's good news because 00:13:00.919 --> 00:13:05.360 every one of us in here today, we are lost on 00:13:05.360 --> 00:13:08.879 our own. Now, we may be successful in some way 00:13:08.879 --> 00:13:12.059 and we may be good at something or we may have 00:13:12.059 --> 00:13:15.159 good health and things in our life may be going 00:13:15.159 --> 00:13:19.240 pretty good. But at the end of the day, the Bible 00:13:19.240 --> 00:13:22.340 says that we are all sinners. We are all lost. 00:13:22.440 --> 00:13:25.700 We are all separated from God and there's no 00:13:25.700 --> 00:13:28.879 path back to God. based on anything that we can 00:13:28.879 --> 00:13:31.799 do. There's nothing we can do that's going to 00:13:31.799 --> 00:13:36.340 get us on the path back to God on our own. It 00:13:36.340 --> 00:13:38.039 doesn't matter how successful we are, how great 00:13:38.039 --> 00:13:41.740 we are. The only way that we get on that path 00:13:41.740 --> 00:13:44.740 that leads us to God is through Jesus Christ. 00:13:44.919 --> 00:13:49.100 He is that narrow path that leads us to the Lord. 00:13:50.059 --> 00:13:53.000 And praise the Lord, Jesus said that he came 00:13:53.000 --> 00:13:57.580 to save the lost. That's you and I. That's everybody 00:13:57.580 --> 00:14:00.240 in this room. That's everybody that's ever walked 00:14:00.240 --> 00:14:02.720 this earth because we all see and we all do and 00:14:02.720 --> 00:14:06.259 say and think and act in ways that just are not 00:14:06.259 --> 00:14:11.620 good, that are against the will of God. But Jesus 00:14:11.620 --> 00:14:14.000 said that the Son of Man has come to save the 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:18.100 lost. And then he gives us this parable. What 00:14:18.100 --> 00:14:22.299 do you think? If a man has 100 sheep and one 00:14:22.299 --> 00:14:26.139 of them goes astray, Won't he leave the 99 on 00:14:26.139 --> 00:14:29.799 the hillside and go and search for the stray? 00:14:30.659 --> 00:14:33.799 This is a beautiful, simple story. We can understand 00:14:33.799 --> 00:14:36.460 this. We can picture that there's a shepherd 00:14:36.460 --> 00:14:38.659 somewhere out on the hillside. There's a shepherd 00:14:38.659 --> 00:14:42.000 with his flock there, taking good care of them, 00:14:42.059 --> 00:14:44.740 protecting them. Got a hundred sheep. That's 00:14:44.740 --> 00:14:47.899 a pretty good flock of sheep. And if one goes 00:14:47.899 --> 00:14:50.100 astray, maybe you look for a little while and 00:14:50.100 --> 00:14:52.960 you say, I got 99 more. I'm doing okay. I can 00:14:52.960 --> 00:14:56.600 afford to lose this one. But that's not what 00:14:56.600 --> 00:14:59.820 Jesus says in this story. He says, no, if a shepherd 00:14:59.820 --> 00:15:02.740 has a hundred sheep, then he wants to protect 00:15:02.740 --> 00:15:06.539 all of his sheep. He doesn't want to lose a single 00:15:06.539 --> 00:15:10.480 one. And if that one sheep goes astray, what 00:15:10.480 --> 00:15:14.100 does the shepherd do? Jesus says the shepherd 00:15:14.100 --> 00:15:20.000 goes and looks for that sheep. Now, this is good 00:15:20.000 --> 00:15:23.460 news. Because we are those who have gone astray. 00:15:23.500 --> 00:15:26.360 We are the lost that Jesus came to save. And 00:15:26.360 --> 00:15:29.720 we are lost because we have gone astray. God 00:15:29.720 --> 00:15:31.779 has created humanity. He's created everything. 00:15:31.960 --> 00:15:35.039 And it would be fantastic if all of God's people 00:15:35.039 --> 00:15:38.840 always would have tried to seek him with all 00:15:38.840 --> 00:15:40.779 of their heart and live in obedience to him. 00:15:40.879 --> 00:15:43.879 But you know as well as I do, man, we go astray. 00:15:43.960 --> 00:15:45.679 There are temptations and there are things of 00:15:45.679 --> 00:15:48.419 the world. And whatever that temptation is for 00:15:48.419 --> 00:15:51.110 us, sometimes those desires, And those sins in 00:15:51.110 --> 00:15:53.649 our life, they lead us astray and we find ourselves 00:15:53.649 --> 00:15:58.590 in a bad shape. Because as long as we're in the 00:15:58.590 --> 00:16:01.850 presence of the shepherd, we'll be protected. 00:16:02.490 --> 00:16:06.210 We'll be provided for. But once we leave the 00:16:06.210 --> 00:16:09.110 protection of the shepherd, we're in harm's way. 00:16:09.850 --> 00:16:12.370 I was reading about a sheep this week. The sheep's 00:16:12.370 --> 00:16:15.950 name was Shrick. And the sheep escaped one day. 00:16:16.409 --> 00:16:18.409 And this farmer had a lot of sheep, and they 00:16:18.409 --> 00:16:20.269 tried to find Shrek, but they never did find 00:16:20.269 --> 00:16:22.950 Shrek. And they found Shrek like six years later. 00:16:23.029 --> 00:16:25.529 They finally found this sheep. He was still alive. 00:16:26.350 --> 00:16:28.909 He had been hiding out in caves in the area for 00:16:28.909 --> 00:16:33.230 six years, and nothing had attacked it. But its 00:16:33.230 --> 00:16:37.169 coat had just kept growing and kept growing and 00:16:37.169 --> 00:16:38.970 kept growing, and you couldn't even hardly tell 00:16:38.970 --> 00:16:41.490 it was a sheep. It was just like a giant ball 00:16:41.490 --> 00:16:44.769 of wool. And eventually the sheep would have 00:16:44.769 --> 00:16:47.529 died, but... Praise the Lord, they found the 00:16:47.529 --> 00:16:50.230 sheep and they sheared the sheep and even the 00:16:50.230 --> 00:16:53.570 sheep that had been gone for that long, the farmer 00:16:53.570 --> 00:16:57.149 was still looking for it. And if the farmer hadn't 00:16:57.149 --> 00:16:59.309 found the sheep, that sheep would have died. 00:17:00.649 --> 00:17:03.830 Maybe we're not so different. Maybe today we're 00:17:03.830 --> 00:17:06.470 not so unlike Shrek, not the green ogre, but 00:17:06.470 --> 00:17:11.789 the sheep. Maybe we've gone astray. Maybe some 00:17:11.789 --> 00:17:14.529 of us, it's been years that we've gone astray. 00:17:15.630 --> 00:17:17.930 And maybe we see the effects of that in our life. 00:17:18.849 --> 00:17:21.230 We see how it makes us feel. We see how it makes 00:17:21.230 --> 00:17:25.250 us act. We see that our life has fallen apart. 00:17:26.109 --> 00:17:28.309 We have the struggle in our mind and the struggle 00:17:28.309 --> 00:17:30.630 in our heart. And life is hard. And we've made 00:17:30.630 --> 00:17:33.289 some really boneheaded decisions. And we find 00:17:33.289 --> 00:17:37.349 ourselves in a place that we're in a bad shape. 00:17:39.710 --> 00:17:43.509 And if the shepherd doesn't come for us, then 00:17:43.509 --> 00:17:46.660 we're not going to make it. But I got news for 00:17:46.660 --> 00:17:49.539 you today. The shepherd has come for you. The 00:17:49.539 --> 00:17:52.039 scripture says that Jesus Christ is the good 00:17:52.039 --> 00:17:55.740 shepherd. And he has come for you. When he came 00:17:55.740 --> 00:18:00.700 and died on a cross, he came for you. Even if 00:18:00.700 --> 00:18:02.240 you would have been the only one, he would have 00:18:02.240 --> 00:18:04.539 come for you. If you would have been the only 00:18:04.539 --> 00:18:07.500 lost sheep, he would have come for you. He knows 00:18:07.500 --> 00:18:09.799 your struggle. He knows what you're dealing with 00:18:09.799 --> 00:18:13.279 today. He knows the sin in your life. And he 00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:15.220 died on a cross so that you could be forgiven 00:18:15.220 --> 00:18:20.599 of that sin. But we have to humble ourselves 00:18:20.599 --> 00:18:23.819 before that Savior. You can come today and you 00:18:23.819 --> 00:18:25.759 can hear these words and you can even acknowledge 00:18:25.759 --> 00:18:27.619 in some way that you believe that they're true. 00:18:28.720 --> 00:18:30.779 But even if you believe that these words are 00:18:30.779 --> 00:18:32.859 true, but you don't humble yourself before the 00:18:32.859 --> 00:18:35.579 shepherd Jesus Christ today, then you'll leave 00:18:35.579 --> 00:18:38.539 that door when you walk out today and you'll 00:18:38.539 --> 00:18:40.940 be just as lost when you leave as you were when 00:18:40.940 --> 00:18:45.089 you come in. But there's a good shepherd who's 00:18:45.089 --> 00:18:48.710 been looking for you, who gave his life for you, 00:18:48.869 --> 00:18:52.069 who wants to pick you up and he wants to throw 00:18:52.069 --> 00:18:54.170 you over his shoulders and he wants to bring 00:18:54.170 --> 00:18:56.069 you back home. He wants to bring you back to 00:18:56.069 --> 00:18:58.130 pastors. He wants to bring you back to still 00:18:58.130 --> 00:19:00.190 waters. He wants to bring you back to a place 00:19:00.190 --> 00:19:02.569 of safety. He wants to bring you back to a place 00:19:02.569 --> 00:19:05.109 where he can provide for and take care of you. 00:19:07.250 --> 00:19:09.470 And Jesus says in this parable, it's not about 00:19:09.470 --> 00:19:14.069 being great, it's about being humble. That God 00:19:14.069 --> 00:19:16.430 loves the weak. He loves the helpless. If they 00:19:16.430 --> 00:19:19.529 would just humble themselves before him and they 00:19:19.529 --> 00:19:21.069 would just seek him, if they would just call 00:19:21.069 --> 00:19:23.769 out to him, he's there. He wants to bring you 00:19:23.769 --> 00:19:30.430 back into the flock. In verse 13. And if he finds 00:19:30.430 --> 00:19:33.569 it, I assure you, he rejoices over that sheep 00:19:33.569 --> 00:19:37.470 more than over the 99 that did not go astray. 00:19:38.569 --> 00:19:40.269 Now that doesn't mean that he doesn't love the 00:19:40.269 --> 00:19:45.490 99. Of course. He rejoices over the 99. But he 00:19:45.490 --> 00:19:48.529 wants the 100. He wants everybody. The scripture 00:19:48.529 --> 00:19:50.930 says that God doesn't want anybody to perish, 00:19:50.970 --> 00:19:56.450 but all to come to repentance. Jesus doesn't 00:19:56.450 --> 00:19:59.990 just want all of, just a few of us to be saved. 00:20:00.150 --> 00:20:02.630 Today, he wants all of us to be saved. He wants 00:20:02.630 --> 00:20:07.289 all of our sins to be cleansed. And so there's 00:20:07.289 --> 00:20:12.079 rejoicing when a lost sinner puts their faith 00:20:12.079 --> 00:20:17.279 and trust in Jesus Christ. Maybe there are some 00:20:17.279 --> 00:20:20.319 here today. Maybe there are some of you that's 00:20:20.319 --> 00:20:24.039 in the flock. God loves you just the same. There's 00:20:24.039 --> 00:20:27.500 rejoicing over you. Man, there's rejoicing when 00:20:27.500 --> 00:20:31.119 a lost soul puts their faith and trust in Jesus 00:20:31.119 --> 00:20:36.960 Christ. In verse 14, In the same way, it is not 00:20:36.960 --> 00:20:40.160 the will of your Father in heaven, That one of 00:20:40.160 --> 00:20:45.839 these little ones should perish. It's not God's 00:20:45.839 --> 00:20:49.400 will that anyone should perish. But that they 00:20:49.400 --> 00:20:52.400 would trust in Jesus Christ. That's what God 00:20:52.400 --> 00:20:55.319 desires for our life. He does not want anybody 00:20:55.319 --> 00:20:59.759 to perish but all to come to repentance. To humble 00:20:59.759 --> 00:21:04.839 themselves before him. So what about us today? 00:21:06.549 --> 00:21:10.670 What are we striving for in our life? Are we 00:21:10.670 --> 00:21:15.210 striving for greatness? Or are we striving for 00:21:15.210 --> 00:21:19.609 humility? Now the world will teach us to strive 00:21:19.609 --> 00:21:24.630 for greatness. To be the best you can be. To 00:21:24.630 --> 00:21:26.289 make sure everybody knows that you're the best 00:21:26.289 --> 00:21:28.549 that there can be. That you're better than everybody 00:21:28.549 --> 00:21:31.109 else and that you can step on everybody else 00:21:31.109 --> 00:21:33.029 on your way to the top. That's what the world 00:21:33.029 --> 00:21:36.490 will tell you. But Jesus tells us something totally 00:21:36.490 --> 00:21:40.069 contradictory to that. Jesus said it's not about 00:21:40.069 --> 00:21:44.069 you and it's not about your greatness. It's about 00:21:44.069 --> 00:21:47.849 your humility. His disciple says, who's the greatest 00:21:47.849 --> 00:21:49.609 in the kingdom of heaven? And he says, hold up. 00:21:50.410 --> 00:21:52.650 Those who are going to enter the kingdom of heaven 00:21:52.650 --> 00:21:55.589 are not going to be those who are the greatest, 00:21:55.750 --> 00:21:57.750 at least not in the sense that the world talks 00:21:57.750 --> 00:22:01.250 about. But those who are going to be in the kingdom 00:22:01.250 --> 00:22:06.880 of heaven are going to be those who are... What 00:22:06.880 --> 00:22:14.140 about us today? Jesus wants us to humble ourselves 00:22:14.140 --> 00:22:17.440 before Him. He's the good shepherd who's looking 00:22:17.440 --> 00:22:22.119 for the sheep who's gone astray. We see this 00:22:22.119 --> 00:22:24.940 beautiful illustration throughout Scripture that 00:22:24.940 --> 00:22:29.680 Jesus has become the Lamb of God, but He's also 00:22:29.680 --> 00:22:33.960 become the shepherd of the flock. That as part 00:22:33.960 --> 00:22:36.000 of the flock of the Lamb of God that he became 00:22:36.000 --> 00:22:40.240 the sacrifice on our behalf. That Jesus Christ 00:22:40.240 --> 00:22:43.140 was crucified and died and nailed to a cross 00:22:43.140 --> 00:22:46.480 so that you and I could be forgiven. He was the 00:22:46.480 --> 00:22:51.460 sacrificial lamb for us. He died so the other 00:22:51.460 --> 00:22:55.480 sheep could be saved. And he has become the good 00:22:55.480 --> 00:22:59.079 shepherd. And he is the good shepherd today who 00:22:59.079 --> 00:23:02.380 is looking for those who are lost. And he wants 00:23:02.380 --> 00:23:04.059 to save you and he wants to bring you home. Would 00:23:04.059 --> 00:23:06.480 you humble yourself before Jesus Christ today 00:23:06.480 --> 00:23:12.000 and trust in him? Let's pray. God, we come to 00:23:12.000 --> 00:23:15.519 you today. We thank you for your good word. And 00:23:15.519 --> 00:23:17.259 I pray, dear Lord, that you would help us not 00:23:17.259 --> 00:23:20.599 to be those who are proud and who seek greatness 00:23:20.599 --> 00:23:24.700 for ourselves, dear Lord. God, I pray that you 00:23:24.700 --> 00:23:26.460 would help us to humble ourselves before you 00:23:26.460 --> 00:23:30.660 this morning. That whatever sin may be in our 00:23:30.660 --> 00:23:33.440 heart, That we would lift it up to you, dear 00:23:33.440 --> 00:23:35.720 Lord. That we would ask for forgiveness today. 00:23:35.799 --> 00:23:38.640 That we would repent of that sinfulness, dear 00:23:38.640 --> 00:23:42.940 Lord. God, maybe there are some in here today 00:23:42.940 --> 00:23:45.380 that are struggling and they're yours. And maybe 00:23:45.380 --> 00:23:49.980 they've gone astray. Maybe they know the truth 00:23:49.980 --> 00:23:52.359 of your word, but they hadn't been living by 00:23:52.359 --> 00:23:54.180 it, dear Lord. They hadn't been trusting in you. 00:23:55.039 --> 00:23:57.200 I pray today that they would know that you still 00:23:57.200 --> 00:24:00.130 love them. Even if they've been astray for years, 00:24:00.190 --> 00:24:02.769 dear Lord, if there's anything in their heart 00:24:02.769 --> 00:24:05.390 this morning, God, that you're working on, I 00:24:05.390 --> 00:24:07.009 pray that they would just come to you and that 00:24:07.009 --> 00:24:08.670 they would pray and that they would repent and 00:24:08.670 --> 00:24:12.829 that they would seek Jesus Christ. Maybe there 00:24:12.829 --> 00:24:15.750 are some here, dear Lord, and they've never been 00:24:15.750 --> 00:24:19.390 part of your flock. Maybe they've never realized 00:24:19.390 --> 00:24:22.549 just how much you love them. Maybe they've been 00:24:22.549 --> 00:24:24.309 trying to do it their way. Maybe they've been 00:24:24.309 --> 00:24:29.759 trying to survive based on their greatness. But 00:24:29.759 --> 00:24:31.519 God, I pray today that they would humble themselves 00:24:31.519 --> 00:24:36.180 before the greatness of Jesus Christ. God, I 00:24:36.180 --> 00:24:38.019 pray that you would help our attitudes to be 00:24:38.019 --> 00:24:41.720 that of a little child, dear Lord. That we would 00:24:41.720 --> 00:24:46.279 become dependent on you and humbly seek you and 00:24:46.279 --> 00:24:48.519 listen to you and follow you wherever you lead 00:24:48.519 --> 00:24:53.180 us. And I ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen.