4  "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?

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.'

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.

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The ancient religious leaders had a problem with Jesus. A big problem. They believed that God hated sinners, and were convinced that God wanted them to avoid such people. That's why they struggled with Jesus' behavior. He regularly hung around with dishonest businessmen, crooked politicians and prostitutes. From the religious community's perspective, Jesus must have been a sinner himself. Otherwise, why would he associate with such people?

Jesus knew how the Pharisees and the teachers of the law felt. In order to correct their perception of God and how he feels about sinners, Jesus told three parables. The first one was targeted at working men, the second at women, and the third at fathers. But through these different stories, the one message Jesus communicated was clear: God loves lost people and seeks them out. What a powerful lesson for those religious leaders, and for us today: God doesn't hate sinners, he loves them! Consider the characteristics of each parable and what it says about God.

Every person is important to God. The shepherd in the first parable had a hundred sheep. You might think he would hardly miss one. He might have considered leaving the others behind and searching for the one an inconvenience, a hassle. After all, this shepherd was a business owner, and as such had to figure in loss as part of his operating cost. But God, as the shepherd in this story, never considers abandoning even one soul without searching after it. This shepherd immediately went after the sheep, and didn't stop searching until he found it. Further, when he found the sheep, he didn't scold the sheep for walking away from his protection. He joyfully scooped it up into his arms and carried it home.

God celebrates when a lost person is found. Each of these three parables ended with a party. The shepherd, woman and father all rejoiced with their friends after they'd found what they'd lost. All of the people who listened to Jesus tell this story had probably participated in a celebration similar to the ones he described. And because Jesus had come down from heaven, he had seen similar rejoicing there. Jesus wanted his listeners to know that every time a lost person is found, all of heaven rejoices.

While we may turn our backs on God, he never turns his back on us. At the beginning of the final parable the young man asked for, and received, his share of his father's estate. In taking his inheritance before his father had died, this young man implied, "I wish you were dead. I want your money more than I want you in my life." So when this young man reached a point of despair and decided to go home, he wasn't expecting a warm welcome. While he hoped his father would forgive him, he wasn't sure he would be forgiven completely. And he certainly didn't expect to be restored to the family with all the privileges of a son.

What the lost son didn't know was that his father had never stopped looking for him. The moment the father saw his son approaching, he ran to greet him and the celebration began. Even though his son had completely turned away, the father never turned his back on the straying son.

God has compassion for the lost. Again in the third parable, Jesus specifically said that the father felt "compassion" for his son (v.20). He understood how miserable the boy must have become. He realized how hard it must have been for the son to come home. Prompted by compassion, the father extended his love and acceptance.

Jesus intended that these three parables not only inform, but tug at the emotions of his listeners. Think through each story and put it in a contemporary setting. Imagine those situations where you've lost something of value, searched for it and then recovered it. Then ask God to give you his heart when it comes to lost people. Pray that he'll enable you to search for them as diligently as you would look for a cherished item that's lost.