"Lost And Found Department"

(Luke 15:1-10)

Rev. Billy D. Strayhorn

INTRODUCTION:

Do you know why Moses and the Israelites wound up wandering in the wilderness for 40 years? According to Rita Rudner, it was because Moses, like all men, wouldn't stop and ask for directions.

There's a story that says Daniel Boone was out doing some exploring with one of his friends. After a week or so, it became apparent that they were in new territory that none of them had ever seen. While wandering in this wilderness and trying to find their way, one of Boone's companion's asked, "Are you lost?"

To which Daniel Boone replied, "No, but I've been a might bewildered for the last three days." (1)

These two parables are not just about things being lost and things being found. These two parables are about the rejoicing that takes place when the lost is found.

Have you ever lost anything? Sure you have. We all have. Some times it very valuable stuff. Other times it's something not so valuable but still something we really wanted to keep. Sometimes it's just inconsequential stuff. The other day I got a magazine in the mail. One that I always look forward to reading. I set it aside for when I really had time to read it. But when I went to get it, it was gone. It wasn't where I thought it was. That started a search. I looked in all the usual places where I stash things. But it wasn't in any of those places. I even looked in our recycle box to see if I had gotten it mixed up with the newspapers. It wasn't there. After about thirty minutes of searching and grumbling and getting more and more frustrated, I finally just quit looking for it and went on to something else. About two minutes later I picked up a stack of papers, that I know I looked under, and there it was. I let out a big, "All right." I even had to find Mary and tell her that I found it.

You've probably had similar experiences with car keys, cell phones, homework, reports, you name it. Things get lost. Things get found. And we rejoice. The parables in this passage aren't just about things either. We only have two of the three parables in Luke 15 today. The third is longer and probably more familiar. It's the parable of the Prodigal Son. It points to the fact that these parables really aren't about things that get lost, but about people who get lost; a God who searches for them; and a God who rejoices when they are found.

I. GETTING LOST:

A. We know how things get lost but how do we get lost? Well, sometimes in much the same way as things. I lost that magazine through inattention. Apparently I didn't put it where I usually put stuff. And to top it off, I piled other stuff, unrelated stuff on top of it, making it even harder to find.

Sometimes we do that with our lives. We just sort of start going through the motions or we don't pay attention to the details like we should. There are plenty of good reasons. It might be the load at work. It might be a project that is consuming all of our energy or focus. Things have been going great at home and in our relationship with God and so we put those two things on the back burner. That's okay for a little while. But ONLY a little while. You see, if you leave those two things, family and faith, on the back burner too long, they have a tendency to spoil. One day you look up and you're like Daniel Boone, lost and bewildered.

Back in 1985, a newly retired couple purchased one of the best motor homes they could find. It had cruise control. As they were traveling up the West Coast, the husband got tired and asked his wife to drive while he took a nap. While she was driving she put the camper on cruise control and it worked perfectly. So, after an hour of straight highway driving she got up to go to the bathroom.

After the accident, she told the Highway Patrol she thought cruise control was the same as automatic pilot. The motor home was totaled, neither partner was hurt. (2)

Unfortunately, that's not always the case when we try to live our lives on cruise control.

B. Sometimes its grief that causes us to get lost. We just can't seem to get past the loss. Maybe you remember Charles Dickens' book, A Tale of Two Cities. In the book there was a cobbler who was prisoner in the Bastille. H had lived in a cell for so many years and had became so used to the narrow walls, the darkness, and the monotony, that when he was finally liberated, he went straight home and built, at the center of his home, a cell. On days when the skies were clear and birds were singing, the tap of his cobbler's hammer could still be heard coming from the dim cell within. (3)

Sometimes grief has a way of imprisoning us and keeping us that way. And it doesn't necessarily have to be grief over the loss of a loved one. It can be grief over the loss of a job or a promotion or a raise we thought we were going to get. It could even be grief over a decision we made years ago. But whatever it is that is causing the grief, it is holding us prisoner. And we have become like the lost sheep. Lost, alone and separated from the flock.

C. Sometimes it's not so much us, but our past. We get lost listening to the voices of the past.

It might be the voice of failure telling us that because we failed before, we can't possibly succeed this time, either.

It might be the voice of disappointment telling us that no matter how good the future looks right now; and no matter what we do, we're just going to be disappointed again, so why try.

It could be someone else's voice, the voice of an abusive spouse or an unloving parent. Or the combined voices of a dysfunctional family. We get under stress and we start to play the old tapes and do things in old, maybe unproductive ways. And before we know it we've gone down the wrong path and made wrong decisions. Then we look up and find ourselves lost and bewildered.

II. BEING FOUND:

A. We can get lost a lot of different ways. But the good news is that we may be lost, but we can be found. God sent Jesus to find us.

That's what these two parables are about. We may get discouraged and give up our search but not God. That's why Jesus came. To find the lost sheep. Remember, Jesus is "the good shepherd" and we are "the sheep of his pasture."

There's an old story, about a little boy who cried out in the night. "Daddy, I'm scared!" Half awake Daddy said, "Don't be afraid, Daddy's right across the hall." There was a brief pause and the little boy called out, "I'm still scared." So Daddy pulled out the big guns, "You don't have to be afraid God is with you. God loves you." The pause was longer but the little boy called out again, "I don't care about God, Daddy; I want someone with skin on!"

God knew we needed that assurance of someone with skin on. So God wrapped all the glory of heaven into the flesh and blood of Jesus and stepped into this world as the Good Shepherd just to show us how much we are loved. The Good Shepherd isn't satisfied until all of the sheep are safely gathered into the flock. Not even a one percent margin of loss was acceptable. Jesus came to find the lost.

B. Julias Segal, author of Winning Life's Toughest Battles, says that when people are in the midst of a crisis they often feel cut off from the past and the future. They become disoriented and feel lost. The author goes on to say that when you're bogged down in a crisis, sometimes the smallest action can become the key to survival.

And he relates a story about a traveler in northern Vermont who was convinced he was on the wrong road. He stopped his car, rolled down the window, and said to a local, "Friend, I need help. I'm lost." The villager looked at him a moment and said, "Do you know where you are?" "Yes," said the traveler. "I saw the name of the village when I entered." The man nodded his head. "Do you know where you want to be?" "Yes," the traveler replied, and named his destination. The villager looked away for a moment and then said, "Mister, you ain't lost. You just need directions." (4)

Sometimes we're like that traveler, we're not really lost, we're just confused or disoriented. We've just lost our sense of direction and we need someone's help. The good news is that Jesus came, with skin on not only to give us directions on how to get back but to lead the way. And to carry us if necessary.

III. THE REJOICING:

A. And when we turn back, when we are found, there is great rejoicing. We understand how excited the people in these parables are when they find that which was lost. We've all felt like that. We've all rejoiced like that over things. But, do we do that when it comes to people?

Think about our movie industry. When do we rejoice? When the bad guys gets their just desserts. I really liked the movie Air Force One with Harrison Ford. Remember all the articles about the real Air Force One and how it is laid out and all the custom chairs and desks and stuff that are in it? Those added to my enjoyment of the movie. Remember the discussion of whether or not the hull of the plane was actually bullet proof? Everyone's favorite scene out of the movie was at the end when the President was fighting with one of the bad guys. The hatch was open and they were both about to get sucked out. As the bad guy loses his grip, Ford utters that famous line, "Get off my plane." The audience burst into applause.

But what would have happened if the bad guy had suddenly seen the error of his ways and begged for mercy. The plot and the lines would have been changed; movie-goers would have felt cheated. We rejoiced when the bad guy got justice.

But Jesus says that it's not like that in heaven. There is a different reason for heaven to rejoice. God and all of heaven rejoices when one of us, the lost sheep, is found and receives mercy and forgiveness. God rejoices when we, the lost, are found. I have always found that absolutely incredible. God not only comes looking for us but through Christ makes a way for us to get back.

CONCLUSION:

Sometimes life can get downright bewildering. At times we may even feel lost and alone. But the Good News is that Jesus, the Son of God, the good Shepherd came with a mission. To set off the rejoicing in heaven by finding the lost.

King Duncan, author and editor of Dynamic Preaching, told a story years a go about an elderly gentleman was out walking with his young grandson. "How far are we from home?" he asked the boy. The boy answered, "I don't know, Grandpa." Grandpa asked, "Well, where are we?" Again the boy answered, "I don't know." Then grandpa kind of laughed and said, "Sounds to me like you are lost." The young boy looked up at his grandpa and said, "Nope, I can't be lost. I'm with you." (5)

Really that is the answer to our lostness, too. Once we discover that we're lost, Jesus enters our lives and brings us back into the flock. And once we give our life to Christ and know the comfort of God's presence, we can't be lost because we're with Him. The key is to stay with Him. Don't ever let go. But if you do, don't worry, Jesus is in charge of the Lost and Found Department, the Good Shepherd WILL come looking for you. And all heaven will rejoice when you are found.

This is the Word of the Lord for this day.

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1. adapted Lectionary Preaching Workbook Series V, Cycle C, (CSS Publishing, Lima, OH, 1997) Proper 19: SermonPrep Version.

2. Parables, Etc. (Platteville, Colorado: Saratoga Press), May 1985

3. The Pastor's Story File (Platteville, Colorado: Saratoga Press), March 1988.

4. Winning Life's Toughest Battles, by Julias Segal,

5. King Duncan, "Lost," Dynamic Preaching, Sep, 1986, Vol. 1, No. 9