Search and find activity to be increased

Ever misplaced anything? I have! What do you do? You get into a frantic "search and find" activity that could go multi day. It raises tensions in the home and your spouse gets flustered. Your children get blamed and soon there is no peace. If you are like me, that is naturally not orderly, these events tend to repeat. Praise God for an orderly wife. She keeps me on the straight and narrow. But there is another kind of "search and find" and Jesus explains this to the Jewish leaders. Using sheep, coins and sons.

Luke 15:4

What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?

Luke 15:8

Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?

Luke 15:11-13

Then He said: “A certain man had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me. ’ So he divided to them his livelihood. And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.

Jesus is seen as being counterculture by mixing with sinners of the worst kind. Jesus then speaks about the shepherd, the woman and the father who find their lost sheep, coin and son respectively. Great celebration is had, but the other son, who is home, became upset with the father. Jesus is saying, rejoice! Perhaps you are the lost son or daughter. Jesus is ready to receive you and a great celebration will be had.

Luke 15:20-24

And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son. But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.

Father, help me to daily go on a search and find activity. The lost need to be found.

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