Lost and Found Part 2
For this series I asked Pastor Jason Williams to join me and he presented on this parable. You can listen to the audio and read his sermon notes below. Thank you Pr. Jason for joining me in this series.
Parable of the Lost Coin
Orientation
Scripture Reading: Luke 15:8–10 (NASB95): “Or what woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?
9 “When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!’
10 “In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Prayer: father we have not come for information, but we have come for transformation. Father comfort the disturbed and disturbed the comfortable
The set up
Jesus often times will operate in a way that is unusual. His way oftentimes does not fit into the status quo of society. Understand that it was very easy for people to become confused about what Jesus was teaching. Yet still he is called the master teacher.
It was very easy for people to become confused about what Jesus was teaching. Because what he taught broke many of the rules of his day.
You see by the time Jesus started teaching there were over 1000 different rules to follow.
But as you can imagine, going against the rules and regulations drew the attention of the guardians of the law. The guardians of the law placed the law above people, but Jesus would place people above the law.
Scribes and Pharisees Good People
Now I like most other pastors have preached about how the pharisees were a difficult group of people. We Cast a very negative view of the Pharisees. That there is nothing good about the Pharisees. But permit me to correct this error and point out something for you to considered.
The Scribes and pharisees were great Seventh-day Adventist. They truly wanted to do what was right. For no one in their right minds would deprive themselves of the pleasures of the world, to follow over a 1k rules.
You see they did this because deep down they wanted to be right with God. They wanted to be holy, they wanted to be set apart, they wanted to be a peculiar people. And nothing is wrong with that, for it is a good thing to strive to be holy, to be obedient, to be right with God.
Except that the scribes and pharisees took it a little too far. It was Rabbi Simeon who said “if there are only two righteous men in the world, I and my are these; if there is only one, I am he!”
You see the Scribes and Pharisees did their very best to distance themselves from sin. But in doing so they distance themselves from sinners.
Understand that the religious leaders of Jesus time had a problem with Jesus hanging out with prostitutes
The religious leaders of Jesus time had a problem with Jesus hanging out with individuals who were all tooted up
They had a problem with people who had a different view or orientation
They had a problem with Jesus hanging out with that man or woman who would use a curse word in every sentence
They had a problem with Jesus hanging out with people who smoked or Drank like there is not tomorrow,
They had a problem with Jesus hanging out with the very same people they had a grudge against.
And so it is under this context that we see Jesus trying to win the hearts of the scribes and pharisees through parables, but also the bible informs us that there where some tax collectors and sinners.
Now I know Pastor Marlon touched on this last week. but I just wanted to again draw your attention to this crucial point.
Notice Jesus did not send a facebook message out, he did not send out any flyers, he did not make an announcement in the Roman or Jewish tabloid. Yet still there were multitudes of people flocking to see him.
What was his method what did he do? That caused people to leave their vocations, leave their daily pleasures to come listen to this man.
We are going to get there but lets first explore what is happening in Luke 15:8-10.
Some of you may already know that parables are not actual historical accounts but rather it is a made up story to prove a larger point.
That is why Jesus shares the story of the lost sheep, that is why he shares the story of the lost coin and that is why he shares the story of the prodigal son.
But today in this second part of this series we will be focusing on the lost coin.
Then Engagement
In the USA, UK and many other countries, the groom or the boyfriend will go down and one knee to make his proposal and if she accepts the proposal, he gives her an engagement ring.
In japan both families of the bride and groom will exchange gifts of various kinds.
In Thailand the bride is given gifts of gold and she will only accepts gold no diamonds
Celebrities engagement ring
Blake Lively received a ring worth 2.5 million dollars.
Beyoncé received a diamond ring worth 5 million dollars
Mariah Carey was given a diamond ring Worth 10 million dollars
Now Imagine losing that engagement ring?
The reality is when a man loves a woman he will if it were possible pluck a star from the sky and place it on the hand of a woman.
And in bible times it wasn’t any different.
The Lost Coin
In Bible times, a woman or the bride to would be given a headband with ten silver coins. Each coin was about a day’s worth of work. So, she had around her head ten days worth of pay.
Now the Bible informs us that she lost one of the coins and now she is down to nine coins. And at this point in time she could choose to go about her day and not worry about the lost coin.
But the truth of the matter is the one coin that is lost renders the whole thing worthless. And so she frantically lights a lamp and begins searching diligently.
One thing you may or may not know is that Jewish homes usually had no windows or very small holes for windows. As a result there inside their homes were usually dark.
And so she is searching for this coin in a dark space. The reason she has a broom, is that as she sweeps the floor she is listening for the ringing noise of the coin as it roles across the floor.
Can you see her sweeping under the table, sweeping that chair, sweeping under bed. She is desperate, determined and diligent.
She needs to find that lost coin.
But again this was just a made up story, that Jesus was telling. And it is interesting that Jesus uses a story that has a woman in it.
For as you study scripture you will realize that woman in the Bible represents the church.
So what Jesus was saying in essence to the scribes and Pharisees is that it’s their responsibility to go after the lost. And what Jesus is saying to you and I today is that it is our responsibility to go after the lost.
And like this woman we aught to be desperate, determined, and diligent
Where the coin is
And so she is searching not in some arbitrary place, but she is searching in her home. But watch this she is searching in her home because that is where the lost coin is.
Some may look at this verse and say see this verse is teaching us that we ought to focus our time and energy in the church. And while it is important for us to minister to one another, that is not what this verse is saying.
If you look closer she was searching where the coin was lost. And can I tell you today that yes there may be lost coin in the church today but there is also lost coin outside of the church. And we like this woman must go where the lost are.
And so the bible tells us that she lights a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully. You see she is going after the coin, you see because she knows that the coin is not going to come after her so she has to go after the coin.
And can I tell you today that there are some who will never come to church until we go after them.
But I don’t want you to miss the profundity of what I am saying here.
Unbound them
I want to point out that there are many who are bound by there circumstances and it is very difficult for them to accept the gospel. Not necessarily because they Don’t want to but their situation is keeping them from getting to Jesus.
Ok come here Lazarus and help us explain this one.
Lazarus was dead and now was in the tomb for 4 days. By now he was stinking, as his body was now rotting, decaying away.
Jesus comes along and did what no one else could do. He brought him back to life. But when Jesus resurrected Lazarus from the dead he was still bound in grave clothing. Lazarus looked like a mummy. And as a result, he could not get to Jesus.
His movement was restricted by his situation.
And it is at this time that Jesus invites those who were near by to unbound him.
But couldn’t Jesus do that himself by just speaking a word? Absolutely. But Jesus wanted to invite the participation of those who were around to be part of the miracle. Jesus wanted those around to also experience the power of salvation. And so he invites those who were around to unbound him.
And can I tell you today that there are some people who are bounded by all kind of circumstances, as a result it is very difficult for them to get to Jesus.
Some are bounded financial situation
Bound by marital issues
Bound by mental issues
Bound by loneliness
Bound by depression
Bound by confusion
And Jesus is inviting you and I to unbound them to participate in the miracle. So that they can get to Jesus.
“There is need of coming closer to the people by personal effort. If less time were given to sermonizing and more time were spend in personal ministry greater results would be seen. The poor are to be relieved, the sick cared for the sorrowing and the bereaved comforted the ignorant instructed the inexperienced counseled. We are to weep with those that weep, and rejoice with those that rejoice. Accompanied by the power of persuasion the power of prayer, the power of love of God this work will not, cannot be without fruit.” (Ministry of Healing)
Again Jesus didn’t mind challenging the status quo. Jesus didn’t mind doing things differently as long as it meant he was able to get to the people.
I heard someone said “insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.”
Challenge the status quo and change how we do church.
Friends of mine what if we challenge the status quo of how we do church?
This week Idaho conference Pastors spent some time up at Camp Ida haven. And we got a chance to sit at the feet of two great scholars. One was Dr. Hyveth Williams professor at Andrews University. She shared with us that she finished her second Doctorate degree at age 76. And she doesn’t mind sharing this as a way to encourage others.
The other was Doctor Sung Kwon from Andrews University. And he shared a story of a Pastor
Illustration: who accepted to pastor a small church. There was however one trouble that is common to many other churches and that is. Whenever he showed up to prayer meeting there would be about five people. When he showed up to church there would be about 20 people. And while some would be contented with such a small number. This new Pastor was not. he thought instead of having prayer meeting at church lets go out into our community and find out how we can be of assistance to them.
One of the things he and his small group found out was that there were some in his community who did not have enough food. So, the church made it their duty to provide food to as many families as they could.
However, one day as they were giving out food they noticed that there was one family that was taking more food than everyone else. It was significant enough that it cause the pastor to inquire about the reason they were taking so much food. They said well we are picking up food for multiple families because our house has internet. What do you mean the pastor asked.
Well the library closes at 5:00pm after which we have a group of immigrant children are not able to do their assignments because they do not have internet at their home. And so, they come over to our home to do their assignments and we then are able to feed them. So the pastor went back to his church and said we need to beef up our internet which they did. And they did this just so that these children could come to their church and continue doing their assignment.
One wealthy person caught wind of what this church was doing and decided that he would donate a plot of land so that they could build a new church. They were able to a build a 25k square feet church. Now they had a new problem. Their church now filled with Koreans West Indians, Ukrainians, hispanics.
All because they decided to do church differently.
And today instead they programs for
affordable housing,
community centers,
senior living housing,
gym for the community,
child care
counseling
and much much more.
All because they decided to do church differently.
What if we decided to do church a little differently.
What if you and I were to spend some time at the chamber of commerce so we can learn about the needs of some of the business owners in our community
What if we were to start an English class for some of the Ukrainians in Boise
What if we were to join a lion’s club, a rotary club, a domestic violence club
So we can learn how to unbind people from what is keeping them from getting to Jesus.
You see friends of mine there is something about this coin. Although it was lost it still had value.
The Image in the Coin but still claimed
Luke 20:19-25. The scribes and the chief priests tried to lay hands on Him that very hour, and they feared the people; for they understood that He spoke this parable against them.
20 So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, in order that they might catch Him in some statement, so that they could deliver Him to the ruler and the authority of the governor.
21 They questioned Him, saying, “Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth.
22 “Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”
23 But He detected their trickery and said to them,
24 “Show Me a denarius. Whose image and inscription is on it?” They said, “Caesar’s.”
25 And He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
You see there was an image on that coin, and the image on the coin determines who the coin belongs to.
And can I tell you today that lost sinner still bear the image of God, even though that image has been marred by sin. Even though that image has been distoreted by sin. When a lost sinner is found God begins to restore that divine image through the power of the spirit. And one day the believer will be like Jesus.
Lost means being out of place.
Lost means unable to finds one way
lost means not knowing ones where about
but what it does not mean is that you have lost your identity. What it does not mean is that you have lost who you belong to
and can I tell you today no matter where you, no matter where you are.
Sin may have taken you into a dark space
sin may have marred you
sin may have made you unrecognizable
sin may have distorted your image
sin may have uglified you.
Sin may Have messed you,
The song
But can I tell you today that there is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel’s vain and sinners who plunged beneath that flow lose all their guilty stain.
You see Friends of mine what can wash away my sins. Nothing but the blood of Jesus
What can make me whole again nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh precious is that flow that makes me white as snow no other fount I know nothing but the blood of Jesus.
You may not look like what you should look like but I know someone who is able to clean you up, to restore you because his image is imprinted on you.
Close
Warp understanding of the father
Jesus came to save us from a warped understanding of who the father is. He is not one that is wishing that any should be lost. And so he would move heaven and earth to save one
Those in the hearing of Jesus voice must of have been shocked to hear that God searches for sinners.
That was not the message they were expecting to hearing. For the scribes and Pharisees, they were offended because they had forgotten by the message of the lost coin.
They were offended that Jesus did not willing to play their game or be satisfied with just one person being lost.
And for that reason, you I cannot be satisfied with church as usual, if there is one that is lost
We got to be willing to break the status quo, to grab our lamp and broom and search diligently for that one.
Rejoicing that takes place in heaven
Finally
Verse 9 and 10 says, When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!’
10 “In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
It means that every time someone
There is going to be a party yes when Jesus comes but also before Jesus come there is going to be a party.
Appeal
If Jesus is willing to break the status quo for one
If Jesus is willing to go after a lost sinner
If he is able to make the lost whole again.
Would you be willing to partner with God for Boise
Would you be willing to partner with God for Nampa would you be willing to partner with God for all of Treasure valley would you be willing to partner with God to go after that one
If this is your desire, won’t you stand with me.
Closing Song
Sing the song what can wash away my sin.
Prayer:
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
