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<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Jesus sought us when we were utterly lost.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?\u2026 Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it?\u201d Luke 15:4 & 8<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Jesus Cares About The Lost.<\/h2>\n
Jesus takes seriously the state of the lost\u2026always.<\/p>\n
One time Michelangelo was asked to comment on a sculpture by his best student. He said, \u201cIt is magnificent. It lacks only one thing\u2026life.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTruly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.\u201d John 5:24<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
There are a lot of people who lack one thing\u2026life. There are dead people walking all around us who just haven\u2019t been buried yet. Dead people beautifully dressed, uttering sophisticated words, living in pretty houses, and doing nice things\u2026with no sign of life. There are two kinds of people in the world: the lost and the found.<\/p>\n
Jesus said, \u201cFor the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost\u201d (Luke 19:10). That was what the incarnation was all about. So if you\u2019re lost and don\u2019t know Jesus, run to him.<\/p>\n
Jesus Pursues The Lost.<\/h2>\n
And Jesus is persistent in his pursuit. I love C.S. Lewis\u2019 comment that when he received Christ, he was the most reluctant convert in all of England. Lewis said that he was being chased. Every time Lewis sat down to write, he sensed a presence behind him: \u201cTo say that I was seeking God is like saying that a mouse was searching for a cat.\u201d<\/p>\n
Little Dickie was a boy in the camp where my wife Anna and I worked one summer. He was one of the meanest kids I\u2019ve ever known. They didn\u2019t allow spanking at the camp and, after meeting Dickie, I understood why. I would have killed him! My wife, though, decided that no matter what Dickie did, she was going to love him\u2026and she did. Anna pursued him with her love. On the last day of camp, Dickie gave my wife a flower. It was like saying, \u201cI give up. Your love has won.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Father is like that in his pursuit of us. If you are his, your running is to no avail. You are simply wasting your time and energy. Give up.<\/p>\n
A man once told me, \u201cI don\u2019t like you very much, but I\u2019m determined to like you until we\u2019re friends\u2026if that\u2019s the last thing I do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Shepherd never gives up. That is why you feel guilty, why you can\u2019t sleep at night, why you just can\u2019t turn your back. He will pursue you until you give up and you are his.<\/p>\n
Jesus Gives The Lost Value.<\/h2>\n
R.C. Sproul, in his book In Search of Dignity<\/em>, wrote about a student with cerebral palsy. He was difficult to understand. His speech was slurred, slow and agonizing. His walk and movements were a struggle. The student was very upset when he came to see Sproul. Before they talked, Sproul prayed, \u201cOh, God, please help this man as he wrestles with his problem.\u201d When Sproul looked up from his prayer, the student was crying, and said, \u201cYou called me a man. No one has ever called me a man before.\u201d<\/p>\n
That student was valuable. We are valuable. That is the good news of the Gospel. We are valuable, cherished and loved. But we sell ourselves so cheaply. The only basis of value for an individual is God. If there is no God, there is no value. And if there is no value, then we are turnips.<\/p>\n
This is what the cross was all about. You are valuable, so valuable that it took the blood of God\u2019s own Son to meet the price.<\/p>\n
There Is Great Joy When The Lost Are Found.<\/h2>\n
\u201cJust so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance\u2026.Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.\u201d Luke 15:7 & 10<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The angels in heaven\u2019s gallery celebrate when the lost are found. There will be much laughter in heaven\u2026and that starts now.<\/p>\n
Steve Brown is the founder of Key Life Network, author of numerous books including A Scandalous Freedom, How to Talk So People Will Listen and Approaching God, and is an in-demand speaker, serving as a Plenary Session speaker at ABC\u2019s 2017 National Conference<\/a>. Steve blogs at KeyLife.org; this article<\/a> is reprinted with permission. <\/em><\/p>\n
The post Jesus Cares About the Lost<\/a> appeared first on ABC<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jesus came to us when we couldn\u2019t come to him. Jesus loved us when we couldn\u2019t love him. Jesus gave us life when we couldn\u2019t get it for ourselves. Jesus sought us when we were utterly lost. \u201cWhat man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave…
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