1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,198 Speaker: We are gonna be in Luke chapter 15, and, uh, there's a, 2 00:00:06,336 --> 00:00:09,192 there's a pretty famous worship song that has to do with this passage. 3 00:00:09,193 --> 00:00:17,929 So, um, we're gonna be in Luke 15 I don't know if you guys have ever seen 4 00:00:18,500 --> 00:00:22,523 someone who, like, loves something so much that it kinda seems ridiculous. 5 00:00:22,539 --> 00:00:25,468 You ever seen someone who cares so much about, like, I don't know, maybe it's a 6 00:00:25,470 --> 00:00:29,510 game or maybe it's a, uh, maybe you're, like, not into sports and you're like, 7 00:00:29,510 --> 00:00:31,285 "Why do these people like sports so much?" 8 00:00:31,627 --> 00:00:35,850 Or I don't know if you've ever seen that, but there's times when 9 00:00:35,850 --> 00:00:39,350 someone loves something that doesn't seem like it's worth it, right? 10 00:00:39,561 --> 00:00:43,571 There's times there … You, you see someone loving something or, or some 11 00:00:43,571 --> 00:00:46,163 activity or they really like something and you're like, "I, I don't see it. 12 00:00:46,909 --> 00:00:47,999 I, I, I just don't get it." 13 00:00:47,999 --> 00:00:52,371 Like, for me, that's, um, I just … That's me with cilantro. 14 00:00:52,449 --> 00:00:53,734 I'm like, I just don't like it. 15 00:00:53,748 --> 00:00:54,246 I don't get it. 16 00:00:54,290 --> 00:00:56,962 E- everyone loves Mexican food, everyone loves all this stuff, and I'm just 17 00:00:56,962 --> 00:00:59,177 like, "Uh, can't really do it," right? 18 00:01:00,114 --> 00:01:01,724 Case in point would be, like, Chipotle. 19 00:01:01,769 --> 00:01:03,076 I know everyone loves Chipotle. 20 00:01:03,079 --> 00:01:04,537 I just, just don't see it, right? 21 00:01:04,709 --> 00:01:05,417 It seems weird to me. 22 00:01:05,864 --> 00:01:08,959 But I want you to think about, like, that picture, right? 23 00:01:08,961 --> 00:01:12,388 Someone who loves something a- and it's just like, you're like, "That's so dumb. 24 00:01:12,911 --> 00:01:13,912 Like, why would you ever do that? 25 00:01:13,933 --> 00:01:16,664 Why would you ever care that much about something that 26 00:01:16,664 --> 00:01:18,656 matters that little," right? 27 00:01:19,215 --> 00:01:22,322 Uh, that's what we're gonna see in this passage, okay? 28 00:01:22,322 --> 00:01:24,830 And, and what we're gonna see is that God's love doesn't 29 00:01:24,830 --> 00:01:26,701 really make sense to us. 30 00:01:27,301 --> 00:01:31,394 It's hard for us to make sense of why God loves the way He does, okay? 31 00:01:31,396 --> 00:01:33,285 So we are gonna be in Luke 15. 32 00:01:33,285 --> 00:01:37,565 So if you're not already there, turn there in your Bibles to Luke 15. 33 00:01:38,805 --> 00:01:42,598 So what's happening here, um, Jesus is gonna ask a question, right? 34 00:01:42,598 --> 00:01:43,969 Now, obviously that's our, that's our series. 35 00:01:43,969 --> 00:01:46,860 We're looking at questions Jesus asked, but this is a parable. 36 00:01:46,889 --> 00:01:48,920 So if you don't know what a parable is, a parable is just a story. 37 00:01:49,002 --> 00:01:52,160 It's a made-up story that Jesus is using to make a point. 38 00:01:52,286 --> 00:01:56,050 So a parable, it's a story that illustrates his point, right? 39 00:01:56,422 --> 00:02:02,381 And we're gonna start here in Luke 15:1, and you'll notice this parable 40 00:02:02,684 --> 00:02:04,707 is actually told to specific people. 41 00:02:04,718 --> 00:02:07,391 So this story isn't just, you know, in the Bible and, and 42 00:02:07,391 --> 00:02:08,553 just not for you to learn about. 43 00:02:08,553 --> 00:02:13,485 This story is actually a response to something that is really happening. 44 00:02:13,487 --> 00:02:14,324 So here's what's happening. 45 00:02:14,624 --> 00:02:17,851 So the tax collectors and sinners, these are, like, the worst 46 00:02:17,864 --> 00:02:18,745 people you could think of, right? 47 00:02:18,745 --> 00:02:20,326 The people … These people don't go to church, right? 48 00:02:20,332 --> 00:02:22,142 These are the not religious people. 49 00:02:22,536 --> 00:02:25,704 The tax collectors and sinners, they're all drawing near 50 00:02:25,805 --> 00:02:27,334 to Jesus to hear him teach. 51 00:02:27,346 --> 00:02:28,106 That's who "him" is. 52 00:02:28,445 --> 00:02:29,790 So they all, they all wanna hear Jesus. 53 00:02:29,793 --> 00:02:32,261 So think about this and how weird this would be, right? 54 00:02:32,485 --> 00:02:34,858 Jesus is the, the religious teacher, right? 55 00:02:34,860 --> 00:02:37,531 When you think of Jesus, you, you think of a, a, a good person, right? 56 00:02:37,531 --> 00:02:40,224 You think of a guy who's, who loves God, who, who knows his 57 00:02:40,226 --> 00:02:43,089 Bible, who's, who's doing what he's supposed to be doing, right? 58 00:02:43,091 --> 00:02:48,406 And what's happening is all of the bad people are coming to hear Jesus. 59 00:02:48,846 --> 00:02:51,563 All the people that you wouldn't expect to talk to Jesus. 60 00:02:51,663 --> 00:02:53,555 The people that you wouldn't expect Jesus to hang out with, right? 61 00:02:53,555 --> 00:02:54,719 And you think about your school, right? 62 00:02:54,949 --> 00:02:58,497 I know at my high school, there was the McDonald's across the parking 63 00:02:58,497 --> 00:03:01,548 lot, and that was where all the bad kids went after, after school, right? 64 00:03:01,548 --> 00:03:04,606 You didn't go to McDonald's after school unless you were one of those kids, right? 65 00:03:05,475 --> 00:03:07,464 That's, in the sense, where Jesus is. 66 00:03:07,716 --> 00:03:09,561 Jesus is with all the bad kids, right? 67 00:03:09,715 --> 00:03:12,513 He's hanging out with the tax collectors and sinners, and 68 00:03:12,513 --> 00:03:13,101 they're all coming to him. 69 00:03:13,102 --> 00:03:15,946 And so the Pharisees, these are the, you know, the, the church kids, right? 70 00:03:15,946 --> 00:03:19,851 The Pharisees and scribes, the, the teachers of the Bible at 71 00:03:19,853 --> 00:03:21,575 this time, they're grumbling. 72 00:03:21,950 --> 00:03:22,632 They're upset. 73 00:03:22,814 --> 00:03:23,954 They don't like that this is happening. 74 00:03:23,957 --> 00:03:28,188 They're like, "This man, Jesus, he's receiving sinners. 75 00:03:28,189 --> 00:03:29,084 He's welcoming them. 76 00:03:29,304 --> 00:03:30,861 He's, you know, he's hanging out with them. 77 00:03:30,875 --> 00:03:31,849 He's eating with them." 78 00:03:31,850 --> 00:03:34,519 In this culture, sharing a meal with someone was a big deal. 79 00:03:34,536 --> 00:03:36,903 It was kinda like saying, "We're friends," right? 80 00:03:37,221 --> 00:03:39,663 Um, it's like sitting with them at lunch, right? 81 00:03:39,678 --> 00:03:41,561 It, it shows that you care about these people, and you 82 00:03:41,561 --> 00:03:42,517 wanna be with these people. 83 00:03:43,380 --> 00:03:46,589 This man receives sinners and eats with them. 84 00:03:46,897 --> 00:03:48,588 So he told them this parable. 85 00:03:48,606 --> 00:03:53,481 So this story that Jesus is gonna tell is a response to these people, okay? 86 00:03:53,850 --> 00:03:55,991 So the, the story is a response to what's happening. 87 00:03:56,000 --> 00:03:56,248 He's… 88 00:03:56,697 --> 00:04:00,340 These Pharisees, these, these religious people are really upset about who Jesus 89 00:04:00,372 --> 00:04:04,208 is hanging out with, and so Jesus is gonna respond to them with a story. 90 00:04:04,212 --> 00:04:07,115 But before we get into the story, I just wanna look at these people, okay? 91 00:04:07,116 --> 00:04:08,040 These people, they're grumbling. 92 00:04:08,040 --> 00:04:12,033 They're upset at Jesus, and that's because they don't like that 93 00:04:12,034 --> 00:04:14,805 Jesus is associating with sinners. 94 00:04:14,878 --> 00:04:20,106 They don't like it because they think that Jesus should love the people that 95 00:04:20,116 --> 00:04:23,157 they think are worthy of God's love. 96 00:04:23,969 --> 00:04:26,226 They think Jesus should love the good people, right? 97 00:04:26,238 --> 00:04:30,533 The nice people, the kind people, the, the church people, right? 98 00:04:30,688 --> 00:04:32,850 They think Jesus should love the people that they're like, 99 00:04:32,850 --> 00:04:33,906 "Yep, those are good people. 100 00:04:33,937 --> 00:04:34,799 Those are our people. 101 00:04:35,507 --> 00:04:38,034 Jesus should love the people that are like us, not the people 102 00:04:38,034 --> 00:04:39,230 that are like those guys." 103 00:04:40,994 --> 00:04:44,030 So I want you to see these people, and I want you to not be like them. 104 00:04:44,031 --> 00:04:46,984 So our first point, don't be a grumpy Pharisee, right? 105 00:04:46,993 --> 00:04:48,711 Grumbling, grumpy Pharisee. 106 00:04:48,720 --> 00:04:50,568 Don't, don't be one of these people. 107 00:04:50,969 --> 00:04:53,342 Don't be a grumpy Pharisee. 108 00:04:54,832 --> 00:04:58,789 They don't like that Jesus loves these sinners and is associating with them. 109 00:04:58,789 --> 00:05:00,043 They don't like that he's hanging out with them. 110 00:05:00,043 --> 00:05:01,528 They don't like that he's teaching them. 111 00:05:02,063 --> 00:05:03,769 They don't like that he's letting them even… 112 00:05:04,220 --> 00:05:05,722 He's just letting them live. 113 00:05:05,746 --> 00:05:07,440 He's not being like, "You guys are bad. 114 00:05:07,440 --> 00:05:08,199 What are you doing?" 115 00:05:08,450 --> 00:05:08,680 Right? 116 00:05:08,681 --> 00:05:10,713 The Pharisees at the time, they're like, "Oh, we don't wanna talk to those people. 117 00:05:10,828 --> 00:05:11,554 Those are the bad people." 118 00:05:12,059 --> 00:05:12,358 Right? 119 00:05:13,763 --> 00:05:19,202 And the reason behind that, that we'll see, is that these people thought that 120 00:05:19,203 --> 00:05:22,716 God only loves lovable people, right? 121 00:05:22,726 --> 00:05:24,454 God only loves good people. 122 00:05:24,890 --> 00:05:28,429 God only loves people that deserve it, people that have worked for it, right? 123 00:05:28,429 --> 00:05:29,800 'Cause the Pharisees, think about this, right? 124 00:05:30,145 --> 00:05:31,679 This is Jesus, right? 125 00:05:31,693 --> 00:05:34,863 He's supposed to be, uh, some people are saying he's the Messiah, right? 126 00:05:35,044 --> 00:05:37,350 And they're like, "Okay, well, who's the Messiah gonna hang out with? 127 00:05:37,474 --> 00:05:40,367 Who's our king that we've been waiting for from the whole Old Testament, 128 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:41,705 who's he gonna hang out with?" 129 00:05:42,275 --> 00:05:44,136 They're like, "Well, it should be us, right? 130 00:05:44,288 --> 00:05:45,541 We've been keeping the law. 131 00:05:45,557 --> 00:05:46,731 We've been reading the Bibles. 132 00:05:46,732 --> 00:05:49,530 We've been giving our money to, to, to the temple. 133 00:05:49,690 --> 00:05:51,470 We've been doing all this great stuff. 134 00:05:51,584 --> 00:05:53,236 We've memorized all these things." 135 00:05:53,636 --> 00:05:55,784 And they're like, "Of course, when the Messiah comes, 136 00:05:55,784 --> 00:05:56,711 who's he gonna wanna be with? 137 00:05:56,972 --> 00:05:57,516 Us, right? 138 00:05:57,516 --> 00:05:58,931 'Cause we're doing, we're doing this." 139 00:05:59,783 --> 00:05:59,981 Right? 140 00:05:59,981 --> 00:06:02,507 It'd be, it'd be like, imagine if, if Jesus came to your school, 141 00:06:03,144 --> 00:06:05,723 and you're like, "Oh, yeah, who's Jesus gonna sit with at lunch? 142 00:06:05,761 --> 00:06:07,765 Oh, yeah, he's gonna sit with the FCA people," right? 143 00:06:07,766 --> 00:06:09,979 Or, "Oh, Jesus is gonna sit with the, the Christian kids. 144 00:06:09,979 --> 00:06:10,181 Jesus…" 145 00:06:10,348 --> 00:06:13,272 And, and imagine Jesus goes and he sits down with all the kids that, 146 00:06:13,272 --> 00:06:14,465 like, do drugs at your school. 147 00:06:14,651 --> 00:06:15,378 You'd be like, "What? 148 00:06:16,212 --> 00:06:17,429 Why is Jesus with those people? 149 00:06:17,640 --> 00:06:18,506 That's not where he should be. 150 00:06:18,851 --> 00:06:22,424 He should be with the people that, that are, are good kids, 151 00:06:22,425 --> 00:06:23,436 that are upstanding," right? 152 00:06:23,438 --> 00:06:26,293 "That, that do their homework, that, that turn in their, their things on time, that 153 00:06:26,293 --> 00:06:27,957 the teachers like and respect," right? 154 00:06:29,258 --> 00:06:32,327 So it bothers them because they think Jesus should only love 155 00:06:32,328 --> 00:06:34,141 the people who are lovable. 156 00:06:35,383 --> 00:06:36,766 And I wonder if you ever do this. 157 00:06:37,219 --> 00:06:42,011 I wonder if you ever think, "Man, those people, they don't deserve God's love." 158 00:06:43,558 --> 00:06:45,358 Or maybe, maybe you think of it a different way. 159 00:06:45,477 --> 00:06:48,737 You kinda set boundary markers for who you think God would love. 160 00:06:49,416 --> 00:06:51,836 "Well, I wouldn't share the gospel with that person because they wouldn't 161 00:06:51,837 --> 00:06:56,185 listen anyway," or, "I, I, I don't, I don't need to forgive that person 162 00:06:56,192 --> 00:06:56,994 'cause they're, they're not… 163 00:06:57,030 --> 00:06:59,158 I don't need to be kind to that person," right? 164 00:06:59,158 --> 00:07:00,053 "'Cause they're really annoying. 165 00:07:00,149 --> 00:07:01,028 They're really frustrating. 166 00:07:01,485 --> 00:07:02,302 I don't need to love them." 167 00:07:03,783 --> 00:07:03,962 Right? 168 00:07:03,962 --> 00:07:04,867 That's what the Pharisees did. 169 00:07:04,875 --> 00:07:07,640 They said, "Those people, those sinners, those tax collectors, they 170 00:07:07,640 --> 00:07:09,501 don't deserve God's love, but we do." 171 00:07:10,924 --> 00:07:13,087 And so maybe you are a Christian, and that's how you feel. 172 00:07:13,121 --> 00:07:15,133 Or maybe you're not a Christian, and you're on the opposite. 173 00:07:15,139 --> 00:07:16,720 Maybe you're one of the tax collectors and sinners. 174 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:20,207 You're one of the bad kids and, and you're thinking, "Well, God would never love me." 175 00:07:21,826 --> 00:07:23,371 I want you to see that God's love is different, right? 176 00:07:23,371 --> 00:07:25,716 God doesn't just love the people who've worked for it, people 177 00:07:25,716 --> 00:07:27,399 that seem like they deserve it. 178 00:07:27,797 --> 00:07:31,376 God loves the people who know they don't deserve it. 179 00:07:33,778 --> 00:07:35,723 And sometimes, even if you've been a Christian for a while, you 180 00:07:35,723 --> 00:07:39,023 can trick yourself into thinking that you deserve God's love. 181 00:07:40,268 --> 00:07:40,467 Right? 182 00:07:40,467 --> 00:07:43,494 I, I know I've done this, and I'm sure if, if you've been a Christian for any length 183 00:07:43,495 --> 00:07:46,163 of time, you can start thinking, "Yeah, it makes sense that God would save me, 184 00:07:46,948 --> 00:07:48,674 'cause I, I don't say those words anymore. 185 00:07:48,913 --> 00:07:50,304 I don't make those jokes anymore. 186 00:07:50,308 --> 00:07:51,497 I don't do those things anymore." 187 00:07:51,879 --> 00:07:53,371 Or, "I, I was a good kid growing up. 188 00:07:53,372 --> 00:07:54,299 I listened to my parents. 189 00:07:54,300 --> 00:07:55,328 I did the nice things. 190 00:07:55,328 --> 00:07:57,698 I, I was generally, you know, obedient. 191 00:07:57,698 --> 00:07:58,390 I like church. 192 00:07:58,390 --> 00:07:59,125 I like God." 193 00:08:00,853 --> 00:08:02,418 It's easy for you to trick yourself into thinking, "Yeah, 194 00:08:02,418 --> 00:08:03,749 it makes sense that God loves me. 195 00:08:04,371 --> 00:08:07,674 I, I've been doing this Christian thing pretty well," or, "God didn't really 196 00:08:07,674 --> 00:08:10,078 save me from that many bad things." 197 00:08:11,578 --> 00:08:16,995 And then you start looking down at the, the people who aren't like you, right? 198 00:08:16,996 --> 00:08:20,183 Who, who don't know their Bible like you, who don't serve at church, 199 00:08:20,184 --> 00:08:23,395 who, who maybe listen to different worship music than you or, or believe 200 00:08:23,395 --> 00:08:26,731 different theology than you, and you start thinking, "Oh, well, I'm more 201 00:08:26,731 --> 00:08:28,155 deserving of God's love than them." 202 00:08:28,218 --> 00:08:28,405 Right? 203 00:08:28,405 --> 00:08:30,962 "If Jesus wanted to hang out with someone at my school, he'd hang out 204 00:08:30,962 --> 00:08:34,611 with me, not them, 'cause I have good theology, and they, they don't." 205 00:08:34,616 --> 00:08:34,885 Right? 206 00:08:36,188 --> 00:08:38,616 "I believe all five points of Calvinism, and they don't." 207 00:08:38,661 --> 00:08:38,977 Right? 208 00:08:39,317 --> 00:08:43,150 Or, "I, I, I sing hymns, and they sing, you know, elevation," right? 209 00:08:43,938 --> 00:08:44,665 Maybe that's you. 210 00:08:45,140 --> 00:08:45,327 Right? 211 00:08:45,328 --> 00:08:48,242 It's, it's easy for you to, to think that, and you think, start 212 00:08:48,249 --> 00:08:49,584 thinking, "I'm so lovable." 213 00:08:50,845 --> 00:08:51,023 Right? 214 00:08:51,023 --> 00:08:52,293 "I'm, I'm so this. 215 00:08:52,319 --> 00:08:52,988 I'm so that." 216 00:08:53,209 --> 00:08:58,870 And we start realizing, oh, well, actually, that's us saying, "I deserve 217 00:08:58,874 --> 00:09:00,757 God's love, and those people don't." 218 00:09:03,995 --> 00:09:07,194 And maybe it's like, well, yeah, I know I don't deserve God's love, but you're 219 00:09:07,194 --> 00:09:10,598 just like, "I don't deserve it, but I deserve it more than those people." 220 00:09:10,775 --> 00:09:11,000 Right? 221 00:09:11,686 --> 00:09:13,482 And that's still not ex- not what's happening here. 222 00:09:13,482 --> 00:09:17,665 That what the Pharisees are doing is, is they're saying, we're … Maybe, 223 00:09:17,665 --> 00:09:19,609 'cause may- I'm sure if you ask the Pharisees, they'd say, "Yeah, 224 00:09:19,609 --> 00:09:21,289 you know, salvation is not earned. 225 00:09:21,289 --> 00:09:22,187 It's not by works." 226 00:09:22,285 --> 00:09:24,983 But they might say that, right? 227 00:09:25,008 --> 00:09:26,653 And there's a lot of Christians that would say that, but the 228 00:09:26,654 --> 00:09:28,513 way they live is not that way. 229 00:09:29,153 --> 00:09:31,275 The way they live is, "Oh, I'm better than those people," right? 230 00:09:31,781 --> 00:09:32,841 Of course, God would save me. 231 00:09:32,843 --> 00:09:36,236 It makes sense that God would save me, but he wouldn't save those people. 232 00:09:38,207 --> 00:09:43,274 A good way to test this, if you're a grumpy Pharisee, is when you see sin, 233 00:09:43,457 --> 00:09:47,095 right, when someone sins against you, or when you see people living in sin, 234 00:09:47,741 --> 00:09:54,371 do you move towards them in compassion or do you look down on them in disgust? 235 00:09:55,209 --> 00:09:58,381 Right, when, when someone offends you, right, when someone, let's say 236 00:09:58,382 --> 00:10:01,495 someone gossips about you, right, or someone is really mean to you. 237 00:10:02,938 --> 00:10:04,705 Do you respond by looking down on them? 238 00:10:04,706 --> 00:10:05,626 "I can't believe they did that." 239 00:10:05,628 --> 00:10:08,441 Can, can you tell your friends, "Oh, can you believe this person said that?" 240 00:10:08,773 --> 00:10:09,045 Right? 241 00:10:09,045 --> 00:10:11,714 And you're upset at their sin, you're mad at their sin, 'cause 242 00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:13,265 you're making it about you, right? 243 00:10:14,098 --> 00:10:15,079 Or do you say, "I… 244 00:10:15,278 --> 00:10:15,982 They need help." 245 00:10:16,481 --> 00:10:16,702 Right? 246 00:10:16,702 --> 00:10:18,049 "I, I we need to love this person." 247 00:10:19,330 --> 00:10:19,505 Right? 248 00:10:19,505 --> 00:10:23,822 Or when someone maybe has, maybe they're, they have really angry, 249 00:10:24,030 --> 00:10:25,615 different views than you do, right? 250 00:10:25,616 --> 00:10:30,845 Maybe they, they believe really untrue things, and maybe you see them online or 251 00:10:30,845 --> 00:10:35,712 you see them at school a- and you're, y- you feel like they're an enemy, right? 252 00:10:35,712 --> 00:10:38,328 Which in a sense, I understand that, right? 253 00:10:39,008 --> 00:10:46,566 But at the same time, they need you to move towards them in compassion, right? 254 00:10:46,568 --> 00:10:49,074 Not against them in judgment. 255 00:10:49,654 --> 00:10:51,343 Or maybe your friend, your friend sins against you, your 256 00:10:51,343 --> 00:10:52,439 friend lets you down, right? 257 00:10:52,442 --> 00:10:54,704 Your, you promise … Your friend s- you know, you said, "Hey, 258 00:10:54,712 --> 00:10:57,840 don't tell anyone this, but, you know, I like this person," right? 259 00:10:57,840 --> 00:10:59,389 And then your friend goes and tells everyone. 260 00:11:01,053 --> 00:11:03,632 And then do you think, "Oh, this is, this is an opportunity for 261 00:11:03,636 --> 00:11:04,975 me to forgive them and love them. 262 00:11:04,975 --> 00:11:06,016 I need to move towards them." 263 00:11:06,936 --> 00:11:09,132 Or are you like, "Oh, I'm done with you." 264 00:11:09,493 --> 00:11:09,682 Right? 265 00:11:09,682 --> 00:11:12,031 You don't, you don't have to tell them your secrets anymore, right? 266 00:11:12,031 --> 00:11:12,525 That's okay. 267 00:11:13,131 --> 00:11:19,092 But do you move towards them in compassion or do you move away from them because 268 00:11:19,092 --> 00:11:20,715 you're like, "Oh, I'm done with you." 269 00:11:21,675 --> 00:11:21,860 Right? 270 00:11:21,860 --> 00:11:23,851 That's the Pharisee way to do it, is, "I'm done. 271 00:11:23,949 --> 00:11:24,631 I'm isolating." 272 00:11:24,968 --> 00:11:25,181 Right? 273 00:11:25,181 --> 00:11:26,077 "You're, you're not worth it." 274 00:11:29,019 --> 00:11:31,102 And we look down on other people, right? 275 00:11:31,102 --> 00:11:32,027 And, and all that, all… 276 00:11:32,038 --> 00:11:36,408 What all that comes down to is what Jesus says at the very end of this parable. 277 00:11:37,289 --> 00:11:42,809 At the very end, the way this story ends is he says that heaven, right, 278 00:11:42,809 --> 00:11:49,101 God in heaven, is more excited about people who repent than people who 279 00:11:49,102 --> 00:11:50,576 don't think they need to repent. 280 00:11:51,922 --> 00:11:52,154 Right? 281 00:11:52,154 --> 00:11:53,754 If, if you think, "Oh, I'm good. 282 00:11:53,906 --> 00:11:54,809 I've got it all together. 283 00:11:55,015 --> 00:11:56,664 I don't need to repent. 284 00:11:56,711 --> 00:11:57,877 I don't have any sin in my life. 285 00:11:57,888 --> 00:11:58,112 There's… 286 00:11:58,153 --> 00:11:58,968 I'm not really doing it. 287 00:11:58,968 --> 00:12:01,819 I'm, I'm sure there is, but, you know, overall, I, you know, 288 00:12:01,821 --> 00:12:05,003 I'm, I'm doing great," right? 289 00:12:05,003 --> 00:12:08,867 When you start thinking, "I'm good enough without God," or I'm 290 00:12:09,326 --> 00:12:12,722 comparing myself laterally, I'm better than other people, right? 291 00:12:12,735 --> 00:12:14,752 That's when you're one of these people. 292 00:12:15,077 --> 00:12:15,274 Right? 293 00:12:15,274 --> 00:12:17,736 That's when you're grumbling and you're judging and you're looking down. 294 00:12:19,083 --> 00:12:21,064 Instead of being someone who says, "I need repentance." 295 00:12:21,457 --> 00:12:21,649 Right? 296 00:12:21,650 --> 00:12:26,293 "I, I'm actually one of these people, just like they are." 297 00:12:28,071 --> 00:12:30,506 So don't be a grumpy Pharisee. 298 00:12:32,225 --> 00:12:35,009 So that, Jesus tells this parable, this story, and it's a response 299 00:12:35,010 --> 00:12:36,243 to what's happening, right? 300 00:12:36,243 --> 00:12:38,886 It's a response to these grumpy Pharisees who are, who are looking 301 00:12:38,888 --> 00:12:40,448 down on the tax collector and sinners. 302 00:12:40,465 --> 00:12:41,435 They're upset at Jesus. 303 00:12:41,438 --> 00:12:43,513 They're saying, "Jesus, why are you, why do you spend time with people? 304 00:12:43,513 --> 00:12:44,419 These people don't deserve it. 305 00:12:44,601 --> 00:12:46,235 You should spend time with the good people." 306 00:12:46,830 --> 00:12:49,040 And so Jesus tells them a story. 307 00:12:49,631 --> 00:12:50,290 Tells them a story. 308 00:12:50,608 --> 00:12:51,445 Told them this parable. 309 00:12:51,707 --> 00:12:56,533 He says, "Which one of you having 100 sheep, if he lost one of 310 00:12:56,534 --> 00:13:02,201 them, does not leave the 99 in the open country and go after the one 311 00:13:02,201 --> 00:13:04,174 that is lost until he finds it?" 312 00:13:05,151 --> 00:13:07,180 Which is funny 'cause no one would do this. 313 00:13:07,612 --> 00:13:09,671 This is objectively dumb. 314 00:13:10,589 --> 00:13:11,704 I hope you understand this, right? 315 00:13:11,861 --> 00:13:14,948 This is objectively not a good idea. 316 00:13:15,141 --> 00:13:19,357 If you're a shepherd and you leave your 99 sheep to go after your one lost 317 00:13:19,360 --> 00:13:22,069 sheep, when you come back, guess what? 318 00:13:22,977 --> 00:13:25,787 You're gonna have 99 more lost sheep, right? 319 00:13:26,063 --> 00:13:28,687 This is not good shepherding advice, right? 320 00:13:28,687 --> 00:13:31,265 If any of you wanna be a shepherd when you grow up, don't do this. 321 00:13:31,585 --> 00:13:32,320 Bad idea. 322 00:13:35,157 --> 00:13:40,607 But Jesus' point in this parable, right, is, well, we're gonna get to the, the, 323 00:13:40,624 --> 00:13:41,935 the main point is the shepherd, right? 324 00:13:41,948 --> 00:13:42,608 He's the star. 325 00:13:42,789 --> 00:13:44,087 The, this guy, right? 326 00:13:44,346 --> 00:13:45,053 He's the star. 327 00:13:45,315 --> 00:13:48,636 But before we get there, I want you to focus on the sheep, okay? 328 00:13:48,872 --> 00:13:50,722 Because in this story, sometimes when you read a parable, it's 329 00:13:50,724 --> 00:13:52,338 important to think, who am I, right? 330 00:13:52,371 --> 00:13:53,572 Am I part of this story? 331 00:13:53,893 --> 00:13:54,934 Well, in this case, we are. 332 00:13:55,091 --> 00:13:59,110 So point number two, identify as a lost sheep. 333 00:14:00,410 --> 00:14:00,674 Right? 334 00:14:00,819 --> 00:14:02,768 When you read this parable, you're not the shepherd. 335 00:14:03,212 --> 00:14:07,185 You're not one of the 99 sheep that's doing good, you know, being a great 336 00:14:07,186 --> 00:14:10,603 sheep, obedient in the pasture, right? 337 00:14:11,107 --> 00:14:14,792 In this parable, you and I, we're the one that's way out there doing who knows what. 338 00:14:15,352 --> 00:14:15,520 Right? 339 00:14:15,520 --> 00:14:15,856 That's us 340 00:14:20,862 --> 00:14:21,737 I use the word identify. 341 00:14:21,737 --> 00:14:23,802 I know our culture, that's, that's a loaded term. 342 00:14:24,730 --> 00:14:26,801 But I just want you to th- th- this is my identity, right? 343 00:14:26,823 --> 00:14:28,115 I'm the l- I'm the lost sheep. 344 00:14:28,152 --> 00:14:29,963 I want you to, to embrace that about yourself. 345 00:14:30,622 --> 00:14:32,010 I don't know if you guys still do this. 346 00:14:32,058 --> 00:14:35,589 Do you fill out, like, for the AP tests and stuff, or like the SAT, do you fill 347 00:14:35,590 --> 00:14:38,920 out, like, your ethnicity and your name and all that stuff, like the bubbles? 348 00:14:39,572 --> 00:14:41,941 They always ask me, like, college applications do the same thing. 349 00:14:42,242 --> 00:14:44,738 They ask me, like, are you, you know, are you white? 350 00:14:44,754 --> 00:14:45,859 And then are you, like, other races? 351 00:14:45,885 --> 00:14:47,960 I always put Asian 'cause I felt like it would give me a better 352 00:14:47,961 --> 00:14:49,016 chance to get into college. 353 00:14:49,504 --> 00:14:51,845 Um- … 'cause I'd be a, like, a… 354 00:14:51,938 --> 00:14:56,888 Which I did get a scholarship from a college in Ohio for, for 355 00:14:56,898 --> 00:14:58,547 being diverse, so it worked. 356 00:14:59,047 --> 00:15:03,430 Um, but then I heard later that you shouldn't do that because there's actually 357 00:15:03,532 --> 00:15:06,568 a lot of Asian people that are t- there's, like, too many Asian people at college. 358 00:15:06,819 --> 00:15:08,859 Anyway, that's a whole 'nother thing. 359 00:15:09,443 --> 00:15:15,613 But- Wow … all that to say, right, is I am just as… 360 00:15:15,829 --> 00:15:16,960 I'm half Japanese, right? 361 00:15:16,962 --> 00:15:20,244 So I'm just as Asian as I am white, right? 362 00:15:20,466 --> 00:15:25,488 But I embraced that half of who I was, right? 363 00:15:25,496 --> 00:15:26,656 For those purposes, right? 364 00:15:26,780 --> 00:15:27,880 So anyway, that's all I want you to say. 365 00:15:27,880 --> 00:15:29,830 I want you to embrace this about you, right? 366 00:15:29,830 --> 00:15:31,381 I don't want you to embrace your goodness. 367 00:15:31,804 --> 00:15:33,862 I don't want you to embrace, "Oh, I'm a church kid. 368 00:15:33,862 --> 00:15:34,757 I grew up going to church." 369 00:15:34,976 --> 00:15:37,276 I don't want you to embrace that. 370 00:15:37,276 --> 00:15:40,168 I want you to embrace the fact that I am a lost sheep. 371 00:15:40,204 --> 00:15:45,259 I, I'm not, I'm not like the, the really good sheep that's doing… 372 00:15:45,289 --> 00:15:46,180 'Cause that's what the Pharisees thought. 373 00:15:46,197 --> 00:15:47,357 They're like, "We're doing good. 374 00:15:48,168 --> 00:15:49,452 We're succeeding at life." 375 00:15:51,474 --> 00:15:54,855 So identify as the lost sheep. 376 00:15:54,868 --> 00:15:57,659 There's a couple things that we can learn about sheep, um, 377 00:15:57,686 --> 00:15:59,160 that teach us about us, right? 378 00:15:59,343 --> 00:16:01,568 First thing, sheep are helpless, right? 379 00:16:01,588 --> 00:16:04,593 Sheep, uh, one pastor, the way he put it, he said, "Sheep 380 00:16:04,603 --> 00:16:07,167 don't have, um, survival skills. 381 00:16:07,747 --> 00:16:10,213 They don't have, um, attack mode." 382 00:16:11,089 --> 00:16:15,645 And the way he put it was that survival of the fittest means sheep are doomed. 383 00:16:15,715 --> 00:16:20,066 He said one of the best arguments against evolution is that sheep exist. 384 00:16:21,449 --> 00:16:24,292 Because sheep can't really do anything. 385 00:16:24,752 --> 00:16:26,067 Sheep are, are very dumb. 386 00:16:27,318 --> 00:16:28,053 Sheep are helpless. 387 00:16:28,082 --> 00:16:30,115 They can't really… 388 00:16:30,232 --> 00:16:33,742 I mean, they, they need to have someone to lead them to find their food. 389 00:16:34,560 --> 00:16:36,776 They do really dumb things. 390 00:16:36,776 --> 00:16:39,613 They, they get hurt, they get stuck, they, they fall off cliffs. 391 00:16:39,617 --> 00:16:40,956 They do really dumb things. 392 00:16:42,828 --> 00:16:45,904 Um, and I want you to see that about yourself, right? 393 00:16:45,904 --> 00:16:49,076 When you, when you say g- "The Lord is my shepherd," you're 394 00:16:49,076 --> 00:16:50,393 not complimenting yourself. 395 00:16:50,394 --> 00:16:51,240 I hope you understand that. 396 00:16:52,121 --> 00:16:54,255 'Cause then you're saying, "I'm a sheep," right? 397 00:16:54,255 --> 00:16:56,095 And that's not a compliment. 398 00:16:56,646 --> 00:17:00,088 Saying that you're a sheep does not mean you're cute and fluffy and so lovable, 399 00:17:00,088 --> 00:17:03,014 and of course God would save you because you're like a walking cloud, right? 400 00:17:03,218 --> 00:17:03,534 No. 401 00:17:03,771 --> 00:17:08,925 That's not what the Bible means when it says that we're sheep, right? 402 00:17:08,925 --> 00:17:09,944 It, it means that we're helpless. 403 00:17:09,944 --> 00:17:11,473 We can't rescue ourselves. 404 00:17:11,494 --> 00:17:15,476 If, if a sheep is out in the wild, that sheep is gonna be dinner real soon. 405 00:17:16,887 --> 00:17:18,310 Sheep's not gonna survive very long. 406 00:17:19,790 --> 00:17:21,973 There's no horns to defend itself. 407 00:17:21,973 --> 00:17:23,020 It's not gonna run away. 408 00:17:23,025 --> 00:17:24,558 It's not got any camouflage, right? 409 00:17:24,563 --> 00:17:25,830 Sheep is, is done. 410 00:17:26,204 --> 00:17:27,294 I want you to see that that's us. 411 00:17:27,906 --> 00:17:28,787 We have no hope. 412 00:17:28,801 --> 00:17:30,581 Uh, the sheep's not gonna find its way back, right? 413 00:17:30,596 --> 00:17:34,372 Dogs come back to the flock or to the house, right? 414 00:17:34,397 --> 00:17:34,718 Dogs… 415 00:17:34,825 --> 00:17:36,548 Well, if they're a sheep dog, they'll come back to the flock. 416 00:17:36,575 --> 00:17:39,928 But, um, sheep don't do that, right? 417 00:17:39,941 --> 00:17:42,226 Sheep can't find their way home, right? 418 00:17:42,319 --> 00:17:45,499 I- in this story, you and I, we're the lost sheep. 419 00:17:45,511 --> 00:17:50,752 We're not coming back unless someone comes and gets us, right? 420 00:17:50,752 --> 00:17:52,983 We're not gonna survive on our own. 421 00:17:52,986 --> 00:17:53,508 Yeah, I'm good. 422 00:17:53,510 --> 00:17:54,233 I don't need a shepherd. 423 00:17:54,256 --> 00:17:54,774 Maybe that's you. 424 00:17:54,788 --> 00:17:56,086 Maybe you think, 'I don't need a shepherd. 425 00:17:57,090 --> 00:17:57,909 I'm good on my own. 426 00:17:57,928 --> 00:17:58,781 I don't need God. 427 00:18:00,043 --> 00:18:01,323 I like the way I'm living.' 428 00:18:02,328 --> 00:18:05,113 And the Bible says if that's you, you're tricking yourself. 429 00:18:05,180 --> 00:18:09,619 You're like a sheep wandering around saying, 'Yeah, the wolves can't hurt me. 430 00:18:10,377 --> 00:18:11,430 I'm stronger than the wolves. 431 00:18:12,158 --> 00:18:13,213 I'm faster than the wolves.' 432 00:18:13,213 --> 00:18:15,759 You're just tricking yourself, and you're gonna- someone's gonna eat you 433 00:18:18,934 --> 00:18:21,937 But also sheep are in danger, right? 434 00:18:21,937 --> 00:18:23,037 I want you to see that too, right? 435 00:18:23,182 --> 00:18:25,778 When you are apart from God, you are in danger. 436 00:18:25,874 --> 00:18:29,527 You're not just cruising through life waiting, you know, maybe, maybe you're 437 00:18:29,527 --> 00:18:30,755 putting off becoming a Christian. 438 00:18:30,757 --> 00:18:31,832 You're not just like, "Oh, yeah, cool. 439 00:18:31,832 --> 00:18:33,134 I'm just waiting and it'll be good." 440 00:18:33,828 --> 00:18:34,644 You're in danger. 441 00:18:35,073 --> 00:18:38,306 You're like a vulnerable sheep walking around, and if a wolf comes 442 00:18:38,306 --> 00:18:40,027 and, and attacks you, you're dead. 443 00:18:40,829 --> 00:18:41,368 No chance 444 00:18:44,899 --> 00:18:48,339 But something else I want you to see about this sheep is that 445 00:18:48,382 --> 00:18:51,976 objectively, like we said, rescuing the sheep is not worth it, right? 446 00:18:51,976 --> 00:18:53,392 This sheep is one out of a hundred. 447 00:18:54,985 --> 00:18:59,293 Right, there's some sports where succeeding 30% of the time 448 00:18:59,294 --> 00:19:01,572 means you're an all-star, right? 449 00:19:01,870 --> 00:19:04,774 There's some sports where succeeding 50% of the time means 450 00:19:04,774 --> 00:19:06,513 you had a good season, right? 451 00:19:07,885 --> 00:19:09,575 Even, and you think about school, right? 452 00:19:09,578 --> 00:19:12,754 Succeeding most of the time means you passed 453 00:19:15,507 --> 00:19:17,653 And this shepherd, 99%, right? 454 00:19:17,931 --> 00:19:18,620 That's pretty good. 455 00:19:18,655 --> 00:19:19,577 A+, right? 456 00:19:19,808 --> 00:19:20,471 4.0 457 00:19:20,479 --> 00:19:21,016 GPA 458 00:19:23,549 --> 00:19:26,253 This is objectively not worth it to go after this sheep. 459 00:19:28,241 --> 00:19:28,445 Right? 460 00:19:28,446 --> 00:19:29,676 This is not a good investment. 461 00:19:29,684 --> 00:19:35,263 And I want you to see that objectively it's not a good 462 00:19:35,263 --> 00:19:37,375 investment for God to love you. 463 00:19:38,666 --> 00:19:42,704 You're not bringing all this value to the table to God, right? 464 00:19:42,704 --> 00:19:47,774 God's not like, "Wow, I'm so glad that I saved Matt because now 465 00:19:47,857 --> 00:19:49,642 I've got Matt on my team," right? 466 00:19:50,177 --> 00:19:51,330 God's not like, "Wow, that's the… 467 00:19:51,373 --> 00:19:55,732 Man, I'm so lucky that n- that, you know, that Clay is part of the church," right? 468 00:19:55,744 --> 00:19:57,014 "That's so awesome." 469 00:19:57,618 --> 00:19:57,774 Right? 470 00:19:57,774 --> 00:19:59,481 God's not l- God's not thinking that, right? 471 00:20:00,395 --> 00:20:03,002 Does, does God need me or Clay or Matt, right? 472 00:20:03,002 --> 00:20:03,863 No, he doesn't. 473 00:20:05,616 --> 00:20:05,811 Right? 474 00:20:05,812 --> 00:20:06,121 So- 475 00:20:08,221 --> 00:20:12,035 That's, but the thing is, right, that's what makes God's love so incredible, 476 00:20:13,547 --> 00:20:18,347 is because it's not like you're bringing all this value to God, but 477 00:20:18,348 --> 00:20:22,562 he still says, "I'm going to go after this sheep, and I'm gonna love them." 478 00:20:24,178 --> 00:20:24,436 Right? 479 00:20:24,436 --> 00:20:29,843 That, and that's what's so crazy about it is, is what God is saying is, is, "Yeah, 480 00:20:30,568 --> 00:20:34,627 I, I'm not actually gaining anything from going after you to save you." 481 00:20:36,092 --> 00:20:42,418 But he wants to do it because he loves you and he cares, which is, which 482 00:20:42,418 --> 00:20:43,781 is so awesome to think about, right? 483 00:20:43,781 --> 00:20:47,593 That's what makes God's love so incredible. 484 00:20:49,299 --> 00:20:50,693 And I think we should probably talk about this. 485 00:20:50,703 --> 00:20:53,653 That, that, that's why some people call this reckless, right? 486 00:20:54,259 --> 00:20:57,481 That's why there's a really popular worship song about 487 00:20:58,779 --> 00:21:00,705 this, this passage, right? 488 00:21:00,705 --> 00:21:05,214 They say God's love is reckless because this shepherd, right, he, he leaves 489 00:21:05,216 --> 00:21:09,253 these 99 sheep and he goes after the one, and he doesn't care about what 490 00:21:09,253 --> 00:21:10,679 happens to the other sheep, right? 491 00:21:10,679 --> 00:21:14,776 He's leaving them unprotected, and so that's, that's why the, the, 492 00:21:15,630 --> 00:21:17,601 that, that song exists, right? 493 00:21:17,629 --> 00:21:17,893 Because… 494 00:21:18,092 --> 00:21:20,024 And I understand what the author's trying to do. 495 00:21:20,323 --> 00:21:24,581 What the author's trying to do is highlight the fact that, that God loves 496 00:21:24,616 --> 00:21:27,543 people at great cost to himself, right? 497 00:21:27,543 --> 00:21:30,366 There's, there's no advantage to it, right? 498 00:21:30,366 --> 00:21:33,119 God's not getting a lot out of loving you. 499 00:21:33,350 --> 00:21:36,439 In fact, you know how God, what God had to do to love you? 500 00:21:36,515 --> 00:21:39,782 He, he killed his son Right? 501 00:21:39,783 --> 00:21:41,423 This is what God did to love you. 502 00:21:41,424 --> 00:21:42,444 He became a man. 503 00:21:42,452 --> 00:21:46,427 He left heaven, became a man, lived a perfect life in a sinful 504 00:21:46,428 --> 00:21:52,185 world, was rejected, beaten, mocked, nailed to a cross, died, 505 00:21:52,359 --> 00:21:54,091 suffered the full wrath of God. 506 00:21:55,568 --> 00:22:02,402 And yes, he rose from the dead, but that's not, uh, that's not worth it, right? 507 00:22:02,700 --> 00:22:04,418 For- 'cause who, who did he do that for? 508 00:22:04,439 --> 00:22:04,995 Me and you? 509 00:22:05,495 --> 00:22:06,736 No, not worth it, right? 510 00:22:07,683 --> 00:22:08,992 So, that's why some people call it reckless, right? 511 00:22:08,992 --> 00:22:09,904 I understand what they're trying to do. 512 00:22:09,942 --> 00:22:15,225 They're trying to highlight the fact that God says, "I'm going to, to do all of 513 00:22:15,225 --> 00:22:20,649 this at great cost for, for my sheep." 514 00:22:21,206 --> 00:22:21,517 Right? 515 00:22:21,879 --> 00:22:27,397 Now, the reason that we don't sing that song at our church is just because we 516 00:22:27,397 --> 00:22:29,055 don't wanna call God reckless, right? 517 00:22:29,216 --> 00:22:31,636 'Cause reckless, not a compliment, generally speaking. 518 00:22:32,304 --> 00:22:32,620 Right? 519 00:22:33,185 --> 00:22:36,611 So, that's just why we don't sing that song at our church is, is we don't think 520 00:22:36,782 --> 00:22:39,704 God's love is, like, careless, right? 521 00:22:39,704 --> 00:22:42,981 'Cause when, when someone's reckless, we'd say they're, they're careless 522 00:22:42,981 --> 00:22:45,116 or they're wasteful or they're… 523 00:22:45,117 --> 00:22:45,337 Right? 524 00:22:45,340 --> 00:22:47,649 So, that's why we don't sing that song, just so you know, 525 00:22:47,649 --> 00:22:48,493 in case you were wondering. 526 00:22:49,142 --> 00:22:52,577 Um, but I understand what the author's trying to do, right? 527 00:22:52,577 --> 00:22:57,505 He's trying to highlight the fact that this shepherd says, "I'm gonna 528 00:22:57,505 --> 00:23:01,390 leave all of this, and I'm gonna search, and I'm gonna find this 529 00:23:01,392 --> 00:23:04,131 sheep because I love this sheep." 530 00:23:04,147 --> 00:23:04,967 And is it worth it? 531 00:23:04,968 --> 00:23:05,325 No. 532 00:23:05,415 --> 00:23:06,616 It's just one sheep, right? 533 00:23:07,232 --> 00:23:08,216 You would just say, "Oh, it's fine. 534 00:23:08,225 --> 00:23:08,706 It's just one sheep. 535 00:23:08,706 --> 00:23:09,270 Don't worry about it." 536 00:23:10,955 --> 00:23:13,180 But God says, "No, I'm gonna, gonna love these people 537 00:23:15,805 --> 00:23:20,635 And so really the, the star of this story is the shepherd, right? 538 00:23:20,636 --> 00:23:23,980 So Jesus saying, "What man of you having 100 sheep, if he's lost one 539 00:23:23,981 --> 00:23:28,349 of them, does not leave the 99 in the open country and go after the 540 00:23:28,349 --> 00:23:31,656 one that's lost until he finds it? 541 00:23:32,587 --> 00:23:36,993 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders rejoicing." 542 00:23:37,021 --> 00:23:41,868 Man, there's so much good stuff here, but the point here is the shepherd, right? 543 00:23:41,868 --> 00:23:43,762 The shepherd is searching for the sheep. 544 00:23:43,763 --> 00:23:47,177 So point three, run to the searching shepherd. 545 00:23:49,113 --> 00:23:51,444 All right, Jesus is the shepherd in this story, right? 546 00:23:51,444 --> 00:23:52,071 He's saying, "That's me." 547 00:23:52,852 --> 00:23:54,643 All right, you're the sheep, Jesus is the shepherd 548 00:23:57,596 --> 00:24:00,103 And I wanna highlight a few things about this shepherd for you. 549 00:24:00,469 --> 00:24:00,888 Um 550 00:24:03,261 --> 00:24:07,398 I want you to see the shepherd, he is proactive, right? 551 00:24:07,398 --> 00:24:15,119 The shepherd, he doesn't wait until the sheep is like, "Hey, uh, I'm lost. 552 00:24:15,318 --> 00:24:16,116 Please save me." 553 00:24:16,933 --> 00:24:17,268 Right? 554 00:24:17,284 --> 00:24:19,872 He goes after it, right? 555 00:24:19,878 --> 00:24:23,552 He, he takes initiative to do that. 556 00:24:23,829 --> 00:24:25,756 And I want you to see God's love is like that, right? 557 00:24:25,960 --> 00:24:27,625 God loves first. 558 00:24:28,485 --> 00:24:34,637 God doesn't wait for you to be lovable before He loves you, right? 559 00:24:34,637 --> 00:24:41,243 God doesn't wait for you to start doing better or being a better 560 00:24:41,244 --> 00:24:44,011 kid before He loves you, right? 561 00:24:44,011 --> 00:24:46,955 God doesn't wait for you to show potential before He's like, "You know what? 562 00:24:46,982 --> 00:24:48,328 I'll, I'll invest in you. 563 00:24:48,343 --> 00:24:49,976 I'll, I'll help you out." 564 00:24:50,847 --> 00:24:51,004 Right? 565 00:24:51,004 --> 00:24:54,107 God goes after the lost sheep while it's still lost 566 00:24:56,701 --> 00:25:00,187 And if you're, if you've been loved by God, that's the way 567 00:25:00,187 --> 00:25:00,928 you're gonna love people. 568 00:25:00,928 --> 00:25:02,094 We talked about this last week, right? 569 00:25:02,690 --> 00:25:06,432 If, if you're one of God's sheep, you're gonna love this way too. 570 00:25:06,778 --> 00:25:09,701 You're gonna take the first step to love, right? 571 00:25:09,701 --> 00:25:12,826 You're not gonna wait for someone to love you first and then say, 572 00:25:12,827 --> 00:25:13,917 "Okay, now, now it's worth it. 573 00:25:13,918 --> 00:25:14,495 Now I'll love you." 574 00:25:15,203 --> 00:25:15,318 Right? 575 00:25:15,318 --> 00:25:17,714 You're gonna say, "I'm gonna love you even if you don't love me back." 576 00:25:18,567 --> 00:25:19,663 And that's risky, right? 577 00:25:19,682 --> 00:25:21,225 'Cause it, they might let you down. 578 00:25:21,293 --> 00:25:21,994 They might hurt you. 579 00:25:22,581 --> 00:25:23,638 They might not be worth it. 580 00:25:24,193 --> 00:25:26,306 It might be bad for your reputation to love that person 581 00:25:28,829 --> 00:25:30,323 But God's love is proactive 582 00:25:33,052 --> 00:25:36,710 I also want you to see that his love is persistent here. 583 00:25:36,748 --> 00:25:39,794 He goes after the one that's lost until he finds it. 584 00:25:41,799 --> 00:25:47,232 Earlier in, um, in John 13, it says that Jesus loved his disciples until the end. 585 00:25:48,247 --> 00:25:52,307 Right, God doesn't love you some days and then stop loving you the other days. 586 00:25:53,510 --> 00:25:53,655 Right? 587 00:25:53,655 --> 00:25:56,516 God doesn't only love you when you're doing good and 588 00:25:56,517 --> 00:25:57,621 it's easy for him to love you. 589 00:25:58,155 --> 00:26:00,575 He loves you when you don't love him back, right? 590 00:26:00,577 --> 00:26:03,985 He loves you when you're not spending time in his word, right? 591 00:26:03,985 --> 00:26:06,712 He loves you when you're not very excited to go to church. 592 00:26:06,967 --> 00:26:08,856 He loves you even after your worst sins. 593 00:26:09,776 --> 00:26:13,819 God still loves his sheep, right? 594 00:26:13,916 --> 00:26:14,797 It's persistent. 595 00:26:14,797 --> 00:26:15,518 It doesn't change. 596 00:26:16,260 --> 00:26:22,140 It, it-- You can't outrun God's love for you if you're one of his sheep 597 00:26:25,624 --> 00:26:28,766 And again, right, if you have been loved by God that way, that's the 598 00:26:28,767 --> 00:26:31,278 lo- way we wanna love people, right? 599 00:26:31,278 --> 00:26:34,116 We don't wanna love people a lot one day and then, "Well, 600 00:26:34,199 --> 00:26:35,084 I don't feel like it today. 601 00:26:35,164 --> 00:26:35,671 It's too hard. 602 00:26:35,688 --> 00:26:36,440 Not gonna do it anymore 603 00:26:40,380 --> 00:26:43,076 Then also, I just want you to see just the, the compassion here, right? 604 00:26:43,076 --> 00:26:47,778 When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders rejoicing. 605 00:26:49,089 --> 00:26:51,551 If you found that, like, imagine you were the shepherd, right? 606 00:26:51,551 --> 00:26:52,680 And you spent days. 607 00:26:52,700 --> 00:26:54,981 You're, you're wandering the open country, right? 608 00:26:54,981 --> 00:26:58,351 You're, you're sleeping on, you know, on, with a rock as your pillow, 609 00:26:58,351 --> 00:27:00,054 and, and you've l- left your sheep. 610 00:27:00,056 --> 00:27:01,613 You left your family behind. 611 00:27:01,613 --> 00:27:02,374 You're going after this sheep. 612 00:27:02,374 --> 00:27:03,777 It's such a big hassle, right? 613 00:27:03,807 --> 00:27:06,022 Huge inconvenience to love this sheep. 614 00:27:07,231 --> 00:27:08,743 And when he finds it, what does he do? 615 00:27:08,772 --> 00:27:10,488 Does he beat it up and say, "Bad sheep"? 616 00:27:11,516 --> 00:27:11,887 Right? 617 00:27:12,245 --> 00:27:14,919 Does he, you know, kick it all the way home? 618 00:27:14,994 --> 00:27:16,620 Like, "Come on, we're going home sheep." 619 00:27:17,178 --> 00:27:17,540 Right? 620 00:27:18,181 --> 00:27:20,459 Does he say, "Well, I found you, but you're walking." 621 00:27:21,192 --> 00:27:21,521 Right? 622 00:27:21,822 --> 00:27:22,544 He doesn't say that. 623 00:27:23,133 --> 00:27:26,550 He picks it up, and he's rejoicing. 624 00:27:26,971 --> 00:27:27,550 He's happy. 625 00:27:28,534 --> 00:27:29,968 And that's the center of this parable, right? 626 00:27:29,976 --> 00:27:35,202 God, i- in this case Jesus, loves to save lost sinners. 627 00:27:36,212 --> 00:27:36,389 Right? 628 00:27:36,389 --> 00:27:40,213 Jesus isn't upset that the sinners need saving. 629 00:27:41,742 --> 00:27:44,858 A- and maybe that's a totally different picture of God 630 00:27:44,858 --> 00:27:45,842 that, that you've thought of. 631 00:27:46,839 --> 00:27:52,501 But when you come to God a- and identify as a lost sheep, you say, "I'm, I'm lost, 632 00:27:52,528 --> 00:27:54,872 I'm helpless, I'm in danger, I need you. 633 00:27:54,899 --> 00:27:55,973 I can't save myself. 634 00:27:56,786 --> 00:27:58,457 The, I've made a mess of my life. 635 00:27:58,478 --> 00:28:01,645 I need you to, to rescue me, to save me." 636 00:28:03,259 --> 00:28:06,610 God doesn't say, "Well, okay, figure it out, and then once you, once 637 00:28:06,611 --> 00:28:09,639 you start changing a bit and, and making it worth it for me to save 638 00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:11,617 you, then, then I'll come get you." 639 00:28:12,755 --> 00:28:15,349 Or He doesn't say, "Okay, I'll save you, but you gotta make sure 640 00:28:15,349 --> 00:28:16,499 you, you do all these things." 641 00:28:17,356 --> 00:28:19,477 Or He doesn't say, "I'll save you, but I'll just kinda put up with you." 642 00:28:20,635 --> 00:28:21,434 And maybe that's how you feel. 643 00:28:21,441 --> 00:28:24,333 Maybe even if you are Christian, you sin, and you ask for forgiveness, 644 00:28:24,333 --> 00:28:27,335 maybe you feel like God's like reluctantly, you know, just like 645 00:28:27,887 --> 00:28:29,757 sliding forgiveness across the table. 646 00:28:29,794 --> 00:28:33,830 Like, "Oh, I, I guess I'll forgive Lewis, like, 'cause I have to," right? 647 00:28:33,864 --> 00:28:37,523 "I'm, you know, steadfast love and forgiving and merciful. 648 00:28:37,523 --> 00:28:38,630 I guess I'll forgive you." 649 00:28:39,110 --> 00:28:39,433 Right? 650 00:28:39,904 --> 00:28:44,278 When, when God forgives, He, He forgives happily. 651 00:28:45,371 --> 00:28:50,632 He's not reluctantly, stingily forgiving, right? 652 00:28:50,634 --> 00:28:56,798 He is rejoicing to forgive, and He loves this sheep 653 00:28:59,091 --> 00:29:01,793 I want you then to think about all the ways God's loved you like this, right? 654 00:29:01,826 --> 00:29:04,886 With all the, the consistency He's loved you with and the 655 00:29:07,037 --> 00:29:10,183 The just willingness to love you, right? 656 00:29:10,203 --> 00:29:13,825 Through all of your sin, through all of your mistakes, through all 657 00:29:13,825 --> 00:29:15,270 of your dumb decisions, right? 658 00:29:15,271 --> 00:29:18,426 Through all of your, "I'll do better next time," and then you don't. 659 00:29:19,399 --> 00:29:19,528 Right? 660 00:29:19,550 --> 00:29:24,183 Think about all the ways God has loved you through that, and he's not-- It's not 661 00:29:24,183 --> 00:29:25,557 like he's like, "Well, I'm tired of it. 662 00:29:25,587 --> 00:29:26,196 I'm gonna give up. 663 00:29:26,384 --> 00:29:27,293 Sorry, you're done. 664 00:29:27,322 --> 00:29:28,356 Three strikes, you're out." 665 00:29:29,122 --> 00:29:29,976 Doesn't happen with God 666 00:29:32,116 --> 00:29:34,275 And that, that's the kind of love that, that we move toward, and we 667 00:29:34,275 --> 00:29:35,843 say, "I, I, I need this kind of love." 668 00:29:35,845 --> 00:29:35,999 All right? 669 00:29:35,999 --> 00:29:37,162 No one else is gonna love you that way. 670 00:29:37,588 --> 00:29:39,380 Or you can try to find people that'll love you like that. 671 00:29:39,394 --> 00:29:39,792 They won't. 672 00:29:40,658 --> 00:29:40,826 All right? 673 00:29:40,826 --> 00:29:44,037 You can tr- you can try to get that same sort of security from 674 00:29:44,038 --> 00:29:47,617 maybe having a lot of things or, or having the life you want to have. 675 00:29:48,296 --> 00:29:48,944 Not gonna happen. 676 00:29:50,214 --> 00:29:50,354 All right? 677 00:29:50,355 --> 00:29:54,670 You're not gonna have that, that same sense of care and comfort and peace 678 00:29:54,719 --> 00:29:57,382 and happiness from, from anywhere else 679 00:29:59,901 --> 00:30:04,152 Then I also want you to see what happens when God brings the sheep home, right? 680 00:30:04,152 --> 00:30:07,099 The shepherd, when he's found it, he lays it on his shoulders rejoicing. 681 00:30:07,100 --> 00:30:10,465 And now real joy, real love is always contagious. 682 00:30:11,122 --> 00:30:15,266 Real joy, if you really are excited about something, everyone 683 00:30:15,269 --> 00:30:16,259 around you is gonna know about it. 684 00:30:16,978 --> 00:30:19,327 They're not gonna be surprised that you're excited about it, right? 685 00:30:19,878 --> 00:30:22,953 When he comes home, verse six, he calls together his friends 686 00:30:22,969 --> 00:30:23,664 and his neighbors, right? 687 00:30:23,664 --> 00:30:24,477 He throws a party. 688 00:30:25,234 --> 00:30:33,280 He says, "Hey, rejoice with me for I have found my sheep that was lost." 689 00:30:34,281 --> 00:30:34,576 Right? 690 00:30:34,593 --> 00:30:36,791 This is, this is a party, right? 691 00:30:36,953 --> 00:30:37,484 This is… 692 00:30:37,671 --> 00:30:38,997 He's excited, right? 693 00:30:38,997 --> 00:30:41,639 He's not like, "Oh, look at this dumb sheep that I found," right? 694 00:30:41,639 --> 00:30:42,621 He's not making fun of the sheep. 695 00:30:42,638 --> 00:30:44,893 Y- you know, even look at this, my sheep. 696 00:30:46,547 --> 00:30:47,664 That's so sweet, right? 697 00:30:47,797 --> 00:30:48,592 My sheep. 698 00:30:48,995 --> 00:30:51,895 God is not ashamed to associate with you 699 00:30:53,975 --> 00:30:54,161 Right? 700 00:30:54,161 --> 00:30:55,097 You're His sheep. 701 00:30:55,673 --> 00:30:58,206 He's not like, "Yeah, uh, yeah, that's my sheep. 702 00:30:59,186 --> 00:30:59,491 Yep." 703 00:31:00,334 --> 00:31:02,312 No, He says, "That's my sheep I- that I love." 704 00:31:03,555 --> 00:31:03,741 Right? 705 00:31:03,741 --> 00:31:04,433 "Here he is. 706 00:31:05,051 --> 00:31:05,577 He's mine. 707 00:31:05,593 --> 00:31:06,136 I love him. 708 00:31:06,136 --> 00:31:06,841 I saved him." 709 00:31:10,814 --> 00:31:12,357 And everyone's happy about it, right? 710 00:31:12,374 --> 00:31:13,435 Heaven is happy. 711 00:31:14,988 --> 00:31:19,450 So point four, join the joyful celebration. 712 00:31:20,661 --> 00:31:22,226 Could just put join the party if you want. 713 00:31:24,110 --> 00:31:27,999 'Cause that's what Jesus' point to the Pharisees is, is he's saying, "You guys 714 00:31:27,999 --> 00:31:31,883 are so mad that I'm loving these sinners." 715 00:31:32,834 --> 00:31:36,197 And he's saying that, "I love to love sinners." 716 00:31:37,845 --> 00:31:38,041 Right? 717 00:31:38,041 --> 00:31:42,548 He doesn't necessarily love that they're sinners, but he loves to love them 718 00:31:45,791 --> 00:31:47,718 And so what Jesus is telling the Pharisees, he's saying, "You 719 00:31:47,719 --> 00:31:49,294 need, you need to join the party. 720 00:31:50,822 --> 00:31:53,827 You, you're too busy making this about you. 721 00:31:54,195 --> 00:31:55,240 'I'm better than them. 722 00:31:55,333 --> 00:31:57,142 I deserve more attention from God.'" 723 00:31:57,783 --> 00:31:59,309 He's saying, "You need to join the party. 724 00:31:59,997 --> 00:32:03,496 This is the type of love that, that you need to have 725 00:32:09,887 --> 00:32:11,293 And God loves to love. 726 00:32:12,077 --> 00:32:13,686 It's not a chore for God to love 727 00:32:17,150 --> 00:32:19,591 I don't know if you ever heard someone say that hell is gonna 728 00:32:19,591 --> 00:32:20,788 be a big party with their friends 729 00:32:23,197 --> 00:32:25,594 If not, you probably will eventually. 730 00:32:27,228 --> 00:32:32,847 And I just want you to see here that heaven is the happiest 731 00:32:32,847 --> 00:32:34,741 place you'll ever be, right? 732 00:32:34,741 --> 00:32:36,033 There's more joy in heaven. 733 00:32:36,645 --> 00:32:37,550 There's already joy in heaven. 734 00:32:37,550 --> 00:32:39,319 There's even more, right? 735 00:32:39,343 --> 00:32:42,856 Heaven is-- When you think of heaven, I want you to think of happy. 736 00:32:44,086 --> 00:32:46,014 I want you to think of exciting, right? 737 00:32:46,014 --> 00:32:49,199 I don't want you to think of, you know, church service with pews and 738 00:32:49,351 --> 00:32:51,513 floating clouds and harps, right? 739 00:32:51,515 --> 00:32:53,828 I want you to think this is the happiest place, right? 740 00:32:53,828 --> 00:32:55,923 And when you think of hell, I don't want you to think of fire 741 00:32:55,923 --> 00:32:57,178 and devil with his horns, right? 742 00:32:57,431 --> 00:32:59,904 I want you to think of there's nothing good there. 743 00:33:00,449 --> 00:33:01,567 There's no happiness there. 744 00:33:02,178 --> 00:33:03,134 There's nothing to like about it. 745 00:33:04,112 --> 00:33:08,018 All the good things that, that you see on this earth, things that you like, gone. 746 00:33:09,227 --> 00:33:10,979 In heaven, magnified 747 00:33:13,245 --> 00:33:13,405 Right? 748 00:33:13,424 --> 00:33:14,559 Heaven is happiness. 749 00:33:16,000 --> 00:33:17,206 Heaven is amazing 750 00:33:19,899 --> 00:33:23,863 And so really what this whole parable is about is that Jesus 751 00:33:23,863 --> 00:33:26,703 loves to love sinners, right? 752 00:33:26,879 --> 00:33:30,111 But especially, 'cause if you notice, he's not hanging out with these guys. 753 00:33:32,100 --> 00:33:33,740 So, 'cause everyone's a sinner. 754 00:33:33,789 --> 00:33:35,995 They're sinners and they're sinners when you think about it, right? 755 00:33:37,127 --> 00:33:38,843 So the sinners that Jesus loves 756 00:33:41,226 --> 00:33:44,057 are the people who recognize that they're sinners, right? 757 00:33:44,057 --> 00:33:45,401 Not the people who don't need Him 758 00:33:47,508 --> 00:33:51,237 And that, that's really his point here, is that God loves repentant sinners. 759 00:33:51,443 --> 00:33:53,813 God loves sinners that come to him and say, "I, I messed up. 760 00:33:53,849 --> 00:33:54,369 I'm lost. 761 00:33:54,396 --> 00:33:54,999 I'm helpless. 762 00:33:55,244 --> 00:33:55,829 I need you." 763 00:33:57,186 --> 00:33:57,372 Right? 764 00:33:57,372 --> 00:34:00,950 And the ones that keep doing that over and over, right? 765 00:34:00,963 --> 00:34:02,597 Not the ones that say, "I- now I'm good, God. 766 00:34:02,599 --> 00:34:03,307 You got me on my feet. 767 00:34:03,391 --> 00:34:04,032 I'm, I'm good. 768 00:34:04,423 --> 00:34:04,860 I made it." 769 00:34:05,908 --> 00:34:08,165 That God loves to love sinners. 770 00:34:08,516 --> 00:34:11,362 Let's pray, and we'll talk about that more in small group. 771 00:34:15,810 --> 00:34:19,447 Heavenly Father, we are so thankful for the way you love us. 772 00:34:21,237 --> 00:34:23,274 We don't deserve your love. 773 00:34:23,956 --> 00:34:26,864 We don't make it worth it for you to love us, but you do 774 00:34:26,971 --> 00:34:28,213 simply because of who you are. 775 00:34:28,241 --> 00:34:33,293 You are love, and you've decided, because you want to, that you're gonna love us. 776 00:34:33,331 --> 00:34:36,844 And so we're so thankful for your faithful love, that your love, your, 777 00:34:36,851 --> 00:34:39,495 your goodness is never exhausted. 778 00:34:39,699 --> 00:34:42,531 You're, you're never gonna run out of, of patience for us. 779 00:34:42,531 --> 00:34:45,474 You're never gonna run out of forgiveness for us. 780 00:34:46,592 --> 00:34:52,587 And we're grateful that you love us not just by affirming everything about 781 00:34:52,587 --> 00:34:57,391 us, but you love us enough to tell us the truth about ourselves, that 782 00:34:57,391 --> 00:35:04,108 we are lost sheep, that we are messed up, that we are in danger, that we are 783 00:35:04,878 --> 00:35:06,882 ignoring you, rebelling against you. 784 00:35:07,337 --> 00:35:11,451 And because of that, you made a way to fix that about us. 785 00:35:11,654 --> 00:35:18,341 You sent Jesus to earn a spot in heaven for us, to take away our punishment 786 00:35:18,634 --> 00:35:22,517 because of our sin that we deserve on the cross, and to be raised from 787 00:35:22,517 --> 00:35:25,470 the dead, to defeat death and, and secure our future with you forever. 788 00:35:25,470 --> 00:35:31,161 And so I pray for anyone in this room who, who doesn't think that you love them, 789 00:35:31,305 --> 00:35:33,125 that you would convince them that you do. 790 00:35:33,924 --> 00:35:38,433 And I pray for all of us in this room who, um, who need that reminder. 791 00:35:38,433 --> 00:35:41,388 I pray that your love for us would motivate us, it would fill us, it would 792 00:35:41,390 --> 00:35:46,364 excite us, and that we would be filled with your love, and we would show that 793 00:35:46,874 --> 00:35:51,168 to, to everyone around us how much we've been loved and how much we love them. 794 00:35:51,494 --> 00:35:52,391 We pray this in Jesus' name.