“Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.” Luke 15:6-7

There is great relief and joy to the heart when a loved one is relieved from harm and danger. The parent who becomes overwhelmed with joy and rejoice with tears when their once endangered child is freed out of hopelessness, returned from helplessness, or delivered from a dark pit of destruction. It is in moments like these that true love and desire are known. The scripture passage illustrates to us the heart of God for His wayward and wandering children who are lost in sin. He is in a relentless search to seek out and find those who wander in sin, those like sheep who nibble on the world’s delights and stray further and further from the Shepherd’s voice. Sheep are led and guided by the shepherd’s voice. They know his voice and follow him into green pastures. Yet there are times when a sheep will follow their hunger rather than their hearing. Today, so many, like wandering sheep, follow their hunger and develop an appetite for immediate gratification and pleasure, as they feast on the delicacies of the world and its lure. The word of God calls out to all who are lost in sin, who are lured by lust, who lean on their own understanding, and seek their own way. God is relentless to “sweep…and search” every piece of furniture in the household of life to recovery that one who lost and lured in sin (Lk 15:8-10). God’s heart anxiously anticipates the recovery of that “which was lost.” He rejoices over every one “for I have found” and all those with Him “rejoice” and share in “that likewise joy…in heaven” because they are daily in His presence. My friend, do you long to see a loved one saved? Do you look for the day they finally hear the Father’s call and come to Him? Be faithful in prayer. Be faithful to carry the word of God with you wherever you go and “speak the truth in love” (Eph 4:15).  “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Pet 1:2-4). In the blessed Name of Jesus. Amen.

 “So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.” Luke 17:10

I pray that you had a blessed worship at your local church on the Lord’s Day. The times we live in are demanding times. Every turn in life seems to be filled with endless activities and not enough time to get things done. People are doing a lot of things for a lot of people but lots of people are more alone and emptier than ever before. In the scripture passage today, Jesus reminds us that the greatest profit to human life is time with Him. He warns to not be so taken up with doing His work that you fail to take spend time with the Master. Jesus wants our love and desires that we know His love in His presence. So often the focus is on “that which was our duty to do” rather than devoting our time, energy and thought in service with Him. “Whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord” (Col 3:23). Jesus submitted Himself to do the Father’s will, yet He did nothing without the Father. His daily delight and His daily diet was with the Father. He made this clear on one occasion when Jesus visited His dear friends, He recognized that Martha was “careful and troubled about many things,” as she made preparation for Jesus’ visit. But in all her work she lacked peace, satisfaction, and fulfillment from her service (Lk 10:40-41). Martha was mindful to details of her duty and not so devoted with her Master in mind. My friend, our Lord desires the devotion of His children to serve with Him and by Him. Nothing profitable for the Kingdom can be done without Him, yet all eternal things are done by Him and through Him. Those things devoted in love are everlasting and “shall never be taken away” (Lk 10:42). Father, as You delighted in Your Son, may You be delighted by our devotion and love for You through Your Son, as we delight to serve You. In the blessed Name of Jesus. Amen.

Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. (James 1:27)

Some of the greatest joys in life are found in moments of comfort and compassion in the darkest times. Those simple acts of kindness stir something within the soul and can enliven the spirit of every man. It is in those moments of carefulness that we are most like our heavenly Father. Those moments reveal the innocence created within all of us. The scripture passage reminds us that we are most like our God and Father when we give of ourselves to relate to others. God said, “It is not good that man should be alone” (Gen 2:18). We are created for relationships. Our relationships are with God first, and then with others. In times of lost and emptiness, we need our Father’s care, comfort and compassion. We need friendship from others and the fellowship of His Holy Spirit. The ministry and work of the Church is to share the love of Christ that is “pure…and undefiled.” Unlike world religions whose motives are mixed with false rituals and impure motives, the Church is always to be mindful that everything it does is “before God and the Father.” The Church is under God’s watchful eye and by His presence the Church endeavors to extend God’s truth and His mercy to those in need. The Father’s eye is attentive to His children, especially those often overlooked in the world, “the fatherless and widows in their affliction.” The sum of “pure religion” for the Church is to be charitable and relieve the afflicted. The Spirit warns the child of God not to become like the world, but “to keep himself unspotted from the world.” We must resist the temptation to compare ourselves with the works other religious organizations, yet always be mindful to “seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Mt 6:33) and God will provide and “supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:19). God’s heart is for the lost, afflicted, and abandoned. May we join our Father and be about His business to seek out the lost, comfort the afflicted and recover the abandoned from the world to the glory of our Savior, Jesus Christ. In the blessed Name of Jesus. Amen.