The Worth of The Search

Passage: Luke 15:8-10

Exegetical Theme: This story demonstrates the true value of what is lost, the searcher’s efforts and the worth of the effort, experienced in the joy of recovering the coin.

The Botton Line: The search for lost people is worth Heaven’s investment.

This is my potential outline for this sermon.

                 First: The Context. 1-2

                 Second: The Lost Coin. 8a

                 Third: Three Different Kinds of Lostness. Luke 15

                 Fourth: The Search. 8b

                 Fifth: The Joy. 9

                 Sixth: The Necessity of Repentance. 10

This story takes us all the way back to creation because value is assigned by God in the imago dei. One sheep or one coin may not be of much value, or worth the risk to unfaithful shepherds. The lost coin is worth about a day’s wage and circumstances may have dictated whether or not it was worth the search. Yet both stories highlight the joy and celebration of recovering something precious to its owner.

As you noticed last week, I’m using all three stories to focus on Heritage’s part in God’s saving mission in the world. In its simplest form, missions is all about looking for God’s sheep, coin and sons. The “good news of great joy” (Luke 2:10) is that, in each story, what is lost is found. What an encouragement to evangelize “here and around the world.”

I hope you’ll think about this in connection to your world and that of your CG. There are lost sheep, coins and sons in our families, at the grocery store, where we work, where we or our children go to school or socialize, where we play sports or have hobbies, literally everywhere. Their value is assigned by God and demonstrated in the blood of the cross. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to see the world with God’s eyes and heart and then go with God into the world to find his lost sheep, coins and sons.