God is Always Coming for You

Scripture

Our verse for today comes from Luke 15:4, ” What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? “

Background

We have a slight problem in our house. One of the adults struggles to hang the car keys back up when she comes home. And as she switches from one car to the other, and uses one backup set and then the next, her pocketbook becomes more like a pocket library, and every book is about the same subject of keys. So when the other adult goes to grab the keys and finds the hook empty, he’s pretty sure where to go to find a set. Now, our keys don’t lose themselves, nor do they realize when they are lost. And they certainly have no concern as to whether they are ever found or not. Clearly, you and I are not keys. But we are sheep. And as sheep, we get lost, perhaps so lost that we think we could never be found again. So what if Jesus had posed His question this way, ” What man of you, if you were one of a hundred sheep, and you got lost, would not expect the shepherd to come and find you? “

Application

That feels a little different, doesn’t it? If we were the shepherd, of course we would say we would go and find our lost sheep. Who’s going to admit to turning their back on one of their flock? But when we are the one that is lost, sometimes our situation can seem so bleak and so desperate that we can’t imagine ever being pulled out from under it. We suffer from a disconnect between the knowledge we have of our loving Father and the utter desperation we seem to be drowning in. It feels like we have found the one spot in the wilderness where our Shepherd will not venture to bring us back home. But that is a lie from hell. For God, the chance to go and find one of the lost is another opportunity to send out the invitations in heaven for the huge celebration they will be having once the lost is found. Of course He will go after us until He finds us. There is not a pasture too remote or a wilderness too barren that He cannot come and lay you on His shoulders and bring you back to Himself. So if you feel like a lost key, remember you are one of His beloved sheep, and our Shepherd wants you back in the fold.

Charge

As we seek Him today, remember that He first seeks us, and He still seeks us, even when He feels a million miles away. Ask God to give you the assurance that He is coming for you.