[309 words]
Luke 15:1-2 sets up the three parables Jesus is using to teach His lessons. The “tax collectors and sinners” were drawn to the uplifting message of Jesus! These groups wanted an alternative to the ugliness found in their lives while having no sense of hope and direction.
Luke 15:8-10 says, “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, ’Rejoice with me for I have found the piece which I lost!’ Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Wayne Jackson tells us, “Near Eastern women highly prized silver coins, sometimes handed down for generations. To lose one was a catastrophe. The common home was small and frequently without windows. Lighting a lamp might be required even in the daytime.”
The lost coin represents a lost person. A lost coin is of no value to its owner; the lost person cannot be used in God’s service. We see the coin was found followed by much rejoicing. In heaven, there is rejoicing in the presence of angels when we return. We know our activities on earth are known by God and angels have an interest in the spiritual condition of Christians (1 Cor. 11:10; 1 Tim. 5:21).
Like the woman in this parable, God is concerned with us while we are disconnected from Him. But when we are “found” by choosing to return to Him through repentance, rejoicing takes place in Heaven and on earth. The tax collectors and sinners were seeking a lamp in a sea of darkness. We too, are seeking hope. Will you respond to Jesus?
Allen Jones
South Green Street church of Christ
Glasgow, KY