Bowling Pin #1 God loves lost people. Luke 15:1-32
It was Dec 7 1988. Armenia. They called it the earthquake of 1989. This quake was off the rector scales. Altogether 30,000 people died in 4 minutes. Established businesses lay demolished, Dream homes into splinters of wood. Green parks blanketed in white rubble.

Imagine if that happened in Riverton after the Yellowstone volcano blows. You parents would likely be high tailing it to your kid’s school to rescue them. Very few people would be checking on their 4-wheelers, jet skis or gardens. You first thought would be getting your family to safety. Amen?

In Armenia the parents there were just like us. The father of 10 year old Armond could not drive to his son’s school. Streets were destroyed. Armand’s father frantically gets to the school, breaks through the crowd and. Climbs up on a pile of rubble that used to be classrooms.

Have you ever felt like you have blown an opportunity for God? Have you ever felt like God was using you to find someone who was lost? Lost in the rubble of dead-end dreams and heaps of failure? Have you ever missed the opportunity to win big?

-When you are on a long flight and the person next to you starts to talk about our world’s problems?
-When a friend asks you what you are doing Sunday?
-When a co-worker shares a crisis in their life?
-When a family member talks about how you have changed since you started getting all religious?
Do you miss the opportunity?

The religious leaders of Jesus’ time did. They had people gathering all around, hungry for the heart of God and all they could see were worthless, lost, outcasts. Beginning in Luke 15:1-2 the Bible says…

Now the tax collectors and “sinners” were all gathering around to hear him. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

This was a tough crowd gathered to hear Jesus. Adulterers, drunkards, maybe even homosexuals and that religious teachers that were supposed to represent God were disgusted by the common trash that gathered in stink hordes to listen to this blue collar teacher.

But Jesus was different than the other spiritual teachers. Jesus wanted to communicate that God was in a relentless pursuit of what many called human trash. The lost were of no interest to the self righteous religious teachers gathered around in their own little group to the side. So Jesus began to tell three consecutive stories about a lost sheep, a lost coin and a lost son. They are stories that carry hidden truths to expose the heart of God, but also to model for us the way we should live.

The first one picks up in vs. 3 and says…
3Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. Luke 15:1-7

Have you ever hung around a herd of sheep? Sheep are dumb. They live to fill their stomachs and have to be moved from pasture to pasture to keep from eating the root system and killing their food supply.

They will wander aimlessly, even into danger. But a good shepherd loves his sheep and will do anything to keep them together and to keep them safe.

In Earthquake ravaged Armenia what drove Armand’s father? The same thing that drives the shepherd to look for his lost sheep. The 99 are safe in the folds, but the shepherd strikes out for the one that is lost until he finds it.

  God loves the lost and seeks them with Passion
Many people here like the job they do during the week but only a few people here simply love their job. If you love your job with a passion and can’t wait to get up in the morning to get to work then you’re definitely in the minority in America. If you are passionate about what you do you are happy and blessed. God is passionate about saving lost people and giving them a passion for their own life.

Sharing your experience with the Jesus who saved you is not a gift: when people talk about sharing their faith, they use the excuse that it is not my spiritual gift. It is a command:
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28: 18-20 NIV

When you witness of the grace of God this verse is about you:
How beautiful on the mountains  are the feet of those who bring good news,  who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!" Isaiah 52:7

If you want to be passionate about the lost, then…
You may have to follow them into some rugged terrain.
Barry MCMurtie from a church of over 5,000 in California followed some sheep in some rough terrain. A Porno convention was in town. You could go there and get an autograph from your favorite porno star. Barry the Senior Pastor set up a booth there and called it the XXX church. They handed out material for those who have been obsessed with pornography. I spoke to him at a ministry convention and he told me he over 1 million hits a month on the website designed for helping the sexually addicted. This is yet another way for a shepherd to go out into rugged terrain beyond the walls of a church to find a lost sheep.

Where can we go as a church in Riverton to reach lost sheep that other churches would fear to go? If you have ideas then share them with me. I’m crazy enough to try anything. I’m not your normal pastor!

For many of us talking about the messiah is only comfortable inside the church. Maybe God wants us to step outside of our protective bubble in the church and take some risks.

In St.Louis, Mo there is a nightclub called Mississippi Nights..They specialize in live performances of Rock bands that play anti-god music. A Youth group went to this sin-infested place with their pick-ups. Dropped the tailgates and heated up some burritos to pass out to the young kids leaving the crowded concert. Why? Because they love Jesus. They had a passion for lost sheep and they witnessed about God’s love for His enemies.

Where does God have enemies in Fremont County? The bars? The reservation? Christian cults in town? In churches full of Pharisees that despise lost people.

Back in Armenia the Father continues to look for Armond. He climbs a tree and scans the skyline. He studies the layout of the rubble to figure out where his son’s class would have been. He stands on top of the probable classroom area and begins to pull rock after rock, desk after desk, looking for his lost son. There is no way you would stop looking for your child while an ounce of strength remained in your body right?

"Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.' In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." Luke 15:8-10

This was the cost of a dowry in Jesus time. If you were to have a good marriage partner this money was needed. The coin to this poor woman was probably her whole life savings and was the difference between a miserable life and a fulfilling one. the point: it wasn’t worth much money to the religious teachers listening but to this woman looking it meant the whole world.

What does the old woman and Armand’s father and God have in common

They all Scan the area with Persistence
It takes resources to do an all out search: I know when I used to wear contact lenses that when I dropped one then Operation Rescue started. All other activities stopped and the search was on. More importantly, when our family goes on an outing and one of the kids goes missing then a red alert “Operation Rescue” starts. What can possibly be more important than your loved ones?

What investment are you prepared to make to find what you passionately care for? It takes time and resources. What sacrifice are you prepared to make for all the lost people in Riverton that God cares passionately about? That Jesus poured out his very life for?

It takes biblical training to know what to say? Are you willing to give time to learn it? It takes money to fund mission work here in Riverton and Africa. We gave generously to our Missionary from Guinea in Africa when he was here. Can we do the same for the lost people that live in Riverton and the Reservation?

It is dangerous to get involved in lost people’s lives particularly in Riverton. They are hurting and have no direction in life. They are addicted to drugs and alcohol and living half homeless. Some are in Native American Cults; some are in Christian Cults like the Mormons and Jehovah’s witnesses. Some are wealthy and addicted to money, power, and sex. Being lost affects all income levels and races.

The Chinese word for danger is made of two characters that represent two other words…danger and opportunity. The danger of encountering lost people and being a part of their lives is also the biggest opportunity we have to serve God. We can be the critical link between them and the living God

Lost people make up around 90% of Riverton and likely a higher percentage of the reservation. The point is you can’t miss hitting a lost person in Riverton if you shot blindfolded in Wal-Marts parking lot.

Armand’s Father in Armenia began to get exhausted after about ten hours of digging in the rubble. He continued to dig on even when others around him told him to give up. 24 hours finally passed and Armand’s relentless father was fueled by stubborn desire to never give up looking for his child. Would you? Hands cracked, knuckles bleeding, heart racing he kept digging.

We stop digging into the lives of the people around us because we do not have much patience with people.
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. 13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. 21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. 25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ 31”‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”  Luke 15:11-32

A Rebellious son, an angry brother, and a Forgiving father. One son willing to be a slave and the other son always feeling like one! What do Armand’s father and God have in Common?

He Searches with Patience
A guy’s car was stalled at a green-light. The Cars behind him would honk and honk Out of frustration, the guy walked out of his car, tapped on the window of the person behind him and said," Say, My car will not start, if you would not mind trying to start my car, I will sit back here and honk your horn for you"

See we are not patient with people are we? But God is. He will not lay on his horn, picket your house or send you forwarded e-mails, but he will let us experience consequence of our own wanderings. And he will let us fall flat on our face until we understand our total dependence on him.  Watching someone go through this…

may hurt you deeply, It may last longer than you had hoped,-It may have to get worse, before it gets better. You may have to watch them hit rock bottom before they look up. Before you shove our finger in the face of God and accuse him of not caring take a look at the cross and remind yourself that he has more interest in finding lost people than we do.

Trust God and do not doubt His desire to see them saved. He sees so much more than we see. God will patiently wait.. He will wait for your familiar figure to walk back from the dusty of road of despair and rebellion.

There are Two Messages here:
For us real Christians or those that are found…Don’t ever give up! Be passionate, persistent and patient! The fish will finally jump. The danger of being the found people is that we might turn into the older brother…be careful!

Those that are lost…He’ll never give up! And we’ll never give up. We are His people. God is still at work. Don’t give up hope.

What happened to Armand of Armenia? After 38 hours of desperate labor the father pulled a rock back and heard his son’s voice. There was a faint cry of papa. His passion for what was lost finally paid off. He heard “You found me, you found me!” from his son

God found me.... aren’t you glad he found you? Or what about you? Would you like to be found today?