The Joy of God Who Seeks

Lucas 15:1-10 - The Joy of God Who Seeks

The Parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin

"There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance." - Lk 15:7

1. Introduction - Who is this Gospel for?

My dear brothers and sisters, look at the first line of Luke today. It tells us everything.

"The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, and the Pharisees and scribes murmured." There are two groups around Jesus. The sinners who know they are lost, and the self-righteous who think they are found. And Jesus tells this parable for both.

If you have ever felt far from God, this Gospel is for you. If you have ever judged someone who is far from God, this Gospel is also for you. Our God is not a God who waits. He is a God who seeks.

2. The Lost Sheep - God Leaves the Ninety-Nine

The Story: A shepherd has 100 sheep. One is lost. What does he do? He leaves the 99 in the desert and goes after the one.

This is foolish business by human standards. No good shepherd leaves 99 unprotected for one. But this is the foolishness of divine love.

Misconception to Correct:
Misconception: "God loves me when I am good. When I sin, He turns away and I must find my way back."
Catholic Answer: No. Catechism 604, 605 teaches that Jesus came precisely to seek what was lost. While we were still sinners, He came searching. The initiative is always His.

You did not find God. God found you. Like the sheep, you may have just been bleating, lost, confused. He lifted you on His shoulders. The Greek word Luke uses for "rejoice" is the same word used for the Resurrection joy.

And notice where He carries the sheep: not behind Him, not dragging it. On His shoulders. Near His heart. This is what the Good Shepherd does in Confession. He does not scold the sheep. He carries it home.

This is why Lumen Gentium 11 calls the Eucharist and Reconciliation the sacraments where the lost are restored.

Ask yourself: When did God carry me when I was lost? Do I remember?

3. The Lost Coin - God Searches Diligently

Then Jesus tells a second parable, for emphasis. A woman has ten drachmas - ten silver coins, perhaps her wedding dowry, very precious. One is lost.

What does she do? She lights a lamp, sweeps the house, searches carefully until she finds it.

Here, the sheep could bleat. The coin cannot. It is inanimate, helpless, stuck under a mat, in a dark corner.

Some of us are like that. We are not running away; we are stuck. Stuck in addiction, stuck in a bad marriage, stuck in depression, stuck in shame. We cannot even call for help.

God lights a lamp for you. What is that lamp? The light is Christ, the Word of God - Psalm 119:105 "Your word is a lamp to my feet." He lights the lamp of Scripture, of a friend's advice, of a homily like this, to find you in the dark corner.

He sweeps the house. In the Church, we call this Divine Providence. God moves furniture around in our lives - sometimes painfully - to reveal where we are lost, so we can be found.

Dei Verbum 2 reminds us: God in His love speaks to men as friends to invite them into fellowship. He searches like the woman, not because the coin is valuable, but because she loves it.

4. The Joy in Heaven

Both parables end the same way: Joy. The shepherd calls friends. The woman calls neighbors. "Rejoice with me!"

Jesus says there is joy in heaven, joy among the angels of God, over one sinner who repents.

Have you ever thought about this? Heaven has a party when you go to Confession.

We often think repentance is sad - tears, guilt, shame. But in God's eyes, repentance is a homecoming party.

Misconception: "I am too sinful, I have been away too long, God must be tired of me."
Catholic Correction: CCC 1481, 1484 - There is no sin that God's mercy cannot forgive if we turn to Him with a contrite heart. Your repentance does not cause God sadness; it causes heavenly joy.

The angels do not say: "Finally!" They sing.

5. Application for Us - Are we Pharisees or Shepherds?

Jesus told this parable because the Pharisees murmured: "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."

So let me ask our parish today:

Who are we welcoming?

Is our parish a place where the 99 feel comfortable, but the one lost sheep would feel judged if he walked in with tattoos, with a complicated family situation, with the smell of the street?

Pope Francis, in Evangelii Gaudium 46, says: The Church must be a Church that goes forth, that seeks the lost on the margins.

To be Catholic is to be a seeker with Christ. Who is your one? One family member away from the Church? One coworker? One child?

Will you leave your comfort zone - your 99 - to seek them? A simple invitation: "Come to Mass with me," a rosary offered, a non-judgmental listening ear - that is how we light the lamp.

Conclusion

So today, two invitations:

If you feel lost - Let yourself be found. Come to Confession this week. Let Him carry you on His shoulders.
If you feel found - Help Him search. Be His hands that sweep the house.

Because in the end, we are all that one lost coin, held precious in the hands of a God who never stops searching.

Amen.

Closing Prayer - From Psalm 51, the psalm of the found sinner:

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love;
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.

priest