1 Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming close to Jesus to hear him. 2 The Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, “This man welcomes sinners, and eats with them.”

3 He told them this parable. 4 “Which of you men, if you had one hundred sheep, and lost one of them, wouldn’t leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one that was lost, until he found it? 5 When he has found it, he carries it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 When he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ 7 I tell you that even so there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance. 8 Or what woman, if she had ten drachma coins, if she lost one drachma coin, wouldn’t light a lamp, sweep the house, and seek diligently until she found it? 9 When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the drachma which I had lost.’ 10 Even so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner repenting.”

Luke 15:1-10 - World English Bible

In Leviticus 20:26, YHWH told the people to be holy, for he was holy. Holiness meant being different, separate, one-of-a-kind. The Pharisees equated holiness to a high standard of moral living; for them, holiness meant living away from the “pollution” of sinners: Gentiles, outcasts and errant Jews. They chided Jesus for socializing with these types because it violated their religious sensibilities. The Lord, however, came to upset the common wisdom and live out the prophetic call found in Hosea 3; he sought out the sinner, even at the risk of being the fool. He recognized his call in two parables, the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin. A shepherd left ninety nine sheep to fend for themselves while he found and rejoiced in the safety of the lost sheep; a woman joyfully announced she had found her lost coin to her poor neighbors, informing them she had money. What sort of a person would open themselves to social ridicule or worse? For the sake of a single lost sinner, Jesus would.

How have you sought the lost in your life?