Read: Luke 15:1-7

Consider: There is a common misunderstanding of grace. It is a view that believes grace is limited. It is for people who somehow earn or deserve it. Such was the view of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who are referenced in Luke 15. God’s blessing, they believed, was for them—people who lived according to the law. Why, they wondered, would Jesus welcome sinners? He even ate with them. In that culture to eat with an individual was to consider that person your equal. How in the world could Jesus make such a statement about despicable people? He was telling sinners that they had worth. He was showing them grace that they didn’t deserve.

But such is the nature of grace. If we deserved it, we couldn’t call it grace. Grace is unmerited—it is given, not earned.

The nature of grace is difficult to comprehend. Sure, we can mouth the definition, but can we grasp the truth? Can we trust grace? Can we believe that it really is deep enough and full enough to forgive all of our sins?

Paul said…

“Where sin increased, grace increased all the more…” (Romans 5:20)

Ah, such is the nature of grace.

Pray: Prayerfully meditate on the meaning of grace in your life. Ask the Lord to bring to your mind the many ways in which grace has been given to you. Thank Him for the people who have been His agents of grace in your life. Call them by name as you praise God for them and their influence. And don’t forget to thank God for His grace given to you through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Tuesday, March 16

Read: Luke 1:1-7

Consider: The shepherds that were familiar to Jesus’ listeners were small time shepherds. Their flocks usually consisted of only about a dozen sheep. So when Jesus spoke about a shepherd with one hundred sheep, He was speaking about someone with great wealth. You would think that someone with that many sheep could lose one without feeling it. He certainly would not risk the lives of ninety-nine sheep in order to go after just one lost lamb. That would be too great a risk. Why that shepherd could lose everything if he left the ninety-nine unattended—“in the open country”—to go after the single one that was lost.

But we’re talking about grace here. We’re talking about the love of the Good Shepherd. We’re talking about the One who risked everything.

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law didn’t get it. They thought there were people on this planet with little or no worth in the eyes of God. They could not have been more wrong.

We would never verbalize it, but we are often tempted to look at certain kinds of sinners and think of them as less worthy of God’s love than we are. But when we view someone—anyone—in that manner, we’re missing the point of Jesus’ parable.

Jesus said...

“I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one _______________ (fill in what you consider to be the worst sinner—murderer, terrorist, sexual deviant, etc.) who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:7)

Ah, such is the nature of grace.

Pray: Thank God that He never stopped seeing your worth. Thank Him that He risked everything to save you—the lost lamb. Ask Him to help you have the mind and eyes of Christ—to see everyone as a person of unfathomable worth in the sight of God.

Wednesday, March 17

Read: Luke 1:1-10

Consider: We’ve all lost something in our own home. “I know my keys are here somewhere. There’s no way I left them at work or in the car. I used them to open the front door. They’ve got to be here!” So we search and search until we find them. We can’t stop looking. They are too valuable. Sometimes we turn the whole house upside down in order to find them.

The shepherd makes me think about risky love—love that would give up everything in order to find the lost one. The woman with the lost coin makes me think about tenacity. She would not stop pursuing that thing of value. She swept the whole house and searched carefully until she found it (15:8).

It’s good for us from time to time to think back about how God pursued us. He didn’t pursue us for a day or a week. He kept after us. He longed for us to know Him and to live in communion with Him. He placed people in our path. He used circumstances. He placed longings in our hearts. He pursued us relentlessly.

We call this “prevenient grace”—or grace that goes before us. Before we experienced His saving grace, grace was still present in our lives. His grace protected us and led us to Him. He is tenacious.

Pray: Ask the Lord to bring to your remembrance His prevenient grace in your life. Ask Him to remind you of the people, circumstances and longings that He used to draw you to Him. Thank Him for His tenacity. And ask for His grace in your life as you tenaciously pray for those who are yet to come to faith.

Thursday, March 18

Read: Luke 15:11-24

Consider: This third “lost” parable is so powerful because we can see ourselves in it. The Parable of the Lost Sheep makes me think about risky love. The Parable of the Lost Coin makes me think about the tenacity of the searcher. But the Parable of the Lost Son shows me the broken heart of the father. Jesus is giving us a glimpse into the pathos of God.

Here’s the verse that speaks volumes to me…

“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.” (15:20)

I think the father was looking for him. Everyday he walked the perimeter of his property, scanning the horizon, hoping that his son would return. And then one day it happened. The father didn’t take an aloof stance, hoping to make his son grovel at his feet. No, the father took off running toward his son and “threw his arms around him,” embracing him in a manner said it all.

Ah, such is the nature of grace.

Pray: Ask the Lord today to open your understanding. It is often difficult for us to see God as the wounded, hurting Father who longs for His children to return. Ask the Lord to help you see Him as Jesus described Him in this parable. Pray the words that we often sing, “Open the eyes of my heart, I want to see You.”

Friday, March 19

Read: Luke 15:11-32

Consider: Remember what you discovered on Monday from Luke 15:1-2. Jesus had two audiences as He shared these three parables. He was talking to the despised “sinners” and to the religious professionals—the lost sons and the angry older brothers.

I often wonder if the Pharisees and the teachers of the law got it. Did they realize He was talking about them? Did they realize that He was holding a mirror up to their faces when He talked about the bitterness of the older brother? When He compared the love of the father with the lack of love from the brother, did they see themselves?

Where do we see ourselves in this parable? If we are not careful, all of us at times can act like that older brother. We sometimes see it in the church. People can feel like the church is for them, their comfort and their preferences. They can get a little smug thinking about all that they have invested in the church—“Look! All these years I've been slaving…” (15:29). In so doing they forget that they are supposed to be walking the perimeter with the Father, yearning, hoping and running toward the lost, embracing them with love and grace.

If you ever lose your passion for the lost, go back to this parable and hear the Father say…

“We had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” (15:32)

Then go inside the Father’s house and party!

Pray: “Lord, keep me from selfish attitudes about the church. May I not see it as an entity designed to please me or fulfill my preferences and tastes. May I see it as the Body of Christ that is here to make me more like You and empower me to be an agent of Your love and grace to the lost. Help me and my church to be like the Good Shepherd, the tenacious searcher and the loving Father.”

Saturday, March 20

Read: Luke 15:1-32

Consider: There is something going on here…

The Parable of the Lost Sheep — “Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’” (15:6)

 The Parable of the Lost Coin — “…she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’” (15:9)

The Parable of the Lost Son — “Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” (15:23-24)

Rejoice! Rejoice! Celebrate! Party!

What we celebrate reflects our values. God could not stand the thought of eternity without us, so He sent His Son to make a way for us to know Him, commune with Him and live with Him eternally. And nothing brings more joy to God than when His lost children come home.

Perhaps that is what the writer to the Hebrews had in mind when he said…

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)

Did you ever consider that for Jesus “the joy set before him” was you? He “endured the cross” in order to have eternal relationship with you. That is what makes Him rejoice. It’s almost more than we can comprehend.

Pray: “Lord, I long to bring You joy. Therefore, I will never leave You. I’m home and at home I will stay. I will help You seek Your other lost children and will rejoice with You when they are found.”

Sunday, March 21

Today is the Fifth Sunday of Lent. Enter worship today with deep gratitude for the cross and the empty tomb.

For small group discussion questions, click here.