The Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin

Tax collectors and other people with bad reputations kept gathering around Jesus to listen to him, which made the religious leaders grumble: "This man welcomes sinners and even eats with them." So Jesus told them two short stories.

"Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them," he said. "Doesn't he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and carries it home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who don't need to repent."

Then Jesus told a second story. "Suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn't she 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."

Both stories carried the same message: no one is too lost, too small, or too far gone for God to search for -- and to celebrate wildly when they are found.