Christianity Oasis Forum

[cimi]

SATURDAY JUNE 20


A MISSING SHEEP

READ:
Psalm 100:3
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We are His people
and the sheep of
His pasture.
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Laura loaded a borrowed goat and sheep into a trailer to transport them to church for a rehearsal of a live nativity. The animals head-butted and chased each other for a bit and then settled down. Laura started for the church but first had to stop for gas.

While pumping the gas, she noticed the goat standing in the parking lot! And the sheep was gone! In the commotion of getting them settled she had forgotten to lock one of the latches. Laura called the sheriff and some friends who searched frantically along a stretch of businesses, cornfields, and woods during the last daylight hours. Many were praying that she would find the borrowed animal.

The next morning Laura and a friend went out to post "Lost Sheep" flyers at local businesses. Their first stop was the gas station. A customer overheard them asking the cashier about posting a flyer and said, "I think I know where your sheep is!" The sheep had wandered to his neighbor's farm, where he had put it int the barn for the night.

The Lord cares about lost sheep__including you and me. Jesus came from heaven to earth to show us His love and provide salvation (JOHN 3:16). He goes to great lengths to seek and find us (LUKE 19:10).

When the sheep was found, Laura nicknamed her Miracle. And God's salvation of us is a miracle of His grace.
__ Anne cetas

**Heavenly Father, as we care for the things dear to us,
how much more do You care for us, Your children! Thank You for
answered prayer and for the miracle of Your grace.
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The Good Shepherd gives His life for His sheep. (JOHN 10:11).

************************Today's Bible Reading __ Luke 15:1-10**************************
1 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near
to him to hear Him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes
complained, saying, "This Man receives sinners and eats
with them."

3 So He spoke this parable to them, saying: 4 "What man of
you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does
not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the
one which is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found
it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes
home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying
to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which
was lost!' 7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in
heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine
just persons who need no repentance.

8 "Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one
coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search
carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she has found it, she
calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, 'Rejoice with
me, for I have found the piece which I lost!' 10 Likewise, I say
to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over
one sinner who repents."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>INSIGHT<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Jesus' association with the outcasts of society
(vv. 1-2) offended the self-righteous Pharisees
and religious leaders who saw themselves as the only people fit
to go to heaven. Their statement that "this man receives sinners
and eats with them" (v. 2) was meant to be a scathing attack on
His character, but it accurately affirmed what Jesus came to do
(MATT. 9:10-13). In response to this criticism, Jesus told three parables:
the lost sheep (vv. 4-7), the lost coin (vv. 8-10), and the lost son
(vv. 1-32). All three parables follow the same patter: something is
lost, it is found, and then there is rejoicing.