Sermon 9-11-2022
Luke 15:1-10
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
15 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
The Parable of the Lost Coin
8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins[a] and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Finding Balance
Today we start with these two parables, of the lost sheep and the lost coin. Some of the language is challenging, so let me start with some clarification. When Jesus talks of sin, he is speaking of those times in people’s lives when they forgot God. When their will did not line up with God’s will. Sinners are not inherently bad, they are inherently human. Humans can easily get lost.
When Jesus talks of repenting, he means turning back to God, remembering God, and realizing that sometimes our actions did not line up with God’s will. It means apologizing, feeling sorry for these actions.
I have a story for you. This story started my intense spiritual journey toward ministry, when I was in my mid-forties, and reflects the story of the last coin. My oldest child Julia was in 3rd grade and was in a play at school. One Saturday we went to school to paint the scenery. She left afterwards with a friend while I cleaned the brushes and rollers. After that I visited a friend, and noticed I wasn’t wearing my 3 rings – engagement, wedding, and a ring guard from my mom. I reached into my pocket where I always put them, but they weren’t there. So I went back to school, found the janitor, and searched. No luck. They were gone.
I put the word out, including to the school secretary. At work, two weeks later, when I could finally admit my loss, I told a friend who said she would pray to St. Anthony. If you aren’t familiar with St. Anthony, he is the saint of lost things. The next day the school secretary called me; she had found my engagement ring! I went to school and asked where she found it. I searched and searched near there but didn’t find the other two. I rented a metal detector for the upcoming weekend when my husband and three children could come with me to look more. After about an hour, my husband took the kids into the school to use the bathroom. I stood still, prayed to St. Anthony, and God and whoever, and asked where to find the rings. I heard a voice say, “Ask Julia where you parked the car”.
When the four returned, I did as I was told. Julia, who is very spatially aware, pointed to a section of the parking area that was near where we were looking. As I approached there, I heard BEEEP! There they were, almost buried, but safe.
Believe me, I rejoiced! I called all my friends and neighbors and relatives! I found my lost rings!!
Have you ever lost something precious, and later found it? Jesus tells us that God, and the angels rejoice like that when someone who forgets God, sins (does an action that is their will but not God’s will), who then is sorry. Imagine God and the angels feeling so joyous!
We will circle around to this again, but now I want to address today, the 21st anniversary of 9-11.
It is easy for me to find God in the moments of a sunset when the sky is red, reflected on water. Or in the morning dew on a spider web that glistens. Or looking over a valley draped in fall colors. Or walking in silence of a winter day while watching large snowflakes cover the earth. It is easy for me to see God in the smile of a child or the hug of a loved one.
It is much different to see God on a day like today, this anniversary, when the safety and security that America used to feel, crumpled and fell. I have at times lost the feeling of God’s presence over the past 2 and a half years as I faced my own mortality, watched friends and relatives become sick, and sometimes dying. If you are like me, you might be having trouble seeing God when those in our lives fight over political and religious beliefs, equality in who we are, who we love, and how we survive in this economy.
Often I find myself asking, How do we find God in our suffering?
Matthew 5 verses 44 and 45 say, “44 But I say to you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be children of your Father in heaven, for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.”
This scripture basically sums up my spiritual path. I try to see people and events as God wants me to, although I fall short often! I find that following the path of Jesus means looking at all people in non-judgement, by remembering that the sun shines and the rain falls on everyone. Following the way means holding evil and good, as my human eyes see them, holding them both at the same time, and working to find balance.
Let’s do an exercise together. Eyes open or closed, visualize your favorite way to find God. Visualize that image as a beautiful painting and place it in your hand. Breathe in from that hand, breathe in the full love of God, place it in your heart as you place your hand over your heart. Let’s sit with this image and with the love of God in our hearts.
Now, we balance. With the strength of All that God is, breathing with the Holy Spirit, with Jesus in our hearts and minds, let us now let in 9-11, 2001. Just crack open the door a little and place the image into your other hand. Let us pray.
Dear Mother Father God, we ask that your love and peace hold us as we visit the painful memories from 21 years ago. In Christ’s name, Amen.
Now hold both hands in your lap. Breathe in the peace and love through the hand of beautiful memories, and breathe out, bathing the memory in the other hand with peace and love. And again – breathe in from the one hand, breathe out over the other. Let’s take a couple moments to breathe in this manner, while simultaneously holding these two images, seeing that God is here with us no matter what our circumstances. God is here when we feel joy, and God is here when we suffer. We just need to remember.
Now let’s return to today’s scripture.
What is a sinner? According to more modern translations, a sinner is one who turns away from God. This could be done in many ways. Of course, it is someone who disobeys the 10 commandments, like someone who murders or steals. But also, the most important commandment, according to Jesus, is to love God with all our heart, mind and soul. To do God’s will at all times.
Yet, we are human. There are plenty of times that I do not do God’s will, because all of us have free will. This free will allows us to spend our days in ways that fulfill our lives. We do our best at all times, making decisions that feel right at the time. But being human, I also don’t follow God’s will at all times. Did you ever eat a yummy piece of cake, even though it wasn’t the best thing to do for the health of your body, God’s temple? Did you ever lie rather than admit you were wrong? I have. And more.
So how can any of us get back on track? If I see myself on the one hand as a sinner, how can I balance myself, and find God’s love on the other hand? I can do this by asking for forgiveness. Some people use the word repent. I simply remember that God loves me, no matter what. Jesus tells us that when we ask, we are immediately forgiven. We have turned around and returned to God by just asking.
So, let’s try this together. Think of something you did today, or this week, or this month, you are not proud of. I know, it’s hard to bring it up, because you would rather forget. Did you bypass a stranded motorist? Yell at a loved one? Drive by a person begging for food or money? Okay, now put that image in your one hand. Place your beautiful image from earlier in the other hand and place it over your heart. Say the words, I’m sorry.
Done. Balanced. I find that the more often I recognize when I have left the path of following Jesus, when my will does not match God’s will – and then the more often I apologize, then the more easily I recognize it next time. So, steps to redemption are first recognizing that none of us are perfect. The other step is to apologize to God with all our heart.
I have found that if I do one more step, I am truly closer to God. I try to find it in myself to forgive myself. This can be really hard, I know. I have been working on finding true self-worth my entire life, finding that I am worthy of God’s love and forgiveness. So, I practice. Day after day. If you want, you can also practice this. You are so loved by All There Is, and you can feel more of that love through this forgiveness practice.
We are the lost coin. We are the lost sheep. On this anniversary of 9-11, when we had felt so lost and afraid on the one hand, we now know that on the other hand, we are loved by God. And this allows us to come back to the herd, lifted on our Lord’s shoulders, rejoicing.
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