Digging Deeper – God Even Chases After the Hard-Hearted
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
3 So he told them this parable: 4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that 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 his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ 7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
Luke 15:1-7 (NLT)
GOD EVEN CHASES AFTER THE HARD-HEARTED
Many times, we read Jesus’ parables and think of the “lost” as being those who do not yet know the Lord. While that is certainly appropriate in many scenarios, I can’t help but believe that in this case, Jesus’ words are aimed directly at the men and women who claim to know God, but whose hearts have strayed far from Him.
Consider verse 2 above: “And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, ‘This man receives sinners and eats with them.’”
We see this pattern of behavior throughout Jesus’ ministry: outcasts being drawn to Jesus juxtaposed with the religious leaders’ contempt for Jesus’ willingness to spend time with those outcasts.
- It happened when Matthew (Levi) held a banquet in Jesus’ honor:
Later, Levi held a banquet in his home with Jesus as the guest of honor. Many of Levi’s fellow tax collectors and other guests also ate with them. But the Pharisees and their teachers of religious law complained bitterly to Jesus’ disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with such scum?” (Luke 5:29-30)
- It happened when Jesus healed a man with a deformity on the Sabbath:
At this, the enemies of Jesus were wild with rage and began to discuss what to do with him. (Luke 6:11)
- It happened when an immoral woman anointed Jesus’ feet with her tears and expensive perfume:
When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!” (Luke 7:39)
Many more times during his ministry we see Jesus’ compassion for the hurting drawing the ire of the self-righteous. But Jesus is imploring sinners – especially the hypocritical Pharisees – to see that their hard hearts can find the peace that eludes them, through repentance. Alas, these religious leaders are so focused on snuffing the threat Jesus poses to their power that they are blinded and deafened to the true message behind Jesus’ actions and words.
So, how about you? Where do you find yourself in this story? Are you hurting and feeling like an outcast? Or, has your heart hardened over time, and you now find yourself far from the Lord? The good news is that Jesus provides the healing in either scenario – simply by turning your mind and heart to Him.
C.A. Phillips serves as Communications Pastor and Director of Men’s Groups at NorthStar Church. He is a graduate of the Henry W. Grady School of Journalism at the University of Georgia, and he loves the Dawgs and the Atlanta Braves. He has two (grown) boys and lives in Kennesaw with his wife, Amy, and their German Shepherd, Abby.
