Listen to Devotion

Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not 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 goes home.”

What would you do if you lost your keys? Would you try to remember the last time you used them? Would you retrace your day’s steps, looking everywhere? Would you rifle through the stack of papers on your desk? Rummage through all the drawers in your dresser? Check all your pants’ pockets? Hunt under the bed? Poke down into the cushions—hunting in between the stale pretzels, paperclips, and pennies for your keys?

And why would you go to such trouble to find your car keys? Simple. They have value to you. Without your car keys, you won’t be going to work today. No shuttling of the kids to after-school activities. No quick drive to buy groceries for tonight’s supper. So, when you do finally find your car keys, how do you feel? There’s a mixture of relief and joy—that which was lost has been found!

Shortly after God created his perfect world and his perfect people, he lost you. Not that he forgot where he placed you or forgot your name. He lost you because you loused up your relationship with him through your breaking of his commands. And from then on, you were indeed lost to him—estranged from him in time and separated from him for all eternity in hell.

But God sent his Son, Jesus, to “find” you. Jesus lived a perfect life for you, always keeping all of God’s commands in your stead. And because God values you so highly, he punished his perfect Son on Calvary’s cross for your sins so that you might not be lost to him any longer. Now he calls you to fully place your trust in Jesus, so that you might forever enjoy your fully restored relationship to him. So, dear fellow “lost” sinner, put your trust in Jesus as your only Savior from sin and hell. For God “finds” you only in him.

Thank you, Lord, for caring enough to find a lost soul like me. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.