Luke 15.8-10 Or 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?
On Saturday, the young man who works with me on my bicycles, sent two of his friends to have their bikes fixed, before they set out on a 100-mile journey the next day. It was 5.00pm when they arrived, and the bike shops were closing, so it was down to me to find the parts needed to fix them. One of the young men had a faulty brake and had lost a very small screw that was essential to the repair. We searched high and low trying to work out where we could find an exact matching screw. Eventually, in one of the small boxes, hidden away we found one. Carefully, without dropping it we put it in place and repaired the rest of the bike. They left very happy young men and the following day completed their 100-mile journey.
I guess most of us have had similar experiences losing something and after a long search finding it. There is a feeling of great relief and even joy when this happens. Jesus uses the parable of the lost coin to illustrate the joy in heaven when one person comes to faith in Jesus and enters the kingdom. The rest of the story goes like this.
And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbours 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
It is amazing to think that there was such rejoicing in heaven when you first put your faith in Jesus. Some come to faith though Alpha, some through coming along to church and others through simple friendship with another believer. I love the stories, especially current ones of how people came to know Jesus. Let’s continue to make it one of our main goals to help others find that lost coin in their lives.
