NOTE: I am working on something for Resurrection Sunday (April 5th); I’m using the following texts: Job 38:4a, 7, John 1:1-5, and Luke 24:1-9. The theme is awe. Here’s where it gets fun … I’m inviting my readers to write something with the same theme and the same texts. I’d love to see where you go with it. You can even do art, or music with the same theme. Once a friend wrote a poem. (I’m not promising for her, but my host might even post your efforts. Wouldn’t that be fun!) ~ Don
“ON LEAVING THE 99”
I’ve been pondering this parable, and I’m not sure I’ve discovered all the truths yet. I will admit that I am still struggling to nail down every aspect of it. So, the following is far from perfect.
We do know the teaching, right? One sheep has wandered away and the shepherd leaves the ninety-nine in a safe place and searches until he finds the lost sheep and “carries it home.” Or, is that really what the teaching is about in Luke 15:4-7?
“’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? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 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.” 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.’”
Have you ever felt like God isn’t there? Maybe you had the idea that God had more important things to do, or that someone else needed His attention more … maybe someone else had an emergency? (None of those thoughts is true).
Know that this parable has an important context which is often forgotten. Jesus knew what others were thinking. Tax collectors (“boo!”) and sinners (“boo!”) were interested in what Jesus had to teach about the cost of discipleship and the importance of being valuable to God. But the religious leaders (law-following Pharisees and scribes) thought Jesus should pay attention to their self-righteousness and ignore those sinners. Jesus was reminding them that God has a heart for all who seek him.
What Jesus was saying to the Pharisees and scribes: “If you insist on your own self-righteousness you aren’t the sheep belonging to God. (Ouch!) God rejoices over these tax collectors and sinners who desire to repent (“yay”), but he gets no joy from your self-righteousness.”
You see, God never leaves the ninety-nine. That was a parable which talked about who God finds worthy. Those who are seeking God are worthy of heaven’s rejoicing.
The parable of the ninety-nine is also about how important the one who was lost, but findable, is to God. It is not a comment on God’s abilities or even the “leaving” of anyone behind. Instead, we find God’s ability and watchfulness in Ezekiel 34:11-16.
“’For thus says the LORD GOD: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. And I will bring them out from the people and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the LORD GOD. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.’”
God doesn’t “leave the ninety-nine” anywhere. That is what a MAN would have to do. And God treats the bullies and the self-righteous differently than man would do, too.
So, are you important to God even if you’re not lost? Yes.
Is God watching over you even if you need nothing special at the moment? Yes.
Are you ever not special to God? No.
Here’s what we actually know about God:
- Omnipresent. He is everywhere present.
- All-knowing. He knows everything worth knowing (but he doesn’t know sin in the way you know sin because he never has).
- All-Encompassing love and compassion. He provides more than we could ask or think. Think about this … he could have created 500 stars and WE would have been just as amazed as we are by the trillions (or more) he created. I don’t know any other god who could have created even one. It is the same with his love and compassion. God never stomps a person who can be redeemed, his compassion is such that he accepts those who repent (even those who think he isn’t fair).
There is a song which says his love is so great that he “leaves the ninety-nine.” Except that is wrong. God never abandons his own even to seek out the one who is lost. Jesus used this illustration of “what a man would do” to let those Pharisees know that God sees humans differently than they did. They thought prostitutes, tax collectors, and thieves were not worth of God’s time or effort. Yet we see Jesus accepting one of the thieves being crucified at the same time “Today you will be with me in paradise.” We see Jesus not condemning the woman caught in adultery. These people were also loved by the Father. God’s heart is for them, too. God provides a path for even the wicked to repent. Hosea’s writings make it clear that God would even remarry the prostitute wife (Israel) if she was willing to return to him. His mercy is huge. His love is unfathomable. And he seeks out those who have strayed.
Copyright 2026 Donald Whelpley
[PLEASE NOTE that Don is always open to discussing the thoughts and opinions he shares here and welcomes comments as shared in the comment section. He doesn’t use other social media platforms and won’t see whatever you’d like to share with him if you post it elsewhere.
ALSO, Don is always open to offer his thoughts on various topics. If you have a specific request, you can let him know in a comment; he reads – and replies to – them all. ~ Sherry]
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