1. In the Bible, God compares lost sinners to lost sheep. The prophet Isaiah writes, "All we like sheep have gone astray" (Isa.53:6).
2. Perhaps there are some here today that have gone astray. Perhaps there are some who are lost. The word "lost" in the Bible is a very strong word (Luke 15:4,6).
3. I wonder if those who are lost here today realize how awful it is to be lost.
4. The very same word is translated "perish" in John 3:16 (cf. Scofield margin). It means alienated from God; it means on your way to the torments of eternal damnation. It means spiritually lost.
5. One of the most precious verses in the Bible is Luke 19:10, "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost."
6. Beloved, according to our Lord, you are either saved or lost.
7. When the great Titanic went down in 1912, 1,635 people drowned and 705 were rescued. A few hours later, the names of those known to be saved and the names of those known to be lost were posted on two different bulletin boards outside the office of the White Star Line in Liverpool, England. There were only two lists.
8. Beloved, up yonder in heaven God has only two lists (John 3:18,36; Rev.20:12-15).

1. THE LORD GOES AFTER LOST SHEEP
2. THE LORD REJOICES WHEN THE LOST ARE SAVED
3. THERE IS JOY IN HEAVEN WHEN THE LOST ARE SAVED

I. THE LORD GOES AFTER LOST SHEEP.

1. The shepherd was concerned over one lost sheep (Luke 15:3,4). We ought to be just as concerned.
2. One of the greatest preachers of all time was John Wesley. He said that the church has but one job and that is to win souls.
3. Many Christians have lost sight of this. Most preachers today do not even win souls. People all around them are lost and on their way to hell but they do not seem to care. May God have mercy on them!
4. Here is another problem we face: people do not see themselves as lost. It is a terrible thing to be lost and not know it. A sheep could fall off a cliff, could break a leg, could get devoured by wolves or coyotes, could get bitten by rattlesnakes, could get stuck in a thorn bush, or in a number of dangerous situations. Beloved, a lost sinner is as helpless as a lost sheep and in just as much danger.
5. The Lord goes after lost sheep. This parable is not about 99 sheep in the wilderness. This parable is about the one lost sheep that got away.
6. Before we go any further, let me remind you that it is the Lord that goes after lost sinners and it is the Lord that saves lost sinners. We often hear people say they have "found the Lord," but the Bible says, "And when he hath found it…" (Luke 15:5).
7. If you are saved today, do not tell others you have found the Lord. How could you find Him? He was not lost; you were. You did not find Him; He found you. He says: "For I have found my sheep which was lost" (Luke 15:6b).
8. A while back I read in the paper about a drunken man who fell asleep while smoking in his bed. The whole house burned down but a brave fireman climbed up to his bedroom and saved his life. Do you think the newspaper reporters praised the drunken man for saving himself? Do you suppose the headlines read: DRUNKARD FINDS FIREMAN WHILE SLEEPING IN BED?
9. Or, DRUNKEN HERO SAVES HIMSELF? No, it was the fireman who did the searching, and the rescuing, and the saving.
10. Beloved, if you are saved today, give God the glory. God does all the saving. All a lost sinner can do is repent of his sin (15:7,10,17-22) and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
11. "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Rom.10:13).

II. THE LORD REJOICES WHEN THE LOST ARE SAVED (15:5).

1. It does not say here that the shepherd found the sheep and gave him a beating (15:4-7).
2. All these parables emphasize the same point – the Lord rejoices when lost sinners are saved. The father did not whip his prodigal son (15:11-24).
3. The Lord did not come into this world to punish lost sinners, but to save lost sinners. "For God sent not His son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved" (John 3:17).
4. Lost sinners are already condemned. When they get saved they are no longer under condemnation (John 5:24; Rom.8:1).
5. Lost sinner: God does not want to beat you and then cast you into hell. The devil wants that. God sent His only begotten Son into the world to save sinners (John 3:16).
6. The shepherd in this parable represents the Lord Jesus Christ (John 10:11,15,26-30).
7. The Good Shepherd is persistent. He goes after the lost sheep "until he find it" (Luke 15:4).

III. THERE IS JOY IN HEAVEN WHEN THE LOST ARE SAVED (15:6,7,10).

1. Our Lord said, "And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me" (15:6).
2. Do you rejoice when people get saved? You ought to. They are rejoicing up yonder in heaven (15:7,10).
3. One of the most thrilling things for me is when sinners come forward to get saved. And then I look out into the audience and see the faces of smiling Christians. We ought to smile because the angels are rejoicing up in heaven (15:7,10).
4. To see a sinner saved,

Makes glad the angelic choir;

O’erwhelmed with mightier ecstasies

They lift their praises higher.

From every golden string

Sublimer praises sound,

The dead restored to life they sing,

The wandering sinner found –

Found, to be lost no more,

Alive, in life to stay,

And love, and wonder, and adore

Through one eternal day.

5. And I do not think we have to limit verse 7 to just God and the angels. I believe all the saints up in glory rejoice when sinners get saved.
6. Maybe there is some lost sinner here with a Christian mother up in heaven. Or maybe a Christian father, or grandmother. If you get saved today there will be great rejoicing up in heaven!

CONCLUSION:

1. Giuseppe Garibaldi was a great Italian patriot. He not only fought against the French and the Austrians, he also fought the papacy, which has always been Italy’s greatest foe.
2. So much admired was Garibaldi that in 1861 President Abraham Lincoln offered him a command in the American Civil War. The offer was declined.
3. Then in 1864 he visited London, England and huge crowds cheered his arrival. Spurgeon paid him tribute at that time: "Many sons of Italy have done valiantly, but he excels them all, and deserves the love of all the good and brave."
4. One evening in 1861, Garibaldi was heading home and met a shepherd lamenting the loss of a lamb out of his flock. Garibaldi at once turned to his troops and announced his intention of scouring the mountains in search of the lamb. A great expedition was quickly organized.
5. Lanterns were brought out, and tough old soldiers set out to find this missing lamb. But the lamb was not found and eventually the soldiers were ordered to their beds.
6. The next morning, Garibaldi’s attendant found him sleeping late in his bed. He was surprised because Garibaldi was always up early. The attendant walked away quietly and then returned a half hour later. Garibaldi was still sleeping, and so the attendant awoke him.
7. The tough old warrior rubbed his eyes, pulled back his blanket and said, "Here is the missing lamb. Please take it to the shepherd." He had been up all night looking for that lost lamb. He did not stop till he found it.
8. Even so does the Good Shepherd go in search of His lost sheep until He finds them (Luke 15:4-6).