Thursday
Thursday
The Three Lost and Found Parables, Part 2—Mission
Now the tax collectors and “sinners” were all gathering around to hear him. But the Pharisees … muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
Luke 15:1–2
Luke’s own editorial comment, describing the context in which the three parables were told, is too often overlooked. The tax collectors were despised both because they collaborated with the hated Roman occupation (or, in Galilee, worked for Herod Antipas) and because they were usually guilty of extortion. Sinners, on the other hand, was a term of abuse that the Pharisees gave to the common people ignorant of the law. The Pharisees ostracized both groups. So when Jesus associated with them, they were outraged. “This man welcomes sinners,” they said in shocked horror. But Luke records this with his approval and even admiration. So should we. In fact, sinners are the only people Jesus welcomes. If he didn’t, there would be no hope for us!
Jesus told his three lost-and-found parables in order to highlight the fundamental difference between himself and the Pharisees. He welcomed sinners; they objected and rejected them. They had a false notion of holiness. They thought they would be contaminated by contact, so they kept their distance. Jesus, however, fraternized with them freely and was even called “a friend of tax collectors and ‘sinners’” (Matt. 11:19). If Pharisees saw a prostitute approaching, they would gather their robes around them and shrink from her, but when a prostitute approached Jesus, he did not shrink from her but accepted her devotion.
So the question before us is whether we resemble Jesus or the Pharisees, whether we avoid contact with sinners or seek it. We must not misunderstand this. The fact that Jesus welcomed sinners does not mean that he condoned their sins. On the contrary, all three parables end on a note of repentance and celebration. Jesus rejected the opposite extremes of Pharisaism and compromise. There is joy in heaven, he said, over even one sinner who repents.
Because “this man welcomes sinners,” we must welcome them too. Authentic mission is impossible without it.
For further reading: Luke 15:1–10