Lesson 20 – The Lost Sheep

“For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10.

“This world is but an atom in the vast dominions over which God pre- sides, yet this little fallen world–the one lost sheep–is more precious in His sight than are the ninety and nine that went not astray from the fold. Christ, the loved Commander in the heavenly courts, stooped from His high estate, laid aside the glory that He had with the Father, in order to save the one lost world. For this He left the sinless worlds on high, the ninety and nine that loved Him, and came to this earth, to be ‘wounded for our transgressions’ and ‘bruised for our iniquities.’ Isaiah 53:5. God gave Himself in His Son that He might have the joy of receiving back the sheep that was lost.” –Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 190.

RESCUING THE LOST SHEEP

1.How did the sheep get lost? How does the great adversary ensnare human beings so that they will be destroyed for all eternity?

Isaiah 53:6. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Revelation 12:9. And the great dragon was cast out, that old ser- pent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Genesis 3:4-6. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: ⁵For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. ⁶And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

“God’s government included not only the inhabitants of heaven, but of all the worlds that He had created; and Lucifer had concluded that if he could carry the angels of heaven with him in rebellion, he could carry also all the worlds. He had artfully presented his side of the question, employing sophistry and fraud to secure his objects. His power to deceive was very great. By disguising himself in a cloak of falsehood, he had gained an advantage. All his acts were so clothed with mystery that it was difficult to disclose to the angels the true nature of his work. Until fully developed, it could not be made to appear the evil thing it was; his disaffection would not be seen to be rebellion. Even the loyal angels could not fully discern his character or see to what his work was leading.” –Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 41.

2.What happened when man believed Satan instead of God? Why did Jesus come to the one and only lost world?

Isaiah 5:20. Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for dark- ness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Romans 1:25. Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

1 Timothy 4:1, 2. Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; ²Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their con- science seared with a hot iron.

“But in the parable of the lost sheep, Christ teaches that salvation does not come through our seeking after God but through God’s seeking after us. ‘There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way.’ Romans 3:11, 12. We do not repent in order that God may love us, but He reveals to us His love in order that we may repent.” –Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 189.

3.Into what high, dangerous places did the sheep stray? How far did idolatry spread?

Ezekiel 34:6. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.

Deuteronomy 12:2. Ye shall utter- ly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree.

Isaiah 44:16, 17, 19. He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh; he roast- eth roast, and is satisfied: yea, he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire: ¹⁷And the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image: he fall- eth down unto it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me; for thou art my god…. ¹⁹And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals there- of; I have roasted flesh, and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? shall I fall down to the stock of a tree?

“‘The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him.’ 2 Chronicles 16:9. Among all nations, kindreds, and tongues, He sees men and women who are praying for light and knowledge. Their souls are un- satisfied; long have they fed on ashes. See Isaiah 44:20. The enemy of all righteousness has turned them aside, and they grope as blind men. But they are honest in heart and desire to learn a better way. Although in the depths of heathenism, with no knowledge of the written law of God nor of His Son Jesus, they have revealed in manifold ways the working of a divine power on mind and character.” –Prophets and Kings, p. 376.

4.What king did God call to reform the religious services that the people practiced? How far did idolatry extend?

2 Kings 18:1, 3, 4. Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign…. ³And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father did. ⁴He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.

Ezekiel 8:3, 6, 9, 10, 12, 14, 16. And he put forth the form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy…. ⁶He said fur- thermore unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel committeth here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations…. ⁹And he said unto me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do here. ¹⁰So

I went in and saw; and behold every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, pourtrayed upon the wall round about…. ¹²Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, The Lord seeth us not; the Lord hath forsaken the earth…. ¹⁴Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the Lord’s house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz…. ¹⁶And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, be- tween the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.

THE FEELINGS OF TRUE SHEPHERDS

5.Seeing such horrible things, what did Ezekiel and Matthew describe as God’s great longing and searching love for the lost? What similar spirit will prevail in the ministry of God’s faithful church now?

Ezekiel 34:11. For thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.

Matthew 9:35, 36. And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sick- ness and every disease among the people. ³⁶But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with com- passion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.

Proverbs 27:23. Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.

“With what unwearied love did Christ minister to Israel during the period of added probation. Upon the cross He prayed, ‘Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.’ Luke 23:24. After His ascension the gospel was preached first at Jerusalem. There the Holy Spirit was poured out. There the first gospel church revealed the power of the risen Saviour. There Stephen–’his face as it had been the face of an angel’ (Acts 6:15)–bore his testimony and laid down his life.” –Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 218.

CHRIST’S MINISTRY FOR HIS CHURCH

6.What did Jesus say about His efforts to find the lost sheep? What was the primary mission of His first disciples despite the constant persecution of the evil adversary?

Luke 15:3, 4. And he spake this parable unto them, saying, ⁴What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilder- ness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

Matthew 10:5, 6. These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: ⁶But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

1 Peter 5:8. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.

“The wide-spreading tablelands on the east of Jordan afforded abundant pasturage for flocks, and through the gorges and over the wooded hills had wandered many a lost sheep, to be searched for and brought back by the shepherd’s care. In the company about Jesus there were shepherds, and also men who had money invested in flocks and herds, and all could appreciate His illustration: ‘What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?’” –Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 186.

7.Besides the Jewish people, whom else did He see as lost? How great is the shepherd’s joy at finding and saving a lost sheep?

John 10:16. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

Luke 15:5-7. And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. ⁶And when he com- eth home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. ⁷I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

“These souls whom you despise, said Jesus, are the property of God. By creation and by redemption they are His, and they are of value in His sight. As the shepherd loves his sheep, and cannot rest if even one be missing, so, in an infinitely higher degree, does God love every outcast soul. Men may deny the claim of His love, they may wander from Him, they may choose another master; yet they are God’s, and He longs to recover His own. He says, ‘As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out My sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.’ Ezekiel 34:12.” –Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 187.

For Additional Study

“With what relief he hears in the distance its first faint cry. Following the sound, he climbs the steepest heights, he goes to the very edge of the precipice, at the risk of his own life. Thus he searches, while the cry, growing fainter, tells him that his sheep is ready to die. At last his effort is rewarded; the lost is found. Then he does not scold it because it has caused him so much trouble. He does not drive it with a whip. He does not even try to lead it home. In his joy he takes the trembling creature upon his shoulders; if it is bruised and wounded, he gathers it in his arms, pressing it close to his bosom, that the warmth of his own heart may give it life. With gratitude that his search has not been in vain, he bears it back to the fold.” –Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 188.