We definitely hate losing things. It’s frustrating. It can make us angry. It can be scary. And it can be heartbreaking. We want those things back. Consider the great effort we will expend to find money that we’ve lost, paperwork that we’ve misplaced, a tool that we loaned out to a friend. We will spend hours searching for things that really don’t hold an incredible amount of monetary value simply because they matter to us. How much more diligently should we search out the children of God who have wandered away, sheep for whom the Son of God spilled His precious Blood? Jesus reminds us that the greatest joy of heaven is the return and repentance of one sinner. With unmatched fervor, God seeks out His children who have wandered away, who despised the inheritance once given to them in Holy Baptism to chase after the slop and filth of this world. Why? Because we are what matter to God. It doesn’t matter that the children of Abraham are as numerous as the stars of the heavens. Every single sinner is precious to God. The Lord has sought you out and redeemed you, He pours out His forgiveness to you so that you may be in His flock among His sheep feasting on the riches of heaven. I look forward to seeing you this coming Lord’s Day.
Pastor Ulmer