For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. Luke 19:10
How many times have we heard this verse quoted, or skimmed past it in our reading as an obvious Christian passage? The first interpretation is that Christ came to save lost people, and that is obviously true; but the Bible is full of layers with deeper meanings and bigger truths. Think about what was lost when Jesus walked through His earthly ministry. They are the same things that have been lost now so the message is as true now as it was then. What has been lost is complete truth, reaction to conviction, walking in the guidance of the Holy Spirit, seeking the truth of God’s Word over comfort and justifying personal beliefs.
We live in a world that thrives on self sufficiency and finding ways to remove struggle from our path. We allow empathy to weaken our resolve and dilute our calling. If the purpose of the Church is to walk in the likeness of Christ, let’s use an example and assign that progression from a 0 for a unbeliever, 1 for a new believer and 10 for Christ Himself. The church is good at making 0’s into 1’s and 1’s into 2’s. The watered down gospel found in many churches makes many believe they are 1’s but are not, and many others satisfied to walk through life as a confident 1. The earthly kingdom would thrive with more 6’s and 7’s but those are made through the Word of God. The Word became flesh and walked among us seeking to show what was lost, that is the truth of God’s desire for us. 2 Timothy 4:2 says: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. Many churches give a message and add a few versus to make their point opposed to teaching the Word and allowing conviction and heart change to transform the Body of Christ. The head of the Church has become a charismatic lecturer and not Christ and the truth He died to proclaim and bring about. Stay in the written word and in communication with the Spirit placed in your heart, understand truth so you are not deceived and can walk in the fullness of your calling in Christ.
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