Losing What You Value Most in the Parables of the Lost Coin and the Lost Sheep

But do we value the wrong things?

What does God value?
Luke 15 is most well-known for the tear-jerking story of the prodigal son with its heart-wrenching moments and exciting, inspirational climax. Many tend to forget however that there are two other parables directly preceding the story of the son's return to a loving father: the parable of the Lost Coin and the parable of the Lost Sheep. These two stories told by Jesus reveal much about the character of God, and what He values in relation to people. Pay attention, this is important.

What do these two stories say?
Both stories in Luke 15 follow the same short format:

1. The main character of the story has lost something valuable to them: one a shepherd who has lost a sheep, the other a woman who has lost a valuable coin.
2. The main character searches for the lost item.
3. The main character finds the lost sheep or coin.
4. The main character celebrates the finding of the lost object, even to the point of calling her friends together to celebrate with her.

Each story is also followed with a comparison to the attitude and action of God in relation to what it is that He values.

Seem pretty straightforward?
One would think that such a story would not be difficult to interpret. Two stories say the same thing, and both are followed with a comparison to God. Yet too often people try to read into this passage what is not there, and by doing so miss the actual point of the passage.

If we carefully look at this passage in its context, and separate it from the biases we have built up over years of hearing the same stories over and over again, we may yet see where Jesus is going with His argument.

The context
First, we start with the context for these stories about the lost coin and the lost sheep. In Luke 15:1-2, Jesus has just been questioned as to why He would spend time with sinners and tax collectors by the religious leaders of the time, the Pharisees. At this point in the story, these Pharisees have already determined that they do not like the way that Jesus is shaking up their nice system of religion, and are ready to discredit Him in any way possible. When they see Jesus spending time with the less reputable members of society, the Pharisees see an exciting opportunity to do exactly what they have set out to do.

In light of the Pharisees' challenge, Jesus sets out to prove His actions as right in the sight of God. In order to do this, He needs to compare His actions with God's, and contrast God's system of value with that of the Pharisees. It is here that many become tripped up in their interpretations of the text.

Not a metaphor
Note here that Jesus is not representing Himself as either the shepherd or the woman in the story. Each story bears a contrast between the value system of men and the value system of God, and therefore if Jesus identified with the value system of the humans in the passage, He would not be validating His position. Jesus cannot prove Himself right by comparing His actions to Himself; He must draw a distinction. It's Logic 101.

The key here is in noticing what it is that He says to the Pharisees:

"which one of you, if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, would not leave the ninety-nine..." - Luke 15:4

"or what woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one of them, does not light a lamp..." - Luke 15:8

Here Jesus is not inserting Himself in the story, because the protagonist of these stories are compared to the very Pharisees who are accusing Him. In these stories, the protagonists are exactly who He says they are: a woman, or one of the Pharisees.

So what does Jesus value?
The contrast here, once again, is between the value system of the Pharisees and that of Jesus. In each story, the Pharisees are compared to one who values material possessions: the man who values his lost sheep (which is just a sheep) and the woman who has lost a valuable coin (which is just a coin).

Jesus, on the other hand, identifies His choices with those of God who, instead of valuing money or position or possessions, values the lost sinners.

"I tell you, in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to repent." - Luke 15:7

"In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God's angels over one sinner who repents." - Luke 15:10

Here, Jesus says that while the Pharisees value meaningless earthly things, God values the very sinners with whom He is now eating. These sinners and outcasts are much more valued by God than anything that the Pharisees value, and God calls all of heaven to rejoice over their return to Him. Even in the midst of the celebration of those sinners' return to God, the Pharisees grumble and complain at Jesus' acceptance of them. The contrast between the value system of the Pharisees and Jesus could scarcely be clearer.

So what does it mean?
Jesus tells us very plainly that God values the repentance of sinners much more than anything else we value. Our money and possessions are meaningless in the sight of what God values. Lost money from the stock market means nothing in the grander scheme of things. The struggle for money is empty. All that really matters is the return of sinners to God, and we must engage ourselves in that endeavor in order to see our lives come in line with what God values. Follow the example of Jesus in arranging your priorities, and watch yourself become a much more useful tool in the scheme of God's desires for this earth.

Sources:

Biblical references come from the New English Translation of the Bible.