"The Clear Choice - Its Time To Harvest" Part 8

"For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. Matthew 18:11-14
      ----------------------------------------------------------
The Lord has been teaching and reminding me a lot about the "The Harvest" the last few weeks to the point that I now have a much greater appreciation and a much better understanding of His heart for lost. He has definitely fanned the flame and stirred up my passion to not only see the lost with a heart of compassion but to do the work necessary to see them saved or rather harvested into the kingdom. I now think that I might actually really understand what this verse is talking about and its really really really simple, The Lost Matter!

Don't get me wrong I have always cared about the lost and I get the 'For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost' part. I was lost and I KNOW that He came and saved me 34 years ago and I have been faithfully serving Him in ministry ever since. I have led countless young people to the Lord and been faithfully teaching His word and sharing the gospel with them.

I get the concept here, but to be honest, when He asks the question, 'What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying?' in the back of my mind I'm going but, "What about the ninety-nine? How do I leave them unattended. What if more go astray while I'm gone; or worse what if a wolf comes? They will be at risk!" Well, He does say, 'What do you think?' And I have always secretly thought, but, but, but, the ninety-nine need Him too. I get that the one needs to be found, that he is missing and needs help but I have always been a little torn in two here because I have always wondered and worried about leaving the ninety-nine unattended.

Don't you love how He knows our thoughts? He knows that in the back of my mind I was worried about the ones left behind while He rescued the one gone astray. He knew! He has put my mind at rest! They are safe! They are not at risk! Why? They are already in the fold! At His leading I have finally, after 34 years looked up two words that have made all the difference in my understanding of this unsettled question in my mind of "The One?" or "The ninety-nine?" Which would I choose? He has made the choice really simple and so very clear!

So take a look at this! The word astray is 4105 it means; (to cause to) roam (from safety, truth, or virtue and it comes from two root words that mean; fraudulence, a straying from orthodoxy or piety; and roving (as a tramp) i.e. by implication an impostor or misleader. So, if the one who has gone astray has left and is no longer in a place of safety, has left the truth and virtue. He has strayed into a place of fraudulence and left piety and righteousness behind and is off roving with or as an impostor or misleader and what that means is when He refers to the ninety-nine as the ones who didn't stray that they are still in a place of safety, truth, and virtue! They still safe in the fold away from the roving and tramping around in the fraudulence of the impostor and they are not deceived! They are safe within the fold!

Jesus started this example with these words. "For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost." After I looked up the word astray I began to wonder what the difference was between lost and astray so I also looked up the word lost. Lost is 622 and it comes from 575 and 3639 and it means to destroy fully. (to perish or lose) 575; off, away; 3639; to destroy, ruin, i.e. death, punishment. As you can see, to be lost seems to be a much worse place to be then to just be astray. Being lost is a place of being totally destroyed and it means a life that is perishing, reaping the results of death, destruction and punishment. Jesus, the Son of Man came to save us from having to experience this place of ruin and destruction. He came to save the lost! Why? Because its the Father's heart that none should perish! So, Jesus' question remains. "What do you think?" Do we leave the ninety-nine to rescue the one who is astray before he becomes utterly lost? Most definitely!

The Harvest is ripe with those that have gone astray all around us and it is time that we wholeheartedly join the search and rescue team, head out to find them, and bring them home to safety.The choice is clear. Go!