Something Can’t Be Found Until It’s Lost

Have you ever gone to a lost and found? It probably wasn’t to marvel at the variety of things people manage to lose. In almost every case we go to a lost and found – whether at work, a restaurant, a movie theater, or somewhere else we’ve been recently – seeking something of value that we’ve left behind. 

That happened to me some time ago. I’d been to a worship service at our church and on the way home realized I’d forgotten, of all things, my Bible. Since it’s not my only Bible I didn’t rush back to church the same day, but the following Sunday I did ask where the lost and found was to see if it was there.

I was amazed at the number of Bibles that were there, waiting to be reclaimed. After a brief search I found my own Bible and haven’t misplaced it since. As for the other Bibles, either their owners hadn’t yet realized they were lost, they forgot where they had left them, or sadly, didn’t care.

 

My intent isn’t to judge those who haven’t diligently searched for their missing Bibles. Maybe some were left by visitors from out of town and returning just to check out our church’s lost and found wasn’t practical for them. But going there demonstrated a basic truth: Things can’t be found until we realize they’re lost.

 

This is eminently true in a spiritual sense. A good friend of mine, a truly gifted evangelist, often said, “People can’t be saved until they realize they’re lost.” That is, if they’re perfectly content with their lives as they are and don’t recognize they’re lost and in need for a Savior, it’s hard for them to understand they need to be found.

 

Jesus Christ explained this in one of His best-known parables, the one about a young man commonly known as the prodigal son.

 

As the story went, a wealthy man had two sons. The younger one grew impatient waiting for his father to die, so he demanded his share of the inheritance right then. Jesus didn’t say what might have been going through the father’s mind, but he agreed to divide the estate equally between the two sons.

 

The greedy son, having no sense of his moral and spiritual lostness, figured he had it made. “Not long after that, the youngest songot together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need” (Luke 15:13-14).

 

Up to that point, if someone had told the son he was lost, he would have laughed hysterically. He might have responded, ‘Me, lost? You’re joking! I’ve got it made. I have everything I’ll ever need!’ Until he didn’t.

 

Desperate, this young fellow who hadn’t known he was lost hired himself out to slop pigs. Presuming he was a Jew, this very non-kosher job would have been the ultimate disgrace. Finally, beyond desperation, he decided to return home, grovel before his father, and offer himself to be one of the servants. 

 

“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of the hired men.’ So he got up and went to his father’” (Luke 15:17-20).

 

Suddenly, this self-assured young man, who had no idea of how badly he had lost his way, was going home, head down in humiliation and remorse. He’d finally recognized his lostness.

 

The parable closes not with a father’s angry rebuke and condemnation, but with a joyful, ‘Welcome home!’ Seeing his prodigal son in the distance, the father rushed to him, embraced him, and then called for a festive party. “The father said to his servants, Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet…. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found’” (Luke 15:22-24).

 

I believe Jesus told this story to His followers to illustrate how our heavenly Father responds when people realize how completely lost they are and in repentance, turn to Him to become found.

 

One of the best-known hymns is “Amazing Grace,” written by one-time slave trader John Newton more than 250 years ago. Its message resonates just as strongly today. In this musical testimony of his spiritual rebirth, Newton made this declaration: “I once was lost but now I am found, was blind but now I see.” As the friend I mentioned earlier observed, he had to get lost before he could let himself be found – by God.

 

Do you have a non-believing friend or family member you’ve been praying for, perhaps for a very long time? Pray that they’ll get lost – realize their spiritual lostness and bankruptcy and surrender to be found by the God whose love, grace and mercy have no limit. The apostle Paul, once very lost in his religious zeal, put it this way: “He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness’” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

The Joy of Finding What You’ve Lost

Few things are worse than losing something important.

Do you know why things you’ve lost or misplaced are always in the last place you look? Because after you find them, you stop looking. (No one has ever accused me of failing to recognize the obvious!) But what about losing something important and feeling much relief when you looked in that “last place,” and there it was?

We’ve all those moments: Being in a hurry to leave, wondering where the car keys are. Planning to go food shopping and unable to find the grocery list. Being all dressed for the concert when a panicky thought sets in: “Where are the tickets?”

Once I’d planned to use a quote from magazine article in a column, but lost the article. It was before the Internet (can you remember back that far?), so I couldn’t retrieve it online. I managed to obtain a photocopy of the piece. Then I lost it again! (Sometimes I think some black hole swallows up some of the stuff we misplace, along with the occasional odd sock.)

A sense of loss seems most acute when what we’re seeking has considerable value: an expensive piece of jewelry, a wallet, or a book that has meant a lot to us. Losing keepsakes can be particularly troubling, being irreplaceable. Maybe a cherished old family photo. A unique gift received from a loved one that holds much sentimental value. Or perhaps a special letter or note that arrived when greatly needed.

Interestingly, Jesus talked about keepsakes and the agony of losing them. In Luke 15, He talked about a shepherd who had 100 sheep and left them to seek one that had strayed. Next He cited a woman who lost one of her 10 silver coins. She searched until she found it, then threw a party. Finally He told about the lost son, a parable known as “the Prodigal Son.”

In the parable of the son, a wealthy father yields to a son’s demand to be given his portion of the inheritance. Since his father was living, essentially the son was implying, “I wish you were dead, so I could have your money.”

The wayward son leaves town, squanders the considerable fortune he had received, survives in squalor for a time, and then decides to return home, humble himself before his father and hope he’d hire him as a servant.

Instead, as the son approaches in the distance, the father spots him. Despite the circumstances of his son’s departure, he rushes to him and offers a warm, welcoming embrace. And then throws an impromptu feast to celebrate the long-awaited return.

Some people might regard these stories as sentiments about the happy moment of recovering things lost. But in them Jesus gives His followers a glimpse of the heart of God. Because in the Lord’s sight, most of us – if not all – are or have been prodigals, wandering away and pursuing our own desires. “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him (Jesus) the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6).

Most of all, these stories present God as a seeker. He eagerly and persistently seeks us, even when we have no interest in being found by Him.

The shepherd could have concluded, “I’ve still got 99 sheep. That one’s more trouble than it’s worth, anyway.” But he didn’t. The woman still had nine coins, but was relentless until she clutched the 10^th coin in her hand – and then wanted to share the good news with her friends. And the father, despite the great emotional pain his rebellious son’s departure must have inflicted, didn’t wait with arms folded, telling his son upon his return, “Well, I suppose you’ve seen the light. Now you want me to act as if nothing happened?”

No, the father was overjoyed by the son's return. In fact, he couldn’t wait for his arrival. He ran to him, hugged and kissed him, and immediately made him guest of honor for a very special shindig.

We sometimes hear of people making a “decision for Christ,” or “committing my life to Jesus.” And this is legitimate. Jeremiah 29:13 states, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” But the Scriptures clearly show even when we want nothing to do with God, He diligently seeks us.

When tax collector Zacchaeus turned from his past life to follow Christ, Jesus responded, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10). At the conclusion of His story of the shepherd hunting for the lost sheep, He said, “In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost” (Matthew 18:14).

At the core, these are stories of mercy and grace, truths we can embrace ourselves. Often we don’t want to find God – He’s the last place we want to look. Like the prodigal son, we deserve to be disowned by God, but He doesn’t do it. We certainly don’t deserve His unconditional love and acceptance, but He gives them still. What could be better news than that?