I’m feeling weepy and blessed today. Last night, my Bible study gang gave me a picture of Jesus running to a dirty, lost, and scared little lamb. That lamb was/is us – it is me. My story and your story are the stories of a God who ran.
Jesus once told three parables about how He, the Holy Spirit, and the Father feel about us. The first story was about a Good Shepherd searching for His lost lamb. When He finds it, He places it on His shoulders and rejoices all the way home. The next was the tale of a woman who loses a coin and zealously sweeps her house until she finds it. Once found, she throws a party to celebrate. The last parable tells of a Father who gives a defiant son his inheritance early. The child partied like the world was his oyster. Until he was broke and desperate and returned home humiliated. His hope was that he could work for Dad as a field hand. But while he was still a long way off, the Father saw him and ran to him to shower him with hugs, kisses, and complete restoration into the family. Oh yeah, then there was a party.
We Believers become so used to these stories that we forget their personal significance. We forget that Jesus went after us, the Holy Spirit swept through our souls, and the Father hiked up His robes and ran to us prodigals to smother us with kisses and hugs. And in these scenarios, Heaven threw a party when we joined the family. Such extravagant love, mercy, and grace.
But there is another thing these stories have in common. In each situation, the lost didn’t participate much in their being saved. My contribution to salvation was getting myself so lost and scared that my resolve against Jesus broke. That is why I love the picture my gal pals gave me. I remember what it felt like to be that broken and scared. Sitting in a dirty jail cell on federal meth charges, thinking my life was over. That’s what it took for me to whisper the name of Jesus.
In the picture, Jesus is running to that lamb at full force. Now I understand He was always there, hovering in the background, ensuring I didn’t get eaten by wolves. I wouldn’t allow the rescue until I was ready. The nanosecond I called His name, He ran to me, and hell trembled at the force of His love for me. And the Father and Spirit and all of Heaven rejoiced. What a stunning thought. But it’s true.
We let ourselves get too far from the memory of being a lost lamb. Busyness and the world lull us to sleep, and we begin to take our rescue for granted. I’ve had friends and clients who have been sober Jesus people for years get lulled into complacency and relapse, blowing their lives apart. But guess what? Jesus never becomes tired of the rescue. And He never gets mad at the lamb. As it says in Hebrews 13:5, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
In honor of Christmas, I will share the lyrics of my new favorite Christmas song. It’s for all of us wandering lambs. It’s called O Come all Ye Unfaithful, and it’s by Sovereign Grace Music: “O come, all you unfaithful. Come, weak and unstable. Come, know you are not alone. O come, barren and waiting ones, weary of praying, come. See what your God has done. Christ is born. Christ is born for you. O come, bitter and broken. Come with fears unspoken. Come, taste of His perfect love. O come, guilty and hiding ones. There is no need to run. See what your God has done. Christ is born, Christ is born, Christ is born for you.”
One response
seeing you in that exact situation compared to what He did for you was what drew me to this picture and as you’ve said, if He can do that for you, He can do it for any of us.
May we never forget this and become complacent. and as Dr. Seuss said, “Oh, the places we will go!.