WHAT I VALUE

Should not shepherds feed the sheep? … you do not feed the sheep … the strayed you have not brought back …the lost you have not sought … My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them. —Ezekiel 34:2-6

If you lost $1000, would you seek for it? How about if you lost $10, would you seek for that? If we misplace something or something we value is lost, then we seek it out. How many of us have looked for lost keys to the car, a lost wallet with all the valuable information in it or something else that we highly value?

Here is a sobering thought for me to think about. How much do I value the lost? Do I value the lost as Jesus wants me to value them? Is there any time that I spend on thinking and praying for the lost and how the Lord might want to work in and through me to reach them? Do I know the passages of His Word that speaks to the responsibility of the saved to share the gospel with the lost? Finally, am I seeking to be obedient to the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20 which would include Acts 1:8—- sharing the gospel to make disciples?

In Luke 19:1-10 we truly see the heart of the Lord Jesus and His urgent concern for the lost sheep. This is why Jesus came to earth. He came to “seek and save the lost.” This was the driving motivation of His life. It was the pinnacle work of His ministry. The cross was where Jesus made salvation possible for all who look to Him as the final Substitute Lamb— whether people looked before or after the cross. Jesus is the only way!

Think about how much Jesus loves you by laying down His life for you at the cross! There is not greater love. Now, should not you and I lay down our lives in seeking out the lost to share the gospel with them? When was the last time you and I did so? How much do you and I value what Jesus values? Do we truly value the lost as Jesus does? Oh, may we do so and seek to share the gospel with them. May it be so today!

Dear Father, help me not just to talk about reaching the lost, but help me to be actively involved with You in this work. Your Word clearly says that some plant, some water, but it is You that gives the increase. Be please to give the increase with what has been planted and watered in Jesus’ Name.