(NIV) The Parable of the Lost Coin
Luke 15:8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
When I was a little girl, my mother took my twin and me to the bank. The purpose of the visit was to open accounts for me and my sister. As I handed over my precious possession of a small collection of silver dollars, I was assured my money would be safe. In exchange for my coins, I received a brand new book which contained an accounting of the money that Worthen Bank was holding for me.
Sometime later I returned to the bank to make a withdrawal. To my horror, the teller counted out ten crisp, clean one dollar bills. But where were my coins? Sadly, that was the day I learned a little about the way banks functioned. The cost? My coins were lost to me forever.
In the parable, a woman lost one of 10 coins. We do not know the denomination. We do not know if any sentimental value was attached to the coin. But we do know her coin was restored.
Of course the point of the story is not the loss of the coin, or burning oil, a precious commodity, when the coin would likely have been found in the light of the day. The story is not about loss at all, but instead it is about the rejoicing that accompanies being found.
The extent to which the Father will go to find one lost sinner is beyond our comprehension. He does not wait for us to realize we are lost and begin searching for Him. No, we are far too valuable to be languishing in our sinful state. Instead, our Father seeks, finds and delivers us from all unrighteousness, and when we repent all of heaven rejoices.
May we understand our true value to God and begin to live up to our worth.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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