Hide and Seek
Isaiah 53:6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him (Jesus Christ) the iniquity of us all.”
In Luke 15:1-7 Jesus told a story about sheep:
“Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him.
And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.
And he spake this parable unto them, saying, What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.
I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.”
Jesus was speaking to two groups of people. The first group is the tax gatherers and the sinners. These people were despised and rejected by the “politically correct” culture. The second group is the scribes and the Pharisees. These were the respected people of their culture. Jesus spent time and even ate with the publicans and the sinners, the outcasts of the normal mainstream of society. Zacchaeus was the chief tax gatherer with whom Jesus shared a meal. Jesus ministered to a woman caught in the act of adultery when he said to the crowd who was about to stone her, “he who is without sin may cast the first stone.” Jesus met with a Samaritan outcast woman at Soloman’s well. The Jews hated the Samaritans, whom they considered half-breeds and second class citizens. However, Jesus said to her, “whoever drinks of the living water shall never thirst.”
The Pharisees said that Jesus is “soft on sin.” The sinners he associated with would never be welcomed in their proper houses of worship. Jesus played a game of “hide and seek” with the Pharisees and the leaders of the church. The one who hides calls the shots. The seeker puts himself in the humble position of finding the one who is trying to evade him. The one who seeks is “it.” This is a position of humility and lowliness. The goal of hide and seek is to avoid being “it.” At the end of the game, “it” says, “Ollie Ollie Oxen Free, if you don’t come it you’ll be.” This means that it’s safe to come home. This is a cry of grace to those who were hiding. The story of the lost sheep is a story of hide and seek. Jesus himself is “it” looking for those who are hiding. Some churches are “seeker sensitive.” Seeker sensitive churches are focused on the human perspective. People are restless until they find their place in God. No one is satisfied without God. God created mankind to seek transcendence. When the seeker comes to the Lord, the irony is that the seeker wasn’t really seeking the Lord, rather the Lord was seeking him. Who is the one who hides from God? It’s the guy who is running from the truth. This is the man who seeks the pleasures of the flesh or the woman who is angry because her life is closing in on her. Hiding from God looks like apathy and moral laxity. According to John 3:20-21. “For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.”
There are many old TV shows about smart animals who were the stars of their shows. Shows like Flipper, Lassie, and even Garfield the Cat featured animals who were smarter than their “masters.” However, there were no hero stories about great sheep. Sheep are notoriously stupid animals. If their shepherd didn’t move them to green pastures, the sheep would starve to death. Sheep will follow each other over a cliff to their death. However, sheep know one thing: they know when they are lost. A “cast” sheep is a sheep who falls over on its back and cannot get up. The sheep will die in this position if he can’t get off his back. This is a picture of the human condition. We cannot save ourselves. Men often say, “if I’m good enough to for me, then I’m good enough for God.” However the bible makes it clear that without God we’re like cast sheep: Hopeless and helpless. Unless the shepherd finds us we will die in our cast down position. However the shepherd himself saves us. Jesus Christ is the good shepherd, for he who knew no sin was made the perfect sin sacrifice on our behalf that we may be made the righteousness of God in Him.
Salvation has two parts. First we must repent and turn from sin in to the Savior from sin. The second part of salvation his his “imputation” of His righteousness on our behalf. This “double transaction” results in salvation. The difference between the publicans and sinners and the Pharisees is that the first group knew that they were lost. When the shepherd finds the lost sheep he doesn’t say, “you stupid sheep, you got yourself lost.” The shepherd simply carries the sheep on his shoulders with love and compassion back to the safety of the sheep fold. He throws a party with goodwill and laughter for having found the sheep that was lost.
It’s easy to focus on guilt and sin-consciousness. However, Christianity is not about sin. Rather it’s about the Savior from sin. Jesus says I’ll keep all their rules for you. I’ll keep them on your behalf. He says allow me to carry you and I’ll take you to glory. The only thing that God asks is that we live in amazement and gratitude for what he’s done. As long as we live a life of thankfulness, everything else will fall into place. If we’re here today, it’s not because we found him. It’s because I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see.
What amazing Grace!!!
May God richly bless you!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael