Another time the Pharisees and scribes had a question. Actually, it wasn’t a question as much as it was a complaint. The religious leaders saw that sinners were drawing near to Jesus, and they didn’t like it. You might think they would be happy that sinners wanted to be around Jesus. But they were mad because Jesus seemed happy to be around sinners! “Why does this man eat with sinners?” they harrumphed.

(If you want to know what a “harrumph” is, it’s when you fold your arms, roll your eyes, blow out your nose, and look at someone who took your bike for a ride without asking.)

Of course, Jesus didn’t eat with sinners because he wanted to be like them. He ate with sinners because they need a friend like Jesus. Sinners need a Savior, and that’s just what Jesus is!

So Jesus told three stories.

“Suppose you have a hundred sheep,” Jesus said. “If one was lost, wouldn’t you go find it? And if you found it, wouldn’t you be excited? Imagine how excited God is when a lost sinner repents and is found.”

“Or,” Jesus said, “what about a woman with ten precious coins? If she loses one, won’t she look everywhere—under the rug and under the couch—until she finds it? And when she finds it, won’t she tell everyone her good news? Imagine how thrilled the angels are when a lost sinner repents and is found.”

Pretty good stories, don’t you think? But Jesus had one more, and it was the best of all.

“A man had two sons. The older son followed the rules and worked hard, but the younger son was wild and disobedient. He spent his father’s money on selfish and sinful things. The younger son was so foolish that he wasted his fortune until he had to live down in the dumps. Literally! He was so hungry he dreamed about eating pig slop.

“But then one day he thought about his father’s house. There was food there. Even the servants had enough to eat. So he decided to admit to his father that he was a sinner and didn’t deserve to be his son. The younger son got up and headed home.

“But before he got home, his father saw him and started running toward him. Did the father want to chase him away? Or wave a finger in his face? No, the father wanted to hug him. He was ready to give his son new clothes and a new start. The father threw a party in his honor. He was so excited that his lost son had come home.”

But you know who wasn’t excited? The older brother. He thought the father was being unfair. Just like the complaints of the Pharisees. Just like us too sometimes. We like parties for us, but not for others. Thankfully, that’s not what God is like. He always rejoices when a lost sinner repents and is found.