9-17-95	Leaving the 99 for the 1	Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28

1 Timothy 1:12-17

Luke 15:1-10

Someone once told me that if you take a live frog and put it into a kettle with water that is at room temperature and then place the kettle on the stove and heat the water up ever so slowly, the frog will not realize that the water is getting warm. And, even though the water gets so hot that the frog begins to cook, the frog will not make even the slightest move to get out of the kettle. Why is this so? Well, perhaps it is because the frog is so content with the kettle it is in that it doesn't occur to him that he should get out. But, then, perhaps it is because he knows that if he jumps out of the kettle he may find himself in the fire, or, worse, in the midst of the unknown..

Believe it or not, our personal lives, our relationships with each other, even our life as a church is sometimes like that frog in the kettle. We may get so used to the way things are, and become so convinced that things are "oh, so fine," and get so comfortable with the status quo, that we learn too late that the water has begun to boil. And then, with 20-20 hindsight, with the advantage of the "Monday morning quarterback," we wish we had done something different when we had the chance. Isn't that the truth?

Our Gospel lesson for this morning raises issues like this. In fact, Jesus, himself, is the one who is raising them in response to criticism from Scribes and the Pharisees who had been muttering, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."

It is important that we take a good look at these Scribes and Pharisees this morning. One thing we need to remember is that it is all too easy for us to judge them for criticizing Jesus. After all, we are the ones who are blessed with "20-20 hindsight." As we stand here knowing how the story of Jesus eventually got played out, we have the advantage of the "Monday morning quarterback." And so we are tempted to say, "Well, I wouldn't have done it that way, or I would have done it like this." But, the fact of the matter is, those Scribes and Pharisees were, for the most part, the equivalent of today's good, faithful, Bible-believing, God-fearing church people – the very people we usually think we ought to be like and have around us in order to please God.

The Scribes and the Pharisees, thus, thought they really knew who were going to be saved. It was people like them. The Scribes and the Pharisees knew the Ten Commandments and all the Laws that had to be followed in order to stay in God's good graces. And they did whatever they could to associate with only those persons who were doing what was right and stay away from those who weren't. And so, as they looked at what Jesus was doing, they muttered to themselves, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."

I was going over some notes the other day I took when I was reading the book by Lyle Shaller, "Bridges to the 21st Century," a book dealing with what it is going to take for churches to grow in the next ten years. Now, while I am not one who advocates everything being said by those in the Church Growth Movement, I do believe that one point made by Lyle Shaller is important. He says that churches that grow within the next ten years will have the goal of ministering to the needs of a wide variety of people.

The fact is that most churches minister to the needs of persons that are pretty much the same, racially, socio-economically, linguistically, in their education, and so on. But it is interesting that Lyle Shaller believes that churches that are going to grow in the next ten years are churches that minister to persons of different races, different socio-economic classes, different ethnic groups, different educational backgrounds, and the like. And that's hard for a lot of churches. Because most of us are like those Scribes and Pharisees. We want to hang around with people who are like us. We're a little suspicious of persons who are different, or who have a foreign accent, or who have new ideas.

But, Jesus knew that his Body had to be composed of a wide variety of people. Christ knew that the church would be comprised of persons from all sorts of backgrounds. So, he ate with sinners. He sat down with tax collectors. He talked with the Samaritan woman at the well. He healed Jews and non-Jewish people, alike. And he did this as an inspiration to us to do the same: to not be afraid to reach out beyond our neighborhood, to want to go out into all the world to preach the gospel, to give shelter to the homeless, to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, in spite of those who might criticize. For they criticized Jesus, too, muttering, "He welcomes sinners and eats with them."

Yet, Jesus criticized the Scribes and Pharisees right back, using his parable of the hundred sheep. In this story Jesus tells how one of the sheep goes astray, and the shepherd leaves the ninety- nine remaining sheep to fend for themselves while he goes out looking for the single lost sheep. Of course, hearing this parable the Scribes and the Pharisees would think that the shepherd was a fool to leave the other sheep to fend for themselves. So what if one of the sheep is lost? It's just one stupid sheep, right? Better to lose just one sheep than to lose the whole flock to a pack of wolves.	But Jesus went on with his parable, saying how the shepherd, upon finding the lost sheep, brings it back to the fold and celebrates with his friends. And then Jesus says, "I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."

I don't know how some of you may feel about a group like Alcoholics Anonymous using this church for their weekly meetings, but I think it's great. Certainly, there are those church people who may be tempted to look down upon these persons in much the same way the Scribes and Pharisees looked down about the sinners of their day. But, remember if we are truly followers of Christ, then perhaps our real place is in the midst of those sinners, loving them and encouraging them. And as we stand outside our church, on some days, we may be amazed at how many persons walk and drive through our church's parking lot, using it as a short cut. Does it bother us that so many "strange" people use our property for such a thing? Or should we not be reminded of Christ who told us to give our coat, as well, to those who only ask for our shirt?

I am reminded of the story about a small country church where a rich man was for years the leading pillar of the church. For some time the congregation of the church had been looking for a minister to pastor their church and every time a minister came to the church to be interviewed, the rich man would quiz each one thoroughly.

One of these ministers who came to apply for the job happened to be a truly born-again man, and the sermon he preached was on "Repentance." After hearing his sermon, the rich man said to him, "Sir, I dislike very much hearing our people called sinners."

The minister then asked him, "Are you a Christian, sir?"

"Of course I'm a Christian," the rich man replied.

"Then," answered the minister, "you were a sinner, and sought Christ for salvation."

But the rich man said, "Oh, no, I never was a sinner."

Then the minister replied, "Well, sir, it's impossible for you to be a Christian, then. Because it was sinners that Christ came to save. He tells us so himself."

Indeed, it was sinners who Christ came to save. And if we are going to be out and about Christ's work, then we will have to work hard to reach those who are sinners. It is we who will have to take Shaller's advice seriously, that if we are going to grow as a church we are going to have to hold high the goal of ministering to a wide variety of people; indeed, people different from ourselves.

Jesus, himself, died for persons such as these. And, so, we must also be willing to serve the same.

There is the story told of one of the generals that served in the army of the king of Persia, Cyrus the Great. This general came home from a war he had fought for the empire and was shocked to find that in his absence his own wife had been arrested and was in prison, charged with treachery against her country. In fact, the trial was to be held that very day. The general hurried to the court of the king and the guards brought in his own beloved wife. The poor woman, pale and anxious, tried to answer the charges brought against her, but without any success. Her husband, standing near, herd the stern voice of the king pronounce the sentence of death. In a moment, as they were about to drag her away to behead her, he ran forward and threw himself down at the feet of the king. "Oh, sire," he cried, "not she, but me!" Let me give my life for hers! Put me to death, but spare my wife." And as Cyrus looked upon him, he was so touched by his deep devotion and his love for his wife that his heart was softened. He remembered, too, how faithful this servant had been, and he gave the command that the wife should go free. She was fully pardoned. As her husband led her out of the room, he said to her, "Did you notice the kind look in the eyes of the king as he pronounced the word of pardon?" And his wife answered, "I did not see the face of the Emperor. The only face that I could see was that of the man who was willing to die for me."

Oh, in much the same way, my friends, when we get Home, when we see the face of the one who did die for us, how our hearts will praise him! How we will rejoice in his presence as we say, "The Son of God . . . . loved me, and gave himself for me."

Amen.