SERMON III. ANGELS REJOICING AT THE REPENTANCE OF MAN. ST. LUKE Xv. 6. "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." THE whole of the chapter, in which these words occur, is intended to assure us of the great interest, which God takes in the welfare of man. The leading idea is that of the joy which pervades heaven, when any awakened sinner returns from the error of his way. This it is, rather than the happy consequences to himself of the sinner's conversion, which is the point of the several parables contained in this chapter. The Pharisees, who found fault with our Blessed Saviour for having intercourse with publicans and sinners, would doubtless have confessed the efficacy of repentance. Their error consisted in thinking scorn of those, who were living in sin. And what they had to learn was, that the souls of all men, even the most abandoned, are precious in the sight of God. Let us then see how this particular point is spoken of by our Blessed Lord. When the Pharisees and Scribes murmured, saying, “This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them," our Saviour proceeded, first of all, to deliver to them the parable of the lost sheep, "What man of you," He says, “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?" An appeal is made to a principle universally acted upon. If we value what we lose, we are diligent in our endeavours to regain it. True it is, in the case supposed, the sheep may have been wilful, breaking away from the restraints imposed upon it, and forsaking the care of him on whose protection its safety depended; but the shepherd does not therefore leave it to perish without troubling himself about its recovery. So far from this, he leaves the ninety and nine in the wilderness, while he goes in quest of the wanderer, and having found it, he is represented as laying it on his shoulders rejoicing, and on his return home he calls together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost. It is not, you will observe, the joy of the recovered wanderer that is spoken of, but the joy of the shepherd and his friends. And so in the application of the parable, it is not the sense of safety, or the comfort of pardon, or the assurance of future good enjoyed by the penitent, which our Lord speaks of, but the joy of God, the joy of heaven, whenever any guilty soul is recovered from its perilous condition. The same remark applies to the second parable of "the lost piece of silver," in which, indeed, there is no room for any other interpretation; and further, the same observation holds good also in regard to the parable of " the prodigal son ;" it is the father's joy at the son's return, and not the son's joy at the father's forgiveness, which is the point brought forward. "It is meet," the father says, "that we should make merry and be glad, for this thy brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found." There was less occasion to speak of the joy the son would feel; that would be self-evident to all, and would be understood without being expressed; it is therefore the father's joy, his joy in receiving back his wilful, offending, but now sorrowing, broken hearted child, which is the picture presented to us in this touching parable. The point then brought before us in the three parables, is this, the joy which is felt in heaven, when a sinner repents; and they all serve to assure us how greatly God cares for us. Indeed it may be said, in the spirit of reverence and humility, that God cannot bear that we should perish. His feeling towards the rebellious is expressed in the words of the Prophet, "How shall I give thee up, Ephraim ?"" Although so many despise His love, trample on His laws, and in the wilfulness of their hearts choose their own ways, yet still it is a gracious truth, that He willeth not the death of a sinner, but rather that he should turn from his wickedness and live. The shepherd cares for the wandering sheep, and therefore rests not till he has brought it back to the fold. The woman values the piece of silver, and therefore searches diligently till she finds it. The father loves the son, and therefore, while yet a great way off, he sees him, and runs and falls upon his neck, and gives him the kiss of peace, the token of his forgiveness of all that is past, and of the love, which in spite of his rebellion, he has all along felt for his child. And it is in the same way that God cares for the sinner's welfare. He does not leave him to himself to reap the consequences of his folly. He does not forget him, or cease to love him. Although his heart is still hard, although he is 1 Hosea xi. 8. still acting in direct and ruinous opposition to his Maker's will; yet, in spite of this, the sinner is still cared for. His perverseness, his ingratitude, his proud, reckless, rebellious spirit, much as they have endangered his hopes of good, have not made him hateful in the sight of God. Sounds of joy would echo through the courts of heaven, if he would but repent. The blessed angels would rejoice at the first sign of his contrition, the first awakening of his repentance. We are not told that there is joy in heaven, when he who has been sick is restored to health, or when the poor are made rich, or when success crowns the courage of the soldier, or the hope of the enterprizing; it is when a sinner repents that this joy is said to arise. But let us consider further, how sure it is, if this be the case, that all practicable means are adopted for the sinner's recovery. The shepherd does not sit down, and wait till the lost sheep, of its own accord, returns; nor does the poor woman content herself with the thought, that she may at some time or other stumble upon the piece of silver, which she has lost. The shepherd leaves the rest of the sheep, to go and find the wanderer. The poor woman lights a candle and searches diligently in order to recover her money. It may, however, be thought that in the case E |