Adrian Rogers: Jesus Is Love And A Friend to Sinners
Adrian Rogers: Jesus Is Love And A Friend to Sinners
In Luke 15, Jesus responds to the Pharisees’ criticism with three parables: the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. In this message, Adrian Rogers shares how these stories show how much God loves us, and why Jesus is a friend of sinners.
But what the lord Jesus Christ is gonna teach in this passage is that he loves all.
And I I wanna stand here today and tell you, precious friend on the back road down here in the front, wherever you may be, God loves you.
The title of the message is this, Jesus, the friend of sinners.
I rejoice that he is a friend of sinners, don’t you?
Profound truth simply stated. This is love worth finding with pastor, teacher, and author, Adrian Rogers.
I would like for you to find in your bibles, Luke chapter 15.
And if you have been on the trail for a while, you’ll recognize this as a story that Jesus told about how much God loves you.
Now, perhaps, you think, you know, pastor, I have sinned so much.
I have gone so far. I have refused so long that God has written me off.
There is no hope for me.
Well, I want to take that idea out of your head today.
And we’re going to look here in Luke chapter 15.
Now I want us to get the setting, uh, verses 12.
Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him.
Now look if you will in verse 2.
And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, this man receiveth sinners and eateth with them.
What they were doing was criticizing the lord Jesus Christ for spending time with publicans and sinners.
Now when they criticize the lord Jesus, Jesus gave a parable.
A parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.
So Jesus told these stories, and the bible says here he gave a parable.
Now some people think in this 15th chapter, there are 3 parables.
Uh, but, really, it’s a parable with 3 parts to it.
And what he does, he talks here in this in this parable about a lost sheep, then he talks about some lost silver, then he talks about a lost son.
And he tells their needs, and he tells why he loves them.
So let’s look, first of all, at what I want to call the sinful nature of man.
This is your nature, my nature, our nature, the sinful nature of man.
For example, we are weak like a sheep. Look, if you will, in 154 now.
What man of you having a 100 sheep, if you lose one of them, does not leave the 99 in the wilderness and go after that which is lost till he finds it.
Now sheep is one of the weakest animals around. Let me tell you about a sheep.
First of all, the sheep is dumb. I mean, they’re stupid.
You know, if you go to the circus, you might see a trained elephant, trained lion, a tiger, a horse, a dog.
You’ve never seen a trained sheep.
They they they just a a sheep is, you know, he’s dumb.
Now sometimes we think that, uh, because we’re sheep, we’re being praised. No.
We we are sheep, but, uh, a sheep is dumb. And because he’s dumb, he can’t find his way home.
He’ll browse here, nibble there, and eat here, and he gets further and further away, and he can’t find his way home.
A dog can find his way home. A horse finds his way home. A cow can find her way home.
But a sheep, because it’s dumb, uh, this sheep is, uh, just gets strays from God.
And, uh, uh, therefore, they’ll they need a shepherd.
Now Romans chapter 3 verse 11 speaks of how dumb sheep are. It says, there’s none that understandeth.
There’s none that seeketh after god. If you’re here without the lord Jesus Christ, I wanna tell you something.
You do not understand the things of god. Now you say, wait a minute, pastor.
I made good grades in school. I run a business. I’m a lawyer. I’m a doctor.
I’m an entrepreneur. I’m this. I’m that. Friend, without Jesus, can I say this nicely? You dumb.
You dumb. I mean, you’re like a sheep. A sheep is dumb.
And not only is a sheep dumb, but friend, a sheep is defenseless.
Now you think about it. A horse can run. The tiger can claw.
The wolf can bite. The cat can scratch. What can a sheep do?
Now you say, well, wait a minute. I’m strong. I’ve got finances. No. Listen.
We’re talking on a spiritual plane. It’s an earthly story with a spiritual meaning.
What Jesus says is the devil’s coyotes are after you. The devil’s vultures are after you.
The devil’s mountain lions are after you, and you’ll not escape. Like a sheep, we’re dumb.
Like a sheep, we’re dependent and defenseless.
Now the good shepherd gets back to the fold at night, and he counts his sheep.
He has a 100 sheep. 909 are there, but one is missing.
And he goes out to the mountainside to find that missing sheep who is so dependent upon the shepherd to put him back on his feet.
Now, friend, Jesus was asked, why do you keep company with sinners?
He said, they’re weak like a sheep. And then he gives another parable, if you will.
Look, if you will, here in Luke 15, uh, verse 8.
Either what woman, having 10 pieces of silver, if she lose 1 piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it?
And when she has found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbors saying, rejoice with me, for I have found the peace that I had lost.
Now Jesus talks about a lost sheep. Now he’s talking about lost silver.
Here’s a woman who lost a valuable coin, and she needs that coin. She wants that coin.
And so she is, uh, uh, she is searching for that coin, because not only is man weak like a sheep, he is worthless like a lost coin.
You see, when a coin is minted, it is meant to be spent or else treasured.
But it is not to be lost.
You see, a treasure that is lost is no treasure.
A coin that is lost is unprofitable.
Now you may think that you’re very profitable, but I’m talking about the kingdom of heaven.
You see, our Lord is talking about the, uh, the worthlessness of a man without God.
God created you to know him, love him, and serve him. Now how did this coin get lost?
Well, it was lost, first of all, in the darkness. Look, if you will, in verse 8.
Either what woman, having 10 pieces of silver, if she lose 1 piece, doth not light a candle?
You see, this coin, like every unsaved person, is in darkness and great darkness, because the god of this world hath blinded their minds.
And so, like a lost coin, you’re in darkness.
And then the same verse of scripture says, uh, that she not only lights a candle, but she sweeps the house.
Look in verse 8. She sweeps the house.
Not only was it lost in darkness, it was lost in dirt. It’s just down there somehow in the dirt.
And so she’s sweeping the house, disturbing the dirt, hoping to find the coin.
But now listen. Not only was it lost in darkness and lost in the dirt, it was lost in disgrace.
Now Jesus here speaks of 10 pieces of silver. That’s very interesting.
He doesn’t say which of you having a piece of silver and loses it.
He talks of 10 pieces of silver, and one is lost. 10 is the complete number.
Like, 7 is the perfect number, but 10 is the complete number. Five fingers, 5 fingers, 10.
And so in Bible symbolism, 10 means completeness.
And so man is man is so weak like a lost sheep, dumb, dependent, defenseless.
A man is so worthless, like a lost coin, lost in the dark, lost in the dirt, lost in disgrace.
Remember, they’re asking Jesus, why do you keep company with these people?
And Jesus said, that’s that’s why I do it.
Now, uh, the third thing that Jesus told was the story of a lost son.
Story, remember now, lost sheep, lost silver. And now the story of a lost son.
Now look if you will in Luke 15 verses 11 through 12.
And he said a certain man had 2 sons.
And the younger of them said to his father, father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me, and he divided unto them his living.
Both sons got the same amount.
And, uh, when this young man was saying to his father, father, I want my inheritance, and I want it now.
Now the inheritance was normally given when the father died.
But this man says, I want it, and I want it now.
It was a way of saying to his father, I wish you were dead.
I don’t need you. I don’t want your love. I don’t want your fellowship.
I don’t want your authority over me. I just want what you have. I don’t want you.
Now, friend, there are many people just like that today.
They don’t want God, but they want what God has. They walk on God’s green earth.
They breathe God’s fresh air. They live on the abundance that God has given the rain and the sunshine, but they don’t want God.
They don’t want God.
And so Jesus tells the story of this this boy, and Jesus is going to say, uh, he is a wretched boy because he is away from home.
Now look if you will in verse 13.
And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together and took his journey into a far country.
And there wasted his substance with riotous living. Now I don’t know where he went. Now what happened?
Well, first of all, there was depression. Now the bible says a mighty famine came in that land.
Look in verses 14 and through 19.
And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land and he began to be in want.
And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.
And he would fain have filled his belly with the husk that the swine did eat, and no man gave unto him.
And when he came to himself, that is when he was in his right mind, he said, how many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger?
I will arise and go to my father, and I will say unto him, father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.
Make me as one of thy hired servants. Now what is the fruit of this kind of sin?
First of all, there’s depression. There arose a famine in that land.
That’s just another word for saying depression. Now you say, well, I’m not in depression.
I’ve got a lot in the bank. I’ll tell you something. 1 2 things.
Soon, it will leave you or you will leave it. There arose a depression.
Don’t boast about what you have, about your strength, about your friends, about your intellect.
All of these things are here, but Jesus is saying there’s gonna be a depression.
And not only was there a depression, but there was degradation.
This boy, having lost it all, went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, that is a stranger somewhere else, And he sent him out to feed the pigs, to feed the swine.
And now remember, Jesus is giving this parable to the Pharisees.
The high muckety mucks of a Jewish religion. And it’s a Jewish audience.
This was a Jewish boy. A self respecting Jew would not touch a pig with a 10 foot pole.
And there he is, slapping the hogs and wanting some of the swill that the hogs did eat, would fain to fill his belly with the husks that the swine did eat, and no man gave unto him.
What is the story? Look at it.
It is a story, ladies and gentlemen, of depression, and then it’s a story of degradation, and then it’s a story of dissatisfaction.
He’s hungry. He doesn’t have anything to satisfy his deepest longings.
Now remember, Jesus is talking in the spiritual sense right now.
What he is saying is this, that without the father, there is a gnawing hunger in every man’s breast.
Now you may be wearing a mask today.
You may be laughing and going on your way, but I’ll tell you this much.
Down in your heart, if you don’t know the Lord Jesus Christ, there is a hunger for God.
Friends all around me are trying to find what the heart yearns for by sin and the mind.
I know where it is found. Only true pleasures in Jesus abound.
Friend, if you don’t know the Lord Jesus, I know that I know there’s a god shaped vacuum in your heart.
And so what our lord is talking about here is the is the weakness of man without God, like a sheep.
The worthlessness of man, like a lost coin.
The wretchedness of man away from God.
He said, you want to know why I keep company with him? That’s the reason.
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But now let’s turn it over and think not only of the sinful nature of man, but let’s think of the saving nature of God.
In this parable, there were 3 who would, uh, go out and seek that which was lost.
Uh, there was the the shepherd. There was the woman, and there was the father.
Now you’re gonna learn something about the nature of God as you look at these people.
For example, the shepherd represents the lord Jesus Christ.
The woman represents the Holy Spirit, and the father represents the loving father in heaven.
Now first of all, the shepherd is the lord Jesus Christ. The sheep is lost. The shepherd is Jesus.
The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
Now what let me tell you what the nature of Jesus is.
You want to know what the nature of Jesus is? It is to seek the lost.
Why did Jesus come to this earth? He didn’t come primarily as a teacher.
He didn’t come as a healer. He came as a savior. Do you know that? As a savior.
Luke 19:10, the son of man has come to seek and to save that which is lost.
The apostle Paul said, this is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
That is the nature of the Lord Jesus. And let me just put this in parenthetically.
If Jesus is in your heart, you are going to want to go out after the lost.
Now if you don’t care about lost people, I think you better check up on that thing you call salvation.
Because the nature of Jesus is to rescue, to rescue the perishing. That is his nature.
He is the seeking savior. And so the Lord, when he told this story, spoke of a shepherd that represented him.
Then he spoke of a woman. That represents the Holy Spirit of God.
And not only do we see, uh, in the shepherd, uh, the rescue nature of God, but in the woman, we see the revealing nature of God.
What this woman did was to light a candle because this coin was lost in the darkness.
That’s what God, the Holy Spirit, wants to do in your heart this morning, to light a candle, to see the light of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ.
Because, friend, without the Holy Spirit, you’ll never understand.
That’s the reason I got on my knees this morning before I came out here as I do every Sunday.
And said, oh god almighty, please anoint me to preach, because it’s the spirit that gives light.
Not a sermon, not an outline, the Holy Spirit of God.
God wants to light the candle of hope in your heart.
So she lights a candle, and then she begins to sweep. The candle speaks of illumination.
The broom speaks of disturbance. This is conviction.
The lord she begins to sweep and to stir up all of that filth and that dirt.
Now if God is working on you this morning, you’re going to see that candle, and you’re gonna feel that broom.
Now if if you don’t have that, then I suggest that you wait before God till he sends it to you.
You see, this coin was lost in darkness and lost in dirtiness and lost in disgrace.
But you see, there is not only the saving nature of God the Son, the rescuing nature.
Not only is there the revealing nature of God the spirit, but there is the receiving nature.
Oh, listen to me, precious friend, of God the father. The receiving nature of God the father.
Now this boy is down in the pigpen. What’s he say?
He came to himself and said, why the servants in my father’s house, the servants have bread enough and to spare.
They don’t eat everything on their plate. And here I am perishing with hunger.
I will arise and go to my father. Now listen to this.
And I will send to him, father, I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight, and I’m no more no more worthy to be called thy son.
But the Bible says when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion on him and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.
And he said, father, I’m not worthy to be your son.
Would you just make me a servant? Let me bunk out with the other slaves.
And the father fell on his neck and kissed him and said, bring a ring and put it on his hand.
That’s a sign of sonship. Bring a robe and put it on him, and put shoes on his feet.
The slave didn’t wear shoes. Here, this father is receiving this boy.
It’s one of the most moving pictures in all of the Bible.
His father’s been longing for a son. He goes to the mailbox. No mail.
He asked, everybody, have you seen my boy? Have you seen John? Nobody’s seen him.
The father’s sitting up there on the front porch, looking down with his keen eye down the long road that leads to the house, and he sees a figure coming.
And first, he is of no consequence to the old man, but then there’s something about the way the boy swings his arms.
There’s something about his gait, the way he walks.
Something about the way he swings his head. And the old man says, that’s John.
That is John. And he leaps over the balcony, the banister, and he begins to run down that road to meet that boy.
What a picture of god the father.
You know in the Bible, God moves with deliberate majesty.
In every other place, when you read about God the father, he he is never late.
He’s never in a hurry, and we’re told to wait on God.
But here’s a picture of God in a hurry.
I see that old man as he gathers up his robes and runs and runs to meet that boy coming home.
I’m telling you this morning, I’m gonna give an invitation.
And if you step out and start down one of these aisles, god will run up the other side to receive you.
He loves you. Friend, Jesus said, you want me to tell you why I keep company with sinners?
They’re weak like a sheep. They’re worth worthless like a lost coin.
They’re wretched like a lost son. That’s the nature of sinful man.
But let me tell you the nature of almighty God.
There’s the rescuing nature of God, the son. There is the revealing nature of God, the spirit.
There is the receiving nature of God, the loving father.
I don’t believe I’ve ever preached on this passage, but will I tell the following story?
I’ve told you before many, many years ago.
I don’t know where the story first originated, but a preacher, an old preacher, was riding on a train.
And he looked across the aisle, and he he saw a young boy.
And the preacher, knowing the ways of man and having counseled many people, he could see the boy was in trouble.
He could see he was fidgety and nervous.
So I went over and set by him and said, son, I’m a minister of the gospel.
I don’t want to pry. But do you have a problem? May perhaps I can help you.
The boy said, yes, sir. I do have a problem. He said, let me tell you.
Many years ago, I had this fight with my parents. My parents are good and decent people.
I was wicked and ungrateful.
And I left home and slammed the door behind me and looked back and said, I will never come back to this house again.
He said, I’ve lived apart from my loving parents.
And he said, I have received word now that my daddy is sick.
And I thought how hurtful and hateful and sinful I’d been.
Would I let my daddy die without my apology to him, without asking his forgiveness?
And so he said, I’m on this train.
These tracks run close to my house, and we’re almost there.
There’s a curve at the track.
And out by the track behind my parents’ house is a tree, a large tree.
And I told them I would be on this train.
And I told them if they would let me come home to tie a handkerchief on that tree.
But if I didn’t see the handkerchief, I would know I was not worthy to come home, and I would just keep riding.
And he said, now we’re very close. The preacher said, son, you pray, and I’ll look.
The old preacher in his heart said, oh god.
Let there be a handkerchief on that tree. Train came around the curve.
He said, son, lift up your head and look.
And that old couple had gone out there and gotten every towel, every bedsheet, every quilt, everything that they could find that was white, and that tree looked like a mountain of snow.
Come home. Come home. Now I wanna tell you, God loves you.
The good shepherd is seeking you. The holy spirit is shining light on you.
God the father has his arms open wide.
