For What It's Worth

Today we find ourselves smack dab in the middle of one of Jesus’ more famous parables… and my personal favorite. Last week I shared that this parable, which has three distinct parts, is often thought to be three separate parables when in reality it is a singular parable that Jesus is telling. The first part, we talked about last week: the lost sheep. The second part, we’ll dig into tonight: the lost coin. The third part, we’ll get to later: the lost/prodigal son. These three parts are like three stanzas to a singular song, or three acts of a singular play. They are three… in one… and therefore are a pretty cool picture of our God, Who is also Three in One. The Shepherd who goes searching for the lost sheep, we saw last time is a beautiful picture of the Son, Jesus. Today we will look at the second aspect of this parable, and the second Person of the Trinity; the Holy Spirit.

Luke 15:8-10 – HCSB

“Or what woman who has 10 silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she finds it, she calls her women friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found the silver coin I lost!’ I tell you, in the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”

Jesus is a master story-teller. When He spoke, everyone listened. He had a way of engaging His audience and speaking on the exact level where they were at. He’s just used an example of a Shepherd and a lost sheep, which many of the men in the crowd would have been able to relate to. Even if they weren’t currently shepherds, they had all dealt with them, or perhaps as a teenager had worked as a shepherd during the summers (that was a joke… albeit a baaaaaaad one).

Now Jesus uses a second example, this time He will engage another segment of His audience: the women. He paints this word-picture of a woman frantically looking for a coin she has lost. You get this sense of sheer panic, as she lights a lamp, sweeps the entire house, moves furniture, does whatever she can to find this one, single coin.

He’s brilliant. He knows how to make His point so well, and how to use illustrations that will capture His audiences’ attention, but also drive home the point that God is drastically different than many of the Jews had previously perceived Him to be. You see, God doesn’t merely tolerate sinners and let them go their own way. He seeks to rescue them. And He doesn’t give up when they don’t respond to Him. He keeps up the pursuit!

This was big-time contrary to most of the Israelites’ view of Jehovah the Lawgiver. No Pharisee had ever dreamed of a God like that. A great Jewish scholar has admitted that this is the one absolutely new thing which Jesus taught men about God – that God actually sought and searched for men passionately. Most Jews of that time would have probably agreed that if a man came crawling home to God in shame and sorrow, kneeling before God praying that He’d have pity on them, God would probably give it; but most would never have conceived of a God who went out to search for sinners.

The reason this woman is such an awesome example of this truth is because Jesus’ illustration would have seriously hit home with all the women in the crowd. You see, in Hebrew households  of the time, when a woman was first married she’d drill holes in coins and string them together onto a silver chain into a fancy headdress. She’d then wear them across her forehead as a public announcement of her marriage… much like an engagement ring or wedding ring is worn today.

Because it sometimes took years to save these coins, losing one would be similar to losing the diamond out of your wedding ring – a loss not only because of the monetary value, but because of the sentimental value. As a matter of fact, the headdress was unique to each woman and it was so undeniably hers that it couldn’t even be taken from her to pay off a debt.

My point is that it is not like this is just some coin… even though it was probably worth a man’s full day’s wage. This coin didn’t just represent ten percent of her income that she had lost. It was something very, very precious to her! This woman is willing to go all out, and really search for this thing… because it was precious.

Back then, to light a lamp at night was an expensive thing to do as well. You needed oil and wicks to light lamps. Common folks did their best to get stuff done during the daylight hours, if the things they needed to get done required light. Their homes were pretty dark. They’d build their homes with basically one single window, approximately 18 inches in diameter, and the window would face a courtyard. Many times that courtyard would have a fire going that would be a source of light for the multiple homes built close together facing it. So lamps weren’t used, unless it was really necessary… or you were rich.

But this woman lights up a lamp, and she begins to ‘sweep the house’. She’s frantic… she’s in a panic… she’s seriously missing this coin. I mean, she HAS to find it! As Jesus describes all this, trust me… although it doesn’t sound like such a big deal to us, to the ladies in His audience that day… they ‘got it’.

And what’s really amazing is that Jesus is using this drastic example to explain… God. This is radically different than anything they had been previously thinking.

I really believe that this isn’t just a great picture of God… but more specifically, the woman in the story is an incredible picture of the work of the Holy Spirit. You see, the Holy Spirit is passionately working to find the lost. He is lighting lamps and sweeping frantically in search of them. He’s passionate about it! The amount of work it takes is not important… all that matters is finding that which is lost!

How does the Holy Spirit do this? In a few ways:

First, like the woman lighting her lamp, He lights up the dark areas with the light of His Word.

Psalm 119:105 - HCSB

“Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path.”

John 16:13-14 – HCSB

When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak whatever He hears. He will also declare to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, because He will take from what is Mine and declare it to you.

Jesus here is talking to the guys who’d be one day speaking to others and even writing down the words we have recorded in our Bibles today. We’re told in 2 Timothy 3:16 that all of the Bible is “God-breathed”, and that word ‘theopneustos’ is linked to the Holy Spirit (the word for ‘breath’ is the same for ‘wind’ found in John 3:8, which refers to the movement of the Holy Spirit as compared to the blowing or movement of the wind). What this means is that Jesus’ words would be taken by the Holy Spirit and declared to these disciples, who would then speak it out and write it down for us in what we call ‘The Bible’.

Psalm 119:105 - HCSB

“Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path.”

One of the ways that the Holy Spirit works is through the Bible. It does light our paths and reveal to us what is good and what is not. It lights up the darkness, like that lady’s lamp lit up the dark corners of her own home, so too the Bible has a way explaining to us what is good/light… and what is evil/dark.

A second work of the Holy Spirit is to simply provide an inward conviction within us. Like the woman taking the broom and sweeping the floors of her home, so too, the Holy Spirit will begin to sweep a disciple’s life and convict it of dirty sin.

Why?  …because sin is destructive and leads to separation from God ultimately, but it also causes us to not reflect our God very well.

You see, the floors in a typical Palestinian home were much like the floors in many of the homes I’ve visited in other countries, like Haiti or Guatemala, they were simply compacted dirt. It’s really something to see a person with a broom sweeping a ‘dirt’ floor, but it happens all the time! If a coin had been dropped on a floor like that, and possibly kicked under the furniture or up against the wall, it would be very easily covered in dirt in no time at all. This is why the woman was sweeping. She hoped to knock the dirt off, in order to reveal the glimmering radiance of the coin.

This is also what the Holy Spirit wishes to do in each of us. A huge part of what He does is provide conviction within us, because by sweeping the dirt out of the way, He will reveal the glimmering radiance that is underneath it all… the very image of God.

John 16:7-8 – HCSB

Nevertheless, I am telling you the truth. It is for your benefit that I go away, because if I don’t go away the Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send Him to you. When He comes, He will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment: 

This is a huge, and awesome thing that the Holy Spirit does! You may think that conviction doesn’t sound that awesome, but if it gets the dirt out, if it leads to repentance… then it will lead to you and I being a true reflection of our God, truly bearing His image to the world, and ultimately eternal life!

The truth is, however, that some coins seem to want to stay hidden. The work of the Holy Spirit to light their path with His Word, and provide conviction with His still small voice… is met with much resistance. It’s like the Jesus-follower named Stephen said long ago…

Acts 7:51– HCSB

"You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit; as your ancestors did, so do you."

Gang, a lost coin is worthless. It’s only when it is in someone’s hands that it becomes valuable. Have you ever found money in the pocket of some coat or pants that you haven’t worn in ages? It’s awesome, right? It’s like free-money! But, if you think about it, for the entire time that money was lost… it was basically worthless. It wasn’t doing anybody anything of any real value. It still looked just like a regular piece of money… but sitting there it was basically worthless.

It’s only when it was found, and in your hands, that it could be used for something.

That’s when it became valuable again.

The same is true… of people.

Once, when Jesus was asked about taxes and who they should be paid to, Jesus responded, “Give me a coin”. When they handed Him one, He then said, “Whose image is on this coin?” They replied, “Ceasar’s”. “Then give it to Ceasar, and give to God what is God’s”.

What was He saying there? “Whose image is on the coin?”

   Answer: “Ceasar’s.”

“Whose image are YOU made in?”

   Obvious answer: “God’s.”

“Then give the coin to Ceasar because it bears his image… and give yourselves to God because you bear His image.”

Listen, if a person is not ‘saved’… if they don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior… if they are ‘lost’, although they still have value – gifts and abilities, personality, lots of possibilities – it’s like they are hidden away… all that value is not being seen/used/appreciated. They are basically not living up to their worth, because they’re outside of His hand.

Gang, we are created in His image (imago dei)… and to Him…in His eyes… and in His hands… we are NOT worthless. God sees our potential.

God sees YOUR potential. You are NOT worthless.

He is passionately lighting lamps – He’s given us His Word to light our way.

He is passionately sweeping floors – He’s convicting of sin and dirt that keeps us from shining.

Like the Shepherd who passionately went after the lost sheep, so too, the Holy Spirit is fervently seeking out those who are lost like the coin.

Why? For what it’s worth.

In His hands, a life is worth so very much… a life finds real value… and purpose.

• Do you feel worthless?
• Have you let the dirt of this world keep you from shining and reflecting God?
• Have you ignored His Word… or His still-small-voice?
• If you have never accepted Jesus, today if you turn towards Him (repent), our text says that there will be much joy in heaven. I pray you will.