Luke 15:8-10

Butler's Comments

SECTION 2

Lost Silver (Luke 15:8-10)

8 Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? 9And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, -Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost.-' 10Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

Luke 15:8-9 a Rescue: The coins the woman had were, in Greek, drachmas. They are, in the LXX, equivalent to the Hebrew bega-' or half-shekel. The half-shekel was equivalent to the Roman denarius. The coin was worth about 16 cents American todaybut then worth a day's wages.

Hebrew women usually wore coin frontlets, called semedi, as part of their dowry and thus a sign they were married. These coins were a daughter's inheritance from her father to take and share with her husband as they formed a new family unit. These coins had sentimental, financial and status-symbol value.

This parable pictures the intensity of God's interest in finding the lost. The woman is totally absorbed in finding the lost coin. All other pursuits become secondary to finding it. Searching for it cannot wait until morningshe lights a lamp and makes the dust fly until she finds it. A casual, superficial one-time search will not do. No distraction is strong enough to divert her. Diligently, doggedly, passionately she searches everywhere! Will God give up any one of His children for lost with any less determination and feeling? Shall we?

All three of the parables in this chapter cry outONE! We decide ourselves into thinking that size, more and bigger is always better. We are constantly bombarded with the propaganda that God will be impressed with masswith sheer numbers. We cannot get a god-of-quantity out of our heads. Of course, God loves all men and wants all men to be saved. We tend to think of God more as the Creator of the millions of constellations and universe and generations upon generations of men and forget that He cares as intensely for little ol-' me as the woman did for her one coin. Our God is infinitely careful for each snowflakemaking each one different. God is personally, passionately and emotionally searching for one lost person at a timeno matter how unknown or how long they have been lost. The church must turn the world upside down searching for each lost person.

Luke 15:9-10 Rejoice: These parables show us a God quite different from that of the philosophers and theologians. The God of these parables is a God who hurts when one of His is lost and knows how to be happy when one of His is recovered. Men are thrilled when they find a lost coin, but imagine how ecstatically happy God is when one of His, for whom He made this whole creation, for whom His Son died, is found and returned to His society of precious ones. When we see God we shall see Him as He isthese parables state unequivocally that we shall see Him expressing His joy. When one lost sinner is recovered the news flashes across Heaven and anthems of praise and joy are shouted. This is the only news Heaven is interested in. When men and women are baptized into Christ, Heaven does not say, Ho hum but Hallelujah! Heaven is soul-centered. Evangelism is the business which occupies and satisfies all who love God.

Applebury's Comments

Parable of the Lost Coin
Scripture

Luke 15:8-10 Or what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a lamp, and sweep the house, and seek diligently until she find it? 9 And when she hath found it, she calleth together her friends and neighbors, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I had lost. 10 Even so, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

Comments

ten pieces of silver.Much has been said about what these represent, The tendency to treat the illustration as an allegory may cause one to lose sight of the real lesson. The parable simply says that the woman had ten pieces and lost one. What woman would not search diligently until she found the lost coin? So Jesus again justified His effort to find the lost sinner.

There is nothing to suggest that this parable teaches anything different from that which is taught by the parable of the Lost Sheep, for the lost sheep and the lost coin represent the lost sinner.
Without reading too much into the stories, it is possible to see that the sheep got itself lost while the woman lost the coin. Was it through carelessness, or neglect, or irresponsibility? These parables are not about sheep and coins, but people! People are lost sometimes by neglect or indifference or carelessness on the part of others who should show some concern for their fellowmen. Who cares about the drop-out? In some Bible classes, one has to attend three times to become a member. But he can be absent indefinitely without having anyone bother to find out why. Who speaks to the lonely stranger at church? Are some lost because no one has time to show them that the Savior cares?

joy in the presence of the angels of God.If angels rejoice over the sinners who repent, why condemn Jesus for His effort to save them? The contrast is so great that we wonder if the Pharisees were beginning to regret the unfortunate position they had taken?