Recently, Christi and I vacationed with our daughter and son-in-law and their four children at Disneyworld. We had a wonderful time seeing the experience through the eyes of our 7 year old twin granddaughters, their 4 year old sister, and even their 2 year old little brother. We had a wonderful time, with the exception of a brief period time one day at lunch.
After our meal, when we assembled at the restaurant entrance we realized one of the twins wasn’t with us. We each looked at each other and almost in unison said, “Where’s Ansley?” Later we learned that she was looking at a display near our table and got separated from us.
We fanned out through the restaurant looking for her. Our search through the restaurant and adjoining gift shop yielded no result. Where could she be? Finally I looked across the restaurant and saw Christi waving me to the front. I could tell by her demeanor that Ansley had been found. She had gone to an adult and told them she was lost. Two restaurant employees stayed with her, and as people would come by, ask if that was mommy or daddy or grandpa or grandma. Finally she saw Christi and ran in to her arms. She had been lost, but now was found.
During those few minutes that seemed like an eternity, our thoughts were consumed with one thing – finding Ansley. As followers of Christ, there is one thing that should consume us, finding people who are lost because of sin, and share the good news of Jesus Christ with them.
In Luke 19 we find the account of Jesus’ visit to the house of Zacchaeus – the short little man who climbed up in a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus over the crowds. When the people in the community saw this, they were outraged; “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” Most tax collectors were dishonest, and the people saw Zacchaeus as being no different. But Zacchaeus was transformed by his encounter with Jesus. He pledged to give half of his possessions to the poor and to pay back ten times the amount he owed to those he had cheated.
Jesus said that salvation had come to the house of Zacchaeus, and in Luke 19:10 he says, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” When Jesus says he came to seek, it conveys the idea of pursuing us, coming after us, looking for us. His compassion for those who are lost fuels his passion. He is consumed with this. And, there is great joy when the heart of a person turns to Jesus and is changed. Because of his encounter with Jesus, Zacchaeus literally became a new man! He had been lost, but now was found.
As followers of Christ, this should be our passion – to seek those who are lost, and show them the love of Jesus Christ in such a way that they will experience his love and be changed because of it.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” — John 3:16 & 17
by Keith Dimbath, Lifeline’s Laborlink Work Team Director
Haiti
