The Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, the Lost Child
All lovers of parables are going to have a big day next Sunday. We get three well-known parables for the price of admission. The stories come one after the other in rapid fire.
Jesus is making room for the lost. That includes any of us who feel unworthy and that is probably all of us at one time or another.
The first story is the story of the shepherd who drops everything to find one lost sheep. That lost sheep is worth just as much to the shepherd as the 99 who are doing just what sheep are supposed to be doing—following, minding their own business and causing no trouble. The climax of the story isn’t so much that the sheep is found. It’s the joy that the herd is once again complete.
Here are several pieces of art that tell different aspects of the story.
First is a painting by Marsha Elliot. She sells her work on fineartamerica.com. If you like this as much as I do, you can order it on notecards, etc. (2×2 has no stake in our recommendation.)
The sheep is alone. Perhaps it is searching. Perhaps it is simply frightened. There is a desolation in the depiction. And yet there is a sense of defiance. This sheep willingly walked away from the others.
These two paintings show just how perilous taking care of our lost ones can be. Still it’s our duty! The Good Shepherd not only finds the lost sheep but he carries it over the rocky terrain to safety. The second one is by James Tissott.
Now we come to the fun part of the story. The rejoicing that the lost is found. Here are a variety of renditions, followed by an old engraving of the whole story.
Now it’s time to turn to Jesus’ second attempt to explain God’s love of all his creation. The Parable of the Lost Coin.
This rendition actually combines the two stories. The man has the sheep around his shoulders and the woman has the coin. They are both so happy!
I won’t get into the story of the Prodigal Son. We’ve covered it before.
But I’ll close with a painting by contemporary artist Daniel Bonnell. Please visit his website to see all his sacred paintings. If you have an empty spot on a church wall consider adding one of his prints. His modern eye will resonate with today’s Christians.
This painting is called The Father’s Forgiveness. Notice the layers of loving embraces. A father is embracing his repentant son, but Someone is also embracing the father.
