“Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ”Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.” I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”—Luke 15:3-7.

Most churches with 100 members would be quite happy if 99 of them showed up for church every week. But Jesus says that we shouldn’t be satisfied with that. He says we should be concerned enough about the one missing sheep that we put forth a great effort to find it and bring it home.

Many churches are so inwardly focused that they show little concern for the lost. Oh, they say the right things about evangelism, but their actions speak something different. They show by how they spend their time, energy and resources that they are more concerned with the 99 than they are the one.

You probably know several lost sheep. Which one will you go after first?