Filadelfia International Church Barcelona

Seeking the Lost

Reflect

God created the world and it was very good. But when sin came, everything was broken, especially the relationship of God with man.
God gave man a solution when He clothed them, pointing to His ultimate solution—the coming of His Son.
The Gospel of John says God loves so He sent. He loved His creation so much that He did not want it to be forever separated from Him.

Love is who He is, not just what He does. He chose to love, so God sent His Son not to judge but to save the world.

Jesus was sent to save. He sought those who are lost—undeserving humanity who are enslaved and dead in sin. He came to us and did not wait for us to come to Him. He sought us out, we did not seek Him. In fact, while we were still in our sins, He died for us (Romans 5:8).

In Him, those who are lost will be found and restored in God’s purpose. All that He asks is that we believe in Him, putting our full trust in who He is and what He has done, and follow Him all our days.

As we have received His love and mercy, so He is sending us to seek the lost and usher them to His saving grace. When we think of God’s mission, we can be too focused on God’s part in saving the world, which may make us passive. Or we can also be too focused on ourselves and the huge task that God has mandated us to do—preaching to and reaching the lost. This can make us feel burdened and limited.

However, when we look at His word, we will see that it is God who does the saving; He is the one who turns the lost into found and brings them back to Himself.

Our job is to preach the gospel. This is a partnership with God in doing His mission. The beautiful thing about this partnership is that God’s Spirit has already gone ahead of us to work in the hearts of the people He is sending us to.

As Jesus was sent, we too are going out with the love of God and a desire for the lost to be found. When we preach the gospel, let us remember: God loves, so He sent. We are loved and found, so we go.

Respond

Jesus had to come into the world He created to redeem and reconcile it to the Father. What does this tell you about the depth of man’s sin?

God ultimately showed His love for the world in this: that while we were sinners, He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins (Romans 5:8). What does this truth teach you about the magnitude of God’s love and His heart for the lost?

As Jesus was sent, so are we sent to proclaim the gospel message. How can you be an effective witness of Christ and a reflection of God’s love for the world?

Pray

Heavenly Father, we couldn’t help but marvel at the truth that while we were still sinners, Jesus died for us—in our place, that we may be saved and reconciled to You. Only love would propel a rescue mission such as this.
Lord, we ask for the same heart that beats as Yours for the lost. Give us eyes to see that they are men and women Jesus loves and died for. Because of this, we are propelled to go to the ends of the earth—that they too may know You and have eternal life.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.