CYPRESSWOOD CHURCH OF CHRIST
April 2, 2006
PRAY FOR THE FOLLOWING:
Our congregation Various friends, relatives and co-workers
James and Leon in the Army Our students
Our nation, military and leaders The Mearns traveling to and from New Mexico
COMING UP:
April 30th we will meet at the King’s after the morning assembly for lunch and a shower/party for Travis and Rose. Ya’ll come!
APRIL BIRTHDAYS:
Yevette Mearns (1st) James Vaughn (8th) Ronnie Sadorra (10th) Talia Bekker (11th)
JoAnna Ross (13th) Sarah Cru thirds (28th)
ATTENTION: CLOCKS MOVE FORWARD SUNDAY. DON’T BE LATE!!!
SHEEP, COINS AND SHEPHERDS
(part 2)
“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one” (Luke 15:8)?
We are familiar with the three parables in Luke 15, a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son. Actually, they are three parts to one theme that Jesus is telling those listening, and in particular, to the Pharisees and teachers of the law, who were muttering about Him eating with tax collectors and sinners (vs. 1-2). Kenneth E. Bailey has provided some cultural background in understanding the context of the parable (The Cross & the Prodigal, IVP, 2005).
All three stories have economics as a theme. The lost sheep was a financial concern for the shepherd and his family. The sons, as we will see, were also concern with money, that is, there inheritance. In the second story, a woman had ten silver coins and lost one. If we are drawing ideas from the parable, we see that Jesus wanted them to see that He was the shepherd, then He also wanted them to see that He was the woman. The purpose was to draw all people to Him through this story.
According to Bailey, Middle Eastern women occasionally carry their wealth in gold and silver coins fastened to a chain around their necks (p. 34). It is referred to as “the woman’s bank.” If widowed or divorced, this money would provided for their future. There is alternative idea however that is more in keeping with village life where everyday living was more difficult. The coins were for daily expenses and were keep in a rag tightly knotted. The coins mentioned were Greek drachmas and each was a day’s wage. Somehow in the daily routine around the house, a coin had slipped out. When one lives from day to day or as we would say today, from paycheck to paycheck, a loss hurts. She sweeps the house looking for the coin, most likely because she had not been out since the last time she checked her inventory.
Houses around the Sea of Galilee would have floors of either lime plaster or smooth uncut stones. A coin could have fell between cracks that had naturally developed in the floors. Archeologists have found coins in just such cracks. She took a lamp and began seeking. Windows in those days were small slits about seven feet up the wall and the building stones were black basalt, which meant little light would find its way in.
Several ideas are suggested here. One, the house represented Israel, not another nation, hence Jesus was speaking to the people of God. Two, the woman was more responsible than the shepherd. The shepherd could be excused because it was the sheep that wandered away. The woman in this part of the parable was responsible in that she might be saying “why didn’t I tie that rag more tightly?” We see both desperation in the search and joy in the finding. Three, God seeks. In the first two parts of the parable, God does the seeking. We should not be surprised at this. Both the writers of Chronicles and Jeremiah write about the God who seeks seekers.
The woman accepts responsibility in her joy when she says that I have found the coin I had lost. The stories provide a brief but intimate glance at village life in the days of Jesus. Interestingly, the genders of the words use tell us that the shepherd had a party for men and the woman had a party for just woman, since it was improper for them to mix socially with the opposite sex. That might help explain the idea of arranged marriages. The same is seen in the movie, Fiddler on the Roof. In one scene, one boy wants to dance with his girlfriend, shocking the community. Tradition! Eventually many join.
Applying this to Jesus’ audience, the finding of a tax collector or sinner should have cause similar joy. Today, unfortunately, we miss the joy of finding the sinner. It was tradition that when a person was baptized into Christ, we would sing a song like O Happy Day, slowly, sometimes very slowly. In recent years, at a baptism, many clap and then sing a upbeat praise song. This has brought pain to some, uncomfortable with the emotional response. The idea is we need to be serious and dignified at this joyous time. When we read this parable in three parts, we see something a little different. Tony Campolo wrote something to the effect that Jesus threw a party. One wonders whether we are more in tune with Jesus and the lost being found or the Pharisees and teachers of the law concerned with dignity.
One might wonder how long Jesus paused between part two and three. It would give the listeners an opportunity to digest what was said. We also see a progression. In the first part, one in a hundred are in the wilderness. The second is one in ten are in the house. The third is one in two and involves the heart which we will look at next.
Who is who in all of this? Jesus is seen in the shepherd, the woman, and the father in the third part of the parable. The sinners are the sheep, coin, and prodigal. The Pharisees and teachers of the law are seen in the ninety-nine sheep, the nine coins, and the older brother. The three parts of this parable are heading to the older brother. We all enjoy the story of the prodigal because we like to think that we relate to him and the father’s love. Some see the older brother as more of an after thought, especially since we do not see his response to the father. And that is precisely the point; Jesus wanted Pharisees to respond and left it up to them.
What we will see, thanks to Ken Bailey, is some of the cultural aspects and what they meant for the father, and both sons.
George B. Mearns