For Kids · 5 min with a grown-up
Jesus tells three stories in a row — about a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son — to show how much God loves to find what was lost.
Today's Story
Some people grumbled that Jesus spent time with people who had done wrong. So Jesus told them three stories.
“Imagine a shepherd with a hundred sheep,” Jesus said. “One wanders off and gets lost. Does the shepherd just shrug? No! He leaves the ninety-nine and searches everywhere until he finds that one. And when he does, he lifts it onto his shoulders, full of joy, and calls his friends: ‘Celebrate with me! I found my lost sheep!’”
Then Jesus told the best story of all. “A young man took his father's money and ran far away, and wasted it all on foolish things. Soon he had nothing left — not even food. He was so hungry he wished he could eat the pigs' food. Finally he thought, ‘I'll go home and tell my father I'm sorry.’”
“So he started home. But while he was still far down the road, his father SAW him — because the father had been watching and waiting every single day. And the father RAN to him, threw his arms around him, and hugged him tight. ‘My son was lost,’ the father cried, ‘and now he's found! Let's have a feast!’”
That father, Jesus said, is just like God. When even one person who was lost comes home to Him, all of heaven throws a party.
A Big Word
Memory Verse
Talk About It
- The shepherd searched and searched for one lost sheep. How does it feel to know God would search for YOU like that?
- The father ran to hug his son and threw a party, even though the son had messed up. What does that tell you about how God welcomes us back?
- Heaven throws a party when one lost person comes home. Have you ever been SO happy to find something you lost?