Lost – For Whom?

The gospel Paul preached he calls “the evangel of the glory of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:4). Most Christians appear not to know it at all. They think the gospel is about us. In the salvation preached to them, humanity stands at the center in practice. Humanity is lost, and therefore—so they think—it is in humanity’s interest to be saved. That last point is not entirely untrue, but the essence is overlooked.

When something is lost, that is a loss to the owner! To no one else. Whether or not what was lost is aware of it. The one who is lost may even feel quite happy.

Just think of the parable of the lost son who squandered his wealth abroad. Or was that son only lost once he had spent his wealth and was sitting hungry among the pigs? No. From the moment the son left his father, he was the lost son. The father had lost his son. Likewise, the shepherd who was missing a sheep had suffered a loss from that moment on.

It is therefore naturally in the owner’s interest to seek what was lost. And it is the owner’s celebration when he has found what was lost.

The gospel is about God saving His lost world. It is called gospel (Good News) because it is HIS celebration! It is also to HIS honor!

Humanity does not seek to be saved. The only thing humanity “managed” to do was get lost. But God seeks humanity. And He finds humanity! That is undoubtedly the best thing that can happen to humanity, but make no mistake: first and foremost, it makes God happy.

That is why we read in 1 Timothy 1:11 of “the evangel of the glory of the happy God.” The gospel is called gospel because it displays God’s glory and makes Him happy.

He Finds Everything He Had Lost

“…is going after the lost one, till he may be finding it?”

Luke 15:4

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