“What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? Matthew 18:12, NKJV
The Unconditional Pursuit: A Call to Belong
Relentlessly pursuing Jesus? Wandered off the path from Jesus? On the fence about Jesus?
Here’s what’s true: You matter to Jesus. Yes, you.
There are no qualifications for God’s love and pursuit of you. You matter to Jesus; He calls you by name to come to Him, and He desires you to be with Him.
Reread those words: He desires you to be with Him. In Matthew 18:12, Jesus shares this parable:
“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?”
It’s not just a story; it’s a reassuring reality of Jesus’ love and commitment to every single one of His own. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, never gives up on His sheep. Never. He diligently seeks out the one who wanders.
We all have moments when we feel like the wandering sheep. Sometimes, we feel like we’re straying off the path. But remember this: you are not forgotten, and you matter to Jesus. He cares for the one who has strayed just as much as He does the ninety-nine who stayed close (Matthew 18:13). So draw near to Him today.
Because no matter where you are on your spiritual journey, Jesus is seeking after you, calling you by name to not only follow Him but to be with Him.
How will you respond today?
Relentlessly pursuing Jesus? Wandered off the path from Jesus? On the fence about Jesus?
Here’s what’s true: You matter to Jesus. Yes, you.
There are no qualifications for God’s love and pursuit of you. You matter to Jesus; He calls you by name to come to Him, and He desires you to be with Him.
Reread those words: He desires you to be with Him. In Matthew 18:12, Jesus shares this parable:
“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?”
It’s not just a story; it’s a reassuring reality of Jesus’ love and commitment to every single one of His own. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, never gives up on His sheep. Never. He diligently seeks out the one who wanders.
We all have moments when we feel like the wandering sheep. Sometimes, we feel like we’re straying off the path. But remember this: you are not forgotten, and you matter to Jesus. He cares for the one who has strayed just as much as He does the ninety-nine who stayed close (Matthew 18:13). So draw near to Him today.
Because no matter where you are on your spiritual journey, Jesus is seeking after you, calling you by name to not only follow Him but to be with Him.
How will you respond today?
Note after the devotional: The people I interact with every day are people that God urgently wants to reach. So who has God placed around me and how can I reach out to them today? Granted, this devotional is a few days old but is still applicable, whether it is today or any other day. Unfortunately, I have not really spoken to people at most of my jobs, past and present, about faith. I recall one instance at a four-month temp gig over 10 years ago where one of my colleagues who was fully employed by the company I was sent to help out asked me what I looked forward to in life. Granted, this was during the six-month period leading up to my baptism on December 1, 2013, and possibly within weeks ahead of said baptism, so my response was: getting into heaven. I cannot say whether I also made mention about spending eternity with God or with Jesus, but I took the step of sharing something spiritual and religious. My colleague brushed back my comment and asked again: no, really, what are you actually looking forward to? I gave the same response again. He then stopped trying to make conversation with me around that topic.
More recently, I had a conversation with one of my bosses, again about business-related topics, but then in the middle of it he referenced that he knew I was a “man of God.” It's a compliment and a badge of honor, but considering I hadn’t really said much about my faith, I’m kind of surprised he was able to pick that up about me.
As a confession, here I am, talking about my faith and trying to answer the above prompt as best I can, but what’s coming out is more a story about my failures rather than God’s faithfulness. My hope is that as I continue to write about my faith, over time it will consume me more and more to the point that it’s an automatic response when others ask me about my faith. Unfortunately, one of the biggest marks of whether one is saved is based in how such a person responds to trials. I still fail the sniff test on that. But my hope is that, trusting in God’s unending mercy and faithfulness, and by spending time with Him and in His Word, after enough time and energy and effort it will manage to bear some fruit, even effortlessly if possible.
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Joshua 1:8, NKJV
As for the devotional: “A Call to Belong,” this is one of the greatest promises that God has made for those who receive Him as their God, and receive Jesus as their Lord, King, and Savior: adoption into the family of God, in the kingdom of God. God has a tender spirit toward orphans and widows, people who, for one reason or another, were left abandoned and alone. We were never meant to do life alone. (I still struggle with that at times.) We were, however, meant to do life with Him, and specifically by putting Him in charge of our lives.
Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. James 1:27, NKJV
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,
A broken and a contrite heart—
These, O God, You will not despise. Psalm 51:17, NKJV
For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” Romans 8:15, NKJV
having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, Ephesians 1:5, NKJV
Prayer: God, thank You for pursuing me despite my wanderings and failures. I am so grateful that You, Savior of the world, know my name. I belong to You and was created to know You. Deepen our connection and enrich our relationship, as I daily seek You. In Jesus’s name, Amen.