Introduction

Those who are young in the Lord are often passionate about reaching out to their loved ones and friends who do not know the Lord. But over time, they lose their passion. Some of us today are probably like that. We are not that excited anymore about reaching out and leading others to faith in Christ. We have lost our passion for the lost. What has happened to us? We need to recover the joy of leading others to Christ. This is why Jesus came: to seek and save the lost. This is also the reason why we celebrate Christmas.

How do we rekindle our passion for the lost? (Luke 15:1-32)

THREE DECISIONS

1. See the *value* of the “lost” again. (Luke 15:3-7) – Often we forget how important “lost” people are to God. We become “attached” to other people especially to church members who become our friends or “barkadas”. While there’s nothing wrong with having close friends in the church, sometimes we forget how important “lost” people are to God, and especially to Jesus Christ our Lord, who came to seek and save the lost.
   [bctt tweet=”See the value of the lost again.” username=”rlccphil”]
2. Work *hard* to seek the “lost” again. (Luke 15:8-10) – What we do in ministry, or even whether we are doing ministry at all, is dependent on our attitude toward the “lost”. Sometimes we do not think it’s worthwhile to exert every effort to look for the “lost” in order to save them. We just want to do those ministries that are enjoyable to us. As a result, the “lost” are forgotten because it’s too hard to look for them.
   [bctt tweet=”Work hard to seek the lost again.” username=”rlccphil”]
3. Recognize our *bond* with the “lost” again. (Luke 15:11-32) – If we see the “lost” as outsiders and we the “insiders”, we will never rekindle our passion for the lost. We need to recognize our “bond” with them, for we are also the same with them. We are also in need of grace and mercy from God just like they do. To lose this perspective is to become proud. Consequently, we will look for the “lost” anymore.
   [bctt tweet=”Recognize our bond with the lost again.” username=”rlccphil”]

Conclusion

1. Christmas reminds us to be *passionate* about the “lost” again.
   [bctt tweet=”Christmas reminds us to be passionate about the lost again.” username=”rlccphil”]
   
2. Some of us have forgotten about Jesus’ passion for the “lost”.
3. To guard ourselves against “mission drift”, always focus on the Great Commission.

Discussion

1. Why do we tend to forget about the “lost” so easily?
2. How can we rekindle our passion for the lost?
3. What will you do this December to lead others to Jesus?