The divine master, on his journey to the holy city of Jerusalem, taught an important parable that describes how the Kingdom of God, the dominion or empire of God's perfections, works in men, and that is the Parable of the Lost and Found Sheep. This parable is known as one of the parables of mercy in the Gospel of Saint Luke.
On the level of ideas, this parable has a great resemblance to the parable of the Prodigal Son and the Parable of the Lost and Found Coin. Understanding one parable means understanding all three together. The parables seek to convey the idea of a God full of wisdom and mercy (compassion, kindness, gentleness), who observes how men use their freedom, and how, through this freedom, some choose a destructive and unjust path while others choose a progressive and benevolent one. In other words, the Lord in his understanding does not want evil and suffering, but man's freedom is at stake, thence the spiritual paths, righteousness, and sin.
And God, in His unconditional love for those who choose the path of error and suffering, gives them the option of repentance. God constantly offers His mercy to humankind, but it is up to each person to allow themselves to be embraced by this wonderful gift.
And when Jesus spoke in his parable about the lost sheep that was found, he was referring to sinners who, repentant of their way of destruction, decide to change their path toward righteousness. Just as good and evil are possible, so too are repentance and forgiveness. Unconditional love does not take into account the evil received.
And so Jesus began his parable by saying that if a person has a hundred sheep and loses one, when he finds it, full of joy, the first thing he does is call his friends and tell them: "Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost" Luke 15:6. Jesus ended his story by explaining that this is the joy and mercy in heaven for every sinner who repents.
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