Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. ² And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

³ So he told them this parable: ⁴ “Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? ⁵ When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. ⁶ And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ ⁷ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance (Saint Luke 15.1-7).

Why is the above passage appropriate for Lent? Well, first we notice that it is Jesus’ response to the question about why he insists on partying with the notorious sinners (the lost sheep) of his day. We can reasonably conclude that he wouldn’t party with the lost sheep of his day if there was no hope for them.

And second, it reminds us that when we repent or turn away from our sins—behaviors that make us analogous to the lost sheep in Christ’s parable because they drive us from God’s life-giving love for us—and instead turn to prayer, fasting, and extending mercy and grace (undeserved love and forgiveness) to others along with other holy disciplines, we will encounter a merciful and kind Father who loves us. This passage reminds us we worship a God who actively pursues us and seeks us out, despite our persistent rebellion against him. How do we know this? Because God sent his Son to die for us when we were still his enemies because he wants us to live and not suffer eternal destruction by being separated from him forever. In other words, we know our puny efforts to right ourselves in response to God’s love, grace, and mercy for us are not done in vain. If that’s not Good News, I don’t know what is. For those with ears to hear, listen and understand.