Wanderers (Matthew 18:12-14)

"I and the Village" by Marc Chagall



The parable in Matthew 18:12-14 is so overshadowed by the similar account in Luke 15 that it often gets misinterpreted. The story of the Lost Sheep in Luke—accompanied by the stories of the Lost Coin and Lost Son—are about sinners in need of a Savior. In Matthew the context is not the same.


Here, Jesus is teaching the Disciples about the church. He has just talked about the need to be humble, and that leaders in the church need to be servants. He has talked about not causing any of these “lowly” or “little” members to wander astray. And now, He tells the story about a sheep that has wandered. So, unlike in Luke where we are learning about sinners in need of a Savior, here we are considering a saved one who has wandered; or been caused to wander. Jesus’ next words will be a continuation of how to deal with sin in the church and restoring people to fellowship.

So, seeing the story in this light, we see some clear applications:

1. It is possible for saved people to wander from following Jesus.

2. Jesus does not want any of His followers to wander, and He will go to great lengths to restore them.

3. It is possible for the church—and particularly church leaders—to cause people to wander from following.

4. We need to make it a priority to not cause people to stumble of wander! And we need to go to great lengths as well to restore those who have wandered.

Sin is the issue here. When people wander it can be because of their own sin. But people can also wander because of sin in the church. In the community of the church we need to call out sin and hold each other accountable to avoid it wherever we see it. And leaders in the church need to take their role of teaching and modeling sound doctrine and behavior seriously.