The second use of the word \u201clost\u201d is in Matthew 15:24. Jesus has been feeding the hungry (Matt 14:19-21) and healing the sick (Matt 14:34-36), and in Matthew 15:22 an outsider, \u201ca Canaanite woman,\u201d comes to Jesus looking for healing for her daughter, and he says, \u201cI was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.\u201d Again, \u201clost\u201d does not refer to people who don\u2019t know God; it refers to people who do, the insiders, \u201cthe children\u201d of God (Matt 15:21)!<\/strong> This use is similar to the first instance. Jesus is coming not to tell the lost how they can escape hell; he is coming to help them overcome oppression, whether by the corrupt leadership of Israel or by demonic strongholds. The lost are insiders who are down on their luck.<\/p>\n The final two passages are slightly different in their usage, but they too do not use the term as if it is often used today. The word is used several times in Luke 15, in reference to the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. In each case the emphasis is not on those who have never known God or who lack a personal relationship with God, but on those who have gone astray. Twice Jesus identifies the lost with the \u201csinner who repents\u201d (Luke 15:7, 10), and in the third example he refers to someone who had been close to the father but had left to \u201csquander his property in reckless living\u201d (Luke 15:13). Nowhere here is \u201clost\u201d equated with the modern idea of a person who doesn\u2019t know the gospel. It is a person who has walked away from the Father to live for his own pleasure.<\/strong><\/p>\n The final use of the word \u201clost\u201d in the New Testament is in Luke 19:10 in reference to Zacchaeus, who had gotten rich by betraying his brothers and sisters and taking their property as tax to the Romans. As the man repents, Jesus pronounces salvation upon him (Luke 19:9) and then concludes with the maxim: \u201cFor the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost\u201d (Luke 19:10). This usage is similar to the other one in Luke: the lost are those who know God but have become consumed with themselves.<\/strong><\/p>\n So there are four New Testament passages that describe \u201cthe lost.\u201d In each case the lost person is someone who knows God. In two of these the person has been abused by the religious leaders; in two the person has gotten caught up in sin.<\/p>\n One thing that concerns me about the modern usage of the term is that it creates an insider-outsider mentality. We who have come to an evangelical faith are \u201cthe found\u201d and those who have not are \u201cthe lost.\u201d<\/strong> This mentality is reinforced in evangelical tradition with the songs we sing (even our children\u2019s songs: \u201cI\u2019m on the inside, on which side are you?\u201d) and with the way we read these passages. We read the story of the prodigal son and think of \u201cnon-believers,\u201d and never question whether we are squandering our inheritance. We read the story of Zacchaeus and don\u2019t ask ourselves, \u201cHow about me? In what ways do I need to repent?\u201d<\/strong> We think of ourselves as being \u201cthe found\u201d simply because we have a correct doctrine of God. The prodigal son had a correct\u00a0\u201cdoctrine\u201d of the father, but he was lost as ever when he was wasting the inheritance he received from his father. Zacchaeus had a correct doctrine of God, but he was lost as ever when his focus was on wealth rather than on caring for the poor. Insiders\u00a0\u2013 churchgoers \u2013 are often lost and Jesus is calling out to us in these passages, but we cannot hear him because we think these passages are about someone other than ourselves. We need to hear the references to \u201cthe lost\u201d in these passages and be aware of the fact that biblically \u201cthe lost\u201d are people who know the Way but who are not properly walking in it<\/strong>. Perhaps we once were found, but it could well be that in the current moment we are lost and are truly the ones in need of the gospel!<\/p>\n
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