Jesus’ Parable Of The Lost Sheep And Let The Children Come To Me

Scripture Readings: Matthew 18:1 - 14

In that hour the disciples came to Jesus, saying, Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And he took a little child, and
put him in the middle of them, And said, Truly, I say to you, If you do not have a change of heart and become like little
children, you will not go into the kingdom of heaven. Whoever, then, will make himself as low as this little child, the same
is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever gives honour to one such little child in my name, gives honour to
me: But whoever is a cause of trouble to one of these little ones who have faith in me, it would be better for him to have a
great stone fixed to his neck, and to come to his end in the deep sea. A curse is on the earth because of trouble! For it is
necessary for trouble to come; but unhappy is that man through whom the trouble comes. And if your hand or your foot is
a cause of trouble, let it be cut off and put it away from you: it is better for you to go into life with the loss of a hand or a
foot than, having two hands or two feet, to go into the eternal fire. And if your eye is a cause of trouble to you, take it out,
and put it away from you: it is better for you to go into life with one eye than, having two eyes, to go into the hell of fire.
Let it not seem to you that one of these little ones is of no value; for I say to you that in heaven their angels see at all
times the face of my Father in heaven. What would you say now? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has
gone wandering away, will he not let the ninety-nine be, and go to the mountains in search of the wandering one? And if
he comes across it, truly I say to you, he has more joy over it than over the ninety-nine which have not gone out of the
way. Even so it is not the pleasure of your Father in heaven for one of these little ones to come to destruction.

LUKE 15:1-7

Now all the tax-farmers and sinners came near to give ear to him. And the Pharisees and scribes were angry, saying, This
man gives approval to sinners, and takes food with them. And he made a story for them, saying, what man of you, having
a hundred sheep, if one of them gets loose and goes away, will not let the ninety-nine be in the waste land by
themselves, and go after the wandering one, till he sees where it is? And when he has got it again, he takes it in his arms
with joy. And when he gets back to his house, he sends for his neighbours and friends, saying to them, Be glad with me,
for I have got back my sheep which had gone away. I say to you that even so there will be more joy in heaven when one
sinner is turned away from his wrongdoing, than for ninety-nine good men, who have no need of a change of heart.

LUKE 18:15-17

And they took their children to him, so that he might put his hands on them: but when the disciples saw it, they said sharp
words to them. But Jesus sent for them, saying, "Let the children come to me, and do not keep them away, for of such is
the kingdom of heaven. Truly I say to you, Whoever does not put himself under the kingdom of God like a little child, will
not come into it at all."