Luke 15 is one of my favorite Chapters in all of Scripture. I use it as the basis of most of my speaking engagements when I am introducing the ministry of CEF to a new Church contact for the first time. All three parables of Luke 15 come to the same point... “Heaven rejoices over every sinner who repents.” So, what does this teach us? It teaches us that the joy of Heaven is not the same as the joy of earth because the joy of Heaven is everlasting.
Why is Heaven made to rejoice? Here’s 7 reasons...
1. The unrepentant is loved enough to be sought. (Vs. 4 and 8)
2. The unrepentant is of great worth in God’s sight. (Vs. 5 and 9)
3. Life apart from God is devastatingly ugly. (Vs. 14-16)
4. Repentance begins with valuing God properly. (Vs. 17-19)
5. Repentance is the display of God’s grace. (Vs. 20)
6. Repentance reflects the miracle of the new birth. (Vs. 21-23)
7. Repentance awakens the Church to see the beauty of the repentance of the sinner. (Vs. 6-7,
9-10, and 23b-24)