I have to admit that I have never known anyone to take that parable this way.
Dear Spyder,
The story is a parable. It uses "spirit" words (
John 6:63) to teach its message (like all of Christ's teachings do). Below I will quickly summarize the parable's meaning.
Here is the story:
Mat 18:11 For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost. 12 How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? 13 And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray. 14 Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.
The parable is retold in Luke:
Luke 15:3 And he spake this parable unto them, saying, 4 What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? 5 And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. 7 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.
In this age, Christ is only saving the Elect who have been chosen from the foundation of the world. The one "lost" sheep represents the Elect who come out from the "many" sheep who have been called to be saints. The Elect are "few". For that reason, Christ begins His parable by saying that the "
Son of Man is come to save that which is lost".
Christ is referring to the Elect who are the lost sheep and who He came to save.
The ninety nine sheep represent the "many" who have been called into the church. Notice in Luke 15:4 that it says the ninety nine sheep are in the
wilderness. The term "wilderness" is a symbol for where Satan dwells over his apostate church. The ninety nine sheep remain under the Law and are not saved. They are following Satan's "another gospel" which mixes works with faith. This is the
crooked way. Because of the spiritual blindness of the ninety nine sheep, they do not realize that they need to repent of their works. They are dwelling in peace and safety under the deceptions of Satan. The ninety nine sheep do not realize that they are deceived - that is the nature of deception.
In the parable, the one sheep leaves the wilderness and goes into the
mountains. The term "mountains" is a symbol for heaven and is where Christ gathers an Elect believer just before judgment falls on them (
the story of Lot, Mat 24:15-16). Traveling to the mountains represents that the Elect believer has received the Latter Rain of the Spirit and is being gathered to heaven (
Mat 24:29-31). It is in the mountains where the Elect believer is
found (saved) by Christ. Being "found" is a symbol for salvation. After Christ finds His lost sheep, He places them on His shoulders and carries them. This represents that the Elect believer is no longer mixing their own works with faith but is now trusting Christ to do all the work. In other words, the lost sheep is now walking by the Spirit and by faith.
This verse also applies:
Phil 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
To properly understand Christ's "spirit" words, Paul says that they should be compared with how those same spirit words are used elsewhere in scripture. Then, with the discernment that the Holy Spirit gives the believer, the true meaning of the spirit word can be found.
1Cor 2:13 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things (words) with spiritual.
Search scripture for the spirit words that I pointed out in the parable (there are others I did not point out) and see if you can discern their true meaning. Some words are easy to understand but others require a great deal of discernment from the Spirit.
After a believer is converted, their spiritual blindness will be healed and the truth of Christ's teaching will open up to their understanding. For that reason, the unconverted believers in the apostate church do not understand the teachings of Christ - that is why you have never heard the true meaning of the parable of the lost sheep before. The parable's message is retold in other parables, too - like the "lost coin" and the "prodigal son". In fact, most of Christ's parables teach on certain aspects of the
pathway to salvation.
Below is an easy example which shows how to discover the meanings of Christ's spirit words so that the true message of what Christ is teaching can be understood:
Mat 26:52 Then said Jesus unto him, put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.
Does Christ really mean that if you use a sword to kill others, then you must likewise be killed with a sword?
Literally, that is what He is saying. However, if we understand this verse literally, that statement can easily be proven to be
false. There are countless examples of people who have used violence to kill others but then do not die from that same type of violence - it almost goes without saying.
Is Christ mistaken or is His message something else?
The spiritual language of the Word of God utilizes the Hebrew and Greek languages. However, Christ assigns meanings to the Hebrew and Greek words which are different from how they are commonly defined:
1Cor 2:13 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
In
Matt 26:52, Christ is using the word SWORD to teach a spiritual message. To understand what this spiritual symbol represents, we must look at how it is used elsewhere in scripture. In other words, we must
compare spiritual things with spiritual.
Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
Heb 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edge sword...
Rev 1:16 And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword...
From the verses presented above, it is easy to understand that the spiritual word SWORD represents
the Word of God who is Christ.
Christ’s hidden spiritual point He is making in
Matt 26:52 is that all who take up the Sword (those who are “called out”, received the Early Rain of the Spirit), must perish (death of the child of the Devil) by the
Sword. This death is a necessary part of the conversion process which happens when the Word of God (Christ, the Sword) comes to a person and gives them
BOTH the Baptism of the Holy Spirit (Latter Rain/Spirit of Truth) and the Baptism of Fire (judgment of the child of the Devil):
Mat 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit, and with Fire.
This conversion event is what the Apostles experienced on the Day of Pentecost:
Acts 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of FIRE, and it sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the HOLY SPIRIT, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
In the spiritual language of Christ, the Apostles took up the Sword and then died by the Sword. This is conversion.
In light of what I presented above, do you understand what this verse below is teaching?
Isa 66:16 For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.
I have underlined the key portions of the verse.
Joe