The parables in the new testament are unique in that they can evoke more questions than they answer. One must ponder them and each time you return to them you may have an altogether different set of questions. Or you may apply an altogether different set of problems to the parable. The following parable is a good example in that it brings many questions to mind.
“Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbors together, saying, “Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost.” The parable concludes by adding “likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” (Luke 15:8-10).
The first question, one might ask is, how was the coin lost in the first place? Was the woman just careless? One church scholar described the coin, at the time it was depicted in this parable, as equivalent to a day’s wages. Therefore it had value and would have been a significant loss to the family had it not been found. Whether the woman was careless or neglectful, we are not told, but the coin may even have been lost accidentally.
Since the parable is in reality referring to a lost soul, it is probably important to know why the person left the church, was it because a parent or a leader was neglectful or careless? It could have been the person’s own fault, in spite of encouragement and concern of parents and on the part of leaders, etc. How long they were lost may very well play a part in how easily they may be found or returned to the fold.
What did the woman do to find her lost coin? She lit a candle and swept the floor. What are some of the things we must do to find a lost soul and help them become active again. As the woman in the parable we must seek diligently to find and love a lost soul back into the fold.
These thoughts have been directed to any lost soul, now let’s replace that, any lost soul, with a member of our living family. A family member, who has not been actively involved in the church for some time. What can we do as a family to love that person back into activity, can we light a candle and sweep the floor and search diligently? Even though we don’t do those same things, specifically, the idea is there, we must work hard to find the right approach because the family member is valuable, and is loved and cared for.
Now, taking that idea one step further, suppose the soul is an ancestor whom we were not personally acquainted but one who died without an opportunity to hear the restored Gospel. Yet a precious soul, whose pioneering work, here on earth, has made it possible for us to live as comfortably as we do today. This person’s vital data is not easily found but do we give up and become discouraged or do we light a candle and sweep the floor and search diligently. We all have, what we call dead ends, ancestors we have searched for and just haven’t had any success in finding them. Well, almost every day, at the family history center we hear stories of ‘dead end’ ancestors whom were finally found. When they are found there is great rejoicing by the seeker and among the Center staff as well.
The parable ends by saying, “there is joy in the presence of the angels of God…”, as well, when that soul is found. God bless us to be diligent seekers of our ‘lost coins.’