🐑 Mifano ya Biblia — Sehemu ya 9: Kilichopotea na Kuonekana🐑 Parables of the Bible — Unit 9: Lost and Found

UtanguliziOrientation

Kwa takriban miaka mia nne Sanduku la Agano, kasha lililofunikwa kwa dhahabu lililokuwa na mbao za mawe za Amri Kumi, lilikaa katika Patakatifu pa Patakatifu katika hekalu la Sulemani. Kisha, Wababeli walipoiharibu Yerusalemu mwaka 586 K.K., lilitoweka. Biblia haituambii lilipatwa na nini. Huenda zaidi washindi waliliyeyusha ili wapate dhahabu yake. Limewavutia wawindaji wa hazina, wanaakiolojia, na angalau filamu moja maarufu ya Hollywood, lakini halijawahi kupatikana.For about four hundred years the Ark of the Covenant, the gold-covered chest that held the tablets of the Ten Commandments, rested in the Holy of Holies in Solomon's temple. Then, when the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BC, it disappeared. The Bible does not tell us what happened to it. Most likely the conquerors melted it down for its gold. It has inspired treasure hunters, archaeologists, and at least one famous Hollywood film, but it has never been found.

Yesu alisimulia hadithi tatu juu ya vitu vilivyopotea katika Luka 15, na zote tatu zina hoja ile ile: kitu cha thamani kinapotea, mtu anakitafuta, na kuna furaha kubwa kinapopatikana. Katika Sehemu ya 1 tuliona kwa nini mazingira yana umuhimu mkubwa hapa. "Basi watoza ushuru wote na wenye dhambi walikuwa wakimkaribia ili wamsikilize. Mafarisayo na waandishi wakanung'unika, wakisema, 'Mtu huyu huwakaribisha wenye dhambi, tena hula nao'" (Luka 15:1–2). Mifano hii mitatu ni jibu la Yesu kwa manung'uniko hayo. Inaitetea huduma yake, nayo inawaalika wanaonung'unika kujiunga na sherehe.Jesus told three stories about lost things in Luke 15, and all three have the same point: something valuable is lost, someone searches for it, and there is great joy when it is found. In Unit 1 we saw why the setting matters so much here. "Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, 'This Man receives sinners and eats with them'" (Luke 15:1–2). These three parables are Jesus' answer to that complaint. They defend His mission, and they invite the grumblers to join the celebration.

I. Kondoo Aliyepotea (Luka 15:3–7)I. The Lost Sheep (Luke 15:3–7)

"Ni mtu yupi kwenu, mwenye kondoo mia, akipotewa na mmoja wao, asiyewaacha wale tisini na kenda nyikani, aende akamtafute yule aliyepotea hata amwone?" (15:4). Kondoo wana tabia ya kutangatanga, ndiyo sababu wanahitaji mchungaji. Mchungaji aliwajibika kwa kila mnyama; kama mmoja angepotea, alitarajiwa kumpata au kuleta ushahidi kwamba mnyama mkali alikuwa amemchukua. Kwa kuwaacha wale tisini na kenda, mchungaji hakuwa akisema hawana umuhimu. Kila kondoo alikuwa mpendwa kwake. Alipompata yule aliyepotea, alimweka mabegani mwake, akawaita rafiki zake pamoja, akasema, "Furahini pamoja nami." Yesu anahitimisha, "Furaha itakuwa mbinguni kwa ajili ya mwenye dhambi mmoja atubuye, kuliko kwa ajili ya wenye haki tisini na kenda wasiohitaji kutubu" (15:7)."What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?" (15:4). Sheep have a tendency to wander, which is why they need a shepherd. A shepherd was responsible for every animal; if one was lost, he was expected to find it or bring proof that a predator had taken it. By leaving the ninety-nine, the shepherd was not saying they were unimportant. Every sheep was dear to him. When he found the lost one, he put it on his shoulders, called his friends together, and said, "Rejoice with me." Jesus concludes, "There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance" (15:7).

Kondoo alipotea kwa upumbavu wake mwenyewe. Alitangatanga tu, mdomo mmoja wa majani baada ya mwingine, na hakuna mtu anayepanga kupotea. Wavumbuzi watatu mashuhuri waliwahi kualikwa kwenye chakula cha jioni huko London. Kati yao walikuwa wamechunguza Greenland, Antaktika, Sahara, na Amazon. Waliondoka kwa miguu kutoka Royal Geographical Society kwenda kwenye mkahawa uliokuwa umbali wa robo maili, na ndani ya dakika kumi na tano walikuwa wamepotea katika vichochoro vya London. Wakati mwingine mtu amepotea na hata hajui.The sheep was lost through its own foolishness. It simply wandered off, one mouthful of grass at a time, and nobody ever plans to be lost. Three celebrated explorers were once invited to a dinner in London. Among them they had explored Greenland, Antarctica, the Sahara, and the Amazon. They set out on foot from the Royal Geographical Society to a restaurant a quarter mile away, and within fifteen minutes they were lost in the back streets of London. Sometimes a person is lost and does not even know it.

Yesu anatujali sisi tulio kanisani, lakini amekusudia kabisa kuwafikia walio nje yake. "Kwa maana Mwana wa Adamu alikuja kutafuta na kuokoa kilichopotea" (Luka 19:10). Profesa wa uinjilisti Roy Fish alisimulia habari ya mji mmoja wa Indiana wenye watu wapatao elfu nne, ambamo chini ya mia saba walikuwa washiriki wa kanisa lolote. Kanisa dogo la Kibaptisti lilifanya mikutano ya uamsho kwa wiki tatu bila kuamsha hata hamu kidogo miongoni mwa wasiookoka. Mwishowe kijana fundi mwashi kutoka Chicago, mwenye tabia zisizo laini na lafudhi ya kigeni, alikubali kuja. Alimchukua shemasi mmoja pamoja naye akaanza kutembelea kila nyumba mjini, akiomba pamoja na familia na kuwakaribisha. Ndani ya siku chache wengine walijiunga naye. Punde jengo likajaa, Wamethodisti na Wapresbiteri wakawa wanafanya mikutano yao wenyewe, na kabla haijaisha kila mtu asiyeokoka mjini alikuwa ameisikia Injili mara mbili au tatu. Mamia walimjia Kristo. Mchungaji hamngoji kondoo ajitafutie njia ya kurudi nyumbani; anakwenda kumtafuta.Jesus is concerned for those of us in the church, but He is intent on reaching those outside it. "The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10). Evangelism professor Roy Fish told of an Indiana town of about four thousand people, where fewer than seven hundred belonged to any church. A small Baptist church held three weeks of revival meetings without stirring the slightest interest among the lost. Finally a young stonemason from Chicago, with rough manners and a foreign accent, agreed to come. He took a deacon with him and began calling at every house in town, praying with families and inviting them. Within days others joined him. Soon the building was full, the Methodists and Presbyterians were holding meetings of their own, and before it ended every lost person in town had heard the gospel two or three times. Hundreds came to Christ. The shepherd does not wait for the sheep to find its own way home; he goes after it.

Mfano huu pia unazungumza na waamini waliotangatanga. Wakristo wa mapokeo tofauti hawakubaliani kama mwamini wa kweli anaweza kupoteza wokovu, lakini wote wanakubali kwamba mwamini anaweza kupoteza furaha ya wokovu kwa sababu ya dhambi na kutojali. Ndiyo sababu Daudi aliomba, "Unirudishie furaha ya wokovu wako" (Zaburi 51:12). Kutojali huenda ndiyo hali yenye taabu kuliko zote ambayo Mkristo anaweza kuishi ndani yake.The parable also speaks to believers who have wandered. Christians of different traditions disagree about whether a true believer can lose salvation, but all agree that a believer can lose the joy of it through sin and indifference. That is why David prayed, "Restore to me the joy of Your salvation" (Psalm 51:12). Indifference may be the most miserable state a Christian can live in.

II. Shilingi Iliyopotea (Luka 15:8–10)II. The Lost Coin (Luke 15:8–10)

"Au kuna mwanamke gani, mwenye shilingi kumi, akipotewa na shilingi moja, asiyewasha taa, na kufagia nyumba, na kutafuta kwa bidii hata aione?" (15:8). Kila sarafu ilikuwa drakma, karibu ujira wa siku moja. Baadhi ya wafasiri wanapendekeza kwamba sarafu hizo huenda zilikuwa sehemu ya mahari yake, labda hata zilivaliwa kichwani kama ishara kwamba ameolewa, jambo ambalo lingefanya kupotea kwake kuwe kama kupoteza pete ya ndoa. Mke wangu amepoteza pete zake za ndoa mara za kutosha kunifanya nielewe jinsi mwanamke huyu alivyokuwa na wasiwasi. Nyumba za vijijini zilikuwa na madirisha machache, kwa hiyo aliwasha taa na kufagia kila pembe mpaka akaipata. Kisha naye aliwaita rafiki zake: "Furahini pamoja nami." "Vivyo hivyo, nawaambia, kuna furaha mbele ya malaika wa Mungu kwa ajili ya mwenye dhambi mmoja atubuye" (15:10)."Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?" (15:8). Each coin was a drachma, about a day's wage. Some interpreters suggest the coins may have been part of her dowry, perhaps even worn on a headdress as a sign that she was married, which would make the loss something like losing a wedding ring. My wife has lost her wedding rings enough times for me to understand how anxious this woman must have been. Village houses had few windows, so she lit a lamp and swept every corner until she found it. Then she too called her friends: "Rejoice with me." "Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents" (15:10).

Kondoo alipotea kwa upumbavu wake mwenyewe; sarafu ilipotea kwa uzembe wa mtu mwingine. Sarafu haikujua kwamba imepotea, wala haikuweza kufanya lolote ili ipatikane. Watu wengine wamepotea kwa sababu ya kupuuzwa na wale waliopaswa kuwatunza. Gazeti moja liliwahi kusimulia habari ya mkataji wa almasi aliyekuwa akifanya kazi juu ya jiwe la thamani kubwa sana. Aliikaza jamu zamu moja zaidi, na almasi ikaruka, ikagonga dari, ikatoweka. Alifunga mlango na kutafuta kila pembe. Mwenye almasi alitafuta pamoja naye. Hawakuipata kamwe, na kwa kanuni za kiwanda, dola sitini kwa mwezi zilikatwa kutoka mshahara wa mkataji ili kuilipa. Miezi sita baadaye fundi wa matengenezo alifungua kisanduku kidogo cha simu kilichokuwa ukutani, akapaza sauti, "Tazama nilichokipata!" Almasi ilikuwa pale. Vitu vya thamani tunavyodhani hatuwezi kuvipoteza vinaweza kupotea, na watu wa thamani wanaweza kupotea chini ya paa letu wenyewe. Wakristo wengine nao wamepoteza kitu: hisia yao ya kusudi. Kwa nini uko hapa, na Mungu amekupa nini ufanye?The sheep was lost through its own foolishness; the coin was lost through someone else's carelessness. The coin did not know it was lost and could not do anything to be found. Some people are lost because of the neglect of those who should have been caring for them. A newspaper once told of a diamond cutter working on a very expensive stone. He tightened the vise one more turn, and the diamond shot out, struck the ceiling, and disappeared. He locked the door and searched every corner. The owner searched with him. They never found it, and by the rules of the factory, sixty dollars a month was taken from the cutter's salary to pay for it. Six months later a repairman opened the little telephone box on the wall, and cried out, "Look what I found!" There was the diamond. Precious things we think we could never lose can be lost, and precious people can be lost right under our roof. Some Christians have lost something too: their sense of purpose. Why are you here, and what has God given you to do?

III. Mwana Aliyepotea (Luka 15:11–24)III. The Lost Son (Luke 15:11–24)

Hadithi ya tatu ndiyo maarufu kuliko zote. Tunauita mfano wa mwana mpotevu. Neno la Kiingereza prodigal (mpotevu) linamaanisha mfujaji. Mwana mdogo alimwambia baba yake, "Baba, nipe sehemu ya mali inayoniangukia" (15:12). Katika utamaduni ule, kuomba urithi wako wakati baba yako angali hai kulikuwa kama kusema, "Natamani ungekuwa umekufa." Hata hivyo baba aliigawa mali yake. Mwana akaenda nchi ya mbali akaifuja yote kwa maisha ya uasherati na upotevu.The third story is the most famous. We call it the parable of the prodigal son. The word prodigal means wasteful. The younger son said to his father, "Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me" (15:12). In that culture, asking for your inheritance while your father was alive was like saying, "I wish you were dead." Yet the father divided his property. The son went to a far country and wasted it all in reckless living.

Kisha njaa kuu ikaingia. Kijana Myahudi aliyetaka uhuru aliishia kulisha nguruwe, wanyama najisi katika sheria ya Kiyahudi, akitamani kula maganda waliyokula nguruwe. "Alipozingatia moyoni mwake, alisema, 'Ni watumishi wangapi wa baba yangu walioajiriwa wana chakula cha kuwatosha na kusaza, na mimi ninaangamia hapa kwa njaa!'" (15:17). Alijizoeza hotuba: angekiri dhambi yake na kuomba afanywe kama mmoja wa watumishi walioajiriwa.Then a famine came. The young Jew who had wanted freedom ended up feeding pigs, unclean animals in Jewish law, and longing to eat the pods the pigs were eating. "But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!'" (15:17). He rehearsed a speech: he would confess his sin and ask to be made a hired servant.

Hadithi hii inatofautiana na zile mbili za kwanza. Mchungaji alimtafuta kondoo na mwanamke aliitafuta sarafu, lakini baba hakwenda nchi ya mbali. Kumbukumbu ya wema wa baba yake ndiyo iliyomrudisha kijana nyumbani. "Alipokuwa angali mbali, baba yake alimwona, akamwonea huruma, akaenda mbio, akamwangukia shingoni, akambusu sana" (15:20). Kama tulivyoona katika Sehemu ya 1, mzee mwenye heshima katika utamaduni ule hakukimbia. Baba huyu alikimbia. Mwana alianza hotuba yake, lakini baba alimkatiza kabla hajaweza kuomba kuwa mtumishi. "Leteni upesi vazi lililo bora, mkamvike; mtieni na pete kidoleni, na viatu miguuni" (15:22). Vazi lilirudisha heshima yake, pete mamlaka yake, na viatu nafasi yake kama mwana, kwa kuwa watumishi walitembea bila viatu. Kisha akaja ndama aliyenona na karamu: "Kwa kuwa huyu mwanangu alikuwa amekufa, naye amefufuka; alikuwa amepotea, naye ameonekana" (15:24).This story differs from the first two. The shepherd searched for the sheep and the woman searched for the coin, but the father did not go to the far country. It was the memory of his father's goodness that brought the boy home. "But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him" (15:20). As we saw in Unit 1, a dignified older man in that culture did not run. This father did. The son began his speech, but the father cut him off before he could ask to be a servant. "Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet" (15:22). The robe restored his honor, the ring his authority, and the sandals his place as a son, since servants went barefoot. Then came the fatted calf and the feast: "For this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found" (15:24).

Mtazame baba. Alikuwa mvumilivu: mwana alikuwa amekaa mbali muda wa kutosha hata njaa kuu ikaiharibu nchi, lakini baba alimwona "angali mbali," kwa sababu hakuwahi kuacha kuitazama njia. Alikuwa mwenye upendo: alikimbia, akamkumbatia, na kumbusu mwanawe kabla ya kuuliza swali hata moja. Alikuwa mwenye kusamehe: hakumwacha mwanawe amalize ombi lake bali alimrudishia heshima kamili. Na alikuwa na vipaumbele sahihi: jambo la muhimu zaidi halikuwa kile mwana alichokuwa amefanya, bali kwamba yu hai na amerudi nyumbani.Look at the father. He was patient: the son had been gone long enough for a famine to ravage the land, yet the father saw him "a great way off," because he had never stopped watching the road. He was loving: he ran, embraced, and kissed his son before asking a single question. He was forgiving: he did not let his son finish his plea but restored him to full honor. And he had his priorities right: the most important thing was not what the son had done, but that he was alive and home.

Mmisionari mkongwe katika China aliwahi kumwongoza msanii kijana mwenye kipaji kwa Kristo. Msanii alisema, "Mimi naipokea kweli moyoni mwangu vizuri zaidi kwa kuichora. Niambie jinsi ya kuichora imani ya Kikristo." Mmisionari alifungua Luka 15 akasema, "Chora hiki." Mchoro wa kwanza wa msanii ulimwonyesha mwana akijikokota kurudi nyumbani akiwa amevaa matambara, na baba amesimama langoni akiwa amekunja mikono na uso mkali wa "Nilikuambia." "Ni mzuri," mmisionari alisema kwa upole, "lakini unakosa hoja kuu. Baba anapaswa kuwa anakimbia." Msanii alijaribu tena. Safari hii baba alikuwa akikimbia barabarani, mavazi yake yakipepea, uso wake umejaa furaha, na viatu vyake havikulingana: kimoja kilikuwa chekundu na kingine cha buluu. "Kwa nini viatu hivyo?" mmisionari aliuliza. "Kwa sababu alikuwa na haraka sana kumfikia mwanawe," msanii alisema, "hata akashika viatu viwili vilivyokuwa karibu zaidi akakimbia." Ndivyo Mungu alivyo: daima ana hamu ya kupenda, mwepesi wa kusamehe, na mwenye shauku ya kupatanisha.A veteran missionary in China once led a talented young artist to Christ. The artist said, "I best take truth into my heart by painting it. Tell me how to paint the Christian faith." The missionary opened to Luke 15 and said, "Paint this." The artist's first painting showed the son trudging home in rags, and the father standing at the gate with his arms folded and a stern, "I told you so" look on his face. "It is beautiful," the missionary said gently, "but it misses the point. The father should be running." The artist tried again. This time the father was running down the road, robes flapping, face full of joy, and his shoes did not match: one was red and one was blue. "Why the shoes?" asked the missionary. "Because he was in such a hurry to reach his son," the artist said, "that he grabbed the nearest two shoes and ran." That is what God is like: always anxious to love, quick to forgive, eager to reconcile.

IV. Ndugu Mkubwa (Luka 15:25–32)IV. The Elder Brother (Luke 15:25–32)

Mfano haukomei kwenye karamu. Mwana mkubwa alirudi kutoka shambani, akasikia muziki na kucheza, akajua sababu yake. "Akakasirika, akakataa kuingia" (15:28). Kwa hiyo baba alitoka kwenda kwake pia. Mwana mkubwa akalipuka: "Tazama, mimi nimekutumikia miaka mingapi hii, wala sijakosa amri yako wakati wo wote, wala hujanipa mwana-mbuzi, nifanye furaha na rafiki zangu. Lakini, alipokuja huyu mwana wako aliyekula vitu vyako pamoja na makahaba, umemchinjia ndama aliyenona" (15:29–30).The parable does not end with the feast. The older son came in from the field, heard music and dancing, and learned why. "But he was angry and would not go in" (15:28). So the father went out to him too. The older son exploded: "Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him" (15:29–30).

Angalia maneno yake. Anamwita ndugu yake "huyu mwana wako," si "ndugu yangu." Anaieleza miaka yake nyumbani kama utumwa: "nimekutumikia." Na baba anamrekebisha kwa upole: "Mwanangu, wewe u pamoja nami sikuzote, na vyangu vyote ni vyako. Lakini ilipasa kufanya furaha na kushangilia, kwa kuwa huyu ndugu yako alikuwa amekufa, naye amefufuka; alikuwa amepotea, naye ameonekana" (15:31–32).Notice his words. He calls his brother "this son of yours," not "my brother." He describes his years at home as slavery: "I have been serving you." And the father gently corrects him: "Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found" (15:31–32).

Hii ndiyo hoja ya sura nzima. Mafarisayo walionung'unika kwa sababu Yesu alikula pamoja na wenye dhambi ndio walikuwa yule ndugu mkubwa. Walikuwa wamekaa nyumbani na kushika kanuni, lakini hawakushiriki moyo wa Baba. Mwana mdogo alipotea katika nchi ya mbali; mwana mkubwa alipotea akiwa nyumbani. Na hadithi inaishia bila kutuambia kama ndugu mkubwa aliingia kwenye karamu. Yesu anaacha mwisho huo wazi kwa sababu Mafarisayo, na kila mtu wa dini tangu wakati ule, lazima wauandike kwa maisha yao wenyewe. Hakuna huruma ndani ya ndugu mkubwa, hakuna sherehe, hakuna viatu visivyolingana. Kwa uchungu anageuka, na anaikosa karamu.This is the point of the whole chapter. The Pharisees who grumbled about Jesus eating with sinners were the elder brother. They had stayed home and kept the rules, but they did not share the Father's heart. The younger son was lost in the far country; the older son was lost at home. And the story ends without telling us whether the older brother went in to the feast. Jesus leaves that ending open because the Pharisees, and every religious person since, must write it with their own lives. There is no compassion in the elder brother, no celebration, no mismatched shoes. Bitterly he turns away, and he misses the party.

V. Kuishi katika Roho ya Viatu VisivyolinganaV. Living in the Spirit of the Mismatched Shoes

Mfano huu hautuonyeshi tu jinsi Mungu alivyo bali pia jinsi anavyotaka sisi tuwe: wenye hamu ya kupenda, wepesi wa kusamehe, wenye shauku ya kupatanisha. Tunaweza kuishi katika roho hiyo mahali patatu.This parable shows us not only what God is like but what He wants us to be like: anxious to love, quick to forgive, eager to reconcile. We can live in that spirit in three places.

Kanisani. Profesa wa mahubiri Fred Craddock alisimulia habari ya baba yake, ambaye hakuwahi kwenda kanisani. Kila mchungaji alipomtembelea, alisema, "Hunijali mimi. Unachotaka tu ni jina lingine kwa orodha yako ya washiriki na ahadi nyingine ya sadaka kwa bajeti yako." Miaka mingi baadaye, Craddock aliharakisha kwenda kwenye hospitali ya askari wastaafu ambako baba yake alikuwa akifa kwa saratani ya koo. Hakuweza tena kuzungumza. Craddock alitazama chumba kizima akaona maua, mimea, kadi, na zawadi kila mahali, kila kimoja kutoka kwa watu wa kanisa. Baba yake alichukua penseli akaandika kwenye kisanduku cha karatasi laini mstari mmoja kutoka tamthilia ya Shakespeare, Hamlet: "Katika ulimwengu huu mgumu vuta pumzi yako kwa maumivu, ili usimulie hadithi yangu." "Hadithi yako ni ipi, Baba?" Craddock aliuliza. Baba yake aliandika: "Nilikosea." Kanisa lilikuwa limeendelea kumpenda. Viatu vyake havikulingana.In the church. Preaching professor Fred Craddock told about his father, who never went to church. Whenever a pastor visited, he would say, "You don't care about me. All you want is another name for your rolls and another pledge for your budget." Years later, Craddock rushed to the veterans' hospital where his father was dying of throat cancer. He could no longer speak. Craddock looked around the room and saw flowers, plants, cards, and gifts everywhere, every one of them from people at the church. His father took a pencil and wrote on a tissue box a line from Shakespeare's Hamlet: "In this harsh world draw thy breath in pain, to tell my story." "What is your story, Dad?" Craddock asked. His father wrote: "I was wrong." The church had kept right on loving him. Its shoes did not match.

Katika familia zetu. Niliwahi kuongoza mazishi ya baba kijana aitwaye Jerry aliyekufa ghafla, akimwacha mke wake na binti wa miaka minane. Wiki moja kabla, alikuwa amempa binti yake mkusanyiko wake wa sarafu wa utotoni kama zawadi ya siku ya kuzaliwa. Thamani yake labda ilikuwa dola sitini. Siku tatu baada ya mazishi, mama yake Jerry alidai arudishiwe mkusanyiko ule na akawaamuru watoke nyumbani mwake. Aliponiuliza ningefanya nini, nilimwambia kwa upole kwamba angeweza kumpoteza mjukuu wake kwa sababu ya jambo hili, na kwamba mimi ningekwenda kwao mara moja na kuomba msamaha. Alinitazama kwa macho magumu akasema, "Hilo halitatokea kamwe, hata kuzimu kuganda barafu!" Miaka ishirini baadaye, mjukuu wake amekua, amehitimu kwa heshima, ameolewa, na anatarajia mtoto wake wa kwanza, na bibi yake hajamwona wala kuzungumza naye tangu wakati ule. Yote kwa sababu ya mkusanyiko wa sarafu wenye thamani ya dola sitini. Hiyo ndiyo roho ya ndugu mkubwa, nayo daima huishia nje ya karamu.In our families. I once held a funeral for a young father named Jerry who died suddenly, leaving his wife and an eight-year-old daughter. The week before, he had given his daughter his boyhood coin collection for her birthday. It was worth perhaps sixty dollars. Three days after the funeral, Jerry's mother demanded the collection back and ordered them out of her house. When she asked me what I would do, I told her gently that she could lose her granddaughter over this, and that I would go to them at once and ask forgiveness. She looked at me with hard eyes and said, "All hell will freeze over before I would do that!" Twenty years later, her granddaughter has grown up, graduated with honors, married, and is expecting her first child, and her grandmother has not seen or spoken to her since. All because of a coin collection worth sixty dollars. That is the elder brother's spirit, and it always ends outside the feast.

Katika mahusiano yetu binafsi. Rafiki yangu mchungaji aliniambia kilichotokea katika mji mdogo magharibi mwa Arkansas. Kijana mmoja aitwaye Bertram alikuwa akiweka mafuta kwenye magari Jumamosi moja asubuhi wakati Mzee Jones, akiwa amelewa na mwenye ugomvi, alipoanza kumlaani na kumpiga mgongoni. Mwishowe Bertram alirusha mkono wake nyuma ili kumsukuma mbali. Mzee yule alipepesuka, akajikwaa kwenye ukingo wa barabara, akagonga kichwa chake kwenye benchi la saruji, akafa. Mji mzima uligawanyika katika makundi mawili. Mchana ule Bertram alimwomba mchungaji wa Kimethodisti aende pamoja naye kumwona Bi. Jones. Ndugu walijaa nyumbani na uwanjani, na hakuna aliyetaka kuzungumza nao. Bi. Jones aliposikia kwamba Bertram yuko pale, aliruka kutoka kiti chake cha kutikisa, akakimbia sebuleni, akashika mikono yake yote miwili. "Bertram," alisema, "huhitaji kusema neno lolote. Nilikuwa pamoja na mama yako ulipozaliwa. Daktari alikuweka mikononi mwangu kwanza. Najua wewe ni mtu mwema. Najua ilikuwa ajali." Kisha akamkumbatia kwa nguvu, na kwa kukumbatia huko aliuponya mji mzima. Kama tungeweza kutazama miguu yake, nadhani tungeona kiatu cha nyumbani chekundu na kiatu cha nyumbani cha buluu. Alikuwa amejifunza roho hiyo kutoka kwa Yesu.In our personal relationships. A minister friend told me what happened in a small town in west Arkansas. A young man named Bertram was pumping gas one Saturday morning when Old Man Jones, drunk and belligerent, began cursing him and hitting him in the back. Finally Bertram threw his arm back to push him away. The older man stumbled, tripped over a curb, struck his head on a concrete bench, and died. The whole town split into two camps. That afternoon Bertram asked the Methodist pastor to go with him to see Mrs. Jones. Relatives filled the house and yard, and no one would speak to them. When Mrs. Jones heard Bertram was there, she jumped up from her rocking chair, ran into the living room, and took both his hands. "Bertram," she said, "you don't have to say a word. I was with your mother when you were born. The doctor put you in my arms first. I know you are a good person. I know it was an accident." Then she hugged him tightly, and with that hug she healed the whole town. If we could have looked down at her feet, I think we would have seen a red house shoe and a blue house shoe. She had learned that spirit from Jesus.

VI. Kuhubiri Luka 15VI. Preaching Luke 15

Mchungaji anaweza kuihubiri mifano hii mitatu pamoja chini ya wazo kuu la vitu vilivyopotea: kondoo aliyepotea kwa upumbavu, sarafu iliyopotea kwa uzembe, na mwana aliyepotea kwa ukaidi, pamoja na ndugu mkubwa aliyepotea akiwa nyumbani. Kweli tatu zinapita katika sura nzima: hakuna mtu anayepanga kupotea; wakati mwingine mtu amepotea na hajui; na daima kuna furaha kilichopotea kinapopatikana. Au mfano wa mwana mpotevu unaweza kuhubiriwa peke yake, ukimlenga baba aliye na hamu ya kupenda, mwepesi wa kusamehe, na mwenye shauku ya kupatanisha, na kuhitimisha kwa swali lililo wazi kwa ndugu wakubwa walio katika kusanyiko: je, utaingia?A pastor can preach the three parables together under the theme of lost things: the sheep lost through foolishness, the coin lost through carelessness, and the son lost through willfulness, with the elder brother lost at home. Three truths run through the chapter: nobody ever plans to be lost; sometimes a person is lost and does not know it; and there is always rejoicing when the lost is found. Or the prodigal son can be preached on its own, focusing on the father who is anxious to love, quick to forgive, and eager to reconcile, and closing with the open question to the elder brothers in the congregation: will you go in?

Wenzi wachanga waliopotea kwenye barabara ya kijijini waliwahi kusimama kumwuliza mkulima mzee barabara ile ingewapeleka wapi. "Mwanangu," alisema, "barabara hii itakupeleka mahali popote duniani unapotaka kwenda, ukienda upande sahihi." Njia ya kurudi nyumbani kwa Baba iko wazi daima.A young couple lost on a rural road once stopped to ask an old farmer where the road would take them. "Son," he said, "this road will take you anywhere in the world you want to go, if you move in the right direction." The road home to the Father is always open.

HitimishoClosing

Mama mmoja mpya alikaa na wazazi wake siku chache baada ya mtoto wake wa kwanza kuzaliwa. Alisema ilishangaza kwamba mtoto alikuwa na nywele nyeusi, kwa kuwa yeye na mume wake wote walikuwa na nywele za rangi nyepesi. "Basi, baba yako ana nywele nyeusi," mama yake alisema. "Lakini hilo halina maana," binti alijibu, "kwa sababu mimi nililelewa kama mtoto wa kuasili." Mama yake alitabasamu akasema maneno mazuri kuliko yote ambayo binti alikuwa amewahi kusikia: "Daima nasahau." Ndivyo Baba anavyompokea kila mwana mpotevu anayerudi nyumbani. Hatukumbushi nchi ya mbali. Anakimbia, anakumbatia, na anafanya karamu. "Alikuwa amepotea, naye ameonekana."A new mother stayed with her parents for a few days after her first baby was born. She remarked that it was surprising the baby had dark hair, since she and her husband were both fair. "Well, your daddy has black hair," her mother said. "But that doesn't matter," the daughter replied, "because I'm adopted." Her mother smiled and said the most wonderful words the daughter had ever heard: "I always forget." That is how the Father receives every prodigal who comes home. He does not hold the far country over us. He runs, He embraces, and He throws a party. "He was lost and is found."

— Dkt. Wayne Cook
Seminari ya Teolojia ya Chapala— Dr. Wayne Cook
Chapala Theological Seminary

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