Luke 15

Parables of the Lost

Near the end of the Savior’s mortal ministry, Pharisees and scribes complained about Jesus’s association with publicans and sinners. In response to their complaints, Jesus taught the parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son. This lesson can help you to recognize and feel how much Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love and value you and all others.

Student preparation: Encourage students to study one or all of the parables in Luke 15 prior to class. Invite them to consider what the parables teach about God’s love.

Possible Learning Activities

What is it worth?

Consider bringing some food and money to class as a visual demonstration of the following activity. Use whatever food or money is relevant or easily accessible, and adapt the listed currency to what is used in the area. For example, this activity could be done with a piece of candy and a $1 bill. Invite students to show on their fingers how much the item is worth to them at each step.

On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being low and 10 being high, how much would you want the following?

• Your favorite dessert

• Your favorite dessert if it fell on the floor

• Your favorite dessert if someone stepped on it

• A $20 bill

• A $20 bill if it fell on the floor

• A $20 bill if someone stepped on it

Take a moment to ponder how this activity might relate to the worth of individuals.

• How might this analogy compare with how accurately we view our own value?

• Why might we sometimes feel tempted to think about or treat ourselves and others like we or they are of less worth?

It may be beneficial to share the statement by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf available in the “Supplemental Learning Activities” section at the end of this lesson.

Think about how you treat those who may need to repent and improve, including yourself. As you study this lesson, look for truths about how the Lord feels toward and treats those who need to repent.

In Luke 15, Jesus taught three parables. Read Luke 15:1–2, looking for the situation that led the Savior to teach these parables. Note that publicans were Jews who collected taxes for the Romans and therefore were generally hated by other Jews.

• What do these verses teach you about the Savior? In what ways might we sometimes be like the Pharisees?

Jesus Christ responded to the Pharisees and scribes’ complaints by teaching about a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son.

Consider inviting students to summarize what they know about these parables and how they illustrate the love of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Adjust the learning activities in this lesson to the understanding and needs of students.

The lost sheep and the lost coin

Read or review either the parable of the lost sheep (Luke 15:4–7 and the Joseph Smith Translation text found in Luke 15:4, footnote a) or the parable of the lost coin (Luke 15:8–10), looking for words or phrases that indicate how the owner in each story valued what was lost.

• What words or phrases indicate the value the owner placed on what was lost?

• In what ways might the sheep or the coin in these parables represent individuals?

• According to these verses, how do those who help find the spiritually lost feel when a sinner repents? How do Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ feel?

• What lessons did you learn about the Savior from these parables?

If necessary, help students identify truths such as: Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ know the worth of each individual and desire to gather all back to Them and Heavenly Father rejoices when His children repent and return to Him.

The prodigal son

The third parable in Luke 15 is commonly known as the parable of the prodigal son (the word prodigal means wasteful, reckless, or extravagant). However, this parable tells the story of two sons, both of whom needed help from their father. As you study, look for truths that reveal how Heavenly Father feels toward and treats all of His children who are spiritually lost for any reason.

For the following activity, consider whether it would be more beneficial for students to read the parable or watch the video.

Read Luke 15:11–32, imagining that the father in this account represents Heavenly Father. Consider marking words or phrases that reveal how He feels toward His children. You may also consider watching the video “The Prodigal Son” (5:33), available on ChurchofJesusChrist.org, and following along in the scriptures.

Students could study this parable in a “reader’s theater” format with four parts: the narrator (verses 11, 13–16, 20, 25–28), the prodigal son (verses 12, 17–19, 21), the father (verses 22–24, 31–32), and the elder son (verses 29–30). Consider stopping readers often to help them understand and examine what each character is saying and might be thinking and feeling.

The questions below are intended to help students analyze the parable and relate it to their own lives.

Recall how the Pharisees criticized the Savior for receiving and eating with sinners.

• What do you think the Savior hoped the Pharisees would learn from this parable?

• What in this parable do you think is most relevant for you to understand and remember? Why?

One truth we learn from this parable is that Heavenly Father values and loves all His children and is waiting with open arms to welcome all who will turn to Him.

Consider asking additional questions such as “What did you notice about how the prodigal son became lost?” “In what ways might the other son be considered lost as well?” “What can we learn from this parable about how Heavenly Father responds to those who seek to return to Him and to those who have always strived to remain faithful to Him? Why might understanding this about Heavenly Father matter to you?”

• How might the parables in Luke 15 apply to those who are spiritually lost because of sin as well as to those who may feel different, unappreciated, or unseen?

Recognizing my individual worth

On a page in your study journal, consider making a simple drawing of a shepherd holding a sheep or a father hugging his son. Use the space surrounding this drawing to record the following:

• Words or phrases (including those from Luke 15) that remind you of how beloved you and all others are to Heavenly Father, even when you and others need to repent.

• Ways you can treat those who need to repent with compassion, including yourself.

  Consider inviting students to share a favorite part of their completed activity.

• As you think about how you treat yourself and those around you, how do you want to apply what you learned today?

Testify of the mercy of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and Their desire for all to return to Them.

Commentary and Background Information

Luke 15:7. What did the Lord mean by “ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance”?

Joseph Smith taught that one way to interpret the parable of the lost sheep is to compare the ninety and nine sheep to Pharisees and Sadducees who did not think they needed to come to Jesus Christ and repent (see History, 1838–1856 [Manuscript History of the Church], volume D-1, 1459, josephsmithpapers.org).

Why is it so important to seek, find, and nurture those who are lost?

President M. Russell Ballard, acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, taught:

Every soul is very precious to our Heavenly Father. We must never forget that through the Atonement, the Lord Jesus Christ paid a great price for the redemption of each one of us. His suffering must not be in vain because we fail to nurture and teach those who are striving to be active in the Church.

(M. Russell Ballard, “Are We Keeping Pace?” Ensign, Nov. 1998, 8)

Luke 15:12–13. What did the son mean when he said, “Give me the portion of goods that falleth to me”?

According to the customs of the Savior’s time, a son received his inheritance only after his father died. For a son to demand his inheritance before his father’s death (see Luke 15:12–13) would have been an enormous offense. The son’s request would have been seen as a rejection of his father, his home, his upbringing, and even his entire community.

(New Testament Student Manual [2018], ChurchofJesusChrist.org)

What other resources can help me understand and apply the parable of the prodigal son?

Supplemental Learning Activities

An additional statement

After doing the activity at the beginning of the lesson, consider sharing the following statement. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, then of the First Presidency, shared the story of “one woman who had been through years of trial and sorrow [who] said through her tears, ‘I have come to realize that I am like an old 20-dollar bill—crumpled, torn, dirty, abused, and scarred. But I am still a 20-dollar bill. I am worth something. Even though I may not look like much and even though I have been battered and used, I am still worth the full 20 dollars.’” President Uchtdorf also noted, “We cannot gauge the worth of another soul any more than we can measure the span of the universe. Every person we meet is a VIP to our Heavenly Father. Once we understand that, we can begin to understand how we should treat our fellowmen” (see Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “You Are My Hands” Ensign or Liahona, May 2010, 69).

The lost sheep and the lost coin

Ask students if they have ever lost an item that was valuable to them and what they did to find it. Invite them to contemplate what it might mean if someone was spiritually lost and what it might look like to try to find them. As they study the parables in Luke 15, encourage them to think about how the sheep, the coin, and the son were lost and the different ways they were found. Invite students to contemplate their responsibility to find those who are lost.