Parables Jesus Never Taught

To shed light on the idea that “the Son of man is come to save that which was lost” (Matthew 18:11), Jesus never taught this parable:

“How think ye? If a man have an hundred sheep, and they all be gone astray, does he not go into the mountains and seek them? And if so be that he finds ninety and nine, he rejoices over them. Even so it is the will of your Father which is in heaven. It is an acceptable thing that one should perish.” (Matthew 18:12-14)

Neither did he teach this parable:

“Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she should lose them, does not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently until she finds nine of the ten? And when she has found the nine, she calls her friends and her neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me; for I have found nine of the ten pieces which I had lost.’” (Luke 15:8,9)

Jesus did not teach these parables because they depict neither the situation he faced nor his attitude toward it. Of those whom his Father gave him, only one, not everyone, was lost. (John 17:12)

And his attitude toward that one, even more so than toward a loaf of bread, was that nothing be lost. (John 6:12)

To shed light on the idea that “the Son of man is come to save that which was lost," here is the parable that Jesus taught:

“How think ye? If a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, does he not leave the ninety and nine, and go into the mountains, and seek that which is gone astray? And if so be that he finds it, verily I say unto you, he rejoices more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.”

Here is another parable that Jesus taught:

“Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, does not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? And when she has found it, she calls her friends and her neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I had lost.”

Given that the will of Jesus was that nothing be lost, then faith in his ability to save is all we need in order to proclaim that Jesus saved that which was lost.

Nevertheless, I say these things only in my own name.