But what if the choice invovled leaving your other 4 kids exposed to danger?

If you're in the wilderness, and you are the only thing standing between your children and the ravenous wolves, do you risk the 4 children you still have to find the 1 you lost? Keep in mind, Jesus specifically used sheep in the analogy because they are helpless to defend themselves.

I'm by no means saying I disagree with this idea. In fact, I find it quite profound. But I'd like to hear others' thoughts on it.

@jnaatjes if they are in immediate danger you stay put. That said, the parable does not put the rest of flock in immediate danger either.

@BastiatLives it does say in Luke 15:4 that he leaves them "in the wilderness." Maybe it's not explicit, but I think that at least implies some risk in going to save the one.

I don't think this analogy can be taken too literally, but I think it might be meant to illustrate the inherent worth of each individual, and the risk we should be willing to take to preserve the sanctity of each individual life. Even when there seems to be downsides. I think valuing the individual is an exercise of faith.

@jnaatjes "some risk" is not in the wilderness, or in immediate danger. Also, remember who the followers of Christ are, they are both his sheep and his children. That context is not something you can remove from the back story of the lesson.

@BastiatLives I think it also speaks to the importance for us to do as Peter says in 1 Peter 5: 2-4:

2 ????Feed? the ???flock? of God which is among you, taking the ???oversight? ?thereof,? not by constraint, but ???willingly?; not for ???filthy? ???lucre?, but of a ready mind;
???3 ?Neither as being ???lords? over ?God’s? heritage, but being ???ensamples? to the flock.
???4 ?And when the chief ???Shepherd? shall appear, ye shall receive a ???crown? of ???glory? that fadeth not away.

@jnaatjes you are well outside the context of the parable. What's with all the "???"

@BastiatLives oh it pasted weird...

@BastiatLives maybe I'm wrong, but it seems like you object to the idea that God would leave us in a state of peril. But I think that actually describes almost all of human existence. I think God may protect us to an extent, but once we are in his flock, he expects us to shoulder some serious responsibility to confront and transcend the catastrophe of life, as Jordan Peterson so often emphasizes. And I think he leaves us his grace to enable us to do that.

@Guido_Provolone I understand that. I'm just trying to find the underlying principles found in the character of Christ. After all, I think of Christ as being my ultimate example. But as I said above, as it says in Peter, God asks us to shoulder responsibility for the flock until he returns.

@jnaatjes
\maybe I'm wrong, but it seems like you object to the idea that God would leave us in a state of peril.\
No. I just think you are reading more into the parable than is there. In short you are reading into the text. Exegesis is reading out of the text.

as long as your kid believes they will end up in heaven. we are just in a shitty pregame right now. so why should it matter?

@lokiHapp I guess it matters because you are still responsible for your actions