Chapter 15 of Luke’s Gospel account is parabolic triad containing the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the Parable of the Lost Coin, and the Parable of the Lost Son. Each of these parables expresses a specific way in which God cares for the ‘lost,’ those who are living in sin. Theologian William Barclay writes this regarding the three parables of Luke 15:

          While the son ‘deliberately went lost,’ the position that he is a ‘backslider’ is the conflict that each of us has within themselves to either desire God, or pursue the desires of our flesh. In our created nature, our first desire is for God. We are then exposed to sin which presents us with false desires.

          Where the sheep was lost from it’s own foolishness, one could say that the sheep ‘chose’ to become lost by pursing it’s hunger, Jesus choosing a sheep in the parable suggests that it made the choice out of ignorance/foolishness, not malice or rebellion. The son made a conscious choice of rebellion.

          The grace of God meets both of these lost individuals so that they may be restored. The difference between the sheep and the son is that the sheep is rescued from it’s own ignorance and brought back into the flock. The son must acknowledge his rejection and then is welcomed and given back the ring of sonship.

          Understanding these parables within the Biblical narrative is to see all three parables as a story of restoration. All three, the sheep, coin, and son, originally belong to the shepherd, owner, and father. All three are restored back into their rightful place.

References:

1. William Barclay, The Gospel of Luke, (Philadelphia PA: Westminster Press: 1975), 206.

What a great question, I think that it opens a door to the greater conversation around how medical advancements affect/alter human biology and chemistry. First, I do not want to presume on God’s feelings but what follows is a theological position that comes from the study of Scripture and the insight from other theologians. I would encourage you to spend time in prayer and with God’s Word as you reflect on this question. God will reveal his heart to you.

          To be faithful to the question there are two points to address here: 1) how we were created, and 2) how we were born. Dr. Timothy Tennent writes, “We should not equate the phrase, ‘I was born this way’ with the phrase, ‘God made me this way.’”¹
This challenging shift of perspective we gain in Christ is that we are our bodies and we are more than our bodies. We are biological beings created in the image of God. In this existence we are spiritual and physical. We can break that down as follows:

• We are our bodies – “I was born this way”

• We are more than our bodies – “God made me this way”

          When we recognize these distinctions in our being, then we can begin to turn toward Christ for reconciliation. We can recognize the disconnect between how were are created to be, and our present reality. In that disconnect we can either surrender to sin (give in to false desires, conform to sinful patterns of behavior, or embrace the consequences of sin as ‘normal’) or we can lament this brokenness before God and call on the name of Jesus.
          Considering those things which lead to the necessity of antidepressants, we find the collision of ‘born this way’ and ‘made this way.’ In the brokenness of sin (the ‘disorder’ of creation), we can find the chemical imbalances of our nervous system which result in a false image or perception of the world or a darkened view of reality which leads to depressive states and suicidal ideation.
          Addressing this leads us to confession. In seeking medical help, we confess that something within us is not right, we are out of balance. The confession of depression, the confession of suicidal ideation, the confession of whatever that imbalance may be cannot simply be a horizontal confession, but it must also be a vertical confession. We must come before God and confess our powerlessness and our false views of this world.
          In seeking care for our mental health, we must be willing to confess to our health care provider our powerlessness. We must confess to our loved ones that there our perception of the world, of them, and of ourselves is flawed. In that same way we must confess to God that our view of His creation has been wrong. Depression manifests in ways that devalue God’s creation and who He is, we must repent of this. Suicidal ideation is a devaluation of self where we view ourselves as worthless and God created with immeasurable worth.
          When we recognize that we are our bodies and we are more than our bodies, addressing our health is about physical, mental, and spiritual wellness. It is about pursuing restoration and living as God intended us to be, not accepting the brokenness of a fallen world as normal.

Antidepressants address the imbalances of our physical being which result from living in a fallen world. When used with the intent of following Christ, that is emulating Jesus as his disciple, that is being everything we were created to be in accordance with God’s will. Antidepressants can serve as a collaborative action on our part to join the Holy Spirit in the work of restoration.

Book Recommendation: For the Body: Recovering a Theology of Gender, Sexuality, and the Human Body by Timothy Tennet  (AMAZON LINK)

Video Recommendation: Bible Project Video on Isaiah 61 – “What does a restored world look like? The words of Isaiah 61 describe a new creation filled with abundance and ordered by right relationships. In this video, we reflect on the prophet's vision of a new Eden and how it reaffirms God's promises to the people who never lost hope.”  (LINK)

The voice of temptation is not as threatening as we expect - The enemy often appears familiar and unassuming, not obviously dangerous.

1. We must never swap the walk of man for the word of God - Adding our own rules to God's commands can create confusion and legalism.
2. Sin creates separation - The first thing lost in the fall was vulnerability and intimacy with God and each other.
3. God's questions are opportunities for confession - When God asks "Where are you?" He's offering grace and a chance to return.
4. The consequences of sin are not God's original design - The brokenness we experience is the result of sin, not God's intended purpose for humanity.

Choose one of the following to practice this week:

Option 1: Confession Practice
Set aside time each day this week to honestly answer God's question: "Where are you?" Don't hide, make excuses, or blame others. Practice vulnerable confession before God.

Option 2: Relationship Restoration
Identify one relationship where you've normalized brokenness (competition instead of collaboration, hiding instead of intimacy, etc.). Take one concrete step toward God's design for that relationship.

Option 3: Truth Inventory
Make a list of beliefs you hold about what God says. Then check each one against Scripture. Are any of them "addendums" you or others have added? Commit to aligning your beliefs with God's actual word.

Option 4: Grace Reflection
Spend time meditating on the ways God showed grace in Genesis 3 (asking questions, making clothes, not immediately destroying humanity). Journal about how God has shown you similar grace in your sin.

"When the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, 'Abba, Father.' Now you are no longer a slave but God's own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir."

We've all seen the images: a woman by a tree, a serpent coiled on a branch, strategically placed leaves. The scene has become so familiar, so cartoonish in our cultural imagination, that we've lost sight of what actually happened in that garden. We've become desensitized to one of the most catastrophic moments in human history.
But what if we stripped away the sanitized Sunday school versions and really looked at what Genesis 3 reveals about temptation, sin, and the world we now inhabit?