As she grew, she was recognized as the cleverest of the family. She was first in her class and a favorite of the teacher. Her love of poetry was a passion. Among the sick and suffering she won the name of “My Sunbeam.”
Clephane was considered frail. She gave much to the poor. It
is said that she sold her horses to raise money for philanthropic causes. Her
brother, George, was the lost sheep she wrote this poem about. She was
twenty-one. The poem was based on the parable of the shepherd who left his ninety-nine
sheep to go after the one lost sheep (Luke 15:3-7) to help children remember
the truths of Jesus’ words.
The creation of the words and the tune are both amazing from beginning to end. The text to her poem appeared in a newspaper, where it caught the attention of Ira Sankey, music director for evangelist Dwight L. Moody.
Sankey was on his way to Edinburg, Scotland, for an evangelistic meeting when he saw the poem. He “tucked the poem in his vest pocket and thought no more of it.”
That afternoon as Rev. Moody concluded his message, he turned to Sankey and abruptly asked that he sing an appropriate solo.
Sankey, remembering the poem in his pocket, pulled it out and quickly prayed for “divine help.” He walked to his little pump organ, struck the chord of A flat and began to sing. As he sang the song, in front of a live audience, he composed the melody on the spot.
During the tour, they held a service in Melrose. In the
audience were the two sisters of Clephane. Imagine their delight and surprise,
as they heard their dearly departed sister’s words sung by the famed Ira
Sankey.
One day, Mr. Sankey received a letter from Elizabeth’s sister, thanking him for turning her late sister’s poem into a song. (She’d died several years before.)
Enduringword.com, David Guzik: The Good Shepherd lives and dies for the good of the sheep. He knows His sheep. He is known by His sheep. There is a mutually reciprocal knowledge between Jesus and His sheep.
Enduringword.com, David Guzik: The lost sheep would never save himself, or find the shepherd himself. If the shepherd did not take action, the sheep was doomed . . . Jesus taught that God actively seeks out the lost. He does not grudgingly receive the lost; instead, He searches after them. God finds the sinner more than the sinner finds God.
Studylight.org, Coffman’s Commentaries on the Bible: Note these facts about a lost sheep: it is absolutely defenseless, having no weapon of any kind, no gift of speed in flight, no cunning, no means of deception; its very cries being only a signal for the enemy to close in for the kill; the sheep has no sense of direction. A carrier pigeon would surely be able to return to its nest; a dog might find its way home, but a sheep? Never! A lost sheep is surrounded by enemies, even the elemental forces of nature being hostile and often fatal of him when separated from the fold. The parable suggests the earthly mission of Christ, the Good Shepherd, who left the joys of heaven to wander amid the bleak scenes of earth to recover lost and sinful people. It also has an application to the church, or flock of God, in that the true place for every sheep is in the fold. There is no safety for the sheep separated from the Shepherd and the fold.
Wordwisehymns.com, Robert Cottrill: See the concentration of the Shepherd. Though He knows and cares for all His sheep, He is concerned for the welfare of each one individually. Even though most are safe in the fold, He notices that one has wandered off. Compare the work of salvation. The big picture is: “God so loved the world, and Jesus died for the sins of all mankind.” (John 3:16; 1 John 2:2) But that sufficient payment does not become efficient until it is personally appropriated by faith. Then, we as individuals can say, “The Son of God . . . loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)
Wordwisehymns.com, Robert Cottrill: See the courage of the Shepherd. He heads off into the wilderness to search for that one lost sheep. Similarly, God the Son took on our humanity and descended to the wilderness of this world, giving His life to save us. Even though His sacrifice is proclaimed in the Word of God, we can have little conception of what it cost Him.
AwedbyJesusChrist.com: Christ perfectly demonstrates the virtue of courage to encourage men. He was fortified by the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus was raised, knowing the great courage of Mary’s and Joseph’s and their total commitment to serve God in the face of persecution. Jesus stands up to and defeats Satan when tempted in the wilderness. He evangelizes despite the ongoing plots to kill Him. He stands up to false teaching, repeatedly confronts the Pharisees and the Sadducees. He confronts the merchants and moneychangers. He braves the Nazareth mob that tries to cast Him off a cliff. Knowing full well the physical torture He will endure, accepts the Father’s will. Accepts death on the cross.
Studylight.org, Bridgeway Bible Commentary: Jesus fought
against the temptation to avoid the cross, His agony of mind was so intense
that He perspired what appeared to be blood. But He won the battle, and
determined that He would willingly submit to whatever His Father would have him
go through . . . He would give Himself without reservation, in order to save
others. The decisive victory He won in the garden enabled Him to meet His
betrayal, trial and death with renewed courage and assurance.
We can be assured that Jesus will do the same for all of us
to save us.
Enduringword.com, David Guzik: When Jesus finds His people, He also carries them . . . the emphasis in this parable is not on the proportion, but on the joy of finding the lost . . . Though the sheep does nothing to rescue himself or repent, Jesus mentioned the need for repentance in the last few words of this brief story. It’s almost as if He said, “The sheep doesn’t repent, but you need to when God finds you.”
Rejoice, for the Lord brings back His own!”
By His Grace . . .
