"The Lost Sheep The Lord is giving the erring, the weak and trembling, and even those who have apostatized from the truth, a special call to come fully into the fold. But many have not learned that they have a special duty to go and search for these lost sheep. LS 187"
"What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?"
EGW directly references the concept of 'lost sheep' and the duty to 'go and search' for them, which is a clear and intentional allusion to the parable of the lost sheep in Luke 15:4.
"I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment."
Both passages discuss seeking out and caring for those who are lost or strayed. EGW's passage amplifies the idea of a call to bring people back into the fold, echoing the sentiment in Ezekiel.
"We found that we could do nothing for the scattered sheep near us until we had first corrected the wrongs in many of the members of the church. They had let these poor souls wander. They felt no burden for them. I wrote out pointed testimonies not only for those who had erred greatly and were out of the church, but for those members in the church who had erred greatly in not going in search of the lost sheep. LS 187.1"
"Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye."
Both passages emphasize the need for self-reflection and addressing one's own faults before attempting to correct others. EGW's statement about correcting wrongs within the church before helping those outside aligns with the principle of removing the 'beam' from one's own eye.
"Either how canst thou say to thy brother, Brother, let me pull out the mote that is in thine eye, when thou thyself beholdest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother’s eye."
This is a parallel to the previous entry. Both passages emphasize the need for self-reflection and addressing one's own faults before attempting to correct others. EGW's statement about correcting wrongs within the church before helping those outside aligns with the principle of removing the 'beam' from one's own eye, as described in Luke 6:42.
"The Pharisees murmured because Jesus received publicans and common sinners, and ate with them. In their self-righteousness they despised these poor sinners who gladly heard the words of Jesus. To rebuke this spirit in the scribes and Pharisees, and leave an impressive lesson for all, the Lord gave the parable of the lost sheep. Notice in particular the following points: LS 187.3"
"And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them."
EGW directly references the Pharisees' murmuring and connects it to Jesus's actions and the parable of the lost sheep, mirroring the events described in Luke 15:2.