When tax collectors and sinners come to eat with Jesus, some Pharisees criticize him for associating with them. In response, Jesus tells two parables. In the first, a shepherd leaves his ninety-nine sheep to go find one lost sheep; and in the second, a woman searches her entire house for one lost coin. These stories demonstrate how it is God’s nature to search for the lost, and God rejoices when the lost are found. Jesus showed by eating with these people that even while they were lost and doing bad things, he still loved them.