Mat 18:11 For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.

This line echos the earlier version where Christ says that a person who tries to save his life will lose it. The terms for "lose" and "save" are the same. The term used for "come" is the same as Christ uses to describe the coming of heaven. This is important here because the topic of this chapter is heaven specifically regarding the role of children.

Heaven is the eternal meaning on which life is based and the other half of the ledger in which our actions on earth are balanced. Prior to Christ, the innocents of children and good which people do were lost. Christ's mission was to preserve that.

Alternative versions: The son of man is on his way to preserving that which was destroyed.

"Come" is from erchomai, which means "to come" and "to go." It means "to set out" and "to arrive at." It is a little like we use the phrase "he is on his way," which can mean either that he is coming or going with no direct reference to the position of the speaker.

"Save" is from sôizô, which means "to save from death," "to preserve," "to keep alive," "to keep in mind," and "remember."

"Lost" is from apollumi, which is a very string form of "to destroy," "to kill," "to slay," and "to lose." It means "to destroy utterly." It also means "to ruin" a woman.