1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,760 All right, Good morning. Good morning, Church. 2 00:00:03,960 --> 00:00:05,040 Good morning. Good morning. 3 00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:08,880 It is a good morning to be in the House of the Lord. 4 00:00:08,880 --> 00:00:12,800 You agree. Welcome to Illuminate Church. 5 00:00:12,800 --> 00:00:14,200 Welcome. If you're watching online, I'm 6 00:00:14,200 --> 00:00:18,760 glad you're here today. I honestly believe God is going 7 00:00:18,760 --> 00:00:21,000 to do something special today, and I hope you do too. 8 00:00:21,000 --> 00:00:25,200 That's what we're here for. We're in a series. 9 00:00:25,200 --> 00:00:27,040 Did I introduce myself yet? I'm Kim Tough. 10 00:00:27,040 --> 00:00:28,520 I'm one of the executive pastors. 11 00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:29,960 Illuminate Church. If we haven't met each other 12 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:32,880 yet, hope we do soon. Hope to get to know you. 13 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:37,160 But we're in a series on the parables of Jesus. 14 00:00:38,360 --> 00:00:44,040 And Jesus used parables to make the Kingdom of heaven understood 15 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:49,840 by those who heard the parable. So Jesus from heaven came to 16 00:00:49,840 --> 00:00:53,840 earth and he would teach the people, including us, because we 17 00:00:53,840 --> 00:00:57,840 have his word and say the Kingdom of heaven is like and he 18 00:00:57,840 --> 00:00:59,240 would teach us the Kingdom of heaven. 19 00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:03,520 And in fact the name of this series is the Kingdom revealed. 20 00:01:04,840 --> 00:01:10,280 And Jesus told us 46 parables in the gospels to teach us how the 21 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:13,800 Kingdom of heaven is so different than the Kingdom of 22 00:01:13,800 --> 00:01:17,600 this world. And the aim, the purpose of a 23 00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:23,000 parable, the reason Jesus told parables, was not just to 24 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:28,440 educate us or to tell us an interesting story or where we'd 25 00:01:28,440 --> 00:01:30,320 go. Wow, that Jesus is such an 26 00:01:30,320 --> 00:01:32,560 amazing story to that. Wow, that was deep. 27 00:01:32,560 --> 00:01:35,240 That is so cool. I mean, all those things are 28 00:01:35,240 --> 00:01:38,400 true, but that wasn't the purpose of a parable. 29 00:01:38,400 --> 00:01:40,160 It wasn't just a good moral lesson. 30 00:01:40,160 --> 00:01:47,480 The aim of a parable was then and is now, to transform how we 31 00:01:47,480 --> 00:01:52,320 understand the Kingdom of God so that we can change how we live 32 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:55,400 our lives now as a result of the understanding. 33 00:01:57,560 --> 00:02:02,520 And the Kingdom isn't a place or a location like a country or a 34 00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:06,800 territory. A Kingdom is wherever a King's 35 00:02:06,800 --> 00:02:09,440 authority is recognized and obeyed. 36 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:17,520 A Kingdom is anywhere where a king, a king is the king. 37 00:02:18,640 --> 00:02:23,400 And I'm not talking about Elvis, although not even close. 38 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:27,320 So when Jesus talked about the Kingdom of heaven, he wasn't 39 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:29,360 talking about a place we go and we die. 40 00:02:29,360 --> 00:02:31,840 He wasn't describing a place we go and we die. 41 00:02:31,920 --> 00:02:35,480 He wasn't talking about later. He was talking about here on 42 00:02:35,480 --> 00:02:40,040 earth right now. Matthew 417 Jesus said the 43 00:02:40,040 --> 00:02:44,320 Kingdom of heaven is at hand, and that hand literally means 44 00:02:44,320 --> 00:02:49,960 within reach or close by. And Jesus's goal of telling us 45 00:02:49,960 --> 00:02:54,160 the parables was to bring us the truth so that you and I 46 00:02:55,360 --> 00:02:58,000 understand what the Kingdom of heaven is like. 47 00:02:58,040 --> 00:03:00,240 And then invite us to make a decision. 48 00:03:01,520 --> 00:03:06,240 Which king will you follow? Which ruler will you obey? 49 00:03:06,840 --> 00:03:10,000 Which Kingdom are you part of now? 50 00:03:11,400 --> 00:03:14,280 And our invitation, our opportunity is to be part of and 51 00:03:14,280 --> 00:03:18,160 live by the Kingdom of heaven now in this life, not just when 52 00:03:18,160 --> 00:03:21,680 we die. Every parable wasn't just a 53 00:03:21,680 --> 00:03:24,280 teaching. Every parable, ask the listener, 54 00:03:24,280 --> 00:03:28,600 challenges the listener and says, now that you've heard 55 00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:32,240 this, now that you understand this, what will you do? 56 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:37,480 And I hope that's how you listen to the parable today, asking 57 00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:43,520 yourself, what will I do now that I understand every parable? 58 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:46,320 Jesus asked us the question, now that you understand this, will 59 00:03:46,320 --> 00:03:48,480 you choose to live by the Kingdom of heaven or will you 60 00:03:48,480 --> 00:03:52,080 choose or continue to live by the Kingdom of this world? 61 00:03:53,520 --> 00:03:56,200 And the Kingdom of this world is where we put anything other than 62 00:03:56,200 --> 00:04:00,600 God on the throne of our lives as the king. 63 00:04:00,640 --> 00:04:04,200 And most of the time, the king of this world isn't the things 64 00:04:04,200 --> 00:04:07,160 we usually think of. Success, money, fame, 65 00:04:07,160 --> 00:04:10,760 popularity, pleasure, comfort, all those things, those are 66 00:04:10,760 --> 00:04:13,680 usually symptoms of the first king in our lives. 67 00:04:14,200 --> 00:04:17,680 The most common king we have in our lives that we most often put 68 00:04:17,680 --> 00:04:23,480 before God is ourself, which is when we say, not usually with 69 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:26,280 words, but we say it. I'm the king of my life. 70 00:04:27,800 --> 00:04:31,920 I decide what's right for me. This is my life. 71 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:35,400 I do what I want to do. My will not. 72 00:04:35,400 --> 00:04:39,040 Thy will be done on earth but not in heaven. 73 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:44,880 And Jesus taught us that the live our lives when God is truly 74 00:04:44,880 --> 00:04:48,360 our King is very different. Jesus taught us the Kingdom of 75 00:04:48,360 --> 00:04:52,000 heaven is when we willingly place God's will before before 76 00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:57,200 our own will like Jesus did. And the Kingdom of heaven is 77 00:04:57,200 --> 00:05:00,960 here right now, today. For people who choose to 78 00:05:00,960 --> 00:05:06,040 recognize the lordship and kingship of Jesus, we can sing 79 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:10,360 songs like All Hail King Jesus, and that's great. 80 00:05:11,160 --> 00:05:14,720 But the question is, do we live our lives with Jesus as our 81 00:05:14,720 --> 00:05:18,600 king? So today we're sharing the 82 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:20,560 parable that many people have heard of. 83 00:05:20,560 --> 00:05:23,360 It's one of the more popular parables. 84 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:26,480 We've heard the story probably growing up in Sunday school, 85 00:05:26,720 --> 00:05:28,840 things like that. But it's the it's the prodigal 86 00:05:28,840 --> 00:05:31,960 of the prodigal son, the parable of the prodigal son. 87 00:05:33,760 --> 00:05:38,120 And I know that when I say that the risk is my concern is that 88 00:05:38,120 --> 00:05:41,520 some people will say, oh, I've heard that one. 89 00:05:41,800 --> 00:05:45,440 I know that one. What I would say this morning is 90 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:48,840 even to you who heard that one or know that one, see what fresh 91 00:05:48,840 --> 00:05:52,680 word God has for you today. I believe God has something new 92 00:05:53,440 --> 00:05:55,360 fresh bread for every single one of us. 93 00:05:55,360 --> 00:05:58,520 If we open our ears, open our hearts, open our minds. 94 00:06:00,680 --> 00:06:04,680 So today we're talking about the prodigal son. 95 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:07,640 Today's message is called is titled come home. 96 00:06:08,680 --> 00:06:11,720 And this morning we're in the book of Luke chapter 15. 97 00:06:11,720 --> 00:06:14,640 So if you have your Bibles, turn to the book of Luke. 98 00:06:14,640 --> 00:06:19,040 It's in the New Testament third book, Matthew Mark Luke chapter 99 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:21,760 15. If you need a Bible, raise your 100 00:06:21,760 --> 00:06:23,200 hand and usher will bring one to you. 101 00:06:23,800 --> 00:06:27,560 Anybody want a Bible need a Bible You can use it for today. 102 00:06:27,560 --> 00:06:28,800 You can keep it. Take it home. 103 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:30,520 You're you're more than we would love to bless you. 104 00:06:30,520 --> 00:06:32,080 If you want a Bible, take it home with you. 105 00:06:33,120 --> 00:06:38,040 But we're in Luke chapter 15. And before I read to you the 106 00:06:38,040 --> 00:06:41,720 prodigal son story, I wanted to set the context. 107 00:06:41,720 --> 00:06:45,640 I want to paint the picture of what's going on, visualize the 108 00:06:45,640 --> 00:06:47,600 scene. Because obviously Jesus tells 109 00:06:47,600 --> 00:06:49,040 this parable, but who's he talking to? 110 00:06:49,200 --> 00:06:51,920 Who's, Who's around him? Who is he talking to? 111 00:06:51,920 --> 00:06:53,440 His disciples? Is he talking to who? 112 00:06:54,960 --> 00:06:59,600 Because if we picture a story in our minds, it's much more 113 00:06:59,600 --> 00:07:01,440 impactful than if we just hear it. 114 00:07:01,440 --> 00:07:05,880 You know what I'm saying? So the story of the prodigal son 115 00:07:05,880 --> 00:07:08,880 is in verses 11 through 32 of chapter 15. 116 00:07:08,880 --> 00:07:12,720 But chapter 15 starts out explaining the scene in verses 1 117 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:15,000 and 2. This is what Luke 15, verses one 118 00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:18,320 and two says. It says now the tax collectors 119 00:07:18,320 --> 00:07:20,640 and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 120 00:07:20,640 --> 00:07:23,440 There was there was people, normal people just gathering 121 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:25,200 around. They wanted to be near Jesus. 122 00:07:25,200 --> 00:07:26,240 They would hear what he had to say. 123 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:32,600 But the Pharisees and teachers of the law muttered, this man 124 00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:38,480 welcomes sinners and eats with them, muttered literally means 125 00:07:38,480 --> 00:07:43,320 they grumbled their disapproval, they were grumbling, they were 126 00:07:43,320 --> 00:07:46,440 standing around also. So you had the regular people 127 00:07:46,440 --> 00:07:49,280 and you had the teachers of the law, the Pharisees, the 128 00:07:49,280 --> 00:07:52,960 religious leaders. So this scene is Jesus is 129 00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:56,000 surrounded by non religious people, normal people, regular 130 00:07:56,000 --> 00:07:58,760 people and also present were the religious people. 131 00:07:58,760 --> 00:08:02,480 Both groups were listening and the religious people in their 132 00:08:02,480 --> 00:08:05,320 minds, their opinions, they are the good people. 133 00:08:06,160 --> 00:08:08,240 They're the good team. They're the good size. 134 00:08:08,240 --> 00:08:12,600 They're they're wearing the white cowboy riding the White 135 00:08:12,600 --> 00:08:13,800 Horse. You don't talk about they, they 136 00:08:13,800 --> 00:08:18,240 were the the good team, the good guys and the people not like 137 00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:20,240 them in their minds were not good. 138 00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:26,720 In fact, they called them the sinners and the religious people 139 00:08:27,280 --> 00:08:29,880 didn't really understand this Jesus guy because here they were 140 00:08:29,880 --> 00:08:33,600 the people worthy to, you know, to listen to this interesting 141 00:08:33,600 --> 00:08:36,840 teaching that Jesus was giving. But here he had the normal 142 00:08:36,840 --> 00:08:39,799 people hanging around too. And they were like, I don't 143 00:08:39,799 --> 00:08:42,760 understand why this Jesus guy even invites those people. 144 00:08:44,000 --> 00:08:46,600 Why would he eat with bad people, unholy people? 145 00:08:46,600 --> 00:08:48,000 He seems happy that they're here. 146 00:08:48,000 --> 00:08:51,520 Why doesn't he shoo them off, get go away. 147 00:08:52,680 --> 00:08:56,360 It's like he welcomes them. He includes them and they were 148 00:08:56,360 --> 00:09:01,240 literally confused and the answer to their confusion they 149 00:09:01,240 --> 00:09:05,000 had, especially in today's parable is because God's heart 150 00:09:05,440 --> 00:09:07,960 is to seek and save what is lost. 151 00:09:09,440 --> 00:09:11,720 And let me tell you a truth this morning, we'll get to more of 152 00:09:11,720 --> 00:09:13,800 this later, but God loves all people. 153 00:09:15,040 --> 00:09:19,440 God loves all people regardless of what they do, regardless of 154 00:09:19,440 --> 00:09:23,640 their religion, regardless of their age, regardless of where 155 00:09:23,640 --> 00:09:28,160 they live in the world. God loves all people and his 156 00:09:28,160 --> 00:09:33,960 desire is that all people would choose to be saved, would choose 157 00:09:33,960 --> 00:09:38,920 to receive Jesus as their savior because that's how our sins are 158 00:09:38,920 --> 00:09:42,360 atoned. Second Peter 39, you don't have 159 00:09:42,360 --> 00:09:43,840 to go there. It'll be on the screen. 160 00:09:43,840 --> 00:09:48,320 Stay in Luke 15 but it says the Lord is not slow to fulfill his 161 00:09:48,320 --> 00:09:52,360 promise, as some count slowness, but is patient towards you, not 162 00:09:52,360 --> 00:09:56,640 wishing that any should perish, say any, not wishing that any 163 00:09:56,640 --> 00:10:02,880 should perish, but that all say all, but that all should reach 164 00:10:02,880 --> 00:10:06,720 repentance. His desire is that all, all 165 00:10:06,720 --> 00:10:12,440 humanity, all the world would reach a a repentance because He 166 00:10:12,440 --> 00:10:16,480 loves all people. And His hope, His desire is that 167 00:10:16,480 --> 00:10:18,080 all people would choose to repent. 168 00:10:18,920 --> 00:10:21,520 All people would choose to turn to Jesus to receive him as 169 00:10:21,520 --> 00:10:26,120 Savior because what Jesus did on the cross is enough for all 170 00:10:26,120 --> 00:10:29,640 people and all means all and all is all. 171 00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:34,720 All means something like that. And the Pharisees believe now 172 00:10:34,720 --> 00:10:36,160 that they had a different, they had a different belief. 173 00:10:36,160 --> 00:10:39,960 They believe the favor of God was earned by following the 174 00:10:39,960 --> 00:10:44,280 rules, by, by obeying the law and they knew what the law was. 175 00:10:44,600 --> 00:10:47,480 And some of these other people weren't as good as them at 176 00:10:47,480 --> 00:10:52,320 following all the rules. And they believed the holy 177 00:10:52,320 --> 00:10:54,600 people like themselves were better. 178 00:10:54,760 --> 00:10:57,840 They really believed that and that they should separate 179 00:10:57,840 --> 00:11:00,520 themselves from the unholy people, the sinners. 180 00:11:01,440 --> 00:11:04,080 And here was Jesus hanging out with those people who didn't 181 00:11:04,080 --> 00:11:07,240 qualify as perfect people, righteous people. 182 00:11:07,240 --> 00:11:10,280 They were normal, regular, everyday people. 183 00:11:10,280 --> 00:11:13,040 Can you relate to that? They weren't like the Pharisees. 184 00:11:14,360 --> 00:11:17,360 So Jesus replied to them. He tells these three parables 185 00:11:17,360 --> 00:11:20,520 we're going to go through this morning mainly directed to the 186 00:11:20,520 --> 00:11:22,520 Pharisees, but there are other people gathered around 187 00:11:22,520 --> 00:11:23,880 listening. But he was addressing this 188 00:11:23,880 --> 00:11:28,440 mainly to the Pharisees who were listening with three parables 189 00:11:28,440 --> 00:11:30,760 about things that were lost and then found first. 190 00:11:32,240 --> 00:11:35,160 And Luke chapter 15, verses 3 through 7 is the parable of the 191 00:11:35,160 --> 00:11:39,280 lost sheep. It says if a man has 100 sheep 192 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:45,920 and one is lost, he loses 1. He leaves the 99 to go after, to 193 00:11:45,920 --> 00:11:50,480 seek after to the one, and when he finds it, he lays it on his 194 00:11:50,480 --> 00:11:57,360 shoulders rejoicing. He doesn't say too bad, don't 195 00:11:57,360 --> 00:11:59,400 care about you if you want to run off and get eaten by the 196 00:11:59,400 --> 00:12:04,560 wolves, your decision. He goes after the one who's lost 197 00:12:04,560 --> 00:12:09,240 and when he finds it rejoices. Then in Luke 15, eight through 198 00:12:09,240 --> 00:12:12,160 10, he tells the next parable of of the lost coin. 199 00:12:13,800 --> 00:12:18,840 Jesus said if a woman has 10 coins and loses 1, she searches 200 00:12:19,240 --> 00:12:24,280 for the 1 and sweeps the house and rejoices when she finds it. 201 00:12:25,920 --> 00:12:30,000 In verse 10 of chapter 15, Jesus said, I tell you there is joy 202 00:12:30,000 --> 00:12:34,040 before the angels of God over 1 Sinner who repents. 203 00:12:34,040 --> 00:12:37,760 When 1 Sinner repents, there's a party, there's a celebration 204 00:12:38,120 --> 00:12:44,200 going on in heaven. Jesus said it, then immediately 205 00:12:44,200 --> 00:12:48,440 after telling the story of the lost sheep, the lost coin, he 206 00:12:48,440 --> 00:12:53,320 tells the story of the lost son, the prodigal son, and the reason 207 00:12:53,320 --> 00:12:55,880 he tells 3 parables. He's actually making three 208 00:12:55,880 --> 00:12:57,680 different points about the heart of God. 209 00:12:57,680 --> 00:13:02,360 The lost sheep shows us God actively pursues, seeks, and 210 00:13:02,360 --> 00:13:04,720 goes after what is lost. He doesn't give up on it. 211 00:13:04,920 --> 00:13:08,840 He doesn't not care anymore. He cares about the one. 212 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:13,680 The lost coin shows the US the value of what's lost. 213 00:13:13,680 --> 00:13:19,160 Notice the coin never lost its value even when it was lost. 214 00:13:21,120 --> 00:13:24,440 And the lost son shows us the Father longs to restore his 215 00:13:24,440 --> 00:13:28,520 relationship with the lost. He doesn't stop loving who is 216 00:13:28,520 --> 00:13:32,160 lost. And the main point of the three 217 00:13:32,160 --> 00:13:34,200 parables isn't the item that's lost. 218 00:13:34,200 --> 00:13:37,160 It's the attitude in the heart of the one who seeks and finds. 219 00:13:39,160 --> 00:13:43,080 So this story told by Jesus in Luke 1511 through 32. 220 00:13:43,920 --> 00:13:45,720 The religious leaders are standing there. 221 00:13:46,920 --> 00:13:52,520 I picture them like this arms crossed, smug, arrogant, 222 00:13:53,480 --> 00:13:55,520 murmuring to each other. Jesus guy. 223 00:13:56,920 --> 00:14:03,080 He's not he he allows those we would never all smug, arrogant. 224 00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:05,680 I picture them kind of like shaking their heads and disgust 225 00:14:05,680 --> 00:14:08,520 like, you know, he's feeling better then if you ever golf 226 00:14:08,520 --> 00:14:10,160 with Pastor Tim, it's just like that. 227 00:14:11,840 --> 00:14:13,800 He knows he's better. Unless he's golfing with Owen. 228 00:14:15,480 --> 00:14:16,840 He's not. He's not like that. 229 00:14:16,840 --> 00:14:20,120 I'm kidding. He's a great, but he knows he's 230 00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:23,120 he's a good golf anyway. I feel like that if you go, it's 231 00:14:23,520 --> 00:14:26,800 like your ball goes that way and you look at the other people and 232 00:14:26,800 --> 00:14:32,200 they're like, it's a good swing, just not a good hit. 233 00:14:34,080 --> 00:14:36,520 And Jesus tells them this story. I'm going to read to you the 234 00:14:36,520 --> 00:14:38,480 story of the prodigal son. It's a bit long. 235 00:14:38,480 --> 00:14:41,840 It's 22 verses long. Can you stay with me? 236 00:14:42,400 --> 00:14:45,720 Can you follow along? Because I want you to visualize 237 00:14:45,720 --> 00:14:47,160 this story. Don't just hear it. 238 00:14:47,840 --> 00:14:50,200 Picture it like a movie in your mind. 239 00:14:50,200 --> 00:14:52,800 Picture this story with me as I read it. 240 00:14:52,800 --> 00:14:57,520 Will you do that? Luke, chapter 15, verse 11. 241 00:14:57,840 --> 00:14:59,920 Here we go. Are you ready to say yes? 242 00:14:59,920 --> 00:15:04,840 Yes, and he, Jesus said there was a man who had two sons. 243 00:15:05,960 --> 00:15:09,040 Are you with me? So you're sticking with me, a 244 00:15:09,040 --> 00:15:11,320 man, Two sons with me. So far we're good. 245 00:15:11,320 --> 00:15:15,160 You can picture this. And the younger of them said to 246 00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:18,240 his father, Father, give me the share of property that is coming 247 00:15:18,240 --> 00:15:20,680 to me. And he divided his property 248 00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:24,440 between them two sons. Not many days later, the younger 249 00:15:24,440 --> 00:15:27,360 son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country. 250 00:15:27,360 --> 00:15:32,880 And there, eek, he squandered his property in reckless living. 251 00:15:32,880 --> 00:15:34,760 Now one translation says wild living. 252 00:15:34,760 --> 00:15:36,440 You can kind of picture what we're talking about. 253 00:15:37,920 --> 00:15:42,200 He was attempting to have a good time, and when he had spent 254 00:15:42,200 --> 00:15:44,960 everything, a severe famine arose across the country and he 255 00:15:44,960 --> 00:15:48,960 began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out 256 00:15:48,960 --> 00:15:51,120 to one of the citizens of the country, who sent him into the 257 00:15:51,120 --> 00:15:53,280 field to feed his pigs. Now, that sounds like a 258 00:15:53,280 --> 00:15:57,040 glamorous job, but not for a Jewish young man. 259 00:15:57,040 --> 00:15:59,080 OK, That's just not. That's probably like, the worst 260 00:15:59,080 --> 00:16:00,760 job you can have. Not exactly fun. 261 00:16:01,920 --> 00:16:04,880 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate. 262 00:16:05,800 --> 00:16:08,200 He was so hungry. He's like, that doesn't look 263 00:16:08,200 --> 00:16:11,640 bad. And no one gave him anything. 264 00:16:11,640 --> 00:16:13,360 So this guy's hungry. Are you with me? 265 00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:17,160 You're following the story. And when he came to himself, 266 00:16:17,160 --> 00:16:18,520 this is the key. This is a turning point. 267 00:16:18,520 --> 00:16:22,960 Another translation says, when he came to his senses, he said, 268 00:16:22,960 --> 00:16:26,040 How many of my father's hired servants have more been up, more 269 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:28,000 than enough bread. But I perish here with hunger. 270 00:16:28,920 --> 00:16:31,000 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, 271 00:16:31,000 --> 00:16:33,680 Father, I have sinned against heaven before and before you. 272 00:16:34,000 --> 00:16:37,880 I am no longer worthy to be called your son, so treat me as 273 00:16:37,880 --> 00:16:41,440 one of your hired servants. And he arose and came to his 274 00:16:41,440 --> 00:16:44,200 father, But while he was still a long ways off, his father saw 275 00:16:44,200 --> 00:16:48,240 him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him 276 00:16:48,240 --> 00:16:49,440 again. Are you seeing this picture? 277 00:16:50,040 --> 00:16:53,480 The Father runs to the Son, He sees him, he runs to him, 278 00:16:54,120 --> 00:16:56,520 hugging him, embracing him, kissing him. 279 00:16:57,800 --> 00:17:01,200 And the father went into or the son went into the speech that he 280 00:17:01,200 --> 00:17:02,960 had prepared. He was ready. 281 00:17:04,000 --> 00:17:08,920 He said, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 282 00:17:08,920 --> 00:17:11,119 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. 283 00:17:11,119 --> 00:17:14,359 But the Father said to his servants, bring quickly the best 284 00:17:14,359 --> 00:17:17,880 robe and put it on, and put a ring on his hand and shoes on 285 00:17:17,880 --> 00:17:21,920 his feet, and bring the fattened calf and kill it and let us eat 286 00:17:21,920 --> 00:17:25,880 and celebrate. For this my son was dead and of 287 00:17:25,880 --> 00:17:28,040 alive again. He was lost and is found. 288 00:17:28,040 --> 00:17:32,320 And they began to celebrate. Wasn't what his son expected. 289 00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:36,200 Now the older son, the one who had stayed with the father, was 290 00:17:36,200 --> 00:17:37,640 in the field. And he came. 291 00:17:37,840 --> 00:17:40,920 And as he came, he drew near to the house and he heard music and 292 00:17:40,920 --> 00:17:43,360 dancing. And he was like, what is going 293 00:17:43,400 --> 00:17:45,480 on? Today's a regular work day. 294 00:17:46,560 --> 00:17:48,240 There's some kind of party going on. 295 00:17:49,600 --> 00:17:51,680 And he called to one of his servants and asked what these 296 00:17:51,680 --> 00:17:53,560 things mean. And he said, your brother has 297 00:17:53,560 --> 00:17:57,600 come and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has 298 00:17:57,600 --> 00:17:59,320 received him back safe and sound. 299 00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:04,440 But he, the older brother, was angry and refused to go in. 300 00:18:05,880 --> 00:18:07,920 His father came out and entreated him. 301 00:18:07,920 --> 00:18:09,240 I had to look up what entreated means. 302 00:18:09,240 --> 00:18:13,680 It means pleaded with the father, came out and pleaded 303 00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:14,800 with him, but he answered his father. 304 00:18:14,800 --> 00:18:18,680 Look, these many years I have served you, and I never 305 00:18:18,680 --> 00:18:23,200 disobeyed your command really. Yet you never gave me a young 306 00:18:23,200 --> 00:18:25,240 goat that I might celebrate with my friends. 307 00:18:26,240 --> 00:18:29,680 But when this son of yours came, who, in case you forgot, 308 00:18:29,920 --> 00:18:33,600 devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed a 309 00:18:33,600 --> 00:18:37,680 fattened calf for him. And he said to him, son, you are 310 00:18:37,680 --> 00:18:39,840 always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 311 00:18:39,840 --> 00:18:43,160 And it was fitting and right to celebrate and be glad. 312 00:18:43,160 --> 00:18:45,720 For your brother was dead and is alive. 313 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:49,120 He was lost and is found. That's the parable. 314 00:18:49,120 --> 00:18:51,480 Did you, did you see that in your minds as we read it this 315 00:18:51,480 --> 00:18:54,840 morning? So this story has three main 316 00:18:54,840 --> 00:18:59,080 characters, three people we can relate to, the father and the 317 00:18:59,080 --> 00:19:00,320 two sons. And we're going to talk about 318 00:19:00,320 --> 00:19:03,120 all three this morning. We can kind of in some ways 319 00:19:03,120 --> 00:19:05,160 relate to all three. I hope there's there's something 320 00:19:05,160 --> 00:19:08,400 to learn from all three. The first one we're going to 321 00:19:08,400 --> 00:19:12,720 look at is the prodigal son. The word prodigal. 322 00:19:13,280 --> 00:19:15,160 I don't know that I really fully understood this before. 323 00:19:15,160 --> 00:19:18,000 I used to kind of think like it. I knew it meant something not 324 00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:22,280 good, but I thought it meant like foolish or one who ran away 325 00:19:22,600 --> 00:19:25,680 or one who, you know, whatever. I thought it meant one who 326 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:27,240 returns home, something like that. 327 00:19:28,000 --> 00:19:31,560 But the word prodigal literally means wasteful. 328 00:19:32,320 --> 00:19:34,240 It was talking about how he handled his money. 329 00:19:35,920 --> 00:19:38,800 The word prodigal means careless with money or tending to 330 00:19:38,800 --> 00:19:43,120 squander resources. It'd be like the guy who calls 331 00:19:43,120 --> 00:19:45,560 up Dave Ramsey. You ever listen to Dave Ramsey? 332 00:19:46,400 --> 00:19:48,960 The worst ones are always on Instagram. 333 00:19:50,040 --> 00:19:54,080 I was like, I got like a million in credit card debt amusement. 334 00:19:55,920 --> 00:19:59,520 How did you manage to do that? But it's the kind of guy who 335 00:19:59,520 --> 00:20:01,320 calls Dave Ramsey. If you picture this, this is 336 00:20:01,320 --> 00:20:05,880 this is what prodigal means. And he says, hey Dave, how are 337 00:20:05,880 --> 00:20:09,840 you? And let me do my he says better 338 00:20:09,840 --> 00:20:11,160 than I deserve. How can I help you? 339 00:20:14,080 --> 00:20:17,520 And he said, hey Dave, I'm going to pickle. 340 00:20:17,600 --> 00:20:19,760 I need some advice. I have about 80,000 in credit 341 00:20:19,760 --> 00:20:21,640 card debt, maybe more, maybe 100,000. 342 00:20:22,600 --> 00:20:24,480 My rent takes half my take home pay. 343 00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:27,920 I have a nice car but I got a big car loan. 344 00:20:28,400 --> 00:20:32,520 Motorcycle loans, school loans and I didn't finish school and 345 00:20:32,520 --> 00:20:36,400 Yolo. I just bought a new boat on I 346 00:20:36,400 --> 00:20:38,240 mean, you only live once. God, enjoy life. 347 00:20:38,240 --> 00:20:42,320 I bought a new boat on credit and now I'm in the bind. 348 00:20:42,320 --> 00:20:44,720 I I don't know what to do. I don't have enough money to 349 00:20:44,720 --> 00:20:46,120 make all my pay. What what should I do? 350 00:20:46,760 --> 00:20:50,880 And if you know Dave, he'd probably be quiet and he would 351 00:20:50,880 --> 00:20:54,600 just like shape me. But he's thinking, what an 352 00:20:54,600 --> 00:20:59,040 idiot, what a fool, what a fool. When it comes to money. 353 00:20:59,040 --> 00:21:01,600 He's right. I mean, I was like, you got to 354 00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:07,240 try hard to be that that bad. But hey, some people do it 355 00:21:07,800 --> 00:21:09,800 anyway. That's what prodigal means. 356 00:21:09,800 --> 00:21:12,600 And the prodigal son story is he's the youngest son and he 357 00:21:12,600 --> 00:21:15,840 comes to his father and he says, hey, Dad Pops, let's talk. 358 00:21:17,440 --> 00:21:19,920 I would like my inheritance now. I don't want to wait till I'm 359 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:21,840 old. Is there any way you can give me 360 00:21:21,840 --> 00:21:23,840 my inheritance now? Because I don't want to wait. 361 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:27,400 Show me the money. Let's go. 362 00:21:27,680 --> 00:21:30,880 If you can give me my money now instead of later, give me my 363 00:21:30,960 --> 00:21:34,120 money now. And the story says he wanted the 364 00:21:34,120 --> 00:21:36,680 money, but the money wasn't what he really wanted. 365 00:21:36,680 --> 00:21:39,560 What he really wanted was what the money he thought could give 366 00:21:39,560 --> 00:21:44,080 him, which was freedom. He wanted independence from his 367 00:21:44,080 --> 00:21:47,680 father. He wanted to make his own rules, 368 00:21:48,200 --> 00:21:51,080 have a good time by his own terms, his own rules. 369 00:21:51,280 --> 00:21:56,240 Get out of this father's oppression, telling me what to 370 00:21:56,240 --> 00:21:58,600 do, controlling me, setting all the rules. 371 00:21:58,600 --> 00:22:02,800 I want to live my own life. So the younger son wanted to go 372 00:22:02,800 --> 00:22:04,160 his own way. I don't want to follow your 373 00:22:04,160 --> 00:22:05,680 rules. I want to have fun, enjoy life, 374 00:22:05,680 --> 00:22:10,840 be free, see ya peace out. And he had all the money he 375 00:22:10,840 --> 00:22:13,720 needed to have a good time, really enjoy life. 376 00:22:14,240 --> 00:22:18,360 His inheritance was in his hand. He had everything he needed to 377 00:22:18,360 --> 00:22:22,040 really enjoy life, right? But what did he find? 378 00:22:23,040 --> 00:22:31,560 Pain, shame, guilt, emptiness. He found he what he found was a 379 00:22:31,560 --> 00:22:34,040 dissatisfying and disappointing life. 380 00:22:35,440 --> 00:22:37,400 And there's a reason for it. And listen close. 381 00:22:38,000 --> 00:22:43,320 The reason is the bait of sin always hides the trap of the 382 00:22:43,320 --> 00:22:48,600 consequences. The Father's rules that the Son 383 00:22:48,600 --> 00:22:52,280 thought was confining and restricting was actually 384 00:22:52,440 --> 00:22:55,360 protecting and loving and life giving. 385 00:22:57,600 --> 00:23:01,840 But sin promises freedom and delivers slavery. 386 00:23:02,920 --> 00:23:05,400 Satan has a pattern for temptation and sin. 387 00:23:05,800 --> 00:23:08,200 And tell me you, you can just think to yourself, have you 388 00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:10,200 ever, have you ever thought, have you ever experienced this 389 00:23:10,200 --> 00:23:11,920 before? You don't have to raise your 390 00:23:11,920 --> 00:23:13,200 hand. You don't have to say anything, 391 00:23:13,200 --> 00:23:15,520 but tell me. Just just tell me if you agree 392 00:23:15,520 --> 00:23:17,360 with me, if you ever experienced this first. 393 00:23:17,360 --> 00:23:20,440 The pattern for temptation and sin is Satan tempts us. 394 00:23:20,440 --> 00:23:24,240 God does not tempt us. Satan tempt us with with 395 00:23:24,240 --> 00:23:26,800 thoughts like nobody's going to know. 396 00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:30,760 Everybody does this. This is 2026. 397 00:23:30,760 --> 00:23:35,240 It's normal these days. It's not that big of a deal. 398 00:23:35,240 --> 00:23:38,880 We're not talking about murder and you deserve this. 399 00:23:39,360 --> 00:23:42,400 You'll enjoy this. It'll make you feel better, the 400 00:23:42,400 --> 00:23:46,480 stress, whatever. But #2 Satan fails to warn us. 401 00:23:47,680 --> 00:23:51,040 He fails to warn us in advance and gives us no reminder of the 402 00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:53,680 consequences. He never mentions the pain 403 00:23:53,680 --> 00:23:58,160 ahead, the regret ahead, the consequences ahead, and then the 404 00:23:58,160 --> 00:24:03,000 Satan returns as the accuser. Look what you've chose to do. 405 00:24:04,480 --> 00:24:09,880 Look what you've done. You are not a good person, to 406 00:24:09,880 --> 00:24:12,240 say the least. You are a failure, a 407 00:24:12,240 --> 00:24:15,280 disappointment. You're weak, you can't even 408 00:24:15,280 --> 00:24:18,880 control yourself. You call yourself a Christian. 409 00:24:20,600 --> 00:24:23,400 God will never forgive you and you will never change. 410 00:24:26,320 --> 00:24:27,520 And the story of the prodigal son. 411 00:24:27,520 --> 00:24:30,120 The younger son listened to the promise, the allure of our 412 00:24:30,120 --> 00:24:32,040 country, and it sounded great. It sounded fun. 413 00:24:32,040 --> 00:24:35,040 It sounded exciting. It sounded better than his 414 00:24:35,040 --> 00:24:39,160 father's house. But nobody told him about the 415 00:24:39,160 --> 00:24:42,680 pigpen. Nobody told him there might be 416 00:24:42,680 --> 00:24:45,200 famine. Nobody said anything about 417 00:24:45,200 --> 00:24:47,200 hunger. Nobody mentioned shame. 418 00:24:49,120 --> 00:24:53,520 The far country in our lives is all the other ways, all the 419 00:24:53,520 --> 00:24:55,800 other ways other than abiding in God. 420 00:24:55,800 --> 00:25:01,320 The Father's house with him looks like freedom, but ends in 421 00:25:01,320 --> 00:25:06,640 slavery and pain. Because the enemy will gladly 422 00:25:06,640 --> 00:25:10,680 help you into the pigpen, gladly help you into the mess, but he 423 00:25:10,680 --> 00:25:15,600 will never help you out. And many people can relate to 424 00:25:15,600 --> 00:25:18,640 this guy, the prodigal son. He's messed up. 425 00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:23,320 He's he's made some choices away from God, his own choices. 426 00:25:23,320 --> 00:25:26,320 And he's like, now he's experiencing the consequences. 427 00:25:27,480 --> 00:25:31,640 And some of us, we've chosen by the decisions we make in life to 428 00:25:31,640 --> 00:25:34,520 be farther than we should be from God. 429 00:25:35,480 --> 00:25:36,800 Some people are maybe way over there. 430 00:25:36,800 --> 00:25:39,600 Some people are just like, I want to live in my own house on 431 00:25:39,600 --> 00:25:41,480 the property, but kind of like have freedom. 432 00:25:43,000 --> 00:25:44,760 But you know, you're still close by. 433 00:25:45,840 --> 00:25:51,960 I'll come visit you on Sundays when the prodigal son says I am 434 00:25:51,960 --> 00:25:54,000 no longer worthy to be called your son. 435 00:25:54,000 --> 00:25:57,920 And we can relate to that. If you've ever thought something 436 00:25:57,920 --> 00:26:02,720 like God has to be angry with me, he's disappointed with me, 437 00:26:02,720 --> 00:26:06,600 my life, the choices I've made. God's not going to welcome me 438 00:26:06,600 --> 00:26:09,680 back, back with all the dumb things I've done, all the dumb 439 00:26:09,680 --> 00:26:12,760 decisions. And because of that thinking, 440 00:26:12,760 --> 00:26:16,720 the result of believing that lie, deception by the deceiver. 441 00:26:17,880 --> 00:26:23,360 People who believe that tend to stay away from home, away from 442 00:26:23,360 --> 00:26:26,120 God, away from church, and even away from other godly people 443 00:26:26,120 --> 00:26:33,680 because they're uncomfortable. It's like, so they ignore it, 444 00:26:33,680 --> 00:26:37,200 They stay away and that's because they believe a lie. 445 00:26:37,200 --> 00:26:39,680 What they believe is I'm too far gone from God. 446 00:26:39,680 --> 00:26:44,480 I have made too many mistakes. My, my past is too bad. 447 00:26:45,720 --> 00:26:49,560 I've made dumb choices that I regret. 448 00:26:51,000 --> 00:26:53,360 And the people at church, they don't, they don't know what I've 449 00:26:53,360 --> 00:26:54,880 done. I mean, they seem to have their 450 00:26:54,880 --> 00:26:57,560 lives together, but me, I'm my, I'm my mess. 451 00:26:58,960 --> 00:27:02,440 I need to get my life together and then go to church. 452 00:27:05,080 --> 00:27:08,520 But Jesus showed us that belief is the exact opposite of the 453 00:27:08,520 --> 00:27:10,840 heart of God in the heart of the Father. 454 00:27:10,840 --> 00:27:14,200 Amen. The second person we can look at 455 00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:16,440 in the story is the other son. Some people call him the 456 00:27:16,440 --> 00:27:17,440 faithful Son. Why? 457 00:27:17,440 --> 00:27:19,840 Because he didn't run off, He stayed. 458 00:27:19,840 --> 00:27:21,280 He didn't run away from the Father. 459 00:27:22,320 --> 00:27:25,760 So because he didn't run away from the Father, he believed he 460 00:27:25,760 --> 00:27:31,120 had done quote nothing wrong. He believed that he was good. 461 00:27:31,840 --> 00:27:34,120 He wasn't a bad person like his foolish brother. 462 00:27:35,920 --> 00:27:39,520 He told his father, father, he proudly told his father, I never 463 00:27:39,520 --> 00:27:43,080 disobeyed your commands. I followed all your rules. 464 00:27:43,080 --> 00:27:45,080 So therefore I am the good one here. 465 00:27:45,160 --> 00:27:49,000 That other son of yours, not so much. 466 00:27:50,280 --> 00:27:53,040 But those words and his actions when his brother came home that 467 00:27:53,040 --> 00:27:56,680 he refused to celebrate reveal to us his faults. 468 00:27:58,440 --> 00:28:00,600 In fact, when his brother came home, he didn't even call him 469 00:28:00,600 --> 00:28:02,120 his brother. He had disowned him. 470 00:28:02,880 --> 00:28:08,560 He said to his father, that son of yours and say that foolish 471 00:28:08,560 --> 00:28:10,520 brother, he said, that son of yours, he's no longer my 472 00:28:10,520 --> 00:28:13,880 brother. He was angry. 473 00:28:13,880 --> 00:28:15,360 He refused to join the celebration. 474 00:28:15,360 --> 00:28:19,280 But if the faithful brother was as good as he thought he was, if 475 00:28:19,280 --> 00:28:22,720 he truly had a heart like his father, he wouldn't have been 476 00:28:22,720 --> 00:28:24,120 angry. He would have been the first one 477 00:28:24,120 --> 00:28:28,640 to join the celebration that his lost brother had now come home. 478 00:28:28,640 --> 00:28:33,080 So one brother was rebellious, but the other brother was 479 00:28:33,080 --> 00:28:37,320 self-righteous. One brother struggled with 480 00:28:37,320 --> 00:28:41,400 prostitutes, the other brother struggled with pride. 481 00:28:43,440 --> 00:28:46,040 And if we, the church, if we have a heart like our father, if 482 00:28:46,040 --> 00:28:49,760 we understand this parable, we should be the first ones to 483 00:28:49,760 --> 00:28:51,880 welcome anyone at our door with open arms. 484 00:28:53,520 --> 00:28:56,280 When someone who's lost is now returning home, we should be the 485 00:28:56,280 --> 00:29:01,080 first ones to celebrate, to congratulate, to hug, to welcome 486 00:29:01,840 --> 00:29:04,680 someone home. Amen. 487 00:29:06,480 --> 00:29:09,400 The third person of the story, third of three, three people, 488 00:29:09,600 --> 00:29:13,920 Part number 3, taking notes. The third person in this story 489 00:29:13,920 --> 00:29:16,520 is probably the person this parable is most about, and it's 490 00:29:16,520 --> 00:29:19,600 the loving father. In fact, your Bible has what's 491 00:29:19,600 --> 00:29:22,400 called section headings. It'll say like the lost coin, 492 00:29:22,400 --> 00:29:24,760 the lost sheep, that I mean, they're, that they're not from 493 00:29:24,760 --> 00:29:26,560 the original transcript. They were added later so we 494 00:29:26,560 --> 00:29:30,560 could find things easier. Some people think the story of 495 00:29:30,560 --> 00:29:35,480 the prodigal son should be called the loving father or the 496 00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:38,760 forgiving Father or the waiting father, but I think they 497 00:29:38,760 --> 00:29:44,440 determined that lost sheep, lost coin, lost son had a better 498 00:29:45,600 --> 00:29:47,160 whatever. But it's really about the 499 00:29:47,160 --> 00:29:49,640 father. And let me ask you a question. 500 00:29:49,640 --> 00:29:52,360 Have you ever wondered or thought about what your heavenly 501 00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:55,960 Father is really like? What does God really like? 502 00:29:55,960 --> 00:29:57,840 What does he, what does he really feel about me? 503 00:29:58,480 --> 00:30:00,920 Does he really love me? Am I lovable? 504 00:30:01,680 --> 00:30:05,560 Do I have I earned it? Am I worthy of his love? 505 00:30:06,520 --> 00:30:08,240 What's he really like? What's his heart, his nature, 506 00:30:08,240 --> 00:30:10,120 his character? If you've ever wondered what God 507 00:30:10,120 --> 00:30:12,840 is like you, you can you can find out. 508 00:30:13,360 --> 00:30:17,840 The 1st place we can look is look at Jesus in John chapter 509 00:30:17,840 --> 00:30:19,760 14. John was talking or Jesus was 510 00:30:19,760 --> 00:30:21,360 talking to one of his disciples, Philip. 511 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:25,640 The disciples had been following Jesus for about 3 years at this 512 00:30:25,640 --> 00:30:26,800 point. It was getting towards the end 513 00:30:26,800 --> 00:30:32,760 of Jesus's ministry, and Philip was like, Jesus, we've seen you 514 00:30:32,760 --> 00:30:35,960 do some amazing things. I mean, that time you told that 515 00:30:35,960 --> 00:30:38,600 guy who'd been on the mat for 30 years to get up and walk that 516 00:30:38,640 --> 00:30:43,920 that was cool. That was like, I mean, that 517 00:30:43,920 --> 00:30:48,760 Lazarus thing, that was epic, right when we've seen some of 518 00:30:48,760 --> 00:30:51,920 blind people could see. I mean, it's just like, wow, all 519 00:30:51,920 --> 00:30:54,040 these people came, got in line and got healed. 520 00:30:54,480 --> 00:30:55,760 We've seen it, Jesus. We've seen it. 521 00:30:55,760 --> 00:30:59,320 But but we have one more thing, Lord, show us the Father and 522 00:30:59,320 --> 00:31:01,440 then we'll be satisfied. Just one more thing. 523 00:31:01,600 --> 00:31:05,280 Show us the Father. And I love Jesus's reply. 524 00:31:05,280 --> 00:31:06,880 He said, Philip, I've been with you all this time. 525 00:31:06,880 --> 00:31:13,760 Don't you know me? John 14 nine Jesus replied, Have 526 00:31:13,760 --> 00:31:15,200 I been with you all this time, Philip? 527 00:31:15,200 --> 00:31:17,040 And yet you still don't know who I am. 528 00:31:17,760 --> 00:31:22,640 Anyone who has seen me, what has seen the Father? 529 00:31:23,680 --> 00:31:25,200 So why are you asking me to show them to you? 530 00:31:25,480 --> 00:31:29,720 I'm I'm right here. Jesus said if you have seen me, 531 00:31:29,720 --> 00:31:31,800 you have seen the father. So if you want to know what God 532 00:31:31,800 --> 00:31:34,360 is like, look at Jesus, read about Jesus, study Jesus. 533 00:31:35,920 --> 00:31:38,680 The 2nd place we can see and know God's heart. 1 great place 534 00:31:38,680 --> 00:31:42,880 is this parable. Luke chapter 15, the lost sheep, 535 00:31:42,920 --> 00:31:46,480 the lost coin, the lost son. I believe it's one of the best 536 00:31:46,480 --> 00:31:51,680 examples, best lessons to get a visual picture of what the heart 537 00:31:51,920 --> 00:31:56,360 of God the Father really is. And the Father in this story 538 00:31:56,360 --> 00:31:58,200 never gave up. He never stopped loving. 539 00:31:58,200 --> 00:32:02,240 He never gave up hope. The son who ran off, who 540 00:32:02,240 --> 00:32:05,640 squandered everything, who was a fool like Dave Ramsey would say, 541 00:32:06,720 --> 00:32:10,760 never stopped being loved by the Father. 542 00:32:11,840 --> 00:32:16,600 He never did and never could do anything to disqualify himself 543 00:32:16,720 --> 00:32:21,800 by his foolish choices. And as soon as he came to his 544 00:32:21,800 --> 00:32:25,520 senses, when he chose to come back home, the father was the 545 00:32:25,520 --> 00:32:30,160 first one who ran down the road to welcome his son with open 546 00:32:30,160 --> 00:32:34,360 arms. And not changing this topic, but 547 00:32:34,360 --> 00:32:37,080 I'll mention it here since we're talking about the father. 548 00:32:37,960 --> 00:32:40,800 Sometimes people ask, this is going off topic a little bit, 549 00:32:40,800 --> 00:32:43,800 we're going to come back. Sometimes people ask the 550 00:32:43,800 --> 00:32:46,960 question, can a person lose their salvation? 551 00:32:48,600 --> 00:32:50,040 And people go, oh, we're going to talk about this. 552 00:32:51,080 --> 00:32:55,600 We go in there, let's go there. Can a person be a true son or 553 00:32:55,600 --> 00:32:59,720 daughter of God, received Jesus, adopted into God's family and 554 00:32:59,720 --> 00:33:02,240 lose it? And I believe Scripture 555 00:33:02,240 --> 00:33:06,760 repeatedly points to the answer. I believe Luke 15 story is a 556 00:33:06,760 --> 00:33:08,960 clear picture. When someone asks me, can a 557 00:33:08,960 --> 00:33:11,720 person who's truly genuine saved lose their salvation? 558 00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:15,080 I just ask some questions. I say, you know the story of the 559 00:33:15,080 --> 00:33:18,840 prodigal son, or he goes off and he wanders off and he leaves his 560 00:33:18,840 --> 00:33:21,160 father and he makes dumb choices and all those things. 561 00:33:21,280 --> 00:33:26,720 Remember that story when the son was away, Was he still the 562 00:33:26,720 --> 00:33:30,320 father's son? Was the father still his father? 563 00:33:30,320 --> 00:33:35,320 Did the father disown his son? Did his foolish actions 564 00:33:35,320 --> 00:33:39,320 disqualify him as a son? So again, that was just a side 565 00:33:39,320 --> 00:33:41,240 note. Take it for what it's worth. 566 00:33:41,240 --> 00:33:43,680 Chew on it, ponder it. If you have a disagreement, 567 00:33:43,680 --> 00:33:45,400 that's OK. We call those minor issues in 568 00:33:45,400 --> 00:33:48,360 the church, but if you do disagree strongly, you can 569 00:33:48,360 --> 00:33:52,360 e-mail me at Pastor Tim Ingram at Illuminate dot Church. 570 00:33:53,600 --> 00:33:59,960 Pastor Tim Ingram. I'll someone will reply, but 571 00:33:59,960 --> 00:34:01,280 here's some points from the parable. 572 00:34:01,280 --> 00:34:05,760 Jesus told us that we can learn about our father by looking at 573 00:34:05,760 --> 00:34:07,920 the father. In this parable #1 what do we 574 00:34:07,920 --> 00:34:10,199 learn about our father #1 the father watches. 575 00:34:11,760 --> 00:34:15,320 Luke 1520 says while he was still a long way off, the father 576 00:34:15,320 --> 00:34:17,000 saw him. Why? 577 00:34:17,159 --> 00:34:19,719 Because he was looking. Can you imagine this father? 578 00:34:19,719 --> 00:34:21,480 He's going about his day. I don't know how much time has 579 00:34:21,480 --> 00:34:23,679 gone on. Maybe it was years, a long time 580 00:34:23,679 --> 00:34:25,600 had gone by. But he every once in a while 581 00:34:25,600 --> 00:34:27,920 he's going about his day. He's looking up, up the path, up 582 00:34:27,920 --> 00:34:30,760 the road, at the horizon, wandering. 583 00:34:31,159 --> 00:34:35,040 Maybe today's the day, hoping today might be the day my son 584 00:34:35,040 --> 00:34:39,679 comes home. When he saw him, he saw him a 585 00:34:39,679 --> 00:34:42,880 long ways off. He was hoping today would be the 586 00:34:42,880 --> 00:34:44,679 day. He never gave up hope. 587 00:34:46,400 --> 00:34:50,159 First John 48 says that God is love and 1st Corinthians 13 588 00:34:50,159 --> 00:34:54,040 tells us what love is. So First Corinthians 13 really 589 00:34:54,040 --> 00:34:56,080 tells us what God is. God is love. 590 00:34:56,800 --> 00:34:58,760 And then First Corinthians 13, which you often hear at 591 00:34:58,760 --> 00:35:01,840 weddings, says Love Is All these things. 592 00:35:02,800 --> 00:35:07,720 First Corinthians 13 seven says love never gives up. 593 00:35:08,760 --> 00:35:13,560 Love never loses. Hope is always hopeful and 594 00:35:13,560 --> 00:35:16,000 endures through every circumstance. 595 00:35:16,000 --> 00:35:18,880 And that is a perfect description of our God. 596 00:35:19,920 --> 00:35:22,840 He never gives up. He always hopes Whatever you've 597 00:35:22,840 --> 00:35:26,520 done, wherever you are, He hasn't given up on you. 598 00:35:26,640 --> 00:35:32,200 He's looking at the horizon, hoping today's the day to come 599 00:35:32,200 --> 00:35:38,760 home #2 that we can learn about the Father from this parable is 600 00:35:38,880 --> 00:35:43,760 the Father runs and you're like, should I be impressed by that? 601 00:35:44,800 --> 00:35:47,560 He ran. OK, Is that a big deal? 602 00:35:48,040 --> 00:35:51,240 It is a big deal. It is a big deal because 603 00:35:51,240 --> 00:35:54,680 something you might not know, but it's a bigger point to the 604 00:35:54,680 --> 00:35:56,560 story than we realize in our culture. 605 00:35:56,880 --> 00:36:00,720 But Jesus's audience would have clearly understood this is that 606 00:36:00,720 --> 00:36:04,600 Middle Eastern patriarchs never run. 607 00:36:05,800 --> 00:36:09,080 Men of power, honor and influence never run. 608 00:36:09,080 --> 00:36:12,560 People come to them. It's it's humiliating, it's 609 00:36:12,560 --> 00:36:14,840 beneath them, it's shameful, it's undignified. 610 00:36:14,840 --> 00:36:18,440 To run to someone, they would have had to lift their big 611 00:36:18,440 --> 00:36:22,920 robes, expose their hairy legs and run to someone. 612 00:36:22,920 --> 00:36:26,040 It's just not something they do. And Jesus was telling this story 613 00:36:26,160 --> 00:36:29,720 to the Pharisees who were wearing what long fancy robes? 614 00:36:31,200 --> 00:36:33,080 They knew exactly what he was saying. 615 00:36:33,680 --> 00:36:36,640 They're like the Father ran to him. 616 00:36:37,040 --> 00:36:41,960 We would never run to someone that is beneath us. 617 00:36:43,240 --> 00:36:46,880 They would have noticed this detail that we might miss in our 618 00:36:46,880 --> 00:36:50,480 culture. But this little notice detail in 619 00:36:50,480 --> 00:36:55,000 the story communicated that even though the Son truly did deserve 620 00:36:55,000 --> 00:37:00,080 the shame, the Father accepted the humiliation in order to 621 00:37:00,080 --> 00:37:03,920 restore his son. The Father was willing to take 622 00:37:03,920 --> 00:37:06,280 on humiliation for the sake of his Son. 623 00:37:06,280 --> 00:37:11,040 And when Jesus chose to include this detail in the story, this 624 00:37:11,040 --> 00:37:14,480 was Jesus giving the listeners a clue of what God was going to do 625 00:37:14,480 --> 00:37:22,400 through him for us #3 the Father restores. 626 00:37:24,000 --> 00:37:26,000 The Father wasn't looking for explanation. 627 00:37:26,000 --> 00:37:31,240 He was looking for a reunion. Let's read chap verses 21 and 22 628 00:37:31,240 --> 00:37:33,680 as he is. And then the Father and the Son 629 00:37:33,680 --> 00:37:36,520 said to him, Father, I have sinned against you in heaven and 630 00:37:36,520 --> 00:37:38,600 before you. I am no longer to be called your 631 00:37:38,600 --> 00:37:40,160 Son. He was giving the speech just 632 00:37:40,160 --> 00:37:43,280 like he had practiced, but the Father cut him off. 633 00:37:43,920 --> 00:37:51,760 He said bring quick the bass robe, put it on and put a ring 634 00:37:51,760 --> 00:37:53,080 on his hand, put shoes on his feet. 635 00:37:54,680 --> 00:37:58,160 The Son practice and prepared a speech, but the Father said save 636 00:37:58,160 --> 00:38:00,760 it, all I care about is your home. 637 00:38:02,240 --> 00:38:03,800 The father didn't ask where have you been? 638 00:38:03,800 --> 00:38:06,480 He didn't say explain. He he interrupted him and said 639 00:38:07,040 --> 00:38:11,360 not bring a robe. He said bring the best robe. 640 00:38:12,000 --> 00:38:15,000 You're my son. The son was hoping to be a 641 00:38:15,000 --> 00:38:18,000 servant, but he never lost his sonship. 642 00:38:19,160 --> 00:38:22,160 The father's response wasn't condemnation, it was compassion 643 00:38:22,360 --> 00:38:24,840 and celebration. And that's God's heart when we 644 00:38:24,840 --> 00:38:28,560 choose, regardless of what we've done, to come home. 645 00:38:28,920 --> 00:38:32,640 Isn't that amazing? I mean, God is good, God is 646 00:38:32,640 --> 00:38:39,080 love. It's the exact opposite of what 647 00:38:39,080 --> 00:38:44,800 the enemy says, by the way. Angry, judgy, disappointed, 648 00:38:45,680 --> 00:38:49,680 that's a lie. If we go back to the prodigal 649 00:38:49,680 --> 00:38:51,640 son in the story, one of the most important verses we 650 00:38:51,640 --> 00:38:54,400 overlook is verse 17. It says when he came to his 651 00:38:54,400 --> 00:38:55,920 senses or when he came to himself. 652 00:38:56,080 --> 00:38:58,560 But when he when he came to his senses, it's one of the greatest 653 00:38:58,560 --> 00:39:02,600 repentance verses and scripture. And repentance doesn't mean feel 654 00:39:02,600 --> 00:39:06,680 guilty. It means waking up, opening our 655 00:39:06,680 --> 00:39:10,760 eyes, coming to our senses. It means accepting that what 656 00:39:10,760 --> 00:39:15,360 I've been doing isn't working and realizing life apart from 657 00:39:15,360 --> 00:39:20,400 God doesn't bring happiness. To repent is turning from the 658 00:39:20,400 --> 00:39:25,200 old way and turning towards God, turning towards our Father, 659 00:39:25,200 --> 00:39:29,120 towards home. And when the Son discovered or 660 00:39:29,120 --> 00:39:33,000 realized that there's another way, He knew there was another 661 00:39:33,000 --> 00:39:36,560 option. There's a better way because 662 00:39:36,560 --> 00:39:38,400 what I'm doing isn't causing me joy. 663 00:39:38,520 --> 00:39:43,000 It's too much pain and shame. It's not bringing me abundant 664 00:39:43,000 --> 00:39:46,880 life. Repentance began not when He 665 00:39:46,880 --> 00:39:50,880 arrived home, but when He made the decision and chose to turn a 666 00:39:50,880 --> 00:39:55,120 new direction towards God. And if that's you today, if 667 00:39:55,120 --> 00:39:59,720 you've ever wondered, I don't know man, I've done some stuff, 668 00:40:00,640 --> 00:40:05,520 Would God really welcome me? Would God forgive me? 669 00:40:05,520 --> 00:40:07,160 Let me give you some good news. You don't have to wonder. 670 00:40:07,280 --> 00:40:09,880 You can know why Jesus told us. It's parable. 671 00:40:11,280 --> 00:40:14,400 The answer is absolutely yes, 100% yes. 672 00:40:14,880 --> 00:40:17,080 Because that is our God. That's his heart for you. 673 00:40:17,080 --> 00:40:20,440 So we're going to close today with two prayers. 674 00:40:20,440 --> 00:40:24,200 Say 2 prayers. The first is for people who 675 00:40:24,200 --> 00:40:29,440 might not be a son or daughter of God yet, but good news, 676 00:40:29,480 --> 00:40:33,840 you're invited. Being a Christian doesn't mean 677 00:40:33,840 --> 00:40:35,840 believing in God or in Jesus, or going to church. 678 00:40:35,840 --> 00:40:38,280 Those are all things a Christian might do, but that doesn't make 679 00:40:38,280 --> 00:40:41,320 you a Christian. It means you put your faith in 680 00:40:41,400 --> 00:40:43,920 Jesus and you ask him to be your savior. 681 00:40:44,000 --> 00:40:48,120 Because we can't save ourselves. We're not good enough, but he 682 00:40:48,120 --> 00:40:50,440 is. None of us are good enough. 683 00:40:51,720 --> 00:40:53,960 And for 30 years I went to church. 684 00:40:55,400 --> 00:40:58,600 I believed in God, I learned all the Bible stories. 685 00:40:59,000 --> 00:41:01,760 But there was one thing I hadn't done yet until I was 32 years 686 00:41:01,760 --> 00:41:05,240 old. 30 years in the church and I had never done this one thing 687 00:41:06,080 --> 00:41:08,160 and that was received Jesus as my savior. 688 00:41:09,520 --> 00:41:14,560 But on September 15th, 1998, I prayed a prayer to receive Jesus 689 00:41:14,560 --> 00:41:16,880 as my Savior, to ask him to be my savior. 690 00:41:18,520 --> 00:41:21,520 My life hasn't been the same since that day, September 15th, 691 00:41:21,520 --> 00:41:23,040 19. It's like it's like the before 692 00:41:23,040 --> 00:41:25,400 and after. It's like 2 chapters. 693 00:41:26,160 --> 00:41:32,160 My life changed that day and I went from. 694 00:41:32,240 --> 00:41:35,400 I went from hoping I was good enough to knowing I would spend 695 00:41:35,400 --> 00:41:38,080 eternity with God because I discovered I'm not good enough. 696 00:41:38,080 --> 00:41:40,720 But I discovered He is and that's why He came to the cross. 697 00:41:40,800 --> 00:41:44,360 It was for me, it was for you, it was for our sin, our debt we 698 00:41:44,360 --> 00:41:48,840 could never repay. He took your place on the cross 699 00:41:48,840 --> 00:41:52,640 so you can be sure it's a gift. He did it out of love and all 700 00:41:52,640 --> 00:41:54,920 you need to do is receive and accept what he did for you on 701 00:41:54,920 --> 00:41:57,160 the cross. The Bible says whoever believes 702 00:41:57,160 --> 00:42:00,200 in his heart and proclaims with his mouth that Jesus is Lord 703 00:42:00,200 --> 00:42:02,040 will be saved. Well, maybe you believe in your 704 00:42:02,040 --> 00:42:04,960 heart, but maybe you've never confessed with your mouth or 705 00:42:04,960 --> 00:42:07,600 maybe you've never received him in your heart as your savior. 706 00:42:07,800 --> 00:42:09,440 That that that was the part I was missing. 707 00:42:10,400 --> 00:42:14,120 I believed in my heart. That's like, that's like the 708 00:42:14,120 --> 00:42:16,120 first step. I hadn't opened the gift. 709 00:42:18,360 --> 00:42:22,560 So maybe that's you today. You believe, but maybe you've 710 00:42:22,560 --> 00:42:24,680 never taken that next step. We're going to do that right 711 00:42:24,680 --> 00:42:26,680 now. Everyone pray with me out loud, 712 00:42:26,680 --> 00:42:29,720 heads bowed, eyes closed. Right now, pray out loud, say 713 00:42:29,800 --> 00:42:33,160 Jesus. Jesus, I need you. 714 00:42:35,640 --> 00:42:40,360 I can't save myself. I'm not good enough, but I 715 00:42:40,360 --> 00:42:43,720 believe you are. I believe you are the Son of 716 00:42:43,720 --> 00:42:50,800 God, I believe you died on the cross for my sins, and I believe 717 00:42:50,800 --> 00:42:57,480 you rose again from the dead. And today, right now, I receive 718 00:42:57,480 --> 00:43:02,320 you as my Lord and Savior. I receive forgiveness of my 719 00:43:02,320 --> 00:43:05,480 sins. You paid for me on the cross, 720 00:43:06,400 --> 00:43:10,520 and I thank you for doing for me what I could never do for 721 00:43:10,520 --> 00:43:12,160 myself. Amen. 722 00:43:12,160 --> 00:43:14,080 All heads still down, all eyes still closed. 723 00:43:15,280 --> 00:43:20,440 If you prayed that prayer today to receive Jesus and be sure to 724 00:43:20,440 --> 00:43:24,520 receive that gift just like I did September 15th, 1998, I'm 725 00:43:24,520 --> 00:43:25,800 going to ask you to do something bold. 726 00:43:25,800 --> 00:43:27,480 You don't do anything crazy, but I'm just going to ask you to 727 00:43:27,480 --> 00:43:29,160 raise your hand. When I count to three, that's 728 00:43:29,160 --> 00:43:30,640 it. Just raise your hand. 729 00:43:30,640 --> 00:43:33,120 Let me know. All heads are still down, all 730 00:43:33,120 --> 00:43:35,040 eyes are still closed. If that's you, you prayed that 731 00:43:35,040 --> 00:43:38,000 prayer to receive Jesus today as your Savior. 732 00:43:38,360 --> 00:43:42,040 When I count to three, raise your hand up high. 123, put your 733 00:43:42,040 --> 00:43:45,840 hands up high. We see you, we see you any 734 00:43:45,840 --> 00:43:48,760 hands. So we just leave your hand up 735 00:43:48,760 --> 00:43:50,160 high and Usher's going to bring you a card. 736 00:43:50,160 --> 00:43:52,400 All you need is that card. When you get received that card, 737 00:43:52,400 --> 00:43:56,640 you can put it back down. And if you receive that card, 738 00:43:56,640 --> 00:43:58,760 we're going to close today with our prayer ministers up here. 739 00:43:58,760 --> 00:44:00,080 Bring that card up here with you. 740 00:44:00,080 --> 00:44:02,680 Do a prayer minister and they want to pray with you and 741 00:44:02,680 --> 00:44:04,520 they'll talk about what you what to do next. 742 00:44:05,080 --> 00:44:09,320 OK, you can open your eyes. I have one more prayer and I'm 743 00:44:09,320 --> 00:44:10,720 going to have you stand as we do it. 744 00:44:12,800 --> 00:44:14,480 Stand right now. Go ahead and stand. 745 00:44:15,960 --> 00:44:18,680 And that's for people that you know. 746 00:44:18,680 --> 00:44:22,840 You are a believer in Jesus, You receive Jesus, you're saved, 747 00:44:22,840 --> 00:44:24,520 you're a Christian. Hallelujah. 748 00:44:26,640 --> 00:44:29,920 But you've been living apart from God, You haven't been 749 00:44:29,920 --> 00:44:32,040 abiding with the Father. You've been doing your own 750 00:44:32,040 --> 00:44:35,000 things, your own way. And the result is you're not 751 00:44:35,000 --> 00:44:40,320 experiencing A satisfying life, abundant life, peace. 752 00:44:40,880 --> 00:44:42,840 And for some people, it's been a St. a long time. 753 00:44:43,000 --> 00:44:45,520 And today is the day God is calling you. 754 00:44:45,520 --> 00:44:47,360 God is inviting you. Come home. 755 00:44:49,280 --> 00:44:50,760 There's another way, a better way. 756 00:44:50,760 --> 00:44:54,320 Today's the day to return. Satan says you've messed up, run 757 00:44:54,320 --> 00:44:58,560 from the father, stay away. But that's a lie. 758 00:44:58,560 --> 00:45:00,680 The truth is God is saying come home, I welcome you. 759 00:45:00,680 --> 00:45:02,560 I can't wait. I love you like crazy. 760 00:45:03,560 --> 00:45:05,800 I can't wait. If you take a step towards me, 761 00:45:06,200 --> 00:45:09,520 my arms are open wide. So this morning we're going to 762 00:45:09,520 --> 00:45:12,080 close with a song and and prayers we're going to take. 763 00:45:12,440 --> 00:45:14,200 We're going to give the opportunity to take the first 764 00:45:14,200 --> 00:45:17,240 step towards the Father. Our prayer ministers are up here 765 00:45:18,440 --> 00:45:21,120 and I welcome you. If you want to return home 766 00:45:21,120 --> 00:45:23,920 today, return to the Father, come to the Father, return home. 767 00:45:24,080 --> 00:45:26,040 Then start coming up right now to pray with the prayer 768 00:45:26,040 --> 00:45:28,400 minister. Come forward, make your way down 769 00:45:28,400 --> 00:45:29,560 now. If you're in the mezzanine, come 770 00:45:29,560 --> 00:45:32,560 down. If you're in the mezzanine, come 771 00:45:32,560 --> 00:45:33,960 down. Pray with our prayer ministers. 772 00:45:33,960 --> 00:45:36,120 If you're in the back, come forward. 773 00:45:37,400 --> 00:45:39,920 Coming to church isn't about entertainment or sitting in a 774 00:45:39,920 --> 00:45:41,600 seat. Coming into a church is to 775 00:45:41,600 --> 00:45:46,920 connect you or reconnect you to the one who gives us life and 776 00:45:46,920 --> 00:45:49,160 forgiveness and love and joy and so much more. 777 00:45:50,520 --> 00:45:53,360 Don't be deceived. Don't let fear stop you. 778 00:45:53,360 --> 00:45:55,200 Don't let the enemy stop you. Be courageous. 779 00:45:55,440 --> 00:45:58,240 Come forward right now. Come forward. 780 00:45:58,240 --> 00:46:00,520 Pray. Find a prayer minister. 781 00:46:01,200 --> 00:46:05,680 Church, celebrate. We welcome them home. 782 00:46:07,640 --> 00:46:09,680 Lord, thank you that you love us so much. 783 00:46:10,000 --> 00:46:12,480 You never give up on us. If you raise your hand for 784 00:46:12,480 --> 00:46:14,200 salvation today, come up and pray. 785 00:46:14,320 --> 00:46:16,600 If you want to return home to the Father today, come home and 786 00:46:16,600 --> 00:46:19,000 pray. Come home and pray. 787 00:46:19,400 --> 00:46:22,760 God's like God's here. Take a step. 788 00:46:23,240 --> 00:46:25,360 He's going to welcome you. He's not judging you. 789 00:46:26,320 --> 00:46:29,120 Come up front. Thank you God, that we can run 790 00:46:29,240 --> 00:46:30,520 to the Father.