Teachings of Jesus: The Prodigal Son
Walking the Life of Jesus • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Intro
Intro
Context: Luke 15:1-2
1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
Jesus was appealing and drawing unto himself the outcasts of the religious community. As as a result, the religious begin to grumble about Jesus allowing sinners to be in his presence and for him to have the audacity to allow sinners to eat with him.
In other words the religious leaders of the Jews were complaining about Jesus ministering to those that needed the hope he was providing.
Today: I would like to spend a few minutes talking to you about the prodigal son and how he reminds us of the hope we have in Jesus.
11 And he said, “There was a man who had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them. 13 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.” ’ 20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.
25 “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’ ”
The younger son
Asks for his inheritance early.
12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them.
Those listing to Jesus share this parable would have immediately recognized this request as not just disrespectful, but unforgiveable. Essentially, the son was writing his father’s death certificate and would have been one of the most disrespectful request the son could have made. Even in today’s world, we would find this kind of request incredibly disrespectful. Think about it.
He is basically saying dad, you are better off to me dead.
I love money more than you.
I want a life away from you.
I’d rather have independence than safety of your home.
Another consideration to this story that helps us understand the dynamic of the story is that in this culture the younger son would have less of an inheritance than the older son.
Another interesting point, is that the son asks for his “share of property” specifically asking for his father’s financial wealth. Yet, his father does not just give him just financial wealth. The father’s gift is more significant.
Luke uses the word translated property for what the father divided in five other texts,
14 And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.
43 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone.
4 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
and two in this text.
In other words, the father did not hold back anything from his ungrateful youngest son. He gave him his inheritance in full.
The younger son then gather’s his stuff up and heads out on a journey to a far country.
Once there, we see that he squandered his wealth through reckless living, or in other words, wasteful living. (v 13)
Yet, as so often happens. When we live foolishly, matters go from bad to worse. Look at verse 14
14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need.
No longer is the younger son occupied with his reckless living, he is now faced with survival. It is not a mild famine but one with which Jesus describes as severe. The land that once allowed him to entertain himself is now on the verge of ruining him completely.
When faced with life and death, you do what you must to survive. In the case of this younger son, he hires himself out to a citizen of the country. Look at verse 15:
15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs.
The NKJV does a great job of capturing the significance of the younger son’s hiring himself out. They rightly translate it as:
The New King James Version Chapter 15
he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country
which means that he had to forsake his old country and identify with this new country in which he resided. Essentially, Jesus is telling the jewish leaders that this younger son has not only defiled himself but expunged his Jewish identity.
The second shocking moment to the Jewish leaders would be the work that this younger son had taken. This man is now going to feed pigs. Pigs were considered filthy and unclean animals.
Yet, here is the man, in such poverty and hunger that he wishes he could be eating the pigs pods.
Growing up, I used to have the wrong idea of what this was talking about. I imaged the slop of left over food and food particles my grandmother used to keep in her kitchen before throwing it out in the woods for animals. It would be a slimy wet, putrid mixture of fat, vegetables, meat, and soggy breads.
Yet this is not what he is referring too. The food for the pigs was a pod from a Carob plant. In some ways, it reminds you of a green bean. These pods are eatable, however, it is important to note that in Jewish lore, the were only eating in the most extreme cases of poverty. Which means, Jesus is saying this man is totally destitute.
So this young man has not only gone through all of his wealthy, forgone his Jewish heritage, but now is so hungry he is considering eating the food of an unclean animal.
He is at rock bottom.
Do you feel like you are at rock bottom? No matter how hard you try to get your life straightened out. No matter how hard you try to make things better, do you find yourself at what seems like the mud of the pig pen. Maybe you are thinking, I totally relate to this dude.
You might be wondering how do I get free from this destitute place. It is in this position that the younger son has hope to get away from his bad situation. Which brings us to our first point this morning. I want you to take note of:
1. The Hope
1. The Hope
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.” ’
In the pit of despair, Jesus says the younger son comes to himself. Think of it as a moment where the young man had a light bulb go off and he realizes he has been looking at the situation in all the wrong ways.
Notice his thought process:
1. My father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish with hunger.
In other words, servants in my father’s house are better cared for than I am on my own out here in this country.
2. I will arise and go to my father.
If I leave and go back home, then maybe my situation will be better.
3. I will say to him, “I have sinned against heaven and before you.”
The son recognized he could not just go back home like nothing had happened. He had sinned against his father and as a result he has sinned against God too.
We should not forget that our sins, whether secret and hidden or in the public are not just against people or even ourselves, but it is als against God.
4. “I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”
The son saw himself as not being worthy of being brought back as a son. He had, in his mind, lost that right all together. His offense was to great to be worthy of such an honorable position in his father’s house.
5. “Treat me as one of your hired servants.”
He would request to be made no more than a lowly servant in his father’s house. In his mind, he would at least be able to eat decently and have a place to rest.
So he gets up and begins heading back towards his father’s house. Yet, unknown to the son, his father was waiting for him. Look at verse 20:
20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.
His father sees him a long way off. The father felt love and compassion for him and ran to him. Notice that the son has not even had a chance to give his rehearsed speech to the father before the father shows his love and forgiveness towards his son.
Leading us to the second thing to note this morning:
2. The Forgiveness
2. The Forgiveness
The father’s freely and lovingly forgives his son before his son even has a chance to speak. After the loving embrace of the father. The young son expresses his sorrow and heartbreak at his offense.
21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
Too often we forget that we were all once this prodigal child unworthy of being called a son or daughter of God. Our rebellion against him so great and the divide between us so wide that we could never be found worthy. We are eternally separated apart from God’s merciful grace and forgiveness. Here is the man, admitting this reality to his father. He had rebelled against his father and as a result against heaven.
Yet, the father’s love and forgiveness continues to radiate in veres 22,
22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet.
We see this kind of description in the Old Testament with Joseph and Pharaoh in Genesis 41:42
42 Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and clothed him in garments of fine linen and put a gold chain about his neck.
As a result, we can understand that the father is elevating his son from rebellious child to a place of recognition in the house. He gives him the best robe, a ring to signify he belongs next to the father, and shoes on his feet which sowed he was not to be a slave.
His father was not bringing him back into the house as a servant but as a son.
But the father doesn’t stop there, he then tells the servents in verses 23,
23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate.
The father is going to throw a major party for the return of his son. He was home where he belonged and he has repented from his rebellion. It was a cause to celebrate!
The father explains why the celebration was worth having in veres 24,
24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.
Have you experienced the saving work of Jesus in your life? Are you alive? Are you forgiven? The message of Jesus to the pharisees is that Jesus came to save the lost. Have you experienced his saving work?
But there is one last thing we need to note in this parable, it is
3. The Danger
3. The Danger
We see the danger play out in the older son. Look at verse 26-31 again,
26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.
The older son is angry. As far as he was concerned, his brother was dead to him. He didn’t want anything to do with him and the fact his father would have the audacity to even bring him back home would have angered him. But here his father is doing something far worse in his mind, he is throwing him a party.
The older brother is a self-righteous man and he is self-absorbed. Note verse 29, he tells his father that I have served you. I have never disobeyed, but there has been no goat for me to celebrate with my friends.” It seems to me that he isn’t even interested in spending time with his father.
There is jealous, self-righteousness, and entitlement all present in this older son.
The Father trying to reason with his son reminds him that all that he has belongs to the older son. Yet, Jesus does not provide a response for this older brother.
The danger for us is to be so close to God that we miss the whole point of being in the Family of God.
We can become so self focused that we miss the need to share the gospel. We miss out on celebrating our Lord and savior. We miss out on celebrating people giving their life to God! When people are getting saved, we should want to shout hallelujah from the top of our lungs because people are following Jesus. We should not look down at anyone and always be looking to bring people to Jesus no matter who they are.
Jesus sums up the message of the Prodigal Son in verse 32,
32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’ ”
Conclusion
Conclusion
We have a true hope in Jesus. He has come into the world to find the lost and breath life into them through his saving work on the cross that brings to us forgiveness when we repent and turn from our sins. We ought to celebrate the work of Jesus in not only our own lives but a lso the lives of those around us and we must be on guard of the danger of becoming like the older brother, who represents the pharisees and religious leaders who regarded themselves as more worthy and righteous and missed out on who Jesus really is.
With every head bowed and eye closed.
Where are you today?
Are you in need of saving hope in Jesus?
Are you needing to celebrate what God is doing in your life and the life of others?
Call to saving faith
Come if you are feeling led to be baptized
Come to join the church
Come for prayer.
