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Intro
Abel :)
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Passage: Luke 15:11–24 “And he said, “There was a man who had two sons. 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. 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. And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. “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! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.” ’ 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. 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.’ 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. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.”
Transition:
Main Exposition
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Main Point: Jesus is calling you to lay down your pride and come back to Him.
Transitional sentence
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The younger son commited a massive sin by asking for his fathers inheritance. He loved the Father only for what the father could give him
Luke 15:12 “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.”
The younger son went to the Father and asked him for his inheritance.
Not just for money but asking that the father would split half of what he owed and give it to him.
Basically he was telling his dad, I wish you were dead.
I don’t love you for who you are but I love you for what you can give me.
He wasn’t interested in a relationship but in resources.
This was a huge sin in Isreal and even to this day.
Exodus 21:17 ““Whoever curses his father or his mother shall be put to death.”
The son deserved death yet the Father gave hin up to do things that ought not be done.
And BTW Romans tells us that Romans 1:24–25 “Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.”
Have you exchanged the truth about God for a lie?
Are you this son in the parable?
Lets keep moving in the parable
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The younger son squandered his money on reckless living.
Luke 15:13 “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.”
Blew all his money drinking and prostitutes NIV says “wild living”
Galatians 5:19–21 helps us define what wild living is,
“Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
This younger so had it made, he had a loving father who was presumably wealthily and religious. The son had it all right but he traded his position and standing in the family for sensuality and wild living.
He exchanged his identity as a son for wild temporary pleasure.
Many people today squander the gift God has given them. The life and family God has given them for temporary sensuality that leads to destruction.
Many are squander the short time they have here on earth on fleeting wild living
Have you exchanged, traded your identity and standing with God for a lie?
Are you trying to actively have a relationship with Jesus or are you just wasting time?
Don’t brush past these questions, Lets keep moving
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The younger son thought he could earn his fathers love back.
He recognized the seriousness and the sin of his situation.
When a famin/trial arose in his life he was left penniless, hungry and hurt.
And its at that point he remembers his father
Luke 15:17 ““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!”
He then thought man i am never going to be welcomed back as a sin so he made an action plan of how he could return. How he on his own could restore a broken situation.
Luke 15:18–19 “I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.” ’
He reheress his speech in his head and decides to lay down his pride and recognize that he was wrong.
He needed to go through a trial to learn humility. It takes a lot of courage and strength to recoginze that you made a massive public mistake and need to repent.
Strong men exercise humility and admit when they are wrong. They don’t try to justify their actions or give fake appologies. They don’t say “Im sorry you feel that way”
They look at the mud and recogize that they are no different than anybody else znd if t hey don’t repent and turn to jesus they will starve with the pigs.
But get this
But the son in the parable exercised humility but still thought he could earn the fathers love.
Have you?
Finally the son comes home and see what the Father does,
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The Father welcomes his lost son home but this was not suppose to be the case.
Deuteronomy 21:18–21 ““If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and, though they discipline him, will not listen to them, then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the gate of the place where he lives, and they shall say to the elders of his city, ‘This our son is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.’ Then all the men of the city shall stone him to death with stones. So you shall purge the evil from your midst, and all Israel shall hear, and fear.”
The young man on the parable deserved death. He should have been stoned to death on the outside of the city yet the Father meets him outside the city and welcomes Him home.
Luke 15:21–24 “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.’ 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. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.”
The Father runs to the son and welcomes him home. The son could not earn his way back to the Father. The Father freely forgives and welcomes his son home.
This is the perfect picture of what Christ has done for us. Our sin has seperatesd us from God. The wages of sin is death. All have fallen short and no one is righteous not even one.
We should all receive the death penalty yet God in his grace freely forgives us and welcomes us home.
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We must lay down our pride and come home to Jesus
- His arms are open and waiting for you to run to Him.
Outline
Main Idea: Jesus is calling you to lay down your pride and come back to Him.
The son loved the Father only for what the father could give him.
2. The younger son squandered his money on reckless living.
3. The son thought he could earn his fathers love back.
4. The Father welcomes his lost son home
5. We must lay down our pride and come home to Jesus
Small Group Questions
Start by reading Luke 15:11-24.
Tonight we read how the younger son only loved the Father for what the Father could give Him. How do we love Jesus for who He is not just for what He can provide?
In what ways can we recognize and address areas in our lives where we love God only for what He can provide?
The son squandered his money on reckless living. What does it look like for someone to squandered the gift God has given them? How can we prevent doing this in our own life? What practical steps can we take to avoid squandering the gifts and opportunities God has given us?
The son thought he could earn his fathers love. Why can we never earn God’s love and forgiveness?
What was the penalty suppose to be for the son? What is our penalty for our sin?
Why does sin separate us from God?
How does the father's reaction to the son's return illustrate God's grace?
What does the parable reveal about the nature of repentance and forgiveness?
How can we show humility and the need for forgiveness in our own relationships?
What does it mean for us to lay down our pride and seek a relationship with Jesus?
