I. Our text exposes the story of a family that seems to have everything. There is a wealthy father with two sons. No mother is mentioned. No reason is given. The father seems to be a righteous man. The sons work for the father, probably managing the servants and slaves. The older son seems to be content, but the younger son is rebellious, dispassionate, disrespectable, insolent, and headed for a fall.

II. He was Bad (v. 12)

The younger son is like the typical contemporary youth or young adult. He has reached tha stage In his life wherein he feels the need to exercise personal freedom. However, he lacks the wisdom and sense of responsibility to realize that freedom is not free. So, he demands of his father an inheritance that he has no legal right to so long as the father lives.

The original biblical language provides a clearer understanding of the implications of this bad boy’s demands upon his father. His attitude says, “I do not desire to wait until you die to enjoy my inheritance.” His attitude lacks gratitude.

President Harry S. Truman once said, “I have found that the best way to give advice to your children is to find out what they want, and then advise them to do it.” The father, being truly wise, gives the son what he would legally inherit if the father died. This amounted to approximately two ninths of the father’s estate. This included property, as well as money.

III. Not only was this boy bad, but he was also Mad (v. 13).

This son has not learned that anger manages everything badly. The scripture tells us that not many days later he gathered all of his belongings and departed to go out and live in the gentile world. Now, in order to gather all that he had means that he would have to have sold the non-monetary property. However, the buyer could not take possession of the property so long as the father was alive. This means that his father could continue to live at the same economic level as he did before giving his son the two ninths inheritance, but when the son’s money was gone, he had no right to any more of the father’s property, but he did have the same responsibilities to the family as before he took the inheritance and left. He held a legal right to come back as a slave, but not a son. Coming back as a son required the father’s grace.

When he had squandered all that he had, he forgot about being bad: He ceased to e mad.

IV. When the money was gone, He was Sad (v. 16).

There is a saying that “if you sleep with the dogs, you will rise up full of fleas.” He was so sad that he desired to eat wild carob shucks from the pig troughs. It was then that he remembered his father’s grace and decided to return home. Notice that he was aware that he had forfeited his legal status of a son. However, his new found wisdom told him that it would be better to use his legal status of a returning slave than to live in this depraved condition to which he had fallen.

He had found out that the world does not give anything: It just takes away until there is nothing left. When he had nothing left, he no longer felt bad, and he ceased to be mad, and he began formulate a plan to over come his current status of being sad.

He refused to accept his legal status that disallowed him any rights to an inheritance so long as his father lived. But now, he plans to willfully recognize his legal right to slave status in his father’s house. Therefore…

V. When he received his father’s warm welcome, “He was Glad” (v. 24).

God often comforts us, not by changing the circumstan-ces of our lives, but by changing our attitude towards them.

The father’s welcome is typical of God’s grace. He sent his only begotten son into the world to save bad boys.

1. Pharisees were bad boys – They believed in strict observance of religious rites and ceremonies, written laws and oral traditions. However, they did not believe in the Son of God.

2. Sadducees were bad boys – They were a traditional ruling class of priests that believed in strict observance of the law. However, they did not believe in resurrection from the dead, eternal life. They did not believe in the Son of God.

3. Crooked Priests were bad boys – The priest acted as a mediator between man and God. However the need for the priest was removed when the veil separating the Holy of Holies from the Holy Temple was torn by the death of Christ.

4. Romans were bad boys – The Romans believed in law and government. However, they worshipped idols and men instead of the Son of God.

5. Greeks were bad boys – They were masters of philosophy and religion. However, they worshipped idols instead of the Son of God.

6. Christians are bad boys – The worship the Son of God. However, all have sinned and fallen short of the “Glory of God.”