It's Good To Be Back In My Daddy's House
It’s Good To Be Back
In Daddy’s House
Scripture Reading Luke 15:11-19
Text Verses Lk. 15:13,17
Rev. Lummie Hearn
Where: Saint Stephen CME Church
Date: October 11, 1998 (Revised 8/9/99).The Prodigal
Son Story or
Lost Son
This story that Jesus tells here is one of the most tenderest stories that he told all the
while he was here on earth. It shows us how loving the Lord God is and how we
(man) can be so ungrateful and so down right mean. It also shows how man can not
admit to being save, yet at the same time will not admit to being lost. The brother
who took his father’s wealth and went into a distance country and spent it was lost.
He sinned not when he got into the country and begin to spend his money on wild
living, but the moment that he crossed over the threshold at his father’s house he
had sinned. When we turn away from God the moment we turn we have sinned
against the Master. Then that son, the one that stayed at home was just as sinful as
was the brother that left. Look at his heart. Look at the malice that he had against
his brother upon the return of him when the father put together a feast because of
his return.A’nt that just like some of us in the world today. We expect to receive a
better reward just because we have been here all the time. Some folk think they have
a lock up on heaven, because they have been around for a while. It matters not
when one come back to God, but what matters is that you return before it’s to late.
Rev. Lummie Hearn.Luke 15:11-19
11 Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons.
12 The younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.'
So he divided his property between them.
13 "Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a
distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.
14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole coun-try,
and he began to be in need.
15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to
his fields to feed pigs.
16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no
one gave him anything.
17 "When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men
have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!
18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned
against heaven and against you.
19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired
men.'
(NIV)
If you please let us look at verses 13 and 17 of these passages of scripture. From
these two verses I would like to talk for just a few minutes today about a subject
matter;
It’s Good To Be Back In Daddy’s House
As one read the fifteenth chapter of the Gospel according to Saint Luke he or she
would find that this particular chapter in it’s completeness gives us an unconditional
picture of the love that God has for His people. There is no other book nor letter in
the bible that show such beloveness as do this chapter here in St. Luke fifteen.
Look if you will at what is stated here in this particular chapter. Chapter fifteen of
Saint Luke.
The whole bases of the chapter is telling or talking to us about those, or that which
is lost. There are three destines illustrations so stated here.
#1. The lost are of great valve to God. In this chapter where it talks about the.shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine sheep that he has in the sheepfold and sets
out to look for the one that is lost. It would seem to us (natural beings) that why
search for just one when you already have ninety-nine safe in the barn. But to the
shepherd every one of the sheep are important to him. That is why when one of
them is lost he searches until it is found.
The love of God is such that he seeks each one of us who are lost and He rejoices
when one is found that had been lost.
Jesus was accused of spending time with the sinners, but it was because he wanted
them not to be lost, but to be saved. He wanted to reach them that the mainstream
of society at that time, said that there was no hope for them. But Jesus’s purpose
was to share the gospel of the kingdom of God with them.
#2. God takes special effort in seeking out the lost; In the parable of the lost
coin we find that the Palestinian women were given ten silver coins as a wedding
gift before marriage. Beside the monetary valve of these coins they had as much
sentimental valve as would a set of wedding rings in our day and time. One could
just image how you or your daughter would feel if they had lost one of there en-gagement
rings. They would be extremely distressed, and if they knew where they
had lost it they would search diligently until hopeful they had found it. When they
had final found it they would no doubt rejoice over it’s finding.
Well, God has the same feeling toward those of us who are lost. When we are lost it
grieves God greatly at every lost, but joy comes when one who was lost is now
found.
#3 God is patient with the lost; In the story number one and in story number two
the parables about the “Lost sheep” and “The lost coin”. In
each one of these cases where the thing that was lost, it was not able to return on
it’s own to it’s master. Ever though the coin may have shined, it could not walk
back home to it’s owner. The sheep, did have life in it’s blood and eye sight to see
where it walked, but it had not the sense of direction to find it’s way back to it’s
Master. So as a result the Master or owner had to seek out that which was lost.
But in the last parable of this chapter where we got our text for this message. The
Master was not looking for a coin, nor was he looking for a sheep. He was instead.in this story watching and waiting. He was dealing with a live human being. He was
dealing with one that had choice to make up it’s own mind and to do what it willed.
But the Master, He did not give up nor did he give in, but he kept watching and
waiting. Oh, can’t you see how patient God is with those of us who have made a
miscalculated decision to live out the phrase “It’s my thing I’ll do what I want to
do”. Well my dearly beloved it’s not your thing and can’t do what you want to do.
Look at this young man in this “Prodigal Son” story. For just a little while he
believed it was his thing. But the thing that he thought he had played out. Excuse me
here, but it was his thing that got him in to trouble.
Look at this son!
“Father, give me my share of the estate”.
It was not normal practice in the east for a son to ask of his father his portion of his
inheritance during his fathers lifetime. So, you can see that this son had no regard
for his daddy. The division was not brought about by the father, but by the son. On
the part of the son that made him arrogant to ask for such.
Luke 15:12
[Give me the portion of goods] It may seem strange that such a demand
should be made, and that the parent should have acceded to it, when he knew that it
was to minister to his debauches that his profligate son made the demand here
specified. But the matter will appear plain, when it is considered, that it has been an
immemorial custom in the east for sons to demand and receive their portion of the
inheritance during their father's lifetime; and the parent, however aware of the inten-tion
of the child, could not legally refuse to comply with the son’s application. It
appears indeed that the spirit of this law was to provide for cases where the son
may have been ill treatment by the father: Yet the demand must first be acceded to,
before the matter could be legally inquired into; and then, "if it was found that the
father was irreproachable in his character, and had given no just cause for the son to
separate himself from his father, in that cases, the son would be fined by the civil
magistrate.
Don’t you know that;
“It’s Good To Back In Daddy’s House”.
The bible said;
Luke 15:13.[Not many days after] He probably hastened his departure for fear of the fine
which he would have to paid, and the reproach to which he must have been sub-jected,
had the matter come before the civil magistrate.
It’s nothing wrong about going in to another country, but what he did he took all
that he had and spent it up on wild living. I’ve heard this text preached that the son
spent his money on gold, fancy cars and fine houses. My brothers and my sisters
that is an assumption. No, none of that happen, but the boy did spend his
money on to-do-pout. Somebody might be saying, well brother preacher you
are assuming also. If you will just read what the mad brother said.
30 'But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your liveli-hood
with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.'
(NKJ)
To me harlots are prostitutes. And Prostitute do not sell cars, nor do they
sell houses. That which they sell is only used for just a little while. But you
can’t take it with you.
Luke 15:15 He went and hired himself out to work on the farm. The owner of the
farm sent him to feed the swings.
[To feed swine.] The basest and vilest of all employments; and, to a Jew,
peculiarly degrading. Shame, contempt, and distress are wedded to sin and can
never be divorced. No character could be meaner in the sight of a Jew than that of a
swineherd: Herodotus informs us, that in Egypt hogs were not permitted to
mingle with civil society, nor to appear in the worship of the gods, nor would the
very dregs of the people have any matrimonial connections with them.
Being a Jew he come to the point of longing to eat slop with the hogs. Because no
one would give him anything. But when he came to his senses. He realized that;
“It’s Good To Be Back In Daddy’s House”
Even the hired person have food to spare and here I am starving and feed-ing
these dispirsed swings. I know what I will do. I will get myself up from
here and repent of the sins that I have caused against my Father and against
Heaven. I am not even worthy to be called a son. This son had reached rock
bottom before he came to his right mind. Before he realized that there was some
place that could correct the condition that he had put himself in. He soon found
out that he needed to return to place where there was love, peace, patient and.forgiveness. A place where there is joy, happiness, restoration and salvation
Do you not know that;
“It’s Good To Be Back In Daddy’s House”
A house where the Father will not hold your pass mistakes against you.
A house where the Father will have joy, unspeakable joy just to see that
you have finally found your way back home.
A house where the Father will forgive all of your wastefulness.
This is a house where, when forgiveness is asked for it is given.
This House is a house where there is blessness.
The psalmist writes;
Ps 32:1-2
1 Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are cov-ered.
2 Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him
and in whose spirit is no deceit.
(NIV)
Oooh! Can’t you see;
“It’s Good To Be Back In Daddy’s House”
John 14:2-4
2 In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have
told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take
you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
4 You know the way to the place where I am going."
(NIV)
In My Daddy’s House; Saddness & Sorrow is turned into Joy, un-speakable
Joy.
In My Daddy’s House: Confusion and misunderstanding is turned
into Peace..In My Daddy’s House: Lying is turned into Truth & Righteousness.
In Daddy’s House: Darkness is turned into radius Light.
It’s Good To Be Back In My Daddy’s House
Ooooooooh! In MY Daddy’s House