The Father's Love For Prodigals
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Intro
Intro
Alright everyone, go ahead and turn in your bibles to Luke chapter 15. Tonight, we are covering the most famous parable in all of history. It is the most documented, the most noted, the most sung about, the most painted, most recorded parable in all the gospels.
Tonight, we are looking at the parable of the prodigal son. I’m going to guess most of you are familiar with it, but in case you’re not…let me set it up real quick.
Jesus is in the midst of a conversation with some Pharisees and scribes who are complaining that Jesus was not only surrounding himself with sinners, but was welcoming them. Sinners, like the tax collectors who were considered to be traitors by the jewish people.
So the scribes and pharisees are complaining, and Jesus spends chapter 15 confronting them and defending his welcoming of sinners through the use of three parables. Each parable, roughly getting to the same thing, but each one building on top of the other. This results in the parable of the prodigal son being the climax of his teaching in this passage, which is why we are camping out here tonight.
And as we head into this passage, let me just set up the three parties in this story.
The first, and most important, is the Father.
The Father represents God.
We’ve been talking about sin a lot the past couple of weeks, and we’ve been talking about repentance and salvation. And it’s been some pretty heavy hitting stuff…talking about hell, damnation, repentance, security of salvation…all important things, but all heavy things. But, tonight, we are going to move past just focusing on repentance and spend some time talking about how God both views, and treats, those who are repentant. And that brings us to the prodigal son.
The Prodigal Son represents the sinners and tax collectors.
As we will see, the Prodigal son is representing the tax collectors and sinners that Jesus has been welcoming. As we will also see…the prodigal son is who we want to be, and who Jesus calls us to be if we are sincere Christians. And lastly..
The Older Son represents the self-righteous Pharisees.
That is, the older son represents the scribes and pharisees that have been grumbling against Christ. And I’ll tell you, they are who we don’t want to be. The ones who boast in their works and become entitled and bitter towards the grace and mercy of God.
So, there are the three characters in this parable. Now, let’s get into it and take it a few verses at a time. And what we are going to do, is see five truths that can be learned in this parable. Let’s read the first one.
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.
God is gracious. (v.11-12)
The definition of grace is to be given something you don’t deserve. And when we say God is gracious, we are saying that he is full of grace. That is, he is full of the quality of giving good things to people who don’t deserve it. We are going to see this later on in verse 22, after this son has repented…but seeing it here in verse 12 accents even more the willingness of our Father to love and give good things even when we don’t deserve it. And this son…really doesn’t deserve anything right now.
Because, if you look back at verse 12, when he says “father, give me the share of property that is coming to me”, he is actually saying “father, I wish you were dead and I could get the inheritance you owe me”.
Now, I know most of you are too young to have much worth inheriting at the moment…so you maybe you can’t resonate in that aspect…but many of you could imagine what would happen if you told one of your parents that you’d rather they die so you can have the house, or money, or car.
You can imagine, that they might be upset. And they would have a right to be.
And so would God the father in this…but he doesn’t. Instead…he does what you absolutely wouldn’t expect…he gives the son his inheritance. It says it right there at the end of verse 12… “and he divided his property between them.”
So yes. God is gracious. He’s gracious because when his child wishes him dead and treasures only what he can get from God rather than God himself....God chooses to give good things anyways. Because that is who he is.
So what we see here, is that even in the midst of our sin…when we didn’t know God…when we were his enemy…for those of us that are saved that is….even when we were enemies…God is still a gracious God. And we live and breathe because he extends a certain amount of grace to all.
so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
God is gracious, it’s a part of his very nature. But that’s not all he is…We’ll see more in a minute but first we need to see the second truth found in this parable.
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.
Sin is devastating. (v.13-16)
I say this because what the prodigal son did was sinful. It was idolatrous in many ways. Choosing to love things of the world over God, and choosing to love money over what holiness. What the son did also lacked wisdom, as it says that he squandered his property (that’s his inheritance) in “reckless living”. On top of that, we find out in verse 30 that this son actually spent some of his inheritance on prostitutes as well, which is sexual immorality.
So all that to say…the prodigal son is living a sinful life…he’s taking what came from the goodness of his father, and using it to drive himself away from the father.
We are no different today. Taking the things that could be used for Godliness, and turning them to sinfulness.
Like our cell phones and the internet. How amazing is it that we could use these devices to communicate the gospel to someone thousands of miles away, and store God’s word right in our pocket to be accessed at all times. How amazing is it that the gather of God’s people can be streamed to those who are unable to attend…it’s an amazing gift from God that could be used for good…but is often used to fulfill our sinful desires.
The same device that you can use for spiritual good is the same device that you use look at porn. Or text gossip and slander. Or fuel your idols of comparison and lack of contentment…always needing the next best thing.
Taking what could be used for Good and comes from the one who gives good things…and using it for evil purposes. That’s what the son is doing. And what do we learn from it?
That it’s devastating.
That the sin he so loves…devastates his life. It says in verse 13 that he squandered all he had, and in verse 14, because of his squandering, he was unprepared for the life given to him....and so he tried to work his way back in his own strength…but it wasn’t good enough…because eventually he got to the place where even the pig’s slop looked delicious…and yet, he couldn’t even have that.
His sin, devastated his life.
Just as our sins, if left unrepentant, can devastate ours. Not only physically, but spiritually. Even leading to death.
Romans 6:23 (ESV)
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The wages of sin is death, but that’s not all this scripture says. How does it end? BUT, the free gift of God is eternal life.
Sin is devastating, BUT, God is merciful.
God is loving and merciful. (v.17-23)
So I defined what gracious is. Let me define what mercy is.
Mercy is God withholding what you do deserve.
In this next part of the passage, we see both the love of the father, and the mercy of the father.
Look back at the text to see that.
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.
So the son is devastated in his sin. He’s at the end of his rope, it literally says in verse 17 that he is perishing, and he feels he has nowhere else to turn. But then he comes to his senses there at the beginning of verse 17, and has a realization.
He realizes. His father is known to be a kind and merciful man. One who would certainly welcome him in if he offered to be treated, not as a son, but as a worker.
The equivalent would be that you would come home not expecting for your parents to let you live in the house again, but rather allow you to be the gardener. You may not get to be one of the children, receiving the blessing of abundance and inheritance…but at least you’ll have food, and the place to stay under a kind employer.
As such, the prodigal son begins rehearsing what he is going to say. Namely, that he has sinned…and that he is not worthy to be a son.
And that…right there…makes all the difference.
That, right there, is the difference between the pharisees and the tax collectors.
That…right there is why Jesus welcomes in the tax collectors and the sinners...
Because they are repentant, and they are humble, and they understand that they don’t deserve the place that they’ve been given. And the reason Jesus welcomes them in...
Is because GOD IS LOVING AND MERCIFUL.
And we know this based on the response of the father. Look back at what he does.
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.
There are a few things to realize about this verse.
The father felt compassion.
This word is translated as compassion 9 other times in scripture. And EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. it is used to show how Jesus felt about those that he was healing.
14 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”
34 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things.
Friends, the father had a right to be haughty and angry. He had the right to say “well, it’s about time”. In fact, the father…had the right to have the son executed. Look at this passage.
Deuteronomy 21:18–21 (ESV)
18 “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, 19 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, 20 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.’ 21 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.
This law would have been ingrained in every jew that heard these words…they were a part of their sacred law…and what Jesus is trying to communicate to the pharisees, is that when it comes to sinners who come back to their father, humble and repentant…he is filled with compassion, and shows mercy because of it. Because the father having compassion and running towards the son instead of giving punishment is the literal definition of mercy.
That’s the first thing. The second cool thing to note is:
2) The father ran.
Why is this important? Because in Jesus’ time, it was considered undignified for an older man to run. It was considered humiliating!
So do you see what I’m getting at?
This repentant sinner comes back to the Father, The father is filled with compassion, and what does he do? He runs to him in an undignified manner. Now, I don’t want to spend too much time on this, because the text doesn’t say it here…but I do believe this is a really cool connection...
That in this parable the father runs to a son with compassion in a humiliating fashion....the same way Jesus came to us and showed his compassion in a humiliating fashion (being naked and hung on the cross).
It’s really cool…and I think it’s just a little tip of that hat towards where Christ is heading in his journey. Like I said, the text doesn’t explicitly say it, but you can see the cool connection right?
The last cool think that I want you to note is this.
3) The father embraced him.
Why is this cool? Because of the meaning of the word embraced. Now, greek and english don’t always translate perfectly…and the choice of using “embraced” here is a great choice. But, the word here needs to be noted for it’s strong emotional connection.
The word used for “embraced” here literally means to fall upon, or throw oneself upon. So it’s not just that they hugged, it’s that the father threw himself upon his son…much like Joseph after going years without seeing his father because of his imprisonment in Egypt, throws himself upon Israel in Genesis 45.
So why is this important?
Because it truly reveals the compassion and love that the father has for repentant sinners. It shows his sincerity in loving them, and caring for them, and welcoming them.
Jesus isn’t just defending a theological choice that God the father makes in saving sinners....he’s revealing the very heart of God to save those who are repentant, because that’s what he’s doing…he’s not just loving them…but he’s saving them. And because of that, we see..
Repentance brings life. (v.24)
24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.
In the context of this story, the Father is saying that the son was thought to be dead, or was dead to him…but has now been found to be living.
But in context of what Jesus is communicating, and the truth of the gospel, we know that what this is saying is that those who are repentant have life.
Those who follow in the path of the prodigal son, and admit their wrongdoing, and turn away from it to seek the father…will be found to have life.
This lines up exactly with what we read in romans earlier.
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The prodigal son deserved death…but the free gift of God the father was a welcoming that brought him into eternal life. Into celebration at the feast. In fact, the passage shows that they even celebrate…and what do they celebrate with? A feast. That’s what it means that they killed the fatted calf. They brought in the best and most honored food for a celebration feast. Just like the feast that has been spoken of in the last couple weeks.
So let’s recap all that we’ve learned tonight. Instead of just focusing on our need to repent, we’ve been focusing on the heart of God behind our salvation. How God views us in the midst of all this, and how he views sinners who repent and seek him. And in this, we’ve learned some truths.
We’ve learned,
God is gracious.
Sin is devastating.
God is loving and merciful.
Repentance brings life.
These are all things we’ve learned when it comes how God views us if we have already or if we decide to turn from our own ways and follow him.
And, these are all things that Jesus was teaching about why he chose to accept and welcome sinners and tax collectors.
Pretty great right? Like, we could end right there. But theres just a little bit more to the story…and this is where the Pharisees fit into the story and where we don’t want to fit in.
And we’ve covered the aspect of being religious and self-righteous the past couple weeks…but there’s one more aspect we can learn about it from this story…and that is...
Self-righteousness is tempting. (v.25-32)
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.’ ”
You know, one of the interesting things about this passage is the fact that there is no ending. We don’t find out how the older brother responds to his father’s words, or how the brother get along, or even in the prodigal brother continues in his repentance.
And because there’s no ending, that let’s us know…that’s not the point of the parable when it comes to the older brother.
So what is?
The point of the older brother being in the story is not to show his response to the Father’s words…but rather to show his heart in the first place.
A self-righteous…entitled heart.
Look at what he says and how he feels.
Father, i’ve served you many years, i’ve done everything good and nothing wrong, and yet…you’ve never treated me the way you’re treating my younger brother, and he’s the one who’s been sinning and sleeping with prostitutes.
And the father’s response is…you’ve always been blessed. You’ve always had me. You’ve always had all that I have to give.
One of the things we learn from this…is self-righteousness is tempting. So be careful. Be careful that you don’t give into that…be careful that you don’t grow numb to the blessings God has given you as someone who knows him.
Because the example of the older brother here teaches us that one can slowly fall into self-righteousness because you’ve grown numb to the good things that father gives to those he loves.
So, instead of growing numb…delight in the truths we see in the prodigal son.
Yes, be aware that sin is devastating and that self-righteousness is tempting.
But also, delight that God is gracious. And God is loving. And repentance brings life.