The Parable of the Prodigal Father

Good morning, everyone. It's good to be here with you in Brinsfield again.

He's one of the best-known characters in the Bible,

even by people who've never opened its pages.

And all this despite the fact that we never actually learn his name.

All you need to say are three words,

and I think many people will know just who you're talking about.

The prodigal son.

Yeah, I know that story that Jesus told about the guy who left home

with his share of the family fortune,

blew it on wine, women, and song,

ended up in a pigsty,

went back home, and his dad welcomed him with open arms.

Kind of synopsis of the story, and I'm not going to stop just here.

Not so many people know that he had an older brother,

which must have been really annoying for the older brother.

It's bad enough having a famous brother,

but an infamous brother,

and giving his name to the story.

But actually, there were two brothers in the parable story that Jesus told.

One who strayed, and one who stayed.

But actually, the main character in the story is not either of the brothers.

The main character in the story is the father.

Which is why I've renamed it as the parable of the prodigal father.

Now, it's not a misprint.

Why prodigal father?

Well, you'll just have to stay awake for another kind of...

I'm aiming at 20 minutes here, just to reassure you.

And Graham, you'll have to wait a few moments to find out why.

But first of all, what we need to do is read the original story in its context.

It's found in the third of the four stories of Jesus

that are recorded in the New Testament part of the Bible,

written by a doctor named Luke, and it's in Luke chapter 15.

Luke 15 · chapter mention

If you've got one of those Bibles down there, it's page 1048.

1048.

And to get the context, we need to read the whole chapter.

All right?

We'll get the idea of where it fits in the story.

So, page 1048.

I'm in a church now.

Thank you for praying for Hope City,

where we tell people the page numbers,

and then we say,

and the chapter is the big letters, words,

and the little numbers are the verses,

especially for those who never wrote in the Bible.

So, Luke chapter 15.

Luke 15 · chapter mention

Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus.

But the Pharisees and teacher of the Lord muttered,

this man welcomes sinners and eats with them.

Then Jesus told them this parable.

Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep,

loses one of them.

Doesn't he leave the 99 in the open country

and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?

And when he finds it,

he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home.

Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says,

Rejoice with me.

I found my lost sheep.

I tell you in the same way,

there'll be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents

than over 99 righteous people who do not need to repent.

Or suppose a woman has 10 silver coins and loses one.

Doesn't she light a lamp,

sweep the house,

search carefully until she finds it.

And when she finds it,

she calls her friends and neighbors together and says,

Rejoice with me.

I found my lost coin.

In the same way,

I tell you,

there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God

over one sinner who repents.

Now our story.

Jesus continued.

There was a man who had two sons.

The younger one said to his father,

Father,

give me my share of the estate.

So he divided his property between them.

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.

After he'd spent everything,

there was a severe famine in that whole country,

and he began to be in need.

So he went and hired himself out

to a citizen of that country

who sent him out to his fields to feed pigs.

He longed to fill his stomach with the pods

that the pigs were eating,

but no one gave him anything.

When he came to his senses,

he said,

How many of my father's hired servants

have food to spare?

Here I am starving to death.

I will set out and go back to my father

and say to him,

Father,

I have sinned against heaven and against you.

I am no longer worthy to be called your son.

Make me like one of your hired servants.

So he got up and went to his father.

But while he was still a long way off,

his father saw him

and was filled with compassion for him.

He ran to his son,

threw his arms around him,

and kissed him.

The son said,

Father,

I have sinned against heaven,

against you.

I am no longer worthy to be called your son.

But the father said to his servants,

Quick,

bring the best robe and put it on him.

Put a ring on his finger,

sandals on his feet.

Bring the fattened calf and kill it.

Let's have a feast and celebrate.

For this son of mine was dead and is alive again.

He was lost and is found.

So they began to celebrate.

Meanwhile,

the eldest son was in the field.

When he came near the house,

he heard music and dancing.

So he called one of the servants

and asked him what was going on.

Your brother has come,

he replied.

Your father has killed the fattened calf

because he has him back,

safe and sound.

The elder brother became angry,

refused to go in.

So his father went out and pleaded with him.

But he answered his father,

Look,

all these years I've been slaving for you

and never disobeyed your orders.

Yet you never gave me even a young goat

so I could celebrate with my friends.

But when this son of yours,

who has squandered your property

with prostitutes,

comes home,

you killed the fattened calf for him.

My son,

the father said,

You are always with me.

Everything I have is yours.

But we had to celebrate

and be glad

because this brother of yours

was dead

and is alive again.

He was lost

and is found.

In the opening sentence of the story,

Jesus introduces us

to its three main characters.

He says,

There was a man

who had

two sons.

So let's begin,

as the story does,

with the first son,

who we could call

the rebellious son.

This is the third,

as we read,

of three parables

that Jesus told

on the same theme.

The lost sheep,

the lost coin,

and the lost son.

While maybe the sheep

is lost

because of foolishness,

the coin maybe

because of carelessness,

the son is definitely lost

because he chooses

to get lost.

He is lost

because of deliberate decision

on his part.

The younger son

said to his father,

Give me my share

of the estate.

Now you need to know

a little bit of background.

In the law of Moses,

which governed

the people of Israel,

there were strict guidelines

laid down

for rights of inheritance.

The oldest son

in the family

got the lion's share,

what was called

in Hebrew

the double portion.

All the other sons

shared out

the other third.

Everyone still with me?

Two sons?

Oldest one gets

two thirds?

There's only one other son,

the younger son,

and so he's due

a third of the estate,

but not until

his father dies.

So demanding his share now,

he is actually saying

to his father,

I wish you were dead.

Let alone the difficulty

and disruption

of selling off

enough of the estate

to pay him out.

Yet despite this disgraceful

and distressing request,

there is no argument

on the part of the father.

He simply concurs,

so he divided

his property

between them.

Why did the youngest son

do such a thing?

Freedom!

He wanted to be liberated

from the shackles

of home life

and parental restraint.

He wanted to see life

and all that he had to offer

in glorious technicolor

instead of monotonous monochrome.

And so fortune in hand,

leaving not a single

possession behind,

he set off down the road

to this distant country,

this far country,

with never a glance back.

Such is life,

sometimes literally,

always spiritually.

Within each one of us,

there is a desire

to break free,

a rebellious spirit

which drives us

to go our own way

rather than God's way.

Proverbs,

the Hebrew book of wisdom

in the Old Testament

part of our Bibles,

comments,

there is a way

that seems right to a man,

but in the end

it leads to death.

Not that this young man

believed it at this point.

He was sure that the signpost

to the far country

read life

and for a time

it seemed that he was right.

Life in the fast lane,

fast living,

fast women,

fast camels.

But not forever.

His resources,

even those

of the son of a wealthy man,

are not limitless,

especially when they're spent

with such reckless abandon.

The word translated

in verse 13,

squandered,

is the word used

of winnowing

when you throw a load

of grain into the air

and it falls back

to the ground

and the chaff

is blown away.

That was what this young man

did when he squandered

his wealth

and there were plenty

of people around

to catch the falling shekels.

But soon,

sooner than it expected,

his plastic card

is spewed back out

of the cash point

and a flashing light

indicates insufficient funds.

And then,

so unfortunately then,

for this young man,

a famine strikes the country.

And not just a famine,

but a severe famine.

And the young man began,

we read,

to be in need.

And so is everyone else.

Belts are tightened

as well as purse strings.

And the boards

in the job center

are empty

except for one which reads,

swine herd required,

food and lodging provided.

The lodging is the pigsty,

the food is pig pods.

But desperation

and starvation

and no respecter of persons,

all his newfound friends

who swarmed around him

like bees around a honeypot

and nowhere to be found

now the jar is empty.

There he sits,

his hopes,

like his clothes,

in tatters.

At rock bottom.

What abject humiliation

for a rich Jewish boy

to end up keeping company

with unclean pigs.

Now,

you may be setting out

on the well-traveled road

to the far country.

You've grown up

in a Christian home.

You can't wait to be gone.

Maybe you're a student.

You've come to Edinburgh

your first year

and you've grown up

in a Christian family

so you're here today

or for a week or two

before you're gone

and when your parents

ring up and say,

have you gone to church?

Yes,

I was at Brentfield Evangelical Church.

And maybe this is

one of the last times

we might see you here.

You can't wait

to be freed

from the restrictions

of home and parents.

You don't believe

a word I'm saying

when I say

it will end in ruin.

Or maybe

you are a person

today who's already

arrived in the far country

and you're having

a wonderful time.

Life is truly fantastic.

Freedom from all those

restraints and regulations

is so liberating

you don't believe

a word I'm saying.

But perhaps,

perhaps there is

someone here

who's having

second thoughts.

Burning the candle

at both ends

means that it gets

very short

in the middle.

Things that were

once very fulfilling

now need

twice the effort

and investment

to get half

the satisfaction.

And maybe

who knows

and I only know

a handful of you here

maybe some of you here

are really in the pigsty

this morning.

It may not be

outwardly apparent.

You're not reduced

to sleeping on the streets

though you may be.

You may even have

all the material

possessions of life

but you are still

empty and still hungry

and nobody has

anything to offer

which will satisfy

the aching longing

within your spirit.

But it is

this point

at the lowest point

that hope begins

as we see

in the story.

At last in the pigsty

the young man

begins to think

and he can think now

for his mind

is no longer befuddled

by the intoxicating

pleasures

and bright lights

of the city.

All he has to look at

are pigs.

Look what it says

in verse 18.

When he came to his senses

he said

how many of my father's

hired men

have food enough to spare?

Here I am

starving to death.

I've got a strategy.

I will go back

and say to my father

Father I've sinned

against heaven

and against you.

I'm no longer worthy

to be called your son

but make me one

of your hired men.

The Bible has a word

to describe

what happened

to this young man.

It's a Bible word

and it's the word

repentance.

Repentance literally

means in the original

language it means

a change of mind

which then leads

to a change

of direction.

The young man

begins to think

about himself

and what he has done

about his father

and what he has left.

Repentance

is a change of mind

which leads

to a change of direction

before note

he did not stay there.

The key phrase

is in verse 20

so he got up

and went

to his father.

Now we'll return

to the details later

when we consider

the father

and his love

but simply

and wonderfully

note here

that the wayward

and rebellious son

is fully reconciled

to his father

not

as a hired servant

but as he goes

down the road

his father sees him

and runs to welcome him

and lays on

a tremendous celebration.

Bring the fattened calf

let's kill it

have a feast

and celebrate.

This son of man

was dead

and is alive again

he was lost

and found

so they began

to celebrate.

How ironical

that the son

who left home

because he wanted

to have a good time

ends up coming home

and having a great party.

But the story

does not end there

for there is

another son

an older son

not just the rebellious son

but what we could call

the resentful son.

When the younger son

returned

it's a beautifully

told story isn't it

you can imagine

the story

you can hear the drums

banging

and sound of drumming feet

and he comes in

from the fields

where he's been

slaving away

working away

in the fields

and he's probably

hungry and tired

and as he approaches

he hears the noise

and he thinks

what's going on?

Maybe

it's a surprise

party for me.

So he calls

one of the servant

boys over

and he says

what's going on?

Your brother

has come

he replied

and your father

has killed

a fattened calf

because he has

him back

safe and sound.

But rather

than being pleased

that his brother

is back home

the elder brother

is incensed

he is angry

no doubt

he is angry

with his brother

for all the trouble

and heartache

he's caused

in the family

the cheek he has

in coming back home

when he's blown

his fortune

but behind this

will you notice

there is a much

deeper anger

and his deeper

anger and resentment

is not against

his brother

but against

his father.

this is seen

in his response

to his father

who comes out

from the feast

when he hears

the older brother

is there

his older son

and pleads with him

to come and join

the celebration.

Listen carefully

to what he says

it's very important

but he answered

his father

look

he says

all these years

I've been slaving

for you

and never disobeyed

your orders

yet you never gave

me even a young goat

so I could celebrate

with my friends

but when this son

of yours

who has squandered

your property

with prostitutes

comes home

you kill the fattened

car for him

notice the contrast

between his words

to his father

and that of his

younger brother

the returning son

says father

I have sinned

the resentful brother

bluntly says

look

all these years

I've been slaving

for you

he doesn't use

the word father

why?

because he doesn't

see himself

as a son

he sees himself

as a slave

you see

the younger son

had chafed

against the

restraints

of his father

and his home

he'd shown it

in open rebellion

he had taken

his share

of the family

wealth

cleared off

he didn't want

to be a son

anymore

but will you notice

the elder son

stayed at home

living

as a son

but with a

slave mentality

but now

with the welcome

given to his brother

his pent-up

resentment

explodes in open

anger

for his father

breaks all the rules

by throwing a big

feast for his

younger son

who deserves

nothing

while he's not

even being given

a goat

to have a

get-together

with his friends

it's not fair

if there had been

a national

farmers union

he would have

taken his employer

to the cleaners

for compensation

but you see

he's not his

employer

he's his father

he's not a

slave

but a son

as his father

gently reminds him

and that the one

he calls

this son of yours

is actually

also this brother

of yours

my son

the father

said

you were always

with me

everything I have

is yours

but we had to

celebrate and be

glad

because this

brother of yours

was dead

and is alive

again

he was lost

and is found

now while there

are many people

in the world

maybe a few

even here today

who are like

the younger brother

openly rebellious

against God

and his laws

there are many

outwardly

good living

religious people

who are like

the elder brother

in fact this is

the context

why I read

the whole chapter

it begins

with Jesus

who is associating

with younger

brother types

now the tax

collectors

and sinners

despised tax

collectors

collaborators

with the Romans

people they

call sinners

who never

followed God

or his law

were all

gathering around

to hear him

but the Pharisees

the religious

people

the teacher

of the law

muttered

this man

welcomes

sinners

and eats

with them

you see

the Pharisees

and teacher

of the law

were the religious

people of the day

the good living

people who did

their absolute

best to keep

God's laws

they would never

be seen dead

in the far

country

they would never

associate with

anyone

who had been

there

they label

such people

sinners

and they

called themselves

righteous

you see

their religion

was based

on the premise

of punishment

and reward

God punished

those who did

what was wrong

and rewarded

those who did

what was right

it was a slave

mentality

and God

owed them

what they had

earned

so if this

Jesus really

was

God's chosen

Messiah

if he really

came from God

he would have

nothing to do

with prostitutes

collaborators

like tax collectors

instead he would

only mix

with folk

like them

but Jesus

actually did

exactly the

opposite

why he even

went to parties

they organized

on his behalf

with singing

and dancing

and lots of fun

what kind of

religion was it

where such people

were welcome

where such parties

were held

no wonder

they muttered

the original

language in Greek

is one of those

words that sounds

like it has

gone good

and in answer

Jesus tells them

these three parables

with the same

theme

culminating in the

last in detail

which answers

their muttering

Jesus says

when lust

when the lust

are found

there is rejoicing

in heaven

but here

among the

religious people

there is

complaining on

earth

as far as

they are

concerned

like the

elder brother

they refuse

to join

the celebrations

the chapter

begins

with them

refusing to

join the

parties

Jesus

is at

it ends

with the

elder brother

refusing to

join the

celebration

on the

return of

his brother

so what

is the

root of

their problem

it is

simply this

the one

fact they

fail to

understand

or accept

the true

character of

God

who is

the prodigal

father

now

the word

prodigal

in the

dictionary

has two

meanings

its normal

meaning

is wasteful

or recklessly

extravagant

it is

used

negatively

of

something

valuable

which is

wasted

but it

has a

secondary

and positive

meaning

giving or

yielding

profusely

lavishly

abundant

and this

wonderful

parable

teaches

us

an

incredible

truth

that

God's

love

is

prodigal

it is

extravagant

his

extravagant

prodigal

love

is shown

to both

sons

it is

shown

to the

rebellious

son

first of

all by

letting

him

leave

if

he'd

been

my

son

and

have

locked

him

in

his

bedroom

and

double

locked

it

or

thrown

him

out

for

good

but

it is

also

especially

shown

by the

fact

that

he

welcomes

home

rebels

and

runaways

while

the

younger

son

is

still

a

long

way

off

what

is

the

father

doing

he's

looking

down

the

road

looking

for

the

returning

prodigal

and

when

he

sees

him

in

the

distance

he

lays

aside

all

dignity

it's

hard

to

understand

this

in

our

culture

but

people

don't

run

and

old

people

especially

don't

run

he

gathers

up

his

cloak

and

he

runs

down

the

road

running

to

welcome

his

lost

son

you

see

we

come

if

you've

ever

been

in

the

far

country

we

come

back

expecting

so

little

we're

expecting

at best

to be

a

hired

servant

but

we

are

welcomed

home

with

amazing

grace

as

sons

and

daughters

given

the

best

robe

of

distinction

the

signet

ring

of

authority

the

sandals

of

a

son

rather

than

the

bare

feet

of

a

slave

and

when

it

happens

heaven

throws

a

party

graham

asked me

to speak

at this

he said

we're

hoping it's

going to be

a baptism

well

it isn't

a baptism

today but

baptismal

services are

the happiest

occasions in

any church

because we're

celebrating lost

people being

found

there's more

rejoicing of

in 99 people

who think

they're good

enough and

don't need

to repent

than one

person

who

turns

i wonder

is that

you this

morning

have you

ever

experienced

the father's

prodigal

love no

matter what

you've done

maybe even

thinking about

some of the

things you've

done makes

you embarrassed

and ashamed

you wouldn't

want anyone

else to know

about them

i simply say

to you

whatever they

are

god is

looking for

you to

return

and he

welcomes

you with

open arms

and flings

his arms

around you

yet you

see the

father not

only shows

his love

to the

rebellious

son but

also to

the elder

son you

see the

elder son

has also

defied

convention

seriously

he shamed

his father

by refusing

to join

the celebration

he should

have gone

into the

celebration

and then

talked

afterwards

with his

father

and sorted

it out

he has

embarrassed

culture and

convention

and as

with the

younger son

the father

goes out

to meet

him

he earnestly

pleads with

him also

to come

and he

says look

we had

to celebrate

and be

glad

you see

the father's

extravagant

love

his prodigal

love is

shown to

the rebellious

son as

well as

the resentful

son he

shows his

love to

the unrighteous

as well as

the self

righteous and

I guess all

of us fall

into one of

those two

categories

the great

tragedy of

this story

then and

now is that

the self

righteous stand

outside refusing

to join the

celebration

but returning

prodigals join

the party

celebrating with

the angels

in heaven

so this is a

parable about

the father

and his two

sons but of

course there is

a third son in

the bigger story

the one who is

telling the story

Jesus himself

we're not told

the parable is

left open-ended

did the eldest son

ever join the

party well the

story doesn't tell

us but the

story of the

gospel does

tell us the

eldest son the

Pharisees the

teacher the law

religious people

never joined the

party instead

they killed the

one who tells

the story but

this was part of

God's wonderful

plan listen to

some words written

by John a

follower of Jesus

he says this is

how God showed

his love among

us he sent his

one and only

sin into the

world that we

might live

through him

this is love

not that we

love God but

that he loved

us and sent

his son as an

atoning sacrifice

to pay for our

sins and I

simply conclude

slightly over my

twenty minutes

five minutes

over but I

conclude by

asking this

morning have

you experienced

the prodigal

love of the

father you know

what it is to

know God as

your heavenly

father are

you rejoicing

in that love

today celebrating

the prodigal

love of God

the father by

which he calls

you his son

and daughter

another verse

from the Bible

written again

by John

see what great

love the father

has lavished on

us that we

we

unrighteous

self-righteous

should be called

the children of

God so I

simply conclude

by asking you

three questions

are you lost

or found

are you a

slave

or a son

are you

grumbling

or rejoicing

let's pray

together

our father

in heaven

thank you so

much for your

amazing prodigal

love generous

love shown to

each one of us

here not one

of us deserves

your love

one of us

deserves to be

a member of

your family

to be called

your child

your son and

daughter and

yet you've made

it possible by

giving your own

son up for us

so whoever we

are this morning

as we bow

in your presence

you know who

we are and

where we are

whether we're in

the far country

whether we're on

the road home

whether we're

standing outside

angry

refusing to

join the party

show your love

to us by your

spirit

and may we

rejoice

today with

the angels in

heaven

that you

welcome us

back as

lost people

we pray in

Jesus name

Amen