You'll find the text we're looking at this morning on page 12 of your bulletin There is an outline if you care to fill it out and follow along that way. It's on page Begins on page 14 Let's go to the Lord with just a quick word of prayer Father as we come to the Scriptures we are mindful that they are God breath You're very words for your people that That you have spoken and are not silent So we ask a father that you would have mercy on me to speak clearly, accurately and boldly the things From this text And we would pray for our own souls That you would give us eyes that see and ears that hear and hearts that understand and are quick to turn to you May your word comfort those who are in any way afflicted this day and May it afflict those who are comfortable with their sin We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen Listen to what God says in his word Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear him But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered This man welcomed sinners and eats with them Then Jesus told them this parable 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 had 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 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 fathers hired men have food to spare and here I am starving to death I will set out 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 men 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 Through his arms around him and kissed him The son said to him father. I have sinned against heaven and 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 and sandals on his feet bring the fatted calf and kill it Let's have a feast and celebrate For this son of mine was dead and his alive again He was lost and Is found So they began to celebrate Meanwhile the older 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 and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has impact safe and sound The older brother became angry and 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 that I could celebrate with my friends But when the son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home you killed a fatted calf for him My son The father said You are always with me And everything I have is yours But we had to celebrate and be glad Because this brother of yours was dead and his alive again He was lost And is found One of those profound passages of scriptures just an incredible incredible Parable of our Lord Jesus Christ We've been looking at chapter 15. This is I believe our third week. Well look at it two more weeks This morning we want to Focus on the theme of repentance The first two verses of the chapter tell us of Jesus of Sinners coming to hear Jesus and this causing the Pharisees and teachers of the law to mutter and to accuse Jesus of Receiving sinners and eating with them and Jesus Makes his response to them he in one way says you're absolutely right I do receive them I do eat with them and what's more I rejoice about it But in another way he reframes the argument they put it as though he's sinting and perhaps even implying something tacitly On the fringes that he receives sinners and eats with sinners because that's What his heart is like that they're sin there and Jesus will have none of that and so in a sense He's defending himself and he reframes it and he says no, no, no I am like one who is looking for the lost I have come to seek and to save the lost and he reframes it But he doesn't soften what he's doing one little bit. He he talks about the rejoicing Not only his rejoicing over a sinner who repents, but how God the Father and the angels Rejoice when there is a Repentance Center in the first two little stories that that Jesus told that seemed to be the The key thing at least it was it was the refrain that after Jesus told the story He said I tell you that there is more joy in heaven over one soul who repents one sinner who repents and over 99 who need no repentance and The same refrain after the second story and in and this third story the story of the protocol the word repent doesn't show up But it's on the pages and I want us to look at it today I suppose we might start by just saying so why is this such an important topic Jesus is giving it a lot of print And I would say Jesus gives it a lot of print because it's the focus of his ministry when he first began It tells us that he began to preach and to say repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand and Luke 5 32 He says I have not calmed to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance When someone brought to him a story of those who had been tragically killed he says I say to you unless you repent You will all like wise parishion after he was raised from the dead in commission the disciples He said thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day and that Repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in his name to all the nations beginning in Jerusalem So it's no wonder that the first of the 95 Theses that Martin Luther wrote would say when our lord and master Jesus Christ said repent He called for the entire life of believers to be one of repentance The scripture says it's an incredibly important thing Jesus says it's an incredibly important thing And we need to understand that the world disagrees There is in the world and I think it right I think it at least comes to us all the time And we're tempted to it to say no repentance is weakness that weak people Repent that when you repent it's like giving up any power You're you're discarded and rejected and cast aside in society and I think sometimes the world treats us that way But the scripture say that repentance is a sign of great strength Great spiritual strength because the eyes of a spiritually strong person sees the glory of God And is able to say yes, I've sinned it's wrong. Oh God continue to change me. It takes spiritual strength to go there and According to the gospel. It's the power of God for salvation It's critical to the the life of the gospel lie to the it's critical to the gospel live to the person who comes to God to see him In his holiness and mercy and grace and to say God be merciful to me It's empowering then the Christian life It's the power that God uses to change us when he changes our hearts He causes us to see him and and to want to be like him And so it's incredibly important and not only that but the the fill in the blank on your outline We not only break the rules of sinners But we also destroy relationships. We're sinners. We're born into sin. We can't help ourselves. We do it And it's more than breaking the rules. It's also destroying Relationship think about the the text and the breaking of the rules. You know Jesus is able to say in just a couple verses all that needs to be said about the son as a rule breaker In verse 13 he tells us that he squandered his wealth with wild living That says it right there. He broke the rules He squandered his wealth with wild living Maybe if there's one other sentence that that shows the breaking of rules It's verse 15 and it's kind of implied when he goes he attaches himself to a landowner who sends him out to feed Pigs and and this certainly broke the rules for a good Joseph boy Never mind the fact that he's in a faraway country and living it up there He's feeding pigs And so if you look at the list there it is But the amazing thing is if we consider this the older brother the older son is just as big of a a rule breaker In verses 26 through 30 we read about him and particularly verse 28 through 30 first of all when he when he hears About he hears the music and dancing I don't know how you hear dancing But maybe they were you know line dancing or something that was loud. I don't know but He calls for a servant what's going on and he finds out your brother's back your your father's received him safe and sound And he's killed the fatted calf and and the next words are he was angry and he refused to go in He said well Maybe has a right to be angry and there's you know the scriptures do say be angry and do not sin But it also says that the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God and we're to let go of anger at bitterness So we need a little bit more and and there is when he talks to his father has to come out to him well Just the the idea of the sins that are going on here are rather amazing. We'll come back to it But he should be going to his father not the father coming to him and when he talks to his father he doesn't say father He doesn't say dad he says look and Will not call his father by name and he says all these years. I have been slaving The word literally is slaving the NIV translated this really well. There's other work There are other words to say all these years. I've been working all these years I've been laboring for you. I have been serving you There's all sorts of different words Greek words. He could have used he used the word of a slave giving slave labor He sees his work that way So look at the way he's talking to his father I think there's this thing called the fifth command that honor your father and your mother
Talks he talks about working for his father is slaving and he says here's the rules I've never broken one of your orders. I've never I've kept all your orders the words really are I've never broken any of your commands Rulekeepers Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees on that point is he not But then he slanders in verse 30 says this son of yours who squandered your wealth with prostitutes now The older brother presumably doesn't know where the son was or What he was doing he hasn't seen him? He just heard your father hasn't back safe and sound and it's called the fatted calf He doesn't know about the wealth or anything yet and and where in this story does it say the wild living was prostitutes You know the language would give more that he was just like a crudibly Ridiculously a spent thrift, you know, he spent money like there was no tomorrow. He just spent spent spent gave gifts gave money through parties Doesn't say anything about prostitution. That was slanderous of him to say that by the way that word slander in the Greek is blasphemy He blasphemed he spoke evil. It's the word that is used to describe the ministry of the devil himself Anyway, there is those broken rules but At the heart of it. It's not just the rules. It's the relationship The commentaries will tell you that when the younger son said father Give me my share of the inheritance This was just unheard of in Middle Eastern culture and most of the world He might as well have said dad. I want your stuff and I'm tired of waiting for you to die Won't you just give it to me now because I wish you were dead and I had this stuff
crushing And I think about how when things are going awry for children in their teenage years And they cry out I hate you. I wish I'd never been born or something of that nature That's about what's going on In the text When his father cashes out Also unheard of but and and probably didn't sell the land But we have to remember in a in a village the father the head of household He had received that from his father and his father and his father and in the community would be mostly Family maybe a gathering of a dozen or less families extended families who extended giving land and and inheritance this way And so for him to ask for his inheritance not only hurts the relationship with his father But everybody it hurts the relationship with the brother and we see that clearly in the text but with the extended family Because for him to to to take all that is his means he had to liquidate his land He had to liquidate that which which was a part of the whole communities wealth Yes, there was ownership but but there was such a sense of community that he couldn't do that And when you saw that when you're selling to leave quick you're not getting your best dollar for it You're getting the lowest price you can for it and show so he's he's rude and insulting to his whole community He Breaks relationship with his father with his brother with his extended family with the community And if he goes to a distant nation and he's feeding pigs He's the he's broken his relationship with with his nation and with his god with his his faith community his faith in god
That's worst case scenario and when Jesus talks about receiving sinners tax collectors and sinners He doesn't say oh, but they're not that bad He Place it out But the older brother We'll look at him some more. He has responsibilities all over the place But at least in the in the story today. Let's see that He refused that here it is his father is celebrating like he's never seen his father celebrate before It's obvious a great day in his father's life a fat and calf You you just didn't eat that much meat in this culture and if you were to eat meat maybe a chicken or something But the fatted calf the whole community is there And he's rejoicing Because he has a son back safe and sound and his brother can't put away the older brother can't put away his own anger and jealousy and personal problems enough to honor his father But instead makes his father come out to him again Assign a humiliation in that culture that that the older son would treat his father that way and that the father Would be shamed before the community. Oh look. He's got to go out that was just Again a broken relationship and it touched the community now. I'm not going to go in where everybody is celebrating
What I deserve is one who have kept all the rules and slaves so much is more than him and it's not right It's not fair and so he's mad at everybody in effect He's breaking relationships with everyone as well at least in the family and community and for this time
It's because of our sin problems That we have to repent so what is repentance we see how important it is we see that it's more than breaking rules It's breaking relationships and that's important to remember about sin and of itself sin is is Is always the social things and is more than breaking rules it's breaking relationships And so what does repentance look like how do we How do we repent well verse 17 tells us it starts with it it's coming to your senses verse 17 when he came to his senses When his mind returned to him if you will and the first thing that that happens when you come to your senses Is you start to think right about the father right and that's what he does How many of my fathers hired men have food to spare and here I am starving to death and remember He's telling the story and and the everyone listening can see here he is feeding pigs He's not he can't eat the pods his stomach cannot digest what the pigs are eating But he wishes he had something to eat and no one's giving him any human food He's in a terrible situation a young man who's given his money away in parties Night after night and friendly and he was the life of the party when he was the life of the party But now he's starving to death and people are not kind and and there's a bit of a crisis going on in his life And he sees how how life really is and And then he thinks about his father when my father's just My father's honest My father takes care of the people who work for him. He cares about other people He he's outward focus. It's not just rules my father The slaves that my father has have a better life the the work that the people who work for my father have a better life He's good In fact, he knows enough about his father being kind and gracious That he says I will arise and go to my father That's the second part When he comes to his senses he gets up and he goes to the father
It tells us that in 18 a I will set out and go back to my father and say to him in verse 20 So he got up and he went to his father when we think about repentance That's really what it is it's it's beginning to have a clearer view of God for who he really Is and then going toward him It's leaving the fixed eye if you will it's leaving the foreign country. It's leaving the the lifestyle That led him to bankruptcy and in his case When you put these things together you see
That there was some circumstances that were helping him to come to a senses He was in pain. He was in need
You know when we're when we're sending and and you know in a story like this especially in the church We haven't left here. We are we you know we haven't left our families. We haven't left our At least church family here. We are and maybe we can't identify with him But think about the sense that That capture you do you know we're usually blind to those things the the anger that makes us go off on our Our family or friends or co-workers and that stuff that that hot temper That all of a sudden boom and flash or You know our our lies of convenience we tell them so much so often that we don't even think about truth anymore Honesty and and this sort of thing or or whatever the pets in is whatever the indulgence is whatever it is Well, we're often blind to it because it becomes such a natural part of our life And yet when they catch up with us when when all of a sudden There's a crisis moment. There's a there's a packet of pain because of This continual habit all of a sudden. We now have a window. We can reject it. We can say I got myself out of other things. I can get myself out of this But that's when that window to come to our senses to consider God happens And when it happens the thing we need to do is Arise and go to our father
The next thing is it's being ready to accept the consequences 18 to 21. I will set out and go to my 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 men The son when he came to him after the father had At ran to him. He said father. I have sinned against heaven and against you. I'm no longer worthy to be called your son There's a there's a couple things going on here And there's there's the the commentators are On both sides of it if you will some say this isn't repentance. It's just another scheme He's got a plan on how he's going to fix things And that's not what repentance is repentance is depending on the grace of God right? Holy on the grace of God And so there's some that say that that's not what he's doing Then the other say no there is grace and and I'm going to take that tact With the honesty of saying okay people disagree on this But let me tell you why I think there's real repentance here The first one is just a simple experience lesson right which of us ever repents perfectly
Which one? I don't know if I ever have I've studied it. I try
I could take myself in my mind after the event. I should have done it this way. I should have done it that way I should have done it we don't And second of all when he comes he assumes full responsibility for what he's done and his order is just right He says father I have sinned against heaven and in your sight a sin against heaven He starts with his relationship with God and that's exactly right We saw that in Psalm 51 when David was repenting right against the the only advice sin You think about what David's repenting up David had had The rest of the his army was out fighting battles and he stayed back at his palace and then in the evening There's Bathsheba and you wonder if he's not back at the palace because there's some stuff going on before stuff's going on
Anyway, he sees her. He sleeps with her She's pregnant and he schemes to kill her husband and does so and it's not until Nathan the prophet comes and tells the story about a lamb And that Jesus that the David says In the story in this lamb, you know, his rich man kills this poor man's lamb this rich man has all sorts of stuff Has a friend come and for a feast takes the poor man's lamb and kills it and David hears the story and he says This is outrageous. This guy deserves the die. Here's my verdict. Here's my judgment is king of Israel He must pay back four times restitution Second Samuel 12 if you want to look that up Restitution It's the idea of assuming responsibility for what you have done the law speaks about this that you have to Assume responsibility. So he goes to God and he talks to God He sees that his sin is first and foremost and breaking his relationship with God and then he goes to his father And I've sinned in your sight and he takes responsibility He says I'm no longer worthy to be at your son and that's absolutely true He cut himself off. He cut himself off
He repudiated his family. He repudiated his wealth. He repudiated his inheritance He took it and treated it like it was very little worth And as he comes back he understands that that's the way the whole community We'll see him we'll talk more about that if not this week in the weeks to come so He takes He takes responsibility. He's willing to make restitution and remember in a parable There's there's a lot going on and In our relationship to God and we'll see this in the next point It's grace. It's we can't add to it. We can't work to earn our salvation or our forgiveness It's just it's impossible But in human relationships We do have to accept the consequences and the the scripture teaching about restitution does have some sort of principle that ought to Impact our lives and that's the human element in this story But let's move on to to this last point that's so important It's accepting the father's terms verses 22 to 27 He comes to the father and he's got his speech Already his father had seen him coming from from a far right and runs to him and And hugs him and kisses him and all this and when he's able to make his speech He says father I've sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be your son And that's as far as he gets Verse 22, but the father said to a servant's quick bring the best robe and put it on him Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet bring the fatted calf and kill it. Let's celebrate The family robe or his best robe is his robe first of all
And if you've watched the 10 commandments around Easter or Palm Sunday or whatever you know the Jewish The Jewish clothing has some sort of Pattern in the fabric that speaks about the family and the tribe and this sort of stuff What's he saying? What's the father saying? He he's cut the son off the son has it said make me like one of your hired men His father's saying now have none of it. I know where are you coming back that way here the family robe My best robe with the family seal on it the signant ring you push that you could do contracts with the family you're back in Not a slave shoes on the feet And I'm happy I'll receive you back that way And now the son has a choice doesn't he could say no I don't want your grace I'll pay you back every cent I don't want you saying whatever And he could repudiate the grace of God
No repentance is having a clear enough view about God that you come to him and you accept him on his terms And his terms are so incredible. We've been seeing that over the weeks haven't we Mercy grace favor sonship so many good things And And that's repentance I had a bit of an epiphany in my devotions this week Often as I share this all the time with you you know Uh in my in my devotions I come and I pray and I'm asking God to be with me and often I reflect on What were my sins the night before what kind of standing in my out with the father? You know that I do this that I do this that I do this and then I go through this this list of rules And the epiphany was Well, why don't you just go to him like he's your father and made a huge difference I don't go to my earthly father thinking oh crap what did I do what was my last sin against him My son doesn't do that with me. It was amazing That's grace isn't it It's what repentance is all about it's accepting the father on his terms It's accepting the father's terms. Excuse me. Let me just say a couple quick words about what repentance is not because I The devil will get us all tripped up on this the first one is this. There's a difference between repentance and hating the way you are This is what I mean Repentance is not hating just the way you are You know, I mentioned anger earlier and you could say I hate My I hate myself look at I always lose my temper and look what it's doing. It's running my life I hate my life. I hate myself and think like okay if I hate it if I hate myself then I'm I'm repenting and really no A lot of it can just be I hate the consequences of my sin which will be the next point I love myself. I want to be good. I want to be nice and so the fact that I'm this way and I hate it about myself if I say it enough then maybe Maybe that's the same thing and it's not the other aspect is this there's a difference between repentance and being really sorry about the circumstances Listen to several different preachers and read different commentaries one of the preachers I listened to was Was Tim Keller he has a great series on this and And he told a story that has run true in my counseling experience as well He tells of a couple that came to him for counseling. He did a great job. Obviously I was 25 as well There's no color counselors around. I've been married for a year. I'm 25 sure come talk to me I'll tell you everything you need to know but He talked about this this couple where The woman finally said I've had it. I'm leaving I'm out of here and the husband said please don't go if if I go to counseling with you if we go to the pastor and and counseling will you stay and you know not Committal but there they were at the counselor and this guy's weeping and all this sort of stuff and I'll do anything and Everything she wants him to do to change he's willing to do he does it. He does it. He does it And after after a month or so she says I'll stay And after a couple months he's doing the same things And Keller points us out and I've seen this in counseling in my own counseling experience. I've seen it before And I think he's absolutely right. He said when this guy was in his office and weeping and crying He wasn't putting on a show. He was really hurting. He was really sad He hated what was going on his life was miserable because of what was going on And he would do anything to change so that he could keep what he wants his wife doing things as why His heart had never been changed toward her and and so That's why two months out. He's back to his old tricks again Because there was never any heart of of I've hurt her It was more she's going to leave me That caused the tears you see the difference
repentance is More than fearing God's wrath or saying oh no I've broken his rules. I'm in a world of hurt It's the difference between a teenager who's done something. He knows is wrong And he says he's going to get caught whatever he's in jail or whatever and he says my parents are going to kill me That's not repentance When he says this is going to kill my parents He's on the way to repentance Do you see the relational difference? So what does true repentance accomplish? Well, it changes the way you view things We saw that from the very beginning. He started to think about his father You know when he first set out he He didn't just we never just sent just like that or at least usually not There was some stuff that was going on when did his heart leave his father and his home. It was before he cashed out He daydreamed long enough to get up the courage to say data. I wish you were dead. Give me my inheritance You know When the younger sons when the when our rebellious children finally say I hate you I'm leaving. I don't want to have anything to do with you And we're devastated because of the moment. We need to understand it's but this has been coming It didn't just happen and that's true with this kid He got to where he hated his father. He hated his father's rules. He hated his father's lifestyle He hated it. He just didn't like it But when there was repentance his views changed His view of his father changed His view of the party life changed. It was no longer this is it It when he repented it wasn't I got to give up the good stuff. It was I was deceived That stuff was killing me At the people I thought were my friends in the party life were using me And he sees clearly his view of things changes and it was be easy for him to hate that lifestyle to hate that way of life Because he sees the futility and the death of it and the pain it wreaks in the lives of other people
Secondly repentance accomplishes this Accepting the father's terms sonship Leads to living like a son. This is the change we usually think about with repentance when there's when our views change When we see God as he really is and we see life the way he teaches us
When we are accepted in a site and we know the love of the father We're his children and we understand the house rules or are not rules that the kept are broken But it's a relationship and we live like sons and we live by the family culture We're changed. We're sons. We're daughters
And then finally it leads to community joy and restoration by the way The reason I didn't point out the older son's repentance
Which is go home and study and find it for yourself It's not there There's now his view who seems hardened He's not living like a son. He's living like a slave And there's no joy or community unity or restoration but with the younger son there is His father throws the party and the community comes we'll talk more about this in the weeks to come because it's huge The community is so radically important here
I want to I want to quote Kelter one more time he he talks on this point as well and Obviously I recommend a sermon to you, but he uses as an illustration Odysseus from the Odyssey and That story where Odysseus is going past the island of the sirens remember and he's warned hey This is certain death for you and your crew because when you hear the beautiful sound of the sirens You'll jump overboard and into the sea or you'll wreck the boat into the show as you you're not going to survive this And so this is what you got to do you got to put you got to have your sailors your your Your people tie you to the mast And then put wax in their ears and tell them before you put the wax in the ears. I guess you tell them Don't Don't untie me while we're going past the island don't listen to me if you hear me trying to get free or or see that I want free Don't pay attention to me just tie me tighter And then when we're safely passed an out of your shot Then take the wax out of your ears and he says You using that as an illustration for a community life and he says yes Let me just read a quote from him He says don't Don't when you don't join when you don't become a member or take your vows where you say If my elders are my pastor my brothers and sister in the church see me living in a way I shouldn't that they have the right to call me on the carpet have you done that if not you don't understand repentance yet You you see the gospel Christian knows that there are times when we're going to lose our senses Something is going to go wrong and we're going to be out of our head Sometimes you say time me to the mass till I get sane And therefore every Christian has to be in a community where there is accountability for You for them and them for you And he talks about the dangers of that kind of community where we hold one another accountable where we speak into one another's life where those who are Spiritual restore an airing brother with a spirit of humility He says I understand that there's churches that are harsh or Authoritarian and don't practice that well and he uses the illustration and well you go to a doctor and yet there's quacks that are doctors It is go to a church where you can do that and I love what he's saying and I think it's true This is the kind of community we need to be we need to be the kind of community where we can we can be totally open about the things We're struggling with in the the ugliness of the sin of our hearts Without the fear of being kicked out and yet at the same time with the confidence that when I start to go that way When I start to believe the lies more than the truth that someone's going to say something to me And pull me back Isn't that the kind of community you want to be a part of Where we know we love Christ and he loves us and he keeps us and we deal with the stuff in our lives and and help each other with that
That is exactly What Jesus is calling for when he tells the scribes and the Pharisees How he rejoices when there's a soul saved How they should be seeking and searching for the lost Oh, may God do that for us. Let's pray
God, thank you for your word. Please work it deep into our souls Make us to rejoice with joy and expressible as we see your work in our lives
And grant us to be this kind of community. I pray in Jesus name. Oh, man