The Lost Son
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Our sermon will be on Luke 14:15-24
We have a website: https://tahlequahworshipcenter.com/
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Coleman Family
Georgey
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Jim’s Son
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Songs
He Set Me Free - 305 - Eb
Til The Storm Passes By - 567 - G
It Is Well With My Soul - 433 - G
Rescue - Eb
The Lost Son
The Lost Son
I stopped by Walmart a few days ago. Christian and I were walking by a man with his 2 young sons.
They looked about 4-6. One was taller and bigger than the other.
As we walked by the bigger one said “I’m going to send you to Jesus.”
I looked at the Dad, he looked at me, and then he looked at his son and said “Don’t say that”
He used a lot of restraint because if it had been me, I might have said it and done it when my boys were that age.
You know, it’s harder to raise kids than it used to be.
When I was that age, my parents just turned me loose into the neighborhood.
If you did that in a city or suburb now, someone would call the police on you.
And bad people can reach right into your house through various forms of media.
But the trust is that it has never been easy.
The first recorded brothers that we have in history is a story of one brother killing another.
Today we are going to talk about a story that Jesus shared.
We are going to talk about the Prodigal Son - The Lost Son
11 Then He said: “A certain man had two sons.
12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood.
13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.
14 But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want.
15 Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.
16 And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you,
19 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.” ’
20 “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.
21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.
23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry;
24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.
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 So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant.
27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’
28 “But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him.
29 So he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends.
30 But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’
31 “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.
32 It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’ ”
The Son Leaves
The Son Leaves
I understand this first part because I was this son. I was the lost sheep. I was the lost coin.
We need to understand the actors in this story and the context.
The actors are pretty simple: God is the father, the older son is the faithful, and the younger one is the lost.
We’ll come back to the older son later.
Suffice to say, he represents current believers
The younger son is a mess.
The first thing we need to understand is what the younger son is saying.
By asking for his inheritance, he is saying to his father “I wish you were dead.”
In those days, the older son would get a double portion.
So with 2 sons, the lost or prodigal son would get 1/3 of the land.
So with that money, the younger son goes off into the world.
He doesn’t care about the father or anyone else in this life.
He lives his life as a heathen.
He had fun until the money ran out.
He hit rock bottom. I did as well.
He came to the point he would never go.
I want you to think about this: he was feeding pigs.
In the jewish culture, that is something they would never do.
There were a couple of things that I did.
One of them was to say that I left God on the side of the road.
The prodigal son came to himself and understood the love of the Father.
He repented
The Son Laments
The Son Laments
It says in Luke 15:17
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
I said a similar thing when I was saved.
I think that I said “Lord, I’ll do anything, please save me”
Somehow I knew that God had something in store for you.
The prodigal then said: Luke 15:18-19
18 I will get up 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 like one of your hired hands.” ’
Now look at the Father’s response.
He sees his son afar off and runs to him and kisses him.
They then have a feast in honor of the son coming back.
We are all prodigals in one way or another even if we don’t remember it.
When we come back to God, all of Heaven celebrates.
If you remember the story of the Lost Coin and the lost sheep, the same thing is happening here.
I want you to think about this as well. When the son comes back, he’s been feeding pigs.
He is probably completely filthy.
But the Father puts his best robe on him.
He covers his filth.
He is forgiven. He is found.
He was lost, but now he is found. That includes me.
The Son Left
The Son Left
I said earlier that we would come back to the older son.
In order to understand the older son, we need to understand who Jesus is talking to and what this would mean to them.
He is talking about someone that is a believer.
31 “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.
Some people try to say that the older son is not a believer, but the context is clear that he is a believer.
The older son is upset that the younger son has been off doing the things of the world while he has been working hard this whole time.
A little bit of jealousy.
Sometimes we identify with the older son.
I know a man that was a mess and he became a believer after me.
I could be jealous of what God is doing in his life but I chose not to.
I celebrate the fact that people are coming to the kingdom through him.
We need to remember that Jesus is talking to the Jews. Specifically, the Pharisees and Scribes
They are the older son.
New people are coming to the faith and they don’t like it.
We need to remember that God has given us robes to hand out.
We need to focus on that and let God handle the cleaning.
Now look at the last verse
32 It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’ ”
That tells us that:
The Savior Loves
The Savior Loves
At its heart, the story of The Lost Son tells us that we have a Savior that loves us.
It shows us the Love of God.
The Son doesn’t do anything here except repent. He changed his mind.
The Father went running to him.
It also shows us what our attitude should be to the lost.
Remember that the Pharisees and Scribes had been upset that Jesus was hanging with sinners.
We need to love like Jesus.
We need to speak what’s true
and to love them no matter who
We need to speak what’s true
and to love them no matter who
We are all God’s children
Everyone is invited to come back to family.
Let’s go tell the world