Rejoice, this brother was dead and has begun to live!

The Lost Sheep

15 Now all the tax collectors and the sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him. ² Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

³ So He told them this parable, saying, ⁴ “What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the ^]open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? ⁵ When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. ⁶ And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ ⁷ I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

The Lost Coin

⁸ “Or what woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? ⁹ When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!’ ¹⁰ In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

The Prodigal Son

¹¹ And He said, “A man had two sons. ¹² The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.’ So he divided his wealth between them. ¹³ And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living. ¹⁴ Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished. ¹⁵ So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. ¹⁶ And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him. ¹⁷ But when he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger! ¹⁸ I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.”’ ²⁰ So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. ²¹ And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ ²² But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly 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 fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; ²⁴ for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate.

²⁵ “Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶ And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be. 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 became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him. ²⁹ But he answered and said to his father, ‘Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends; ³⁰ but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’ ³¹ And he said to him, ‘Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours. ³² But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.’”

These three parables, the lost sheep, the lost coin and the prodigal, all tell the same story. They all tell us of the importance, to God, of each individual person, letting us know that He truly desires that none should be lost, that all should come to repentance.(2 Peter 3:9) The prodigal is the most detailed account of the three and probably the most often repeated and taught. It also has a few stories within the story, so it will be our focus today.

The story is titled The Prodigal Son in our text and in most versions of scripture. Because of the title, there is a tendency to focus on the actions, conditions and reactions of this one character of the account. While the story is in many ways about this wayward son, it will also benefit us to look at the other two main characters in the story, the Father and the other son. Let's begin with the prodigal. We see first that he was the younger of the two brothers. We aren't told much about the family here, but we know from the culture of the time that the first born, the older brother would have been the next in line to assume the primary family responsibility and control. The birthright and blessing of the first born was a key part of the tradition and family structure of that time. Perhaps this had some influence on the younger brother's desire to get what was his and go on to live his own life.

The father does not deny his son's request, he gives him his portion of the estate and let's him go. We see in the father's action here the truth that God, our Father, has given us each a free will. He will not stop us from making poor decisions and from going down wrong paths. The younger son then goes out and squanders all that he has been given on "loose living". So often we see and know of young people who have been brought up in the church, seemingly knowing and even serving God, yet there is something within human nature that causes them/us to want to experience what the world has to offer. Again, God gives us free will and there are no second generation Christians, no one is eternally saved because of the family they belong to or the way they were raised. There is a critical turning in the attitude of the prodigal. He reached a point where he was at his bottom. He realized what the result of living his own way was. The text says:

when he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger! ¹⁸ I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.”’

That is repentance. He recognized that he was not worthy, that he did not deserve to be restored to his original position. He chose to return as a hired man or a servant. In our entitlement culture it is difficult often for people to come to that place. We are taught that the world, the government, our families owe us something. We are told that we should have things given to us regardless of how we act.  I said earlier that the prodigal reached a point where he was at his bottom. That's a phrase you often hear said about people who are living in destructive lifestyles. They have to hit bottom before they can change. Here's what I believe about that. It is a lie from the pit of Hell. You see there really is no bottom to sinful destructive living. It spirals eternally downward to an existence without God. There is no place that is the bottom from where all people will look up and choose to change. Each person must, as the prodigal did,  choose their bottom. They need to come to the end of themselves and look up to the Father. They need to recognize that it's not their right or their worthiness, it's not what they deserve but each person must individually choose where their bottom is, choosing to go to the Father with no strings attached.

The real story of the prodigal is of course about the Father. He does give us each that free will and so He must allow us to go our own way even to our own hurt. But the Father never stops waiting and watching for us to return.  Verse 20 says:  But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. That's the heart of the father toward the prodigal. He is watching and waiting, looking every day down that long road His wayward child went down. We see again in verse 21 the true repentance of the prodigal. He didn't back off from his position when he saw the favorable response of the father. He knew he was unworthy and just wanted to return to the presence of the father. The father, our Father has different plans though. He wants to restore each prodigal to the fullness of our intended position and relationship with Him. That's why Jesus died on the cross. Not so we would be second class servants but so we could be restored to the fullness of our relationship with God. Sons and daughters of God with all the benefits, privileges and and authority of children of the King.

The final character in the story is the older son. We see by his response and reaction that even though he had been with his father all along, even faithfully serving him, he didn't really know him and have full relationship with him. We need to guard our hearts from reacting like the older son. There are times when it seems God will greatly bless someone who has just returned, giving them blessings and perhaps anwers to prayer that we have been waiting years for. We need to have a heart to celebrate with the Father, to join Him in His joy at the return of a lost child. In Matthew 20, the parable of the laborers in the vineyard Jesus teaches this principle of the Fathers blessing being given to those who come last.

...Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. ¹⁵ Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’ ¹⁶ So the last shall be first, and the first last.” 

Take what is yours. Verses 29-30 of our text revals the older son's heart.  But he answered and said to his father, ‘Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends; ³⁰ but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’  The older son really didn't want and enjoy the fellowship and relationship he had with his father, he too wanted to celebrate with his friends. Verse 31 reveals the truth.   And he said to him, ‘Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.  

All that the Father has is ours and even more important we are with Him.

What are the lessons we learn then from the story of the prodigal?

If you are yourself a prodigal, know that the Father is waiting and watching. His desire is for you to return. He will bless you and restore you, but you must repent, knowing that it is not what you deserve but His grace which will restore you. Return to Him. 

If you know a prodigal, some one you love, who has wandered away from the Father, know that while we can not choose the bottom for those we love, there is no bottom to the destructive effects of sin in their lives. Join with the Father in watching and waiting. Pray that they will have a revelation of Jesus Christ, knowing that He died for their sins. Pray that through the revelation of the cross thet will choose their bottom and come back.

Each time a prodigal returns join with the Father and all of heaven and rejoice!