The Gracious Father (Pt. 1)

WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.600 Would ask you to remain standing for one more moment as we open up to 2 00:00:03.680 --> 00:00:08.949 the gospel of St Luke. Will be looking at chapter fifteen together as we 3 00:00:09.070 --> 00:00:19.190 continue, and the parables of Jesus Luke. Chapter Fifteen, beginning in verse 4 00:00:19.269 --> 00:00:32.259 eleven. This is God's word, and he said there was a man who 5 00:00:32.259 --> 00:00:36.490 had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, father, 6 00:00:36.649 --> 00:00:41.329 give me the share of property that is coming to me, and he divided 7 00:00:41.450 --> 00:00:46.850 his property between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all 8 00:00:47.049 --> 00:00:51.320 he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered 9 00:00:51.399 --> 00:00:57.039 his property and reckless living. And when he had spent everything, a severe 10 00:00:57.159 --> 00:01:00.840 famine arose in that country and he began to be in need. So we 11 00:01:00.960 --> 00:01:06.189 went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who 12 00:01:06.230 --> 00:01:11.430 sent him into the fields to feed pigs, and he was longing to be 13 00:01:11.590 --> 00:01:15.549 fed with the pods that the pigs eight and no one gave him anything. 14 00:01:15.950 --> 00:01:19.819 But when he came to himself, he said, how many of my father's 15 00:01:19.859 --> 00:01:23.739 hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger. 16 00:01:25.859 --> 00:01:29.500 I will arrive eyes and go to my father and I will say to him, 17 00:01:29.500 --> 00:01:34.170 father, I have sinned against heaven and before you I am no longer 18 00:01:34.370 --> 00:01:38.930 worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants. 19 00:01:40.609 --> 00:01:44.609 And he arose and came to his father, but while he was still 20 00:01:44.609 --> 00:01:49.840 a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion and ran and 21 00:01:49.000 --> 00:01:53.840 embraced him and kissed him, and the son said to him, father, 22 00:01:53.959 --> 00:01:59.120 I have sinned against heaven and before you I am no longer worthy to be 23 00:01:59.200 --> 00:02:04.430 called your son. But the father said to his servants, bring quickly the 24 00:02:04.590 --> 00:02:07.349 best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand 25 00:02:07.389 --> 00:02:12.550 and shoes on his feet, and bring the fattened calf and kill it, 26 00:02:12.629 --> 00:02:17.259 and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead and is 27 00:02:17.259 --> 00:02:22.979 alive again. He was lost and is found, and they began to celebrate. 28 00:02:23.219 --> 00:02:27.699 Now is older son was in the field and as he came and drew 29 00:02:27.780 --> 00:02:30.849 near to the house, he heard music and dancing and he called one of 30 00:02:30.889 --> 00:02:36.289 the servants and asked what these things meant, and he said to him, 31 00:02:36.330 --> 00:02:40.610 your brother has come and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has 32 00:02:40.689 --> 00:02:46.800 received him back safe and sound. But he was angry and he refused to 33 00:02:46.840 --> 00:02:52.120 go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his 34 00:02:52.240 --> 00:02:57.039 father. Look, these many years I have served you, I've never disobeyed 35 00:02:57.080 --> 00:03:00.789 your command. Yet you never gave me a young goat that I might celebrate 36 00:03:00.830 --> 00:03:07.870 with my friends, but with this son of yours came who is devoured your 37 00:03:07.990 --> 00:03:13.379 property with prostitutes. You killed the fat and calf for him and he said 38 00:03:13.379 --> 00:03:16.979 to him, son, you are always with me and all that is mine 39 00:03:17.219 --> 00:03:23.300 is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad for this. Your 40 00:03:23.460 --> 00:03:30.729 brother was dead and is alive. He was lost and is found. This 41 00:03:30.129 --> 00:03:40.560 is God's word. You may be seated. So I want to begin this 42 00:03:42.000 --> 00:03:49.680 evening with a quote from psychology today, from a doctor, Lawrence Samwell, 43 00:03:51.599 --> 00:03:59.909 and he's speaking about death and specifically how Americans consider death, and he says 44 00:03:59.990 --> 00:04:04.710 this. He says the notion of one day disappearing is contrary to many of 45 00:04:04.909 --> 00:04:15.819 our defining cultural values, with death and dying viewed as profoundly on American the 46 00:04:15.900 --> 00:04:20.180 rise of the self has made it increasingly difficult to acknowledge the fact that our 47 00:04:20.420 --> 00:04:30.850 individual selves will no longer exist. What is interesting how repulsed we are by 48 00:04:31.009 --> 00:04:36.129 death. I mean it's it's understandable, isn't it? It is a topic 49 00:04:36.290 --> 00:04:43.720 that is not overly popular to discuss. And yet for the Christian, for 50 00:04:43.759 --> 00:04:50.079 us who professed faith in Christ, death is actually the remedy for our human 51 00:04:50.160 --> 00:04:56.350 condition, isn't it? And this evening I would like to consider our text, 52 00:04:56.509 --> 00:05:00.550 the prodigal son, or, as I would suggest, that the parable 53 00:05:00.589 --> 00:05:04.389 of the gracious father. I would like to consider this parable in the context 54 00:05:05.069 --> 00:05:10.540 of death. Now, some of you might be thinking Christian, why would 55 00:05:10.540 --> 00:05:14.620 you ruin my favorite parable by making it about death? Well, I'm sorry, 56 00:05:15.100 --> 00:05:18.139 but bear with me. I do want to consider this. Give me 57 00:05:18.180 --> 00:05:20.769 a moment and what we'll see what we can come up with. But I 58 00:05:20.889 --> 00:05:25.649 want to consider this parable in the light of death, certainly the death of 59 00:05:25.730 --> 00:05:32.689 Christ, but also our own death along with Christ. So let's let's consider 60 00:05:32.810 --> 00:05:36.920 this this evening. This this evening, will actually be taking the parable in 61 00:05:38.160 --> 00:05:41.639 two parts. Will take part one tonight in Lord Willing, will take part 62 00:05:41.680 --> 00:05:46.879 two next week. And this we eq will specifically be considering the younger brother, 63 00:05:46.839 --> 00:05:50.949 the Prodigal son, if you will, and will consider this passage under 64 00:05:51.029 --> 00:05:56.910 three headings. One, the death of the father too, the death of 65 00:05:56.990 --> 00:06:03.660 the son and three Baptismal resurrection. That last one seems out of place. 66 00:06:03.819 --> 00:06:11.300 Bear with me. So, if you'll recall from last week we considered the 67 00:06:11.379 --> 00:06:15.100 parables of the lost chief and the lost coin and when we mentioned that, 68 00:06:15.180 --> 00:06:21.250 Luke's introduction and Chapter Fifteen, verse one is an introduction to all three parables, 69 00:06:21.290 --> 00:06:26.970 ours tonight included. He says this. He says now the tax collectors 70 00:06:27.089 --> 00:06:31.329 and sinners were drawing near to him, him being Jesus, and the Pharisees 71 00:06:31.410 --> 00:06:38.519 and the scribes grumbled, saying this man receives sinners and eats with them. 72 00:06:39.879 --> 00:06:44.079 So that certainly sets up last week's parables, but I would argue that it 73 00:06:44.199 --> 00:06:48.430 also sets up this evening's parable. And with that I think we can see 74 00:06:48.470 --> 00:06:53.790 the parable as a bit of an allegory, and most commentators through history would 75 00:06:53.829 --> 00:07:00.189 agree. The the younger son represents sinners and tax collectors, the older son 76 00:07:00.470 --> 00:07:06.740 represents Pharisees and scribes, and the father of represents God, the father who 77 00:07:06.980 --> 00:07:13.579 is in heaven, who rejoices every time a sinner repents, as we learned 78 00:07:13.620 --> 00:07:18.930 about last this week. And so right off the bat the parable introduces these 79 00:07:19.250 --> 00:07:26.009 characters, doesn't it a man who had two sons, and then it zooms 80 00:07:26.089 --> 00:07:31.920 in on the relationship with the younger son. The younger son comes to his 81 00:07:32.120 --> 00:07:36.879 father and he says, Father, give me a share of the property that 82 00:07:38.079 --> 00:07:43.920 is coming to me. So this is a common thing, that that happens. 83 00:07:44.310 --> 00:07:48.029 In fact, it's mentioned in the levitical law that that a father was 84 00:07:48.110 --> 00:07:53.430 to give an inheritance to his son's two thirds of it would be given to 85 00:07:53.470 --> 00:07:58.660 an older one third would be given to a younger assuming that there are two 86 00:07:58.779 --> 00:08:03.899 sons. But what's different about this situation is what the levitical law talks about 87 00:08:05.060 --> 00:08:09.459 is as that this is to be given as a last will and testament. 88 00:08:09.540 --> 00:08:15.329 In other words, the sons have claim to this possession, but they don't 89 00:08:15.329 --> 00:08:22.810 get it until the father dies. It's interesting that the property here, that 90 00:08:22.410 --> 00:08:28.120 the word uses that give me the share of the property or inheritance is some 91 00:08:28.560 --> 00:08:35.200 translation say is is the Greek word for life. And that's exactly what happens, 92 00:08:35.240 --> 00:08:39.039 isn't it? At the end of one's life they give what is left 93 00:08:39.200 --> 00:08:46.190 of their life to their children, those who come after them, as an 94 00:08:46.309 --> 00:08:52.669 inheritance. Well, as we consider this, we we think about what the 95 00:08:52.789 --> 00:08:58.740 son is actually asking. It's far more than just an advance on his allowance, 96 00:08:58.860 --> 00:09:03.179 isn't it? He's essentially saying Hey, dad, as far as I'm 97 00:09:03.220 --> 00:09:09.700 concerned, you're dead. Could you give me what's coming to me? I 98 00:09:09.820 --> 00:09:13.049 mean, that's exactly what would be viewed in this culture. For a son 99 00:09:13.169 --> 00:09:16.970 to say, Dad, I want my inheritance. would be a son wishing 100 00:09:16.129 --> 00:09:22.970 his father dead, no longer caring about the father, only the possessions that 101 00:09:24.090 --> 00:09:31.480 he can give him. Now, the father in this case has no legal 102 00:09:31.279 --> 00:09:37.519 requirement to hand this over to his son, and yet he does. Okay, 103 00:09:37.629 --> 00:09:45.509 son, I'm dead to you and this cash proves it. I mean, 104 00:09:45.629 --> 00:09:52.669 culturally we can't even fathom the shame that would be occurring here, both 105 00:09:52.830 --> 00:09:56.700 from the son's behavior but also from the father willing to allow his son to 106 00:09:56.740 --> 00:10:01.419 get away with this. This is the kind of actions that would cause the 107 00:10:01.500 --> 00:10:07.529 neighbors to whisper. Did you hear about so and so? And it's good 108 00:10:07.570 --> 00:10:11.289 for nothing son, and you can believe? Can you believe that that fool 109 00:10:11.490 --> 00:10:16.009 just gave him the cash and let him go? I mean, this would 110 00:10:16.049 --> 00:10:20.440 be looked on very poorly in this time and as these scribes and Pharisees are 111 00:10:20.480 --> 00:10:24.840 listening to Jesus tell this parable no doubt that they are having some of these 112 00:10:24.919 --> 00:10:31.720 thoughts. So the son wishes his father dead and his father allows it. 113 00:10:33.000 --> 00:10:37.429 And I want to take the allegory too far, but isn't this a picture 114 00:10:39.070 --> 00:10:45.470 of how God so often works? He is under no obligation to allow us 115 00:10:45.590 --> 00:10:50.460 to do what we want. He is sovereign over all things, and yet 116 00:10:50.740 --> 00:10:56.460 he so often, at least for a time, will allow us to and 117 00:10:56.620 --> 00:11:01.059 away spit in his face, take what he has given us our very breath 118 00:11:01.259 --> 00:11:07.649 and life and go squander it away. Isn't that kind of the picture from 119 00:11:07.649 --> 00:11:13.649 Romans, one that people trade the truth about who God is for a lie? 120 00:11:13.809 --> 00:11:18.090 In this case, this father has shown himself, at least in the 121 00:11:18.169 --> 00:11:24.159 parable to be nothing but a loving, compassionate father, and yet this son 122 00:11:24.480 --> 00:11:28.840 trades that truth for the lie that his dad is nothing but a trust fund 123 00:11:28.960 --> 00:11:37.590 to be spent however he sees fit, all while pretending that his dad is 124 00:11:37.789 --> 00:11:45.549 dead. So we have a son who considers his father dead. And if 125 00:11:45.590 --> 00:11:50.299 that's true, next we find the death of a son. The passage goes 126 00:11:50.460 --> 00:11:54.100 on. It tells us that not many days later, the younger son gathered 127 00:11:54.179 --> 00:11:58.259 all that he had and took a journey into a far country, and there 128 00:11:58.299 --> 00:12:05.490 he squandered his property on reckless living. I like how the King James Renders 129 00:12:05.529 --> 00:12:13.169 it says they're wasted his substance, his very life, with riotous living. 130 00:12:15.330 --> 00:12:20.080 This young man leaves the country of his family in a Jewish context, leaving 131 00:12:20.279 --> 00:12:26.399 his homeland to go to a land of gentiles, right, going to a 132 00:12:26.559 --> 00:12:31.230 foreign land, away from the land of his father, away from the land 133 00:12:31.269 --> 00:12:35.990 of his God. I think this would be something like someone from Arizona moving 134 00:12:35.029 --> 00:12:45.100 to California. The older brother would later claim that he describes what the what 135 00:12:45.299 --> 00:12:50.580 the younger brother did. He says he devoured the father's wealth with what prostitutes? 136 00:12:52.620 --> 00:12:54.980 I mean, whatever the particulars, we can assume that this young man 137 00:12:56.100 --> 00:13:01.250 did not lose this money on a business deal gone bad, but on loud 138 00:13:01.330 --> 00:13:11.490 living, loose women. Not only has he considered his father dead, but 139 00:13:11.649 --> 00:13:16.120 he is shaming the good name of his family by leaving all that God has 140 00:13:16.240 --> 00:13:22.440 promised to him, going to a far away land and living in a way 141 00:13:22.559 --> 00:13:28.149 that certainly does not withhold the honorable name of his father. Again, considering 142 00:13:28.309 --> 00:13:35.350 his father, his heritage, to be dead. Well, in the case 143 00:13:35.590 --> 00:13:41.860 of sin, as we know, all that glitters is sure to fade, 144 00:13:41.059 --> 00:13:46.620 and that's exactly what happens. He spends all of his dad's money on drink 145 00:13:46.659 --> 00:13:50.259 and debauchery, and as soon as the cash runs out, the text tells 146 00:13:50.259 --> 00:13:56.129 us that famine comes. He comes to the land where he has set up 147 00:13:56.529 --> 00:14:01.730 shop and the sun finds himself needy. And here he has to devise a 148 00:14:01.769 --> 00:14:07.730 plan, doesn't he? The RSV says that he joins himself to one of 149 00:14:07.809 --> 00:14:13.200 the citizens of the country. Now again, thinking about this and the cultural 150 00:14:13.399 --> 00:14:18.960 context, this Jewish boy has gone to a faraway land. He is now 151 00:14:20.120 --> 00:14:26.190 end injured himself to a gentile. He is literally put himself into exile and 152 00:14:26.389 --> 00:14:33.629 a land that is not his own and servitude to a people that is not 153 00:14:33.909 --> 00:14:39.299 his own. And in the case of this particular gentile, he is now 154 00:14:39.500 --> 00:14:43.259 working on a pig farm, which, in a Jewish context against would make 155 00:14:43.460 --> 00:14:50.019 the whole picture far, far worse. I've got a good friend who is 156 00:14:50.139 --> 00:14:54.970 a farmer, a pig farmer, in Minnesota, and he is constantly sending 157 00:14:54.049 --> 00:15:00.009 me pictures of what pig farming is like, and it is disgusting. At 158 00:15:00.049 --> 00:15:05.409 least how he frames it and our group thread but that's not what's going on 159 00:15:05.690 --> 00:15:13.799 here. Particularly we're finding this young Jewish man in a far away gentile country 160 00:15:13.240 --> 00:15:22.230 now giving his life to unclean animals and their care. And not only that, 161 00:15:22.470 --> 00:15:26.350 but the text would tell us that the animals themselves seem to have more 162 00:15:26.429 --> 00:15:33.190 worth than the young boy did. He they're getting fed and he's going hungry, 163 00:15:33.309 --> 00:15:41.059 longing for the slop that is fed to them. Me This would be 164 00:15:41.100 --> 00:15:46.980 a truly disgusting picture for scribes and Pharisees to hear about. Wouldn't it deplorable, 165 00:15:48.419 --> 00:15:54.210 the shame to send the disrespect, the uncleanliness and their eyes? And 166 00:15:54.570 --> 00:16:02.009 rightly so. This kid is as good as dead. Everything that is true 167 00:16:02.049 --> 00:16:06.679 about him has been put to death. In fact, that's exactly what the 168 00:16:06.720 --> 00:16:10.519 father surmises at the end of the parable, isn't it? My son was 169 00:16:11.399 --> 00:16:18.190 dead. He says it twice. Isn't this a start picture of sin, 170 00:16:19.990 --> 00:16:26.789 of a life given over to sin, the reality of being dead and sin? 171 00:16:30.389 --> 00:16:33.940 Well, not only does the father see his son as dead, as 172 00:16:33.980 --> 00:16:38.019 he summarizes at the end of the story, but the son realizes it himself. 173 00:16:38.100 --> 00:16:44.740 Verse Seventeen says that he comes to Himselfie, he comes to his senses, 174 00:16:45.700 --> 00:16:51.370 realizing that even the servants on his father's farm have bread to eat. 175 00:16:52.289 --> 00:16:57.529 But what does he say about himself? But I perish, I die here 176 00:16:59.289 --> 00:17:06.519 with hunger. He begins to recognize his position, which is near to death. 177 00:17:10.000 --> 00:17:17.670 The wages of sin is always death. We know that to be true 178 00:17:17.670 --> 00:17:21.750 in our own lives, don't we? We can look back and perhaps think 179 00:17:21.829 --> 00:17:27.509 of time times where we were dead and sin it looks pretty at first, 180 00:17:29.950 --> 00:17:37.660 but it doesn't end that way. Doesn't matter how shiny it looks or how 181 00:17:37.180 --> 00:17:41.740 attractive its form, it always leads to death. Well, in the dying 182 00:17:41.940 --> 00:17:47.210 breath of this son, he comes up with a plan. He will go 183 00:17:47.329 --> 00:17:51.170 back to his dad, he will beg him to take him as a slave, 184 00:17:52.569 --> 00:17:56.569 and he begins to write a speech. Father, I have sinned against 185 00:17:56.569 --> 00:18:03.720 heaven and before you, I am no longer worthy to be called your son, 186 00:18:03.880 --> 00:18:11.519 it says. Treat me as one of your hired servants. Here he 187 00:18:11.720 --> 00:18:17.230 seeks to hang onto that last bit of life by saying, you know what, 188 00:18:17.309 --> 00:18:21.109 I'll just go work for the old man, not as a son but 189 00:18:21.190 --> 00:18:29.579 as a slave. So he goes, a dead man walking. So what 190 00:18:29.660 --> 00:18:34.380 would you do. If you are the father, think of good parenting advice 191 00:18:34.460 --> 00:18:41.019 you would give at this point. What would you tell the father to do? 192 00:18:42.049 --> 00:18:47.930 Would you allow the son to even step foot on your property? Maybe 193 00:18:48.049 --> 00:18:52.930 not. If you're really gracious parent, perhaps you would give him a list 194 00:18:52.970 --> 00:18:57.480 of hoops to jump through that he could again earn your trust, get back 195 00:18:57.559 --> 00:19:03.079 into good graces. I mean his own plan to work as your servant. 196 00:19:03.200 --> 00:19:07.240 Wouldn't be that bad, would it? He's that's that's not too bad. 197 00:19:07.079 --> 00:19:14.150 He could calm, he could earn his way back into living with the family. 198 00:19:15.349 --> 00:19:19.630 How would we counsel this father? Would we tell him that this son 199 00:19:19.829 --> 00:19:26.019 really needs to learn the value of a hard day's work, the value of 200 00:19:26.059 --> 00:19:33.019 a dollar? It would be gracious of you, after a child treated you 201 00:19:33.180 --> 00:19:40.650 with such shame and disrespect, to give him or her a second shot at 202 00:19:40.730 --> 00:19:45.930 earning trust. And that's what a pretty gracious parent would look like, right 203 00:19:45.289 --> 00:19:52.960 a second chance. Certainly, the scribes and the Pharisees listening to the story 204 00:19:52.079 --> 00:19:57.799 or maybe thinking about this, what would we do in this case? Kidneys 205 00:19:57.880 --> 00:20:03.839 discipline. He needs to prove that he can get his life together so that 206 00:20:03.920 --> 00:20:11.069 he can be trusted again. Well, for the Pharisees here amongst us, 207 00:20:11.390 --> 00:20:18.230 myself included. What do we do when horrible, rebellious sinners enter into God's 208 00:20:18.269 --> 00:20:26.579 house? What is our attitude to those who have given themselves to public shame? 209 00:20:29.660 --> 00:20:33.859 Do we put them on probation, making sure they can improve a bit? 210 00:20:34.339 --> 00:20:40.089 We don't want to be too gracious, right or on the flip side, 211 00:20:40.130 --> 00:20:47.009 for those here that are prodigals, myself included, do we consider this 212 00:20:47.170 --> 00:20:52.359 to be what God does for us, giving us a second chance so that 213 00:20:52.440 --> 00:20:56.200 we can try our best again, maybe try to get it right this time 214 00:21:00.319 --> 00:21:04.990 now? I'm not suggesting that we be on wise in our relationships or parenting. 215 00:21:06.029 --> 00:21:11.390 I'm not necessarily giving parenting advice, but part of thinking through these things 216 00:21:11.470 --> 00:21:18.390 makes this parable all the more striking, doesn't it? As we think about 217 00:21:18.390 --> 00:21:22.900 what this father should do, let's look at what he does do. This 218 00:21:22.579 --> 00:21:29.900 corpse is coming down the driveway covered and pig dung and the father gets off 219 00:21:29.980 --> 00:21:36.250 the rocking chair and begins to run. As if his son had not shamed 220 00:21:36.250 --> 00:21:41.130 him enough, he begins to shame himself. Running was not something a respectable 221 00:21:41.210 --> 00:21:47.400 man would do in this culture, certainly not one who is decent, and 222 00:21:47.680 --> 00:21:51.799 certainly not running for a kid like this. But the father sees him, 223 00:21:52.519 --> 00:21:56.400 that son that had wished him dead. And what does it say? Says 224 00:21:56.440 --> 00:22:00.589 he feels compassion for him, he runs to him, he embraces him, 225 00:22:02.309 --> 00:22:07.069 he kisses him and the son starts the speech. He says, Father, 226 00:22:07.190 --> 00:22:11.670 I've sinned against heaven and before you, I am no longer worthy to be 227 00:22:11.829 --> 00:22:19.579 called your son. You'll notice the speech stops there. He never gets to 228 00:22:19.740 --> 00:22:26.740 finish it. He leaves off that line about working in the father's fields. 229 00:22:27.579 --> 00:22:33.410 Some have suggests that here that the father interrupts him, and that could well 230 00:22:33.450 --> 00:22:38.009 be true. Others have suggested that in this very moment the son gets it 231 00:22:41.250 --> 00:22:45.920 that he has nothing to give to his father, not even his servitude. 232 00:22:48.640 --> 00:22:55.319 Perhaps it's a little bit of both, that it's in the father's kindness that 233 00:22:55.680 --> 00:23:00.150 the kid understands this. Isn't that what Paul says, that it's God's kindness 234 00:23:00.150 --> 00:23:06.829 who draws us to repentance. And what an incredible picture of repentance this is 235 00:23:07.589 --> 00:23:11.869 coming to a play as not where we say I'll spend the rest of my 236 00:23:11.990 --> 00:23:17.220 life trying to make it up to you, becoming to a place where we 237 00:23:17.299 --> 00:23:27.049 realize that we are indeed dead. Did we have nothing to give. And 238 00:23:27.210 --> 00:23:33.009 as this son finally breathes his last figurative breath, his dying words are, 239 00:23:33.130 --> 00:23:42.960 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Lifeless, nothing left 240 00:23:44.119 --> 00:23:48.680 to give, not even to scrape by working in his father's fields. The 241 00:23:48.839 --> 00:23:52.880 son gets it, the father gets it. What does he say? My 242 00:23:52.119 --> 00:24:03.910 son was dead. He later reflects. Death is always the end to the 243 00:24:03.990 --> 00:24:11.019 life of Sin. God's answer to sin is not a reformed life, not 244 00:24:11.220 --> 00:24:18.059 a second chance at getting it right. Grace is not a Mulligan. His 245 00:24:18.299 --> 00:24:22.700 answer to sin is death, certainly the death of his son, but also 246 00:24:22.980 --> 00:24:33.369 our death along with Jesus. Paul says it like this in Romans. He 247 00:24:33.769 --> 00:24:37.490 he's answering the question should we go on sinning that grace may abound? And 248 00:24:38.880 --> 00:24:45.079 he says by no means. How can we who have gotten our life together 249 00:24:45.279 --> 00:24:49.759 on our own, continue to sin? That's actually not what it says. 250 00:24:52.480 --> 00:25:00.349 How can we who have died still live and sin? Paul's answer to a 251 00:25:00.430 --> 00:25:06.150 life of sin, life and the old Adam is not reform, but death. 252 00:25:07.140 --> 00:25:12.819 Death to the old man, Paul goes on. Do you not know 253 00:25:14.099 --> 00:25:18.740 that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus, where baptized into 254 00:25:18.900 --> 00:25:27.730 his death. We were buried with him and baptism, but not just a 255 00:25:27.809 --> 00:25:36.079 baptismal death, a Baptismal resurrection, which is our final point for this evening. 256 00:25:37.119 --> 00:25:41.720 The father's response, and this parable to the son's repentance, to his 257 00:25:42.240 --> 00:25:47.880 recognition of death, that he has nothing left to give, is to further 258 00:25:47.960 --> 00:25:52.509 kill him with kindness, isn't it? But also to raise him to new 259 00:25:52.549 --> 00:25:56.950 life. He calls his servants. He says, bring quickly the best robe 260 00:25:56.029 --> 00:26:00.509 in the closet and put it on the boy. Get My signet ring, 261 00:26:00.710 --> 00:26:07.180 the one that says he can act in my name, that he can now 262 00:26:07.980 --> 00:26:14.099 speak as a true member of my family and executor of my estate, and 263 00:26:14.339 --> 00:26:21.210 don't let him walk another step without shoes. Get them some sandals. And 264 00:26:21.289 --> 00:26:25.450 then he says, I'm not I'm not done yet. Bring the choicest fatten 265 00:26:25.609 --> 00:26:30.569 calf, yes, the one we've been saving, and slaughter it. Let 266 00:26:30.650 --> 00:26:37.319 us eat and celebrate. Why? Verse Twenty Four? For this. My 267 00:26:37.720 --> 00:26:45.519 son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found, 268 00:26:45.559 --> 00:26:52.029 and they began to celebrate. He is a father, so gracious, so 269 00:26:52.269 --> 00:26:56.829 loving, so extravagant that he doesn't call us to spit shine, are sinful 270 00:26:57.150 --> 00:27:04.380 existence, but in his grace he baptizes us into death, the death of 271 00:27:04.579 --> 00:27:11.019 his own son. He doesn't wait for us to reform, but he puts 272 00:27:11.180 --> 00:27:18.849 our old life in the grave and he resurrects us to new life. He 273 00:27:18.049 --> 00:27:23.329 clothes us in the best robe, the very robes of righteousness, from his 274 00:27:23.490 --> 00:27:29.490 son. He gives us a sign and seal of sonship. In the case 275 00:27:29.609 --> 00:27:33.920 of the par terrible, this this ring that he puts on him. In 276 00:27:33.119 --> 00:27:38.559 our case, he gives us baptism that shows forth and reminds us that we 277 00:27:38.839 --> 00:27:45.630 belong to God's family. He gives us this weekly reminder that will partake of 278 00:27:45.750 --> 00:27:52.750 in a few moments, or reminder that Christ has died and risen for us. 279 00:27:53.549 --> 00:27:57.740 And as we taken eat, we confess that we have died along with 280 00:27:57.900 --> 00:28:06.299 him, but are also resurrected to newness of life. Paul says, as 281 00:28:06.339 --> 00:28:10.059 he continues in Romans six, he says, for we have been unified with 282 00:28:10.099 --> 00:28:15.690 him. In a death like this, we shall certainly be united with him. 283 00:28:15.170 --> 00:28:22.369 And a resurrection like this, as this good father places robes and a 284 00:28:22.450 --> 00:28:26.359 ring on his son, he says. All that was once true of you 285 00:28:27.039 --> 00:28:34.160 is now dead, it's buried and my son, you are now raised to 286 00:28:34.279 --> 00:28:42.029 new life. My son was dead, but now alive. As we conclude 287 00:28:42.549 --> 00:28:47.349 this evening, for some of you here, you can so resonate with the 288 00:28:47.390 --> 00:28:56.660 prodigal son. You have wandered, you have treated God as dead. You 289 00:28:56.740 --> 00:29:02.460 have given yourself to a life of sin, trading in the truth about God 290 00:29:02.740 --> 00:29:10.930 for a lie, squandering the life that he has given to you. Oh, 291 00:29:11.009 --> 00:29:14.609 God's Word for you to day is, no matter who you are or 292 00:29:14.769 --> 00:29:18.529 what you have done, there is no sin that is a match for God's 293 00:29:18.569 --> 00:29:25.039 grace. There is no sin that you have committed that is a match for 294 00:29:25.200 --> 00:29:32.359 his forgiveness, and he offers it freely. receive it. To Day is 295 00:29:32.440 --> 00:29:37.559 the day of salvation. For some of you here this evening, God's word 296 00:29:38.029 --> 00:29:45.029 to you, in the kindest way, is drop dead, stop resting in 297 00:29:45.150 --> 00:29:49.829 your own final breath, stop trying to be a servant in the father's field 298 00:29:49.910 --> 00:29:55.500 and Erdre in order to earn your keep. Will have more to say about 299 00:29:55.500 --> 00:30:03.779 that next week, but as a preview, his word is drop dead and 300 00:30:03.059 --> 00:30:08.210 fall into the loving arms of a father who runs to you, not with 301 00:30:08.369 --> 00:30:14.769 a to do list, but with a robe and with a ring and an 302 00:30:14.769 --> 00:30:21.680 announcement that all I have is yours. Come in and enjoy the party. 303 00:30:21.720 --> 00:30:22.240 Let's pray together