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4th Sermon in Forgiveness Series
"Healing the Hurts Within: The Loving Father" Text: Luke 15:11-32 -- Date: August 10, 2003 Prayer for Illumination: May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, 0 Lord, for you are my Rock and my Redeemer. AMEN.This morning we continue our 4th sermon in a series of 5 called, "Healing the Hurts Within" by looking at the incredible love of God. God truly is our source and example of what forgiving is all about. Even as we have been talking the last few of weeks about forgiving one another, our example is God and the love He has shown us. This morning we consider this wonderful parable, perhaps the greatest parable Jesus ever told. As a matter of fact, this parable has been called the greatest short story ever written in the world. In this story, the human heart responds to the message of God's forgiving love for sinners. "There was a man who had two sons. The younger son said to his father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them." As we begin, be sure not to overlook the reference to 'two' sons. The older brother is also in the story -- he's in the story from the beginning. Sometimes we think he's only at the end of this parable. That's not true. The man had two sons and each son plays a vital role in this story. This morning, however, we will only be looking at the younger son. When we read that the father "divided" his property, we mustn't think that he divided his estate equally between the two. Under Jewish law, a father was not free to divide his property as he liked. The law required that the older of the two must receive two-thirds and the younger son was to receive only one-third of the estate. And, it was not all that uncommon for a man to distribute his estate before he died, especially if he wished to retire from managing his affairs. But, for the son to demand to receive his inheritance before his father's death or his father's decision to give it to him was an affront of the words kind. Essentially, the son was rendering his father as dead! Can you hear the callousness in the request of the younger son? There is an intensive harshness in the son's voice. It's like he is saying, "Give we what will be mine when you are dead and let me get out of this place!" This is not the way we would want our children to set out into the world, is it? But the father doesn't argue. He knows that if the son was ever to learn, he must learn the hard way, and so, he granted the younger son his request to have his portion of the estate. The younger son takes his money and runs; he hits the road. The text says, "Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered all his wealth in wild living." Here we gain a glimpse into just how God lets us live our lives. God is not the great puppeteer and we his marionettes! We are not set into motion and then controlled by his pulling strings connected to our hands and feet. Rather, we are people who are free to respond to God or rebel against God. He breathes the breath of life into us, the Spirit of God in us, but we are free to make choices. We do have free will; freedom of choice. But we also have to live with our choices.. .but I may be a little bit ahead of the story. In this case, the younger son chose to leave the comforts of his home; to abandon the training that he received as a boy; and make his own choices in life. Apparently, the boy did not make very good choices. The text tells us that two disasters struck the young man; first, he ran out of money then he ran into famine. The first was his fault. He didn't budget. He lived beyond his means and spent his fortune frivolously. And when it was gone, it was gone. The second was beyond his control. The famine was not his fault but it greatly added to his difficulties. The young man began to be in need -- real need -- probably for the first time in his life. Let me put it another way -- the younger man was at the end of his rope. Now the younger son has really messed things up! He callously demanded that his dad give him his inheritance, an inheritance that he himself had not worked for. He sounds so like some teenagers of today. He thought he knew all there was to know about life and he set out on his own... only to was it and loose it all. He was destitute...broke...homeless. Not quite sure what to do, except that he was hungry and needed to eat, he tried to find work. But, due it part to the down-tumed economy, there wasn't much work. The famine had taken its toll and unemployment was high. Work wasn't easy to come by. He couldn't even find work in the fields. The only work he could find was a job slopping pigs...I've got to tell you, this had to be a very low point in the life of this young man. Nothing could have been more distasteful for a Jew than to be in the employ of a "pagan" a non-Jew and he was slopping slopping hogs at that! He had to know that Jewish law said, "Cursed is he who feeds swine." How much lower could he sink? Finally, the young man hit bottom. For a Jew, it doesn't get any lower than taming your back on your family, squandering the family estate and living and working with pigs... I love what follows .... "when he came to his senses, he said, 'How may of my Father's hired men have food to spare, and 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 men.' So he got up and went to his father .... when he came to his senses." Hardship has such a wonderful way of bringing people face to face with the realities of life. But all too often our own pride gets in the way, doesn't it? In many cases, we come to our senses too, but something gets in the way of our ability to act. Sometimes we want revenge, sometimes we simply rationalize the situation away. And, more often than not, it is our pride that is in the way. We need to learn to swallow our pride, but that is sooo hard. Of course, when you hit bottom, there isn't a lot left to swallow, is there? In addition to coming to his senses and swallowing his pride, thee was something else the prodigal did. He had to admit he was wrong. Once he could do this, he decided to return home. The Bible calls this repentance. Admitting you were wrong -- heading in the wrong direction -- admitting you had sinned, turning around and going home. Turning and going in the opposite direction. In fact, that is the literal meaning of the word for repentance. Turning and going in the opposite direction. Of course, we fight this big battle ourselves, don't we? We make all kinds of excuses about why we cannot go back home and say we are sorry. We just know that we will be rejected, that no one will listen to us and if they do listen, we know they won't really hear. And, unfortunately, sometimes, people do reject us, and that really hurts, doesn't it? But, not so with God. Listen again to the text... "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 was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him." The loving father never gave up hope that the prodigal would return; he was out on the road waiting for him, he didn't wait for the son to come gravelling on his belly. See, that's what we want sometimes, isn't it? We want grovelling! We want pain! We want others to feel and experience what we experienced in the brokenness of the relationship. Not the Father. The father ran out to meet him, threw his arms around his boy and kissed him! The father doesn't feel compelled to attack his son with accusations; he reaches out to his son with affirmations! When he forgave him, he did so without recriminations. Once Abraham Lincoln was asked how he was going to treat the rebellious Southerners when they had finally been defeated and returned to the Union of the United States. The person asking the question expected that Lincoln would seek vengeance. Rather, Lincoln answered, "I will treat them as if they had never been away." They came home and he rant out to meet them. When God runs out to meet us, as we come stumbling home after a journey in the wasteland, our hurts are healed. This is what empowers the son to be able to admit his sin; when God loves us, we can admit our faults. When we love someone, they too can admit their faults. When we lash out, they can only be defensive, pull back and defend themselves. What is the Father's response to his son's confession of sin? The son felt so bad about his sin, that he was hoping that his dad would let him come back as one of the hired help. This was probably the best case scenario that he had been able to work out in the confusion of his own mind. Let's look at the text again.. .Verse 18, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men." Now let's see what actually happened. Verse 21. "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you." So far, just as he had rehearsed this in his mind. BUT, this is where the scenario changes. The Father interrupts him. He didn't make him grovel. Rather, he called for the community to come and celebrate! The text bears witness to the fact that the father never gave him the chance to ask to be a servant. He broke in before that, calling for a party. The robe stands for honor; the robe also covered the dirt of the road, a metaphor that his sin was covered as well. The ring for authority; for if a person gave another his signet ring it was the same as giving him the power of attorney; the shoes for a son as opposed to a slave who had no shoes. This was a visible reinstatement of his sonship. Children of the family were shod, slaves were not. Remember that great black spiritual, "All God's chillun's gots to have shoes." And a feast was made so that all might rejoice and celebrate the prodigal's return! This is so different than what we often do, isn't it? Would anyone have faulted the father for not punishing his son? His son had brought such shame upon him and humiliated him by essentially proclaiming he was dead in demanding his inheritance. Was the father entitled to punish the son? The son had blown it big time, why didn't the father "point that out to him?" Sometimes the details just aren't all that important. There are people in this world who feel it is their job in life to walk around and point out the faults of others. And they don't just do it once. 0 no. They, like the Ever Ready Rabbit, keep going, and going, and going... they never let up. This parable should not have been called "The Prodigal Son" for the son is not the hero. It should be called the parable of the "Loving Father" for it tell us rather about a father's love than a son's sin. As the apostle Paul writes, "The truth about God's amazing love is this. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus said: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, -- the spiritually bankrupt -for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who hurt and grieve, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, the meek and oppressed, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, those who seek to know and do my will, for those who desire forgiveness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, and those who forgive, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the ones who seek to make peace between God and neighbor, for they will be called sons and daughters of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for doing what is right, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are these who shall be healed of the hurts that lie within." Let us pray: Gracious God, how wonderful the news that we can never stray too far from home. There is nothing that we can do that would make it impossible to journey home once more. While you are serious about sin, so are you serious about forgiveness and reconciliation. |