Have you overlooked the blessings in front of you? Or, are you missing the love of the Father because you’re too busy trying to earn his love? Like the father in today’s story, God welcomes every person home with open arms when they choose to return and seek God. You are precious in God's eyes. Learn more in today’s sermon that offers a picture of the heart of God, God and You, All the Way, part 3.

This five-week study focuses on you and God. We’ll learn about purpose, how much you matter to God, how precious you are to God, and how to live in the present but focus on eternity.

Purpose, Value, & Focus

The past two weeks we have considered what our purpose is and that you matter to God. Today we will see that you are precious in God’s eyes.

I hope we catch the vision and heart of God and invite all to join us at the banquet table with Christ in heaven. That we, like the disciples, make it our purpose to invite people to faith in Christ.

Last week I shared that what matters to God is you. We learned last week that the one lost sheep and lost coin are very important and sought after until they are found. Then there is a time of rejoicing for what was lost is now found. The same is true for the lost soul. The person who is spiritually far from God is sought after by God. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, the sinner, and he provided a way out of spiritual bondage and death, by the cross. If only one believed Jesus is Lord and savior.

Today we are going to look at Luke 15:11-31. I referred to this parable last week. It is the parable of the prodigal son. The parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin were focusing on the importance of the lost coin or sheep being found. This is true even today; the lost item being found is a time of rejoicing. More importantly in the parable of the prodigal son is the heart of the younger son, along with the father’s and elder son's hearts.

Every person is precious in God's eyes. You are loved. You are sought after. Wherever you are and whoever you are. The Lord is looking for the lost soul to come home.

The Lord wants you to know that when you return home you will be welcomed, and it will be a time of celebration and rejoicing. Your heart and soul are precious to the Lord and a humble, selfless, loving heart brings joy to the heart of God.

Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them” (Luke 15:11-12, NIV).

In this parable we find a father and two sons. The younger son wants what is due to him right now. He did not want to wait a moment longer. The younger son did not want to wait until his father's death, when the father’s estate would naturally fall to the two sons. Jewish culture states that two thirds would go to the older son and one third to the younger. The action of the younger son indicates that in his heart he counted his father as being dead to him. Physically dead. Can you imagine how his father might have felt? The pain, hurt and sorrow that the father must have experienced at that moment. This younger son goes against every legal and moral obligation to his father. The words, “Father give me my share of the estate” must have cut deep in the father’s heart. Others in the town would have seen this action of the younger son as being wrong and disrespectful. It would be humbling and humiliating to the father. Yet the father divided his estate between the two boys. The father would still have control while he is alive, but the estate is now divided between the two sons. The father remains in control and retains management of the entire estate, that is until his death even as he gives a portion to his son.

"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” (Luke 15:13).

The younger son was not given a lump of cash. What was divided was the actual property and physical assets of the estate. Control was still the father’s. The son could not sell it out from under the father while the father was living. The son will now need to find a buyer and sell his portion, his rights to the estate to someone. Once the property was sold, the son received his money and went on his way.

The younger son lived a wild lifestyle. He tried to satisfy the lust in his heart. The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. However, that lifestyle proved hollow and cost him everything. It appears he did not work because it was party time. Instead, he lived a well-to-do lifestyle until the money ran out. Now he has no money and he has no friends. No food. No possessions. No future. He has nothing to his name. The once blessed life was exchanged for a wild selfless lifestyle, but soon his life and lifestyle became an unimaginable nightmare.

He is now living in a faraway place with no family or friends around to help him in his time of distress. He is all alone and things have spiraled out of control. This younger son brought this on himself by his actions, but things grew even worse when a famine hit. The famine only intensified the situation, so much so that he chose to do some work that he never would have even considered doing if he were home.

“After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything” (Luke 15:14-16).

No self-respecting Jewish boy would ever think about being a pig pin employee. Pigs were unclean animals (see Deuteronomy 14:8 and Leviticus 11:7).

“And the pig, though it has a divided hoof, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. 8 You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you” (Leviticus 11:7-8).

This young man knows this, but it is the only job he could do. Living a disobedient lifestyle can lead to doing things that you would never have even considered doing. This once well-to-do son is now penniless and hires himself out as a pig caretaker to a gentile to care for pigs, and he is even considering eating the pig’s food so as not to starve. I can only guess that this Jewish boy has spiraled so far down on the social, moral, spiritual, and ethical ladder that there was no place to look, but heavenward. After a time, he thinks back to his time at home. Things were not so bad then. Even the hired hands of his father lived better than how he was living now.

“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father” (Luke 15:17-20).

So, the younger son decided to go home. But he will need to face his father. He will need to face his older brother. He will need to face the people of the town. He will need to face the pain he caused to everyone by his sinful actions.

What this son did when he turned his back to his father and others was inexcusable. The pain and insults would still be fresh in people’s minds, and especially in his father’s heart. No excuse would ease or change the pain and embarrassment that the father experienced. This son realized his actions led him to the situation he was in, and the famine only made things worse.

Church, often it is not until the situation becomes so bad that a person sees the awfulness of their actions and they want to change. This is where this son finds himself. Much like the alcoholic, drug addict, gambler or some other kind of addict who has lost everything awakens to the fact that they need to change. They begin the journey back from being lost. It must be their choice if the change is going to happen.

The son knew he had no right to demand anything. He knew he sinned against his God and the commandment to honoring his father. He knew he had sinned against his father. Now all he desired was to be able to work for his father as some hired person. A slave in his father’s house was better than the life he now led. Listen to what David wrote in Psalm 84.

“Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked” (Psalm 84:10).

So, this younger son returns home in humility of heart, expecting nothing but hoping to work as a slave at the home he once enjoyed as a rightful son. Notice, the younger son becomes conscious, and aware of his actions and sin towards God and his father. He develops a change of heart, a change of mind and a change of will before he turns back and returns home to his father.

In Genesis 24 we find Rebekah had a choice to go with the servant and marry Isaac or not, and she said yes (see Genesis 24:58).

In Joshua 24 Joshua decided what he would do.

“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).

In Matthew 23 Jesus confronts the religious leaders by reminding them what happens when they were not willing to listen or yield to the will and plan of God. Things did not go well with them.

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. 38 Look, your house is left to you desolate” (Matthew 23:37-38).

In John 5 we find Jesus asking a man if he wanted to be healed after being sick for 38 years. He was healed and the man did what Jesus told him to do.

‘When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”

7 “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”

8 Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” 9 At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked’ (John 5:6-9).

In each of these four cases nothing would have changed if they had not been willing and decided to act. They did not know everything that might happen, but they said yes and their lives were never the same.

The younger son did not know if his father would even speak to him. He did not know if his father would even look at him, better yet hire him to work. He knew he deserved nothing. He had no solid expectation of even being welcomed back. He knew he was not worthy of being called a son. He was lost physically, morally, relationally, and spiritually. The difference between this parable and that of the lost sheep and coin is that here the son decided to return home by his own choice. I believe the father was always looking for his son to return home. He may have always looked towards the direction his son walked away, in hopes his son would return.

It needed to be the son’s choice to return. One day the son finds his way back home. It is a choice and decision that changed his eternal destiny.

In this parable we find the cycle of redemption. The son rebels, returns, and the son is restored. It is here in the parable that we find a picture of the heart of God. What this father does goes against all customs of that day. The father sees his wayward son a long distance off and runs to him. Running to his son would have been seen as a disgrace by the Pharisee and religious teachers of the law. Sinners are unclean and should be avoided like pigs. That was the accusation against Jesus. He eats and associates with sinners. The action of the father running towards his son is a picture of the heart of the father, to welcome his son back home.

Like this father, God welcomes every sinner home with open arms when they choose to return and seek God’s forgiveness.

The father has compassion for his son and embraces him as if nothing had happened. No anger. No question why. No hesitation on the part of the father. The son would be expected to crawl back to the father, not the father to run to the wayward rebellious son. The Pharisee would never have done such a thing being the legalistic person he was. The Pharisee shows no compassion of heart, only a self-righteous pious spirit.

The son’s father is excited to see his son and kisses his son with excitement. The act of kissing his son was not a fake gesture but a true act that revealed the father’s true feeling for his son. The father doesn’t wait for the son to explain his actions or to ask for his father’s forgiveness. The son knew what he wanted to say, he had it all thought out, but the father makes the first move once he sees his son moving towards him. Then we see the son begin to try and explain his actions and heart, making a full confession much like David did in Psalm 51.

“Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge. 5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. 6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place” (Psalms 51:4-6).

But the father pays no attention to the explanation or excuse.

“Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear” (Isaiah 65:24).

The father in the parable exemplifies grace being extended towards his son. This is the grace of God that is extended to every sinner who calls on the name of the Lord to be saved.

Instead, the father calls out to the servants with excitement in his voice. Bring the best robe, a ring, and sandals and put them on him. The robe was a symbol of his reinstatement of position as a son. The ring was a symbol of authority. the sandals indicated that he was not a slave. Next, we see everyone is called to celebrate and kill the fatted calf. They are not going to kill a goat or chicken, but a calf. This is not going to be some small celebration. No, it’s going to be a big celebration. His son has come home.

“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 kissed him. 21 The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 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. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate” (Luke 15:20-24).

Understand, the young son that once by his actions insulted his father and acted as if he were dead deserved nothing from his father. However, with joy and a heart filled with rejoicing his father welcomes his son back home. The robe that was placed on his son might have been the father’s robe. The best robe. The ring placed on his finger would have been a sign of renewed status as his son with all the rights and privileges of a son. The shoes on his feet also would be a sign of position and privilege. Here, the father receives his wayward son back. Not as a hired hand or slave, but as a rightful son. This is a beautiful picture of God’s grace. It is a picture of redemption. What a great way to end the parable.

But there is more to the story. The elder son’s heart was filled with anger and pious resentment. The elder son's heart is a mirror image of the Pharisee’s heart. Not only does Jesus want to address the wayward and rebellious lifestyle but he also wanted to address the hypocritical, pious, self-righteous heart.

Jesus uses this opportunity to confront the wayward religious heart. In this parable the father confronts his elder son’s heart. The unforgiveness and anger towards both his brother and for his father welcoming his brother home was wrong. This son who remained at home was just as spiritually lost as his younger brother. He was spiritually blind regarding his heart and unforgiving spirit. He was blind to the father’s loving, and grace-filled heart. The older son never realized all that the father owned was his and available to him at any time. The elder son, the son who stayed and worked the land and family business, is angry at his father because his father received his younger brother back home who was a rebellious, playboy, spendthrift, sinner of a son. This is one of the issues that the Pharisee did not like about Jesus. Spending time with sinners. Welcoming sinners and Loving sinners when they return home.

“Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 28 The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 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 I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’” (Luke 15:25-30).

The elder son could not forgive his brother for what he did. The elder son never realized the privilege he had as a son. He had become hard-hearted towards his brother and father. The older brother never really knew the heart of his father. He never enjoyed the love of his father because he was too busy trying to earn his father’s love, when it was always there.

“’My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’” (Luke 15:31-32).

In the closing statement of the story, the father tells his oldest son that all he had was at his disposal. It was his. The father had already given it to him when he divided the estate years ago, but the eldest son never acted like it was his.

All this time the eldest son was just as lost as the younger son. Only the youngest son admits his sin and repents. The older son rejects the truth, he rejects the love of his father, and remains lost and spiritually adrift because his heart is filled with pride. The heart of the elder son, like the heart of the Pharisee and religious teachers of the law, is spiritually blind, self-righteous, pious, and bad tempered, unforgiving, and hypocritical. The father, as a picture of God, goes to his son and confronts the son’s heart and mind without apparent success. But the parable is open ended, and we do not see the son’s final response. There is still an opportunity for the elder son to respond to his father’s request. It is now the son’s choice whether he responds to his father’s request. It’s the sinner’s choice as to whether they will respond to the gospel massage. Both sons are precious in the fathers’ eyes.

You are precious in God's eyes. How will you decide? Will you come home and be received by your heavenly father and enjoy the celebration?

Will you come home? Or will you remain lost? Which of the two sons do you resemble this morning?

Suggested Praise and Worship

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