WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.540 Well do turn with me back in your Bibles to Luke chapter 15, that's on page 874 of the Church Bibles. 00:00:08.800 --> 00:00:16.140 Now the parable we're looking at today, as many of you know, is the third in a trilogy of stories that Jesus tells on the same occasion. 00:00:17.100 --> 00:00:25.600 There's the lost sheep, the lost coin, and then the lost son, or the prodigal son as it's become known in our Bibles. 00:00:25.600 --> 00:00:37.179 And these parables told in the same situation are really carefully tailored by Jesus to speak to a very specific challenge, a challenge that's posed to him in verses 1 and 2. 00:00:37.579 --> 00:00:41.100 So it's helpful for us to start today just by looking at the context of these parables. 00:00:42.180 --> 00:00:43.040 Verse 1, 00:00:43.040 --> 00:00:51.320 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to him, and the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, 00:00:51.320 --> 00:00:56.179 This man receives sinners and eats with them. 00:00:57.600 --> 00:01:06.400 By this stage in Jesus' career, the Pharisees and the scribes, the religious authorities today, are really viewing Jesus as a threat to them. 00:01:06.939 --> 00:01:11.460 He's a threat to their political authority, and he's a threat to their religious authority, isn't he? 00:01:11.459 --> 00:01:16.019 He's been performing miracles and healings all around the area. 00:01:16.379 --> 00:01:21.500 He's been teaching to great crowds, and a movement's developing behind him. 00:01:21.839 --> 00:01:25.099 A movement's developing behind him, and not them. 00:01:25.780 --> 00:01:26.919 He's a threat to them. 00:01:27.679 --> 00:01:31.079 And really, they'd like any chance they'd have to discredit him. 00:01:31.819 --> 00:01:37.379 It looks a lot like the kind of negative politics that we're getting a little bit tired of seeing on TV, isn't it? 00:01:37.379 --> 00:01:43.239 They just want some kind of scandal, something to say, look at this guy, are you really listening to him? 00:01:44.359 --> 00:01:48.359 They're looking out for him to slip up, and they think they've caught him, don't they? 00:01:48.819 --> 00:01:50.000 They think they've caught him. 00:01:51.039 --> 00:01:54.199 This man receives sinners and eats with him. 00:01:54.919 --> 00:01:59.399 This man receives sinners, or you can also put it, this man welcomes sinners. 00:01:59.859 --> 00:02:01.439 What kind of rabbi is this? 00:02:01.500 --> 00:02:02.539 What kind of holy man? 00:02:02.540 --> 00:02:07.420 What kind of teacher lets these kind of people meet with him? 00:02:08.480 --> 00:02:12.800 You can imagine them already planning how they're going to use the dirt that they've just dug up. 00:02:13.300 --> 00:02:16.700 They've got the banners they're going to hold up at the back of the next meeting, haven't they? 00:02:16.939 --> 00:02:19.759 This man welcomes sinners, a big arrow towards Jesus. 00:02:20.420 --> 00:02:24.159 You can imagine them canvassing the crowds as they come in to the hall. 00:02:25.099 --> 00:02:27.719 Do you know about the guy you're about to hear? 00:02:27.780 --> 00:02:28.620 Do you know about him? 00:02:29.340 --> 00:02:30.480 He welcomes sinners. 00:02:30.479 --> 00:02:33.539 You can imagine them rubbing their hands with glee. 00:02:33.619 --> 00:02:37.659 They've got the trump card for every theological argument they're ever going to have. 00:02:39.099 --> 00:02:43.479 Yeah, okay, Jesus says that, but did you see who we had dinner with last night? 00:02:44.299 --> 00:02:46.819 This man welcomes sinners, you can't listen to him. 00:02:48.560 --> 00:02:53.459 So you just wonder, as you're reading these first few verses, how is Jesus going to respond to this? 00:02:54.319 --> 00:02:56.459 How would our politicians today respond to it? 00:02:56.500 --> 00:02:57.679 Well, I guess there's some options, aren't there? 00:02:57.680 --> 00:03:01.200 Well, I didn't really know who these people were when they came to me. 00:03:01.560 --> 00:03:04.740 Oh, they're tax collectors, they're sinners, they're bad people, sorry. 00:03:04.960 --> 00:03:06.819 I mean, they came to me, I didn't know. 00:03:08.200 --> 00:03:11.060 Or perhaps he might say, well, look, it's not my fault, is it? 00:03:11.240 --> 00:03:13.520 They drew near to me, I didn't ask them to come. 00:03:13.740 --> 00:03:15.700 It's not my fault if people come towards me. 00:03:16.840 --> 00:03:19.540 Or maybe he might try and downplay the situation. 00:03:19.539 --> 00:03:26.079 Well, yeah, okay, they're not as good as you guys, Pharisees, but they're not that bad. 00:03:26.419 --> 00:03:27.639 They're not really that bad. 00:03:28.599 --> 00:03:33.340 There are a lot of options, aren't there, for Jesus to duck the issue, to kind of skirt around the situation. 00:03:34.259 --> 00:03:37.340 But in the three parables that he tells, he does nothing like that. 00:03:37.599 --> 00:03:40.259 He takes the issue to place on, doesn't he? 00:03:41.280 --> 00:03:42.799 You think I welcome sinners? 00:03:43.759 --> 00:03:45.840 You don't know how right you are. 00:03:45.840 --> 00:03:49.159 He takes their scandal and he makes it a slogan. 00:03:49.800 --> 00:03:51.659 I welcome sinners. 00:03:52.560 --> 00:03:56.360 I'm afraid if you're hoping for anything more complicated than that today, you've pretty much heard it. 00:03:57.420 --> 00:03:59.219 But we're going to be working through that this morning. 00:03:59.360 --> 00:04:04.420 The third of the stories which Jesus tells really works this through in great detail. 00:04:04.580 --> 00:04:07.240 It shows us how far he would go to welcome sinners. 00:04:08.020 --> 00:04:11.740 It's really, in a way, a kind of a verbal cartoon, if you will. 00:04:12.360 --> 00:04:14.960 Children are probably delighted to find out there are cartoons in the Bible. 00:04:14.960 --> 00:04:19.040 It's a verbal cartoon and it has three scenes, three pictures. 00:04:19.879 --> 00:04:22.740 Firstly, Jesus shows us scandalous sin. 00:04:22.980 --> 00:04:24.360 He shows us scandalous sin. 00:04:24.800 --> 00:04:27.240 Then he shows us a scandalous welcome. 00:04:28.300 --> 00:04:34.519 And finally, just to really confound the Pharisees, he turns the picture around on them 00:04:34.519 --> 00:04:37.079 and shows them scandalous obedience. 00:04:37.699 --> 00:04:41.199 Scandalous sin, scandalous welcome, and scandalous obedience. 00:04:41.199 --> 00:04:46.120 But if you hear one thing today, just remember, Jesus welcomes sinners. 00:04:46.120 --> 00:04:56.120 So, the first picture we get from Jesus here, the first scene in his story, is from verse 11, isn't it? 00:04:56.519 --> 00:04:58.399 There was a man who had two sons. 00:04:58.579 --> 00:05:01.199 It starts, and it's a very familiar story, isn't it? 00:05:02.100 --> 00:05:05.780 A man has two sons, and the second of his sons has itchy feet. 00:05:06.639 --> 00:05:08.220 He doesn't want to stay at home. 00:05:08.340 --> 00:05:09.660 He doesn't want to live with his father. 00:05:09.660 --> 00:05:13.520 However, he wants to go off and explore and make his way in the world himself. 00:05:14.360 --> 00:05:16.700 So, he demands his share of the estate now. 00:05:17.260 --> 00:05:20.820 He asks his dad to cash up whatever savings he's got set aside for him, 00:05:21.280 --> 00:05:24.080 and to give them to him now, so he can go out into the world. 00:05:25.660 --> 00:05:28.040 But he doesn't invest that money wisely, does he? 00:05:28.360 --> 00:05:32.260 He hasn't taken this money from dad so he can start up a new business on his own. 00:05:33.000 --> 00:05:33.300 No. 00:05:33.879 --> 00:05:35.560 Verse 13 we read, don't we? 00:05:35.560 --> 00:05:42.660 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all that he had and took a journey into a far country, 00:05:43.399 --> 00:05:46.560 and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 00:05:48.560 --> 00:05:52.120 He gathers up his money, and he squanders it. 00:05:52.639 --> 00:05:56.279 The words are literally, he gathers it up, and he scatters it. 00:05:56.680 --> 00:05:58.540 It's a complete waste. 00:05:59.680 --> 00:06:01.819 He takes all his dad's hard-earned money, 00:06:01.819 --> 00:06:05.779 and he spends it in the way that probably only young men know how, 00:06:06.139 --> 00:06:07.279 in this far country. 00:06:08.339 --> 00:06:09.659 And the money dries up, 00:06:10.240 --> 00:06:11.300 and there's a famine. 00:06:12.279 --> 00:06:14.579 And he's alone in this far country, isn't he? 00:06:14.980 --> 00:06:17.540 Far away from his family, far away from anyone he knows, 00:06:17.839 --> 00:06:19.519 he's alone, and he's desperate. 00:06:20.779 --> 00:06:22.399 And he ends up with nowhere to turn, 00:06:22.600 --> 00:06:24.600 but to hire himself out as a pig herd. 00:06:25.300 --> 00:06:27.159 Verses 15 and 16. 00:06:27.160 --> 00:06:30.720 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, 00:06:31.220 --> 00:06:33.640 who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 00:06:34.480 --> 00:06:37.439 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate. 00:06:38.120 --> 00:06:39.320 And no one gave him anything. 00:06:41.040 --> 00:06:42.860 Jesus knows his audience here, doesn't he? 00:06:43.440 --> 00:06:46.120 He's deliberately painting a picture for the Pharisees, 00:06:46.420 --> 00:06:48.960 of the most disgusting, the most unpleasant, 00:06:49.240 --> 00:06:52.379 the most objectionable character imaginable. 00:06:52.379 --> 00:06:57.259 This man in the eyes of the Pharisees would be the lowest possible person, 00:06:57.360 --> 00:06:57.680 wouldn't he? 00:06:58.259 --> 00:06:59.480 He's rejected his family, 00:07:00.300 --> 00:07:01.219 he's left them, 00:07:01.540 --> 00:07:02.600 and squandered all his money. 00:07:03.459 --> 00:07:05.920 He's sold himself into the service of a Gentile, 00:07:06.079 --> 00:07:06.920 a non-Jew, 00:07:07.819 --> 00:07:09.540 and now he's living with pigs. 00:07:10.620 --> 00:07:12.040 Not only is he living with pigs, 00:07:12.100 --> 00:07:14.060 but he's made himself low in the pigs, hasn't he? 00:07:14.180 --> 00:07:15.759 He's longing for their food. 00:07:16.959 --> 00:07:17.839 You can imagine, 00:07:18.100 --> 00:07:19.740 we call it the parable of the prodigal son, 00:07:19.839 --> 00:07:22.300 well, therefore we're hearing this as the parable of pig, 00:07:22.300 --> 00:07:22.520 boy. 00:07:22.720 --> 00:07:24.340 That's probably all they've heard by this point. 00:07:24.740 --> 00:07:26.400 This is pig boy here. 00:07:26.460 --> 00:07:27.680 He's the lowest of the low. 00:07:28.780 --> 00:07:30.220 Deuteronomy 14, verse 8, 00:07:30.520 --> 00:07:32.160 The pig is unclean for you. 00:07:32.579 --> 00:07:33.980 Their flesh you shall not eat, 00:07:34.340 --> 00:07:36.500 and their carcasses you shall not touch. 00:07:37.780 --> 00:07:39.580 Well, here's the son in that far old country, 00:07:39.759 --> 00:07:41.879 and he's longing for the food of the pigs, isn't he? 00:07:42.360 --> 00:07:45.600 He's as low as it gets for the Pharisees. 00:07:45.860 --> 00:07:48.019 That's probably where their attention would be, isn't it? 00:07:49.019 --> 00:07:50.979 Our attention in our tradition 00:07:50.979 --> 00:07:54.719 has normally been one stage further up that scale of his decline, hasn't it? 00:07:55.039 --> 00:07:56.839 We call it the parable of the prodigal son. 00:07:56.939 --> 00:07:58.519 Now, I had to Google that word. 00:07:58.579 --> 00:08:01.620 It's not a word I've ever used outside this context. 00:08:02.339 --> 00:08:05.699 Prodigal, a prodigal is someone who spends money wastefully, isn't it? 00:08:05.919 --> 00:08:08.120 Someone who spends money wastefully. 00:08:09.079 --> 00:08:13.379 So, the Pharisees focus on the pig connection. 00:08:14.519 --> 00:08:18.800 We, historically, have tended to focus on how wasteful this boy is. 00:08:19.519 --> 00:08:22.019 But the real offense is earlier on in the story, isn't it? 00:08:22.139 --> 00:08:24.840 Actually, the real offense is not his profession, 00:08:25.360 --> 00:08:26.660 it's not the fact he's a pig herd, 00:08:27.079 --> 00:08:28.660 and it's not his spending habits. 00:08:28.780 --> 00:08:31.280 These are symptoms of the boy's problem. 00:08:32.060 --> 00:08:33.919 The real offense that this boy commits 00:08:33.919 --> 00:08:36.060 is earlier on, right in verse 12, 00:08:36.060 --> 00:08:37.960 it's his attitude towards his father. 00:08:39.120 --> 00:08:41.899 Hear the cold words of verse 12 again. 00:08:43.200 --> 00:08:46.480 Father, give me the share of property that's coming to me. 00:08:47.100 --> 00:08:49.980 Father, give me the share of property that's coming to me. 00:08:50.620 --> 00:08:52.240 He's asking for his inheritance, isn't he? 00:08:53.039 --> 00:08:55.600 And there's something really distasteful about it, isn't it? 00:08:56.340 --> 00:08:58.779 It's generally distasteful to think about 00:08:58.779 --> 00:09:01.840 inheriting something from someone who's still alive, isn't it? 00:09:02.259 --> 00:09:03.799 It's a distasteful idea. 00:09:04.379 --> 00:09:05.840 Catherine had a friend at university 00:09:05.840 --> 00:09:08.060 who was a wealthy only son. 00:09:09.120 --> 00:09:11.100 And he was a very prudent boy. 00:09:12.000 --> 00:09:15.100 And he liked to go to seminars on inheritance tax planning. 00:09:16.039 --> 00:09:17.480 And he would take notes, 00:09:17.980 --> 00:09:20.019 and he would feed these back to his parents. 00:09:20.960 --> 00:09:22.200 Now you might say, 00:09:22.340 --> 00:09:24.139 and in that context, I didn't know the boy, 00:09:24.240 --> 00:09:26.500 it may have been prudent financial planning. 00:09:27.000 --> 00:09:28.960 But there's something distasteful about it, isn't there? 00:09:29.340 --> 00:09:31.659 There's something distasteful about imagining the inheritance 00:09:31.659 --> 00:09:33.460 before they're even gone. 00:09:34.299 --> 00:09:36.039 But this son takes it a step further. 00:09:36.279 --> 00:09:37.440 He doesn't just imagine it. 00:09:37.639 --> 00:09:39.000 He reaches out to take it, 00:09:39.059 --> 00:09:40.379 and he asks for it now. 00:09:40.879 --> 00:09:41.159 Dad, 00:09:41.159 --> 00:09:43.959 you know that money that I'm going to have when you're gone? 00:09:44.899 --> 00:09:46.679 Well, actually, I quite like it now. 00:09:47.419 --> 00:09:48.399 You know that field, 00:09:48.740 --> 00:09:50.319 that field where you grew up, 00:09:50.539 --> 00:09:51.360 where you grew up, 00:09:51.439 --> 00:09:52.740 where you've always loved living, 00:09:53.199 --> 00:09:56.579 and you've grown your crops there for years? 00:09:57.039 --> 00:09:58.819 Well, I know I'm going to have that when you die, 00:09:58.820 --> 00:10:00.480 so why don't you just give it to me now? 00:10:01.300 --> 00:10:02.800 It's incredible, isn't it? 00:10:02.860 --> 00:10:03.980 It's outrageous and offensive. 00:10:04.740 --> 00:10:06.580 I wish you were dead already, frankly, 00:10:06.800 --> 00:10:08.660 so that I could inherit from you. 00:10:09.760 --> 00:10:10.640 I don't want you. 00:10:11.160 --> 00:10:12.260 I just want your stuff. 00:10:13.800 --> 00:10:14.760 It's exaggerated, 00:10:15.520 --> 00:10:17.280 and it's extreme and outrageous. 00:10:19.060 --> 00:10:20.120 I don't want you. 00:10:20.260 --> 00:10:21.240 I just want your stuff. 00:10:23.740 --> 00:10:26.980 But this story isn't really about honouring our inheritance, is it? 00:10:26.980 --> 00:10:30.659 It's not a story that Jesus tells to teach us 00:10:30.659 --> 00:10:32.220 that we need to honour our parents, 00:10:32.360 --> 00:10:34.379 so perhaps a valid application. 00:10:34.899 --> 00:10:36.360 When it comes down to it, 00:10:37.060 --> 00:10:39.700 it's actually a picture of our relationship with God, isn't it? 00:10:40.039 --> 00:10:41.580 That's why Jesus tells this story. 00:10:42.320 --> 00:10:43.379 And when it comes down to it, 00:10:43.960 --> 00:10:45.139 our sin against God 00:10:45.139 --> 00:10:47.060 is actually exactly the same, really. 00:10:47.399 --> 00:10:48.480 I don't want you. 00:10:49.019 --> 00:10:50.060 I want your stuff. 00:10:50.060 --> 00:10:52.300 That's the attitude we show towards God. 00:10:52.399 --> 00:10:53.139 I don't want you. 00:10:54.200 --> 00:10:55.039 I want your stuff. 00:10:55.039 --> 00:10:57.339 The real scandal of sin 00:10:57.339 --> 00:10:59.919 is not ceremonial uncleanness, 00:11:00.179 --> 00:11:01.519 as the Pharisees have it, 00:11:02.039 --> 00:11:03.199 or outward appearances. 00:11:03.799 --> 00:11:05.759 It's the attitude that we have towards God. 00:11:07.059 --> 00:11:08.039 We don't want him. 00:11:08.319 --> 00:11:09.099 We want his stuff. 00:11:09.959 --> 00:11:11.839 That was the problem in the Garden of Eden, wasn't it? 00:11:12.139 --> 00:11:13.519 God made Adam and Eve. 00:11:13.879 --> 00:11:14.519 He made them, 00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:16.079 and he puts them in a beautiful garden. 00:11:16.679 --> 00:11:18.339 And he fills it with all the kind of food 00:11:18.339 --> 00:11:19.319 they could possibly want. 00:11:19.740 --> 00:11:20.620 He makes them rulers 00:11:20.620 --> 00:11:21.879 over the whole animal kingdom. 00:11:22.659 --> 00:11:23.799 They have everything good. 00:11:23.799 --> 00:11:26.039 And God walks with them in the garden. 00:11:26.659 --> 00:11:28.099 That's an incredible statement, isn't it? 00:11:28.099 --> 00:11:29.579 God walked with them in the garden. 00:11:30.939 --> 00:11:32.899 But they wanted just that one fruit 00:11:32.899 --> 00:11:34.019 they weren't allowed, didn't they? 00:11:34.639 --> 00:11:36.079 Just wanted that one fruit 00:11:36.079 --> 00:11:36.799 they couldn't have. 00:11:37.779 --> 00:11:38.939 And when they reached out 00:11:38.939 --> 00:11:40.120 and took that fruit, 00:11:40.559 --> 00:11:41.279 well, they said to God, 00:11:41.419 --> 00:11:41.559 well, 00:11:42.339 --> 00:11:43.699 I don't really want you. 00:11:44.240 --> 00:11:45.359 I just want your stuff. 00:11:46.219 --> 00:11:46.620 Actually, 00:11:47.079 --> 00:11:48.699 I'd rather take your blessings 00:11:48.699 --> 00:11:49.819 and ignore you. 00:11:49.820 --> 00:11:52.420 The trade-off seems ludicrous 00:11:52.420 --> 00:11:53.680 when we see it in the garden, 00:11:53.800 --> 00:11:54.120 doesn't it? 00:11:54.280 --> 00:11:55.020 It seems ludicrous. 00:11:55.160 --> 00:11:56.480 They had the opportunity 00:11:56.480 --> 00:11:57.720 to walk with God. 00:11:58.200 --> 00:11:59.379 To walk with God. 00:12:00.040 --> 00:12:01.520 But they choose an apple instead. 00:12:02.520 --> 00:12:03.940 It's a ludicrous trade. 00:12:03.940 --> 00:12:07.380 We know, don't we, 00:12:07.400 --> 00:12:08.020 but it's a trade 00:12:08.020 --> 00:12:09.020 that we make every day. 00:12:10.240 --> 00:12:11.500 It's a trade that we make 00:12:11.500 --> 00:12:13.760 when we try to enjoy God's world 00:12:13.760 --> 00:12:14.840 while ignoring him. 00:12:15.100 --> 00:12:16.020 It's a trade we make 00:12:16.020 --> 00:12:17.980 when we try to enjoy 00:12:17.980 --> 00:12:20.180 all the gifts that God's given us 00:12:20.180 --> 00:12:21.560 without submitting 00:12:21.560 --> 00:12:22.760 to his righteous rules. 00:12:24.160 --> 00:12:25.520 The catechism teaches us, 00:12:25.600 --> 00:12:25.880 doesn't it, 00:12:25.980 --> 00:12:27.120 that man's chief end 00:12:27.120 --> 00:12:28.440 is to glorify God 00:12:28.440 --> 00:12:30.080 and to enjoy him forever. 00:12:30.080 --> 00:12:32.400 Well, our sin is subtle. 00:12:32.620 --> 00:12:33.379 Our sin is subtle 00:12:33.379 --> 00:12:34.800 and we just try 00:12:34.800 --> 00:12:36.100 and shortcut that a little bit. 00:12:36.460 --> 00:12:37.720 We decide that our chief end 00:12:37.720 --> 00:12:39.980 is to enjoy God's blessings 00:12:39.980 --> 00:12:42.379 and to glorify them forever. 00:12:43.379 --> 00:12:44.540 Not to glorify God 00:12:44.540 --> 00:12:45.639 and not to enjoy God 00:12:45.639 --> 00:12:47.080 but to glorify his blessings 00:12:47.080 --> 00:12:49.200 and to enjoy them. 00:12:51.340 --> 00:12:53.060 And when we try to seize 00:12:53.060 --> 00:12:54.300 those blessings of God, 00:12:55.560 --> 00:12:56.900 when we try to seize those blessings 00:12:56.900 --> 00:12:57.940 while ignoring him, 00:12:57.940 --> 00:12:59.460 we're really just showing 00:12:59.460 --> 00:13:00.200 the same attitude 00:13:00.200 --> 00:13:01.640 that the Sullyman story shows, 00:13:01.720 --> 00:13:02.020 aren't we? 00:13:02.420 --> 00:13:03.980 That same scandalous attitude 00:13:03.980 --> 00:13:04.700 to God. 00:13:05.880 --> 00:13:06.760 I don't want you. 00:13:07.380 --> 00:13:08.700 I just want your stuff. 00:13:10.340 --> 00:13:11.200 See, Jesus knows 00:13:11.200 --> 00:13:12.100 the scandal of sin, 00:13:12.200 --> 00:13:12.540 doesn't he? 00:13:12.800 --> 00:13:13.600 And he lays it there 00:13:13.600 --> 00:13:14.100 for us here. 00:13:14.400 --> 00:13:15.580 It's that attitude that says, 00:13:15.640 --> 00:13:16.020 look God, 00:13:16.080 --> 00:13:16.820 I don't want you. 00:13:17.500 --> 00:13:18.540 I just want your stuff. 00:13:20.520 --> 00:13:21.520 So in the first picture, 00:13:21.620 --> 00:13:22.580 Jesus doesn't talk to you 00:13:22.580 --> 00:13:22.940 as he does. 00:13:23.020 --> 00:13:24.080 He clearly knows 00:13:24.080 --> 00:13:25.820 how sinful sin is. 00:13:25.820 --> 00:13:28.100 But he moves on 00:13:28.100 --> 00:13:29.120 in the second picture 00:13:29.120 --> 00:13:30.760 to show that in spite of sin 00:13:30.760 --> 00:13:32.520 and the scandal of sin, 00:13:32.940 --> 00:13:34.300 there's a scandal of welcome 00:13:34.300 --> 00:13:35.379 on offer. 00:13:36.980 --> 00:13:38.220 The son comes to his senses 00:13:38.220 --> 00:13:40.480 in verses 17 and 18. 00:13:41.300 --> 00:13:42.480 But when he came to himself, 00:13:42.720 --> 00:13:43.100 he says, 00:13:43.480 --> 00:13:44.500 how many of my father's 00:13:44.500 --> 00:13:45.060 hired servants 00:13:45.060 --> 00:13:46.460 have more than enough bread, 00:13:47.060 --> 00:13:48.700 but I perish here with hunger. 00:13:49.780 --> 00:13:50.800 He works out that 00:13:50.800 --> 00:13:52.420 even his dad's servants, 00:13:52.540 --> 00:13:53.500 even his dad's slaves, 00:13:53.500 --> 00:13:55.060 do better in life than he does. 00:13:55.820 --> 00:13:56.740 He's got no right 00:13:56.740 --> 00:13:57.640 to expect anything 00:13:57.640 --> 00:13:58.280 from his dad, 00:13:58.379 --> 00:13:58.960 but maybe, 00:13:59.100 --> 00:13:59.660 just maybe, 00:14:00.240 --> 00:14:01.040 he'll take him back 00:14:01.040 --> 00:14:01.620 as a servant 00:14:01.620 --> 00:14:02.460 and he'll at least 00:14:02.460 --> 00:14:03.180 have bread again. 00:14:03.980 --> 00:14:05.000 So he comes back 00:14:05.000 --> 00:14:06.020 from the far country 00:14:06.020 --> 00:14:07.379 and you can imagine him 00:14:07.379 --> 00:14:08.480 as he walks back 00:14:08.480 --> 00:14:09.780 that long distance. 00:14:09.920 --> 00:14:10.580 He'll be tired 00:14:10.580 --> 00:14:11.260 and hungry. 00:14:11.800 --> 00:14:12.480 He'll be filthy 00:14:12.480 --> 00:14:13.360 from the pigsty. 00:14:14.200 --> 00:14:15.320 People will be seeing him 00:14:15.320 --> 00:14:15.900 and they'll be walking 00:14:15.900 --> 00:14:17.020 on the other side 00:14:17.020 --> 00:14:17.420 of the street, 00:14:17.500 --> 00:14:17.820 won't they? 00:14:17.980 --> 00:14:18.560 They won't want 00:14:18.560 --> 00:14:19.180 to look at him. 00:14:20.460 --> 00:14:21.740 But the father sees him 00:14:21.740 --> 00:14:22.540 from a distance 00:14:22.540 --> 00:14:24.160 and what's he going to do? 00:14:24.159 --> 00:14:25.699 What's he going to do 00:14:25.699 --> 00:14:26.399 when he sees him? 00:14:26.639 --> 00:14:27.659 This foyer has caused him 00:14:27.659 --> 00:14:28.519 so much offence. 00:14:29.480 --> 00:14:30.939 Is he going to go inside 00:14:30.939 --> 00:14:31.600 and knock the door? 00:14:32.059 --> 00:14:33.000 Is he going to bolt up? 00:14:33.980 --> 00:14:34.879 Is he going to wait there 00:14:34.879 --> 00:14:35.819 sternly at the gate? 00:14:36.919 --> 00:14:37.839 Wait there sternly, 00:14:37.899 --> 00:14:39.600 holding the moral high ground. 00:14:39.980 --> 00:14:41.179 You come to me. 00:14:42.100 --> 00:14:42.740 And then I'll think, 00:14:42.839 --> 00:14:42.899 well, 00:14:42.980 --> 00:14:44.539 how am I going to deal with you? 00:14:45.939 --> 00:14:46.299 No, 00:14:46.579 --> 00:14:47.399 that's not what we see 00:14:47.399 --> 00:14:48.120 in verse 20, 00:14:48.199 --> 00:14:48.500 is it? 00:14:48.500 --> 00:14:50.039 And he arose 00:14:50.039 --> 00:14:50.899 and came to his father 00:14:50.899 --> 00:14:52.039 but while he was still 00:14:52.039 --> 00:14:53.240 a long way off, 00:14:53.799 --> 00:14:54.759 his father saw him 00:14:54.759 --> 00:14:55.600 and felt compassion 00:14:55.600 --> 00:14:56.279 and ran 00:14:56.279 --> 00:14:57.340 and embraced him 00:14:57.340 --> 00:14:58.480 and kissed him. 00:15:00.820 --> 00:15:02.220 There's no thought here 00:15:02.220 --> 00:15:03.159 of how this is going to look 00:15:03.159 --> 00:15:03.799 to outsiders, 00:15:03.919 --> 00:15:04.139 is it? 00:15:04.240 --> 00:15:05.240 The father doesn't stop 00:15:05.240 --> 00:15:05.620 and think, 00:15:05.700 --> 00:15:05.820 well, 00:15:06.100 --> 00:15:06.779 the neighbours are going 00:15:06.779 --> 00:15:07.659 to talk about this. 00:15:08.200 --> 00:15:09.539 He's not too proud 00:15:09.539 --> 00:15:10.240 to go out 00:15:10.240 --> 00:15:10.940 and meet his son, 00:15:10.980 --> 00:15:11.340 is he? 00:15:11.700 --> 00:15:12.639 Or keen to stand 00:15:12.639 --> 00:15:13.960 on that moral high ground, 00:15:14.120 --> 00:15:14.279 well, 00:15:14.600 --> 00:15:15.720 he's caused me effects, 00:15:15.840 --> 00:15:16.879 he'd better come to me. 00:15:16.879 --> 00:15:19.360 He doesn't feel anger 00:15:19.360 --> 00:15:21.039 but he feels compassion 00:15:21.039 --> 00:15:21.620 for the son 00:15:21.620 --> 00:15:22.259 that comes back, 00:15:22.360 --> 00:15:22.779 doesn't he? 00:15:23.700 --> 00:15:25.740 He runs to embrace his son. 00:15:26.259 --> 00:15:27.100 He embraces him, 00:15:27.279 --> 00:15:27.679 literally, 00:15:27.919 --> 00:15:29.279 it's as he drapes himself 00:15:29.279 --> 00:15:30.439 on his son's neck. 00:15:30.720 --> 00:15:31.379 You can imagine 00:15:31.379 --> 00:15:32.500 the boy saying, 00:15:32.659 --> 00:15:33.059 Dad, Dad, 00:15:33.139 --> 00:15:33.519 you don't know 00:15:33.519 --> 00:15:34.080 where I've been, 00:15:34.220 --> 00:15:35.340 you can't touch me. 00:15:36.439 --> 00:15:37.220 But he doesn't wait 00:15:37.220 --> 00:15:38.259 for that kind of explanation, 00:15:38.379 --> 00:15:38.659 does he? 00:15:38.759 --> 00:15:39.519 He kisses him. 00:15:40.399 --> 00:15:41.240 He embraces him 00:15:41.240 --> 00:15:42.620 and he kisses him. 00:15:44.480 --> 00:15:45.759 If they were scandalized 00:15:45.759 --> 00:15:46.860 by the boy's sin, 00:15:46.879 --> 00:15:48.639 you can imagine 00:15:48.639 --> 00:15:49.500 the Pharisee's going to be 00:15:49.500 --> 00:15:50.820 equally scandalized 00:15:50.820 --> 00:15:52.240 by the father's welcome here. 00:15:53.419 --> 00:15:54.820 The boy's sin 00:15:54.820 --> 00:15:55.720 was scandalous. 00:15:56.600 --> 00:15:57.580 You can't just welcome 00:15:57.580 --> 00:15:58.439 him back like that. 00:15:58.759 --> 00:16:00.240 You can't even touch him. 00:16:00.919 --> 00:16:01.679 This is pig boy 00:16:01.679 --> 00:16:02.279 after all. 00:16:03.639 --> 00:16:05.659 But we see Jesus' intention 00:16:05.659 --> 00:16:06.419 pretty clearly here, 00:16:06.439 --> 00:16:06.779 don't we? 00:16:07.860 --> 00:16:09.059 He's shown us a picture 00:16:09.059 --> 00:16:11.100 of the worst kind of sinner. 00:16:12.059 --> 00:16:13.019 He's shown us a picture 00:16:13.019 --> 00:16:14.159 of someone so detestable 00:16:14.159 --> 00:16:14.940 that they couldn't even 00:16:14.940 --> 00:16:16.299 be allowed in the life society. 00:16:17.879 --> 00:16:19.000 And now he said, 00:16:19.120 --> 00:16:20.120 well, imagine the worst 00:16:20.120 --> 00:16:20.759 kind of sinner, 00:16:21.220 --> 00:16:22.379 imagine the warmest 00:16:22.379 --> 00:16:23.320 possible welcome. 00:16:24.939 --> 00:16:26.019 That's what it means 00:16:26.019 --> 00:16:26.899 when I say I welcome 00:16:26.899 --> 00:16:27.360 sinners. 00:16:28.620 --> 00:16:29.399 Imagine the worst 00:16:29.399 --> 00:16:30.039 kind of sinner 00:16:30.039 --> 00:16:31.100 and the warmest 00:16:31.100 --> 00:16:31.860 possible welcome. 00:16:32.000 --> 00:16:32.779 Well, that's exactly 00:16:32.779 --> 00:16:33.439 what I'm about, 00:16:33.559 --> 00:16:34.139 Jesus says. 00:16:34.600 --> 00:16:35.220 That's exactly 00:16:35.220 --> 00:16:35.919 what I'm here for. 00:16:35.919 --> 00:16:39.579 Sometimes we can find 00:16:39.579 --> 00:16:40.579 ourselves so ashamed 00:16:40.579 --> 00:16:42.099 of perhaps what we've 00:16:42.099 --> 00:16:42.379 done, 00:16:42.839 --> 00:16:43.919 what we see ourselves 00:16:43.919 --> 00:16:44.459 to have done, 00:16:44.799 --> 00:16:45.559 that we can't imagine 00:16:45.559 --> 00:16:46.399 that anyone would not 00:16:46.399 --> 00:16:47.039 have anything to do 00:16:47.039 --> 00:16:47.319 with this, 00:16:47.379 --> 00:16:47.659 can't we? 00:16:48.259 --> 00:16:50.059 We perhaps think about 00:16:50.059 --> 00:16:50.959 things we've said 00:16:50.959 --> 00:16:51.799 or thought, 00:16:52.199 --> 00:16:52.819 that maybe no one 00:16:52.819 --> 00:16:53.319 knows, 00:16:53.539 --> 00:16:55.339 things we've done, 00:16:55.419 --> 00:16:56.059 and we look around 00:16:56.059 --> 00:16:56.419 ourselves, 00:16:56.519 --> 00:16:57.240 maybe on the bus, 00:16:57.819 --> 00:16:58.699 maybe in church, 00:16:58.799 --> 00:16:59.500 maybe at work, 00:16:59.819 --> 00:17:00.519 and we just think, 00:17:00.519 --> 00:17:01.279 if they knew what 00:17:01.279 --> 00:17:01.720 I'd done, 00:17:02.720 --> 00:17:03.460 if they knew what 00:17:03.460 --> 00:17:03.960 I said, 00:17:04.480 --> 00:17:05.619 if they knew who 00:17:05.619 --> 00:17:06.680 I really was, 00:17:07.319 --> 00:17:08.220 the kind of person 00:17:08.220 --> 00:17:08.700 I am, 00:17:09.259 --> 00:17:09.660 don't you want 00:17:09.660 --> 00:17:10.379 anything to do 00:17:10.379 --> 00:17:10.740 with me? 00:17:11.559 --> 00:17:12.180 And if we think 00:17:12.180 --> 00:17:12.759 that of people, 00:17:12.859 --> 00:17:13.319 well, we think that 00:17:13.319 --> 00:17:14.139 even more of God, 00:17:14.220 --> 00:17:14.559 don't we? 00:17:14.720 --> 00:17:15.819 If he really knows 00:17:15.819 --> 00:17:16.579 who I am, 00:17:17.000 --> 00:17:17.839 the kind of offense 00:17:17.839 --> 00:17:18.579 I've caused him, 00:17:18.980 --> 00:17:19.819 can you want anything 00:17:19.819 --> 00:17:20.559 to do with me? 00:17:22.339 --> 00:17:23.500 Well, the story says 00:17:23.500 --> 00:17:24.680 he does, doesn't it? 00:17:24.940 --> 00:17:25.759 That's what the story 00:17:25.759 --> 00:17:26.099 shows. 00:17:26.339 --> 00:17:27.200 Imagine the worst 00:17:27.200 --> 00:17:27.920 kind of sinner, 00:17:28.240 --> 00:17:29.200 the worst person 00:17:29.200 --> 00:17:30.059 you can imagine, 00:17:30.519 --> 00:17:31.539 worse even than 00:17:31.539 --> 00:17:32.019 yourself, 00:17:32.900 --> 00:17:33.579 and imagine the 00:17:33.579 --> 00:17:34.379 warmest kind of 00:17:34.379 --> 00:17:34.720 welcome. 00:17:35.759 --> 00:17:36.519 That's what Jesus 00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:37.139 offers him. 00:17:37.799 --> 00:17:38.539 That's what he says 00:17:38.539 --> 00:17:39.099 he gives. 00:17:39.980 --> 00:17:40.740 The image of the 00:17:40.740 --> 00:17:41.559 father running to 00:17:41.559 --> 00:17:43.000 the lost son is a 00:17:43.000 --> 00:17:43.619 picture of what 00:17:43.619 --> 00:17:45.299 Jesus offers to us. 00:17:46.019 --> 00:17:47.019 It's a small picture, 00:17:47.119 --> 00:17:47.500 isn't it, 00:17:47.619 --> 00:17:48.440 as he runs with 00:17:48.440 --> 00:17:48.839 compassion, 00:17:48.960 --> 00:17:49.980 a small picture of 00:17:49.980 --> 00:17:50.759 what Jesus has done 00:17:50.759 --> 00:17:51.619 for us on a 00:17:51.619 --> 00:17:52.519 cosmic scale. 00:17:53.740 --> 00:17:54.339 Remember those 00:17:54.339 --> 00:17:56.000 words that Paul 00:17:56.000 --> 00:17:56.900 spoke earlier. 00:17:58.720 --> 00:17:59.539 Jesus, though he 00:17:59.539 --> 00:18:00.119 was God, 00:18:00.119 --> 00:18:00.699 though he was 00:18:00.699 --> 00:18:02.199 with God in the 00:18:02.199 --> 00:18:02.559 beginning, 00:18:03.219 --> 00:18:03.899 though he was in 00:18:03.899 --> 00:18:04.839 the form of God, 00:18:05.659 --> 00:18:06.459 did not count 00:18:06.459 --> 00:18:07.419 equality with God 00:18:07.419 --> 00:18:08.000 a thing to be 00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:08.579 grasped, 00:18:08.979 --> 00:18:09.619 but emptied 00:18:09.619 --> 00:18:10.559 himself by taking 00:18:10.559 --> 00:18:11.139 on the form of 00:18:11.139 --> 00:18:11.559 a servant, 00:18:12.159 --> 00:18:12.919 being born in the 00:18:12.919 --> 00:18:13.719 likeness of man, 00:18:14.119 --> 00:18:14.799 and being found in 00:18:14.799 --> 00:18:15.539 human form, 00:18:15.619 --> 00:18:16.459 he humbled himself 00:18:16.459 --> 00:18:17.059 by becoming 00:18:17.059 --> 00:18:17.859 obedient to the 00:18:17.859 --> 00:18:18.559 point of death, 00:18:19.219 --> 00:18:20.500 even death on a 00:18:20.500 --> 00:18:20.859 cross. 00:18:20.859 --> 00:18:26.240 Jesus, just like 00:18:26.240 --> 00:18:29.079 that father, was 00:18:29.079 --> 00:18:30.299 moved by compassion 00:18:30.299 --> 00:18:31.619 to leave his 00:18:31.619 --> 00:18:32.379 throne in heaven 00:18:32.379 --> 00:18:33.979 so that he 00:18:33.979 --> 00:18:34.359 could welcome 00:18:34.359 --> 00:18:35.299 people like us. 00:18:38.419 --> 00:18:39.359 Not considering 00:18:39.359 --> 00:18:40.319 his dignity, not 00:18:40.319 --> 00:18:41.559 considering who he 00:18:41.559 --> 00:18:42.799 was in comparison 00:18:42.799 --> 00:18:45.199 to us, Jesus' 00:18:45.879 --> 00:18:47.299 incarnation is part 00:18:47.299 --> 00:18:48.179 of that scandalous 00:18:48.179 --> 00:18:48.939 welcome, isn't it? 00:18:48.940 --> 00:18:50.519 a welcome that 00:18:50.519 --> 00:18:50.860 would have been 00:18:50.860 --> 00:18:53.080 scandalous to the 00:18:53.080 --> 00:18:54.700 Pharisees, perhaps 00:18:54.700 --> 00:18:55.460 more scandalous than 00:18:55.460 --> 00:18:57.580 sin itself, God 00:18:57.580 --> 00:18:58.740 entering our world 00:18:58.740 --> 00:19:00.220 to meet with us. 00:19:01.279 --> 00:19:02.240 That's exactly what 00:19:02.240 --> 00:19:02.820 Jesus means, 00:19:02.940 --> 00:19:03.279 doesn't it? 00:19:03.460 --> 00:19:04.080 It's exactly what 00:19:04.080 --> 00:19:04.820 Jesus means in this 00:19:04.820 --> 00:19:05.299 passage. 00:19:05.759 --> 00:19:06.680 It's exactly what he 00:19:06.680 --> 00:19:07.640 means when he says 00:19:07.640 --> 00:19:08.559 he welcomed sins. 00:19:08.559 --> 00:19:11.399 And do you notice 00:19:11.399 --> 00:19:12.599 that the welcome 00:19:12.599 --> 00:19:13.460 doesn't stop there? 00:19:14.039 --> 00:19:14.740 It doesn't stop at 00:19:14.740 --> 00:19:15.419 the embrace. 00:19:15.759 --> 00:19:16.759 Jesus' story carries 00:19:16.759 --> 00:19:17.359 on, doesn't it? 00:19:17.659 --> 00:19:18.779 The son starts to 00:19:18.779 --> 00:19:19.639 speak, he's got that 00:19:19.639 --> 00:19:20.519 story rehearsed. 00:19:20.639 --> 00:19:21.339 Father, I've sinned 00:19:21.339 --> 00:19:23.099 against you, just, I 00:19:23.099 --> 00:19:23.919 know I don't deserve 00:19:23.919 --> 00:19:24.460 a place at your 00:19:24.460 --> 00:19:25.379 table anymore, I'm 00:19:25.379 --> 00:19:26.539 not your son anymore, 00:19:26.599 --> 00:19:27.599 just treat me like a 00:19:27.599 --> 00:19:27.899 servant. 00:19:28.319 --> 00:19:29.399 The son starts to 00:19:29.399 --> 00:19:30.659 speak, but his 00:19:30.659 --> 00:19:31.319 father won't have 00:19:31.319 --> 00:19:32.139 any of it, he's not 00:19:32.139 --> 00:19:32.619 interested. 00:19:33.339 --> 00:19:34.460 Before he's even got 00:19:34.460 --> 00:19:35.559 there, we read, 00:19:35.639 --> 00:19:36.579 don't we, bring 00:19:36.579 --> 00:19:37.339 quickly the best 00:19:37.339 --> 00:19:38.099 robe and put it on 00:19:38.099 --> 00:19:38.539 him and put it on 00:19:38.539 --> 00:19:39.059 a ring on his 00:19:39.059 --> 00:19:39.759 hand and shoes on 00:19:39.759 --> 00:19:40.720 his feet and bring 00:19:40.720 --> 00:19:41.680 the fattened calf and 00:19:41.680 --> 00:19:42.599 kill it and let us 00:19:42.599 --> 00:19:43.700 eat and celebrate. 00:19:44.519 --> 00:19:45.259 He puts him in the 00:19:45.259 --> 00:19:46.299 best robes and he 00:19:46.299 --> 00:19:47.059 throws him a feast. 00:19:47.720 --> 00:19:48.039 Why? 00:19:48.579 --> 00:19:49.379 Verse 24. 00:19:50.500 --> 00:19:51.480 For this my son was 00:19:51.480 --> 00:19:52.539 dead and is alive 00:19:52.539 --> 00:19:52.839 again. 00:19:53.639 --> 00:19:55.000 He was lost and is 00:19:55.000 --> 00:19:55.339 found. 00:19:58.399 --> 00:20:00.220 When Jesus welcomes 00:20:00.220 --> 00:20:00.960 back, he doesn't 00:20:00.960 --> 00:20:02.519 just welcome us as 00:20:02.519 --> 00:20:03.299 servants, does he? 00:20:04.299 --> 00:20:05.059 He's not just 00:20:05.059 --> 00:20:06.000 welcoming us back as 00:20:06.000 --> 00:20:06.839 people who can now 00:20:06.839 --> 00:20:07.359 serve him. 00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:08.359 He welcomes us 00:20:08.359 --> 00:20:09.139 back as family. 00:20:09.899 --> 00:20:11.099 He invites us to 00:20:11.099 --> 00:20:11.859 feast with him. 00:20:12.939 --> 00:20:13.519 Do you remember the 00:20:13.519 --> 00:20:14.639 original accusation of 00:20:14.639 --> 00:20:15.299 the scribes and the 00:20:15.299 --> 00:20:15.779 Pharisees? 00:20:16.240 --> 00:20:17.419 This man receives 00:20:17.419 --> 00:20:19.119 sinners and eats 00:20:19.119 --> 00:20:19.519 with them. 00:20:20.319 --> 00:20:21.159 Well, that's exactly 00:20:21.159 --> 00:20:21.879 our God, isn't it? 00:20:22.199 --> 00:20:23.219 That's exactly the 00:20:23.219 --> 00:20:23.979 Jesus of the Bible. 00:20:24.259 --> 00:20:25.399 This man welcomes 00:20:25.399 --> 00:20:26.759 sinners and eats 00:20:26.759 --> 00:20:27.119 with them. 00:20:28.099 --> 00:20:28.659 It's one of the 00:20:28.659 --> 00:20:29.099 things that we 00:20:29.099 --> 00:20:30.119 remember when we 00:20:30.119 --> 00:20:30.839 share the Lord's 00:20:30.839 --> 00:20:31.439 Supper, isn't it? 00:20:32.039 --> 00:20:32.879 When we share the 00:20:32.879 --> 00:20:33.979 Lord's Supper and the 00:20:33.979 --> 00:20:34.819 bread and the wine is 00:20:34.819 --> 00:20:35.319 handed out. 00:20:35.319 --> 00:20:36.019 Well, isn't that 00:20:36.019 --> 00:20:37.240 Jesus coming to 00:20:37.240 --> 00:20:37.819 eat with us? 00:20:38.179 --> 00:20:39.460 To eat with us as 00:20:39.460 --> 00:20:40.679 his family accepted 00:20:40.679 --> 00:20:41.139 in him. 00:20:42.399 --> 00:20:43.539 And it's a sign and 00:20:43.539 --> 00:20:44.399 a foretaste of what 00:20:44.399 --> 00:20:45.159 we're one day going 00:20:45.159 --> 00:20:46.139 to enjoy in the new 00:20:46.139 --> 00:20:47.359 creation, that 00:20:47.359 --> 00:20:48.439 marriage supper of 00:20:48.439 --> 00:20:49.539 the Lamb, when we 00:20:49.539 --> 00:20:50.399 feast with him in 00:20:50.399 --> 00:20:50.639 heaven. 00:20:51.939 --> 00:20:52.960 Jesus doesn't just 00:20:52.960 --> 00:20:55.359 welcome sinners, but 00:20:55.359 --> 00:20:56.539 he chooses to eat 00:20:56.539 --> 00:20:57.480 with them as family. 00:20:57.480 --> 00:21:01.920 We have a scandalous 00:21:01.920 --> 00:21:03.620 sin to come to 00:21:03.620 --> 00:21:05.319 terms with, but we 00:21:05.319 --> 00:21:06.259 also have a scandalous 00:21:06.259 --> 00:21:06.660 welcome. 00:21:09.740 --> 00:21:12.319 Thirdly, the third 00:21:12.319 --> 00:21:14.279 scene in this story, 00:21:15.360 --> 00:21:16.860 the lens focuses again, 00:21:16.960 --> 00:21:17.259 doesn't it? 00:21:17.279 --> 00:21:17.720 We've had the 00:21:17.720 --> 00:21:19.019 younger son, we've 00:21:19.019 --> 00:21:19.680 had the father, and 00:21:19.680 --> 00:21:21.039 now the scene shifts 00:21:21.039 --> 00:21:22.079 to the older son. 00:21:23.460 --> 00:21:23.920 And like the 00:21:23.920 --> 00:21:24.860 Pharisees, he's not 00:21:24.860 --> 00:21:25.680 impressed by his 00:21:25.680 --> 00:21:26.460 father's behavior. 00:21:26.460 --> 00:21:27.500 He's not impressed 00:21:27.500 --> 00:21:28.160 at all. 00:21:29.360 --> 00:21:30.700 Verse 25, now his 00:21:30.700 --> 00:21:31.759 older son was in the 00:21:31.759 --> 00:21:33.259 field, and as he 00:21:33.259 --> 00:21:34.140 came and drew near to 00:21:34.140 --> 00:21:35.319 the house, he heard 00:21:35.319 --> 00:21:36.299 music and dancing. 00:21:36.819 --> 00:21:37.600 And he called one of 00:21:37.600 --> 00:21:38.779 the servants and 00:21:38.779 --> 00:21:39.420 asked what these 00:21:39.420 --> 00:21:39.980 things meant. 00:21:41.100 --> 00:21:41.900 And he said to him, 00:21:42.240 --> 00:21:42.900 your brother has 00:21:42.900 --> 00:21:43.620 come and your father 00:21:43.620 --> 00:21:44.120 has killed the 00:21:44.120 --> 00:21:45.019 fattened calf, because 00:21:45.019 --> 00:21:46.039 he received him back 00:21:46.039 --> 00:21:46.880 safe and sound. 00:21:47.680 --> 00:21:49.799 But he was angry and 00:21:49.799 --> 00:21:50.840 refused to go in. 00:21:52.600 --> 00:21:54.559 It feels a bit like 00:21:54.559 --> 00:21:56.160 his older son's got 00:21:56.160 --> 00:21:56.860 a point, doesn't 00:21:56.860 --> 00:21:57.820 it, when we hear 00:21:57.820 --> 00:21:59.180 him in this verse. 00:21:59.320 --> 00:22:00.860 Well, he's been 00:22:00.860 --> 00:22:01.900 working in the fields 00:22:01.900 --> 00:22:02.840 all these years. 00:22:02.960 --> 00:22:03.800 He's been an obedient 00:22:03.800 --> 00:22:04.240 son. 00:22:04.500 --> 00:22:05.360 He's done everything a 00:22:05.360 --> 00:22:06.180 son would be expected 00:22:06.180 --> 00:22:08.440 to do, while his 00:22:08.440 --> 00:22:09.600 father, while his 00:22:09.600 --> 00:22:10.360 brother has wasted 00:22:10.360 --> 00:22:10.800 everything. 00:22:11.220 --> 00:22:12.040 He's gone away, 00:22:12.820 --> 00:22:13.700 disrespected his 00:22:13.700 --> 00:22:15.080 father, brought shame 00:22:15.080 --> 00:22:16.180 on the family, wasted 00:22:16.180 --> 00:22:16.620 money. 00:22:17.440 --> 00:22:18.120 And which one of 00:22:18.120 --> 00:22:18.600 the ones get in the 00:22:18.600 --> 00:22:18.900 party? 00:22:18.900 --> 00:22:21.800 You can imagine the 00:22:21.800 --> 00:22:22.740 Pharisees nodding 00:22:22.740 --> 00:22:23.860 along, remembering 00:22:23.860 --> 00:22:24.759 the proverbs they 00:22:24.759 --> 00:22:25.480 heard as a child, 00:22:25.740 --> 00:22:26.640 whoever works for 00:22:26.640 --> 00:22:27.820 land has plenty of 00:22:27.820 --> 00:22:28.940 bread, but he who 00:22:28.940 --> 00:22:29.680 follows worthless 00:22:29.680 --> 00:22:31.120 pursuits lacks sense. 00:22:31.800 --> 00:22:33.180 And everything says 00:22:33.180 --> 00:22:34.120 here that the older 00:22:34.120 --> 00:22:34.840 brother should be the 00:22:34.840 --> 00:22:35.440 one who's getting the 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:36.460 party, not the younger 00:22:36.460 --> 00:22:37.820 one, not this fool 00:22:37.820 --> 00:22:38.900 who's wasted his money 00:22:38.900 --> 00:22:40.360 and had to come back 00:22:40.360 --> 00:22:41.519 in such a pitiful 00:22:41.519 --> 00:22:41.960 state. 00:22:41.960 --> 00:22:44.920 But the words in 00:22:44.920 --> 00:22:47.519 verse 29 give away, 00:22:47.860 --> 00:22:49.460 they give away what 00:22:49.460 --> 00:22:50.960 this older brother is 00:22:50.960 --> 00:22:52.480 thinking, what his 00:22:52.480 --> 00:22:53.440 real problem is. 00:22:54.100 --> 00:22:54.740 Speaking to his 00:22:54.740 --> 00:22:55.340 father, he says, 00:22:55.440 --> 00:22:56.480 look, these many 00:22:56.480 --> 00:22:57.840 years I've served you 00:22:57.840 --> 00:22:59.720 and I never disobeyed 00:22:59.720 --> 00:23:01.880 your command, yet you 00:23:01.880 --> 00:23:03.039 never gave me a young 00:23:03.039 --> 00:23:04.400 goat that I might 00:23:04.400 --> 00:23:05.220 celebrate with my 00:23:05.220 --> 00:23:05.720 friends. 00:23:07.960 --> 00:23:09.660 His problem isn't 00:23:09.660 --> 00:23:11.160 that he's still angry 00:23:11.160 --> 00:23:11.880 with his brother's 00:23:11.880 --> 00:23:12.240 disrespect. 00:23:12.880 --> 00:23:13.960 It isn't that he 00:23:13.960 --> 00:23:15.080 feels like some kind 00:23:15.080 --> 00:23:15.620 of shame's been 00:23:15.620 --> 00:23:16.020 brought in the 00:23:16.020 --> 00:23:16.300 family. 00:23:16.880 --> 00:23:18.160 He's not jealous of 00:23:18.160 --> 00:23:19.060 his father's attention 00:23:19.060 --> 00:23:19.800 at all, is he? 00:23:20.580 --> 00:23:21.740 He's jealous of his 00:23:21.740 --> 00:23:22.740 father's stuff. 00:23:23.660 --> 00:23:25.020 You never gave me a 00:23:25.020 --> 00:23:25.360 goat. 00:23:26.320 --> 00:23:27.420 On the surface of it, 00:23:27.640 --> 00:23:28.740 the older brother and 00:23:28.740 --> 00:23:29.340 the younger brother 00:23:29.340 --> 00:23:30.120 couldn't be more 00:23:30.120 --> 00:23:31.060 different, could they? 00:23:31.840 --> 00:23:33.160 The one is obedient 00:23:33.160 --> 00:23:35.320 and diligent and 00:23:35.320 --> 00:23:35.800 respectable. 00:23:36.400 --> 00:23:37.600 The other is this 00:23:37.600 --> 00:23:39.100 kind of happy-go-lucky 00:23:39.100 --> 00:23:41.200 waster who really 00:23:41.880 --> 00:23:43.580 couldn't be any good 00:23:43.580 --> 00:23:44.400 for family at all. 00:23:45.060 --> 00:23:45.780 They couldn't be any 00:23:45.780 --> 00:23:46.960 more different on the 00:23:46.960 --> 00:23:48.300 face of it, but their 00:23:48.300 --> 00:23:49.260 hearts are exactly the 00:23:49.260 --> 00:23:49.500 same. 00:23:50.240 --> 00:23:51.140 Their hearts are exactly 00:23:51.140 --> 00:23:51.620 the same. 00:23:51.900 --> 00:23:52.400 Despite their 00:23:52.400 --> 00:23:53.300 experiences, they don't 00:23:53.300 --> 00:23:54.420 either of them love 00:23:54.420 --> 00:23:55.300 their father particularly. 00:23:56.300 --> 00:23:57.080 They just want his 00:23:57.080 --> 00:23:57.440 stuff. 00:23:58.080 --> 00:23:58.680 They just want his 00:23:58.680 --> 00:23:59.000 stuff. 00:24:01.000 --> 00:24:02.000 The two brothers want 00:24:02.000 --> 00:24:03.240 exactly the same thing. 00:24:03.880 --> 00:24:04.960 The difference is just 00:24:04.960 --> 00:24:05.860 how they go about 00:24:05.860 --> 00:24:06.420 getting it. 00:24:06.880 --> 00:24:07.500 One of them is pretty 00:24:07.500 --> 00:24:07.900 honest. 00:24:08.220 --> 00:24:10.119 Dad, I quite like your 00:24:10.119 --> 00:24:10.519 inheritance. 00:24:11.519 --> 00:24:12.500 I'm going to take it 00:24:12.500 --> 00:24:13.019 and spend it. 00:24:13.759 --> 00:24:15.319 The other one is more 00:24:15.319 --> 00:24:16.160 scheming, isn't it? 00:24:16.900 --> 00:24:19.240 Dad, I'd like your 00:24:19.240 --> 00:24:20.000 inheritance, so I'm 00:24:20.000 --> 00:24:20.799 going to work for it. 00:24:21.559 --> 00:24:22.680 But they're exactly the 00:24:22.680 --> 00:24:22.940 same. 00:24:23.680 --> 00:24:24.920 Exactly the same at home. 00:24:27.259 --> 00:24:28.440 In the book of Job, 00:24:28.779 --> 00:24:30.980 God holds Job out as an 00:24:30.980 --> 00:24:31.960 example of righteous 00:24:31.960 --> 00:24:32.960 obedience, doesn't he? 00:24:33.400 --> 00:24:34.880 God holds Job out as an 00:24:34.880 --> 00:24:35.880 example of righteous 00:24:35.880 --> 00:24:37.720 obedience, and Satan 00:24:37.720 --> 00:24:38.840 comes to God and says, 00:24:39.000 --> 00:24:41.060 does Job fear God for 00:24:41.060 --> 00:24:41.580 no reason? 00:24:43.160 --> 00:24:44.640 Job, well, Job only 00:24:44.640 --> 00:24:46.360 loves you because you've 00:24:46.360 --> 00:24:47.280 given him so much. 00:24:47.400 --> 00:24:48.680 Does Job fear God for 00:24:48.680 --> 00:24:49.160 no reason? 00:24:49.660 --> 00:24:50.480 He only loves you for 00:24:50.480 --> 00:24:50.960 your stuff. 00:24:51.260 --> 00:24:52.020 Take away your 00:24:52.020 --> 00:24:53.420 blessings, Satan says, 00:24:53.840 --> 00:24:55.000 and he will curse you 00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:55.820 to your face. 00:24:56.660 --> 00:24:57.440 Take away your 00:24:57.440 --> 00:24:58.420 blessings and he will 00:24:58.420 --> 00:24:59.220 curse you to your 00:24:59.220 --> 00:24:59.600 face. 00:25:00.920 --> 00:25:01.900 Well, Job passes the 00:25:01.900 --> 00:25:02.760 test in the book of 00:25:02.760 --> 00:25:03.400 Job, doesn't he? 00:25:04.460 --> 00:25:05.520 But that older brother 00:25:05.519 --> 00:25:06.200 fails him. 00:25:06.619 --> 00:25:07.599 He fails him over a 00:25:07.599 --> 00:25:08.039 roast dinner. 00:25:10.259 --> 00:25:11.319 The challenge that we 00:25:11.319 --> 00:25:12.359 have here for the 00:25:12.359 --> 00:25:14.559 Pharisees, and perhaps 00:25:14.559 --> 00:25:15.319 for many of us as 00:25:15.319 --> 00:25:17.839 well, is that being 00:25:17.839 --> 00:25:18.579 respectable in the 00:25:18.579 --> 00:25:20.440 eyes of the church and 00:25:20.440 --> 00:25:21.359 in the eyes of the 00:25:21.359 --> 00:25:23.079 world doesn't mean that 00:25:23.079 --> 00:25:23.639 we have the right 00:25:23.639 --> 00:25:24.559 attitude towards God, 00:25:24.619 --> 00:25:24.920 does it? 00:25:25.799 --> 00:25:26.779 It doesn't mean that we 00:25:26.779 --> 00:25:27.480 have the right attitude 00:25:27.480 --> 00:25:28.019 to God. 00:25:29.119 --> 00:25:30.920 You can see how Jesus 00:25:30.920 --> 00:25:31.859 is framing this now. 00:25:32.059 --> 00:25:33.460 Imagine the worst kind 00:25:33.460 --> 00:25:33.960 of sinner. 00:25:35.180 --> 00:25:36.240 Well, your heart's just 00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:36.680 the same. 00:25:37.900 --> 00:25:38.980 Think about those tax 00:25:38.980 --> 00:25:40.460 collectors that the 00:25:40.460 --> 00:25:41.660 Pharisees and scribes. 00:25:41.900 --> 00:25:43.059 Your hearts are just 00:25:43.059 --> 00:25:43.559 the same. 00:25:44.840 --> 00:25:46.519 If our obedience is just 00:25:46.519 --> 00:25:48.140 another way to get at 00:25:48.140 --> 00:25:50.120 God's blessings, to seize 00:25:50.120 --> 00:25:51.140 on his gifts for 00:25:51.140 --> 00:25:52.259 ourselves while still 00:25:52.259 --> 00:25:55.279 really ignoring him, if 00:25:55.279 --> 00:25:56.600 our obedience isn't an 00:25:56.600 --> 00:25:58.779 expression of love, but we 00:25:58.779 --> 00:25:59.920 see it as a kind of 00:25:59.920 --> 00:26:01.680 service to try and earn 00:26:01.680 --> 00:26:03.960 his blessing, then it's 00:26:03.960 --> 00:26:06.240 just as much sin as the 00:26:06.240 --> 00:26:07.759 prodigal son's wasteful 00:26:07.759 --> 00:26:08.900 disrespect, isn't it? 00:26:10.100 --> 00:26:11.680 The two brothers couldn't 00:26:11.680 --> 00:26:12.700 be more different on the 00:26:12.700 --> 00:26:15.259 surface, but they have 00:26:15.259 --> 00:26:16.600 the same sinful hearts. 00:26:18.720 --> 00:26:19.799 But what's fantastic 00:26:19.799 --> 00:26:20.920 about this parable is that 00:26:20.920 --> 00:26:21.759 they may have the same 00:26:21.759 --> 00:26:23.240 hearts, they also have 00:26:23.240 --> 00:26:24.180 the same father, don't 00:26:24.180 --> 00:26:24.360 they? 00:26:25.080 --> 00:26:27.019 Can you imagine how the 00:26:27.019 --> 00:26:28.160 father might respond to 00:26:28.160 --> 00:26:29.120 this son? 00:26:29.119 --> 00:26:31.219 He's been longing for his 00:26:31.219 --> 00:26:32.319 younger son to come home. 00:26:33.079 --> 00:26:33.859 Longing for it. 00:26:33.919 --> 00:26:35.000 He's always wanted to see 00:26:35.000 --> 00:26:36.000 his younger son back. 00:26:36.339 --> 00:26:37.379 The son's come back, he's 00:26:37.379 --> 00:26:39.379 throwing a party, and the 00:26:39.379 --> 00:26:40.439 older brother, rather than 00:26:40.439 --> 00:26:42.599 joining in, he's throwing a 00:26:42.599 --> 00:26:43.419 strop outside. 00:26:43.679 --> 00:26:44.579 He's having a tantrum. 00:26:46.339 --> 00:26:47.799 You can imagine how this 00:26:47.799 --> 00:26:49.500 father could come out and 00:26:49.500 --> 00:26:50.279 speak to his son. 00:26:50.359 --> 00:26:51.259 He could speak in anger, 00:26:51.359 --> 00:26:51.759 couldn't he? 00:26:52.639 --> 00:26:53.559 You can imagine the things 00:26:53.559 --> 00:26:54.119 that could be done. 00:26:54.179 --> 00:26:55.279 He could rebuke him, 00:26:55.279 --> 00:26:57.000 reprove him. 00:26:57.660 --> 00:26:59.139 But what word, what word 00:26:59.139 --> 00:27:00.180 does Jesus use here? 00:27:01.200 --> 00:27:03.819 Well, verse 28, the older 00:27:03.819 --> 00:27:05.359 son was angry and refused 00:27:05.359 --> 00:27:05.859 to go in. 00:27:06.319 --> 00:27:08.240 His father came out and 00:27:08.240 --> 00:27:09.059 entreated him. 00:27:10.279 --> 00:27:11.460 He shows him the same 00:27:11.460 --> 00:27:12.539 compassion, doesn't he, 00:27:13.200 --> 00:27:14.240 that he showed the younger 00:27:14.240 --> 00:27:14.500 son. 00:27:15.279 --> 00:27:16.259 He comes out with 00:27:16.259 --> 00:27:17.940 gentleness, with pleading 00:27:17.940 --> 00:27:18.819 and entreating. 00:27:20.139 --> 00:27:22.059 Look, you've got everything, 00:27:22.200 --> 00:27:22.559 my son. 00:27:22.559 --> 00:27:25.119 You are always with me, and 00:27:25.119 --> 00:27:26.200 all that I have is mine. 00:27:26.740 --> 00:27:28.079 It was fitting to celebrate 00:27:28.079 --> 00:27:28.740 and be glad. 00:27:29.279 --> 00:27:30.259 For this, your brother was 00:27:30.259 --> 00:27:31.720 dead, and is alive. 00:27:31.819 --> 00:27:32.980 He was lost and is found. 00:27:34.440 --> 00:27:35.839 He knows what's going on in 00:27:35.839 --> 00:27:37.279 the older brother's heart, and 00:27:37.279 --> 00:27:38.500 he comes out to plead with 00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:40.259 him, to reason with him. 00:27:42.039 --> 00:27:43.359 Jesus' message to the 00:27:43.359 --> 00:27:45.639 Pharisees isn't, I've come 00:27:45.639 --> 00:27:48.519 for the sinners, so you've 00:27:48.519 --> 00:27:49.480 got no interest here. 00:27:50.179 --> 00:27:51.099 It's, I've come for the 00:27:51.099 --> 00:27:51.359 sinners. 00:27:51.359 --> 00:27:52.459 I've come for the worst 00:27:52.459 --> 00:27:54.119 kind of sinners, and that 00:27:54.119 --> 00:27:54.759 includes you. 00:27:55.919 --> 00:27:57.000 Jesus welcomes sinners, 00:27:57.359 --> 00:27:58.339 whether they look like 00:27:58.339 --> 00:27:59.500 they're in open rebellion 00:27:59.500 --> 00:28:01.679 like the younger son, or 00:28:01.679 --> 00:28:02.859 whether they're respectively 00:28:02.859 --> 00:28:04.419 trying to coerce God's 00:28:04.419 --> 00:28:06.039 blessings, like the older 00:28:06.039 --> 00:28:06.299 one. 00:28:08.519 --> 00:28:09.799 So very simply this morning, 00:28:10.039 --> 00:28:11.179 I hope we've seen from 00:28:11.179 --> 00:28:13.059 this parable that Jesus has 00:28:13.059 --> 00:28:14.679 really one message to 00:28:14.679 --> 00:28:16.859 whoever we are, and that 00:28:16.859 --> 00:28:17.959 is that the Pharisees have 00:28:17.959 --> 00:28:19.099 got it spot on right. 00:28:19.099 --> 00:28:20.819 He welcomes sinners, he 00:28:20.819 --> 00:28:22.259 welcomes sinners, and he 00:28:22.259 --> 00:28:23.459 delights to eat with them. 00:28:24.659 --> 00:28:26.839 So whether your own sin is 00:28:26.839 --> 00:28:28.719 really quite like the younger 00:28:28.719 --> 00:28:31.079 sons, that open rebellion, 00:28:31.599 --> 00:28:32.899 going off into the far-off 00:28:32.899 --> 00:28:34.539 country, ignoring God 00:28:34.539 --> 00:28:36.619 openly, or whether it's that 00:28:36.619 --> 00:28:39.699 more respectable kind, where we 00:28:39.699 --> 00:28:41.579 attend church not so much for 00:28:41.579 --> 00:28:43.719 the love of God, but for the 00:28:43.719 --> 00:28:45.259 desire to coerce his blessing 00:28:45.259 --> 00:28:45.819 from him. 00:28:45.819 --> 00:28:48.599 But whether I suspect the 00:28:48.599 --> 00:28:49.599 men in this is somewhere in 00:28:49.599 --> 00:28:50.899 between, the message is the 00:28:50.899 --> 00:28:51.419 same, isn't it? 00:28:51.500 --> 00:28:52.519 The message is the same. 00:28:53.519 --> 00:28:54.500 I welcome sinners. 00:28:55.079 --> 00:28:56.079 That's what Jesus says. 00:28:56.579 --> 00:28:57.779 I welcome sinners. 00:28:58.460 --> 00:28:59.159 And I eat with them. 00:29:01.460 --> 00:29:01.899 Amen.