The Grace Of God And The Prodigal Son 7-26-26 AM

I.            The prodigal in the beginning (Lu. 15:11-16).

a.      His actions represent grace without responsibility.

b.      His defining words are “give me.”

c.       Dividing inheritance before death was possible in the ancient world.

           i.      The way the younger son did it was deeply disrespectful.

           ii.      What he was saying is that he wanted what belonged to the father without wanting the father in his life.

           iii.      He valued the father’s possessions more than the father’s presence.

d.      The father divided the property as asked.

           i.      We know the younger son got all his things together and traveled into a far country.

           ii.      While there, he wasted all he had in reckless living.

e.      In the parable, the far country is not merely a location.

           i.      It represented the direction of the boy’s heart.

           ii.      He wanted freedom from his father’s authority.

           iii.      The son wanted the benefits of being a son with the responsibilities of being a son.

f.        Eventually, everything and everyone he came to trust disappeared.

           i.      His money was gone as well as his friends.

           ii.      Then the food was gone because of a famine.

           iii.      His independence led to slavery.

g.      This is what sin always does: promises independence but produces bondage.

h.      The attitude of the son towards his father still appears today when people want God’s gifts but reject God’s authority.

            i.      They want forgiveness without repentance.

            ii.      They want salvation without submission.

            iii.      They want heaven without holiness.

            iv.      They want Jesus as Savior but not as Lord.

i.        This can even affect how Christians approach the local congregation.

            i.      When we ask, “What programs does this congregation provide for me,” “What can the church give my family,” or “What will I receive by attending here?”

           ii.      Those questions are not always wrong, but they become dangerous when we never ask: “How can I serve,” “How can I encourage,” How can I help the congregation fulfill its mission,” or “What responsibility has God given me within His body?”

j.       The same misunderstanding appears in teachings that separate grace from a faithful response to God.

          i.      Scripture teaches that salvation is by grace through faith, but biblical faith is never just passive agreement.

          ii.      Faith trusts God enough to respond to what He commands.

k.      Grace does not remove human responsibility.

l.        Grace makes salvation possible and teaches us how to live (Titus 2:11-12).

m.    Grace does pardon, but grace also trains.

n.      Wanting the Father’s gives without the Father’s authority leads us away from home.

II.            The older brother (Lu. 15:25-32).

a.      His actions represent responsibility without grace.

b.      The older son had stayed with the father.

           i.      He worked in the fields.

           ii.      He did not waste his inheritance in a far country.

c.       But when he heard the celebration and learned of his brother’s return, he became angry and refused to go inside.

d.      His response reveals what had been growing in his heart (Lu. 15:29).

e.      His defining words are essentially, “Look at me.”

f.        His speech is filled with himself.

            i.      I have served you.

            ii.      I have never disobeyed you.

            iii.      You didn’t give me a goat.

            iv.      You never threw me a party.

            v.      He wasted all your money.

g.      The younger son had left the father physically while the older son remained.

h.      However, the older son had grown distant emotionally and spiritually.

            i.      He did not see himself as a beloved son.

            ii.      He spoke as an unappreciated servant.

            iii.      He did not understand that everything he possessed came from his father.

i.        The father had to remind him of this (Lu. 15:31).

j.        Think of all the things the older son received for years: protection, provision, relationship, and inheritance, but he acted as if the father had given him nothing.

k.      The younger son believed he could live without the father, the older son believed the father could not live without him, and both were wrong.

l.        The older brother represents those who embrace responsibility but feel little need for grace.

            i.      Jesus confronted this attitude in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Lu. 18:9-14).

            ii.      The Pharisee had a list of what he was not – an extortioner, unjust, adulterer, like the tax collector.

            iii.      He had a list of what he did – fasted, gave tithes, practiced religious discipline.

            iv.      The problem was not that he avoided sin and practiced discipline, but that he trusted those actions as proof that God was in debt to Him.

m.    We can develop that same attitude.

           i.      We don’t use instrumental music in worship, we don’t have women preachers, we don’t follow denominational creeds.

           ii.      We take the Lord’s supper every Lord’s day, we teach baptism for the remission of sins, we teach that Christians must remain faithful, we seek biblical authority for our worship and practice.

n.      These all matter but doing them and other right things does not give us permission to become self-righteous.

o.      We are not right with God because we discovered a way to save ourselves, but because of the sacrifice of Christ that moved us, through faith, to obey the gospel.

p.      Lu. 17:10 – obedience does not earn grace – it is the faithful response of someone who knows he/she needs grace.

q.      Those how believe they never need forgiveness usually have little interest in extending forgiveness.

r.       Those who forget how much grace they received often become reluctant to show grace to others.

s.       When obedience becomes a reason for pride, we have forgotten grace.

III.            The prodigal in the end (Lu. 15:17-24).

a.      Luke 15:17 marks the turning point for him.

            i.      Sin had distorted his thinking.

            ii.      Repentance came when he finally saw his condition honestly.

            iii.      He remembered his father’s goodness and how his father’s servants had more than enough food while he starved.

b.      He prepared his confession (Lu. 15:18-19).

c.       At the beginning, his word were “give me” – now they had become “make me.”

d.      He no longer approached his father with entitlement, but with humility.

           i.      He did not deny his sin.

           ii.      He did not blame the famine.

           iii.      He did not blame his friends.

           iv.      He did not blame his upbringing.

e.      He said, “I have sinned,” and then got up and went to his father – his repentance produced movement.

f.        The father’s response is beautiful picture of grace.

           i.      While the son was still far off the father saw him.

           ii.      The father felt compassion, ran to him, hugged, and kissed him.

           iii.      He then ordered that a robe, a ring, and shoes be brought.

           iv.      He restored the son and called for a celebration.

g.      The son did not earn that reception.

           i.      But he did return, confess, and submit.

           ii.      He accepted the responsibility of repentance because he finally understood the value of grace.

h.      God’s grace is offered freely, but has to be received according to God’s will.

i.        A biblical pattern appears repeatedly:

           i.      God provides grace;

           ii.      God reveals His will;

           iii.      People respond with obedient faith;

           iv.      God gives the promised blessing.

j.        Ephesians 2:8-10 holds these truths together.

           i.      We are saved by grace through faith, not by works that would allow us to boast.

           ii.      But, we are created in Christ Jesus for good works that God has prepared for us to walk in.

k.      James 2:14-26 explains that faith without works is dead.

           i.      Works do not replace faith.

           ii.      Works reveal living faith.

l.        Matthew 7:21

m.    The son’s journey did not create the father’s love because the father already loved him.

n.      His confession did not purchase the father’s compassion because the father was already compassionate.

o.      But the son had to come home to enjoy fellowship with the father.

p.      Grace was waiting but the son had to return.

q.      Grace is received when humble faith turns toward the Father.

IV.            Illustrations of the pattern of grace.

a.      The relations between grace, God’s command, obedient faith, and God’s blessing appears throughout scripture.

b.      These examples don’t teach that people earn God’s favor, but that trusting God means responding to what God has said.

c.       Noah is an example of grace.

           i.      Grace warned Noah about the flood (Gen. 6:8).

           ii.      God then instructed Noah to build the ark.

           iii.      By faith, Noah built the ark, obeying God (Heb. 11:17).

           iv.      God saved Noah and his family through the flood.

           v.      Noah did not earn God’s grace by building the ark, but Noah would not have been saved by a faith that did not build.

d.      The account of the walls of Jericho is an example of grace.

           i.      God said He had given them Jericho before they took the first step (Josh. 6:2).

           ii.      God then gave the command to march around the city as He did.

           iii.      The people did what God said do.

           iv.      God gave them the city on the seventh day.

           v.      The marching was not powerful enough to take the city, but their obedience demonstrated they trusted the God who had already promised victory.

e.      Naaman is an example of grace.

           i.      A young Israelite slave told Naaman’s household about the prophet in Israel.

           ii.      God commanded Naaman, through Elisha, to go and dip in the Jordan seven times.

           iii.      Naaman, though not at first, obeyed the command.

           iv.      God restored his flesh.

           v.      The water had no magical powers but God healed Naaman when Naaman finally obeyed His word.

f.        The blind man in John 9 is an example of grace.

           i.      The man was found by Jesus.

           ii.      Jesus placed the mud on his eyes and told him to go wash.

           iii.      The man did what Jesus said do.

           iv.      Jesus restored His sight.

           v.      The man did not heal himself by going to the pool, but he would not have demonstrated faith if he had refused to go.

g.      The plan of salvation is an example of grace.

           i.      God’s grace appeared in the Person of Jesus Christ (Titus 2:11).

           ii.      Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and rose again the third day.

           iii.      The gospel calls for us to respond through faith (mention plan of salvation).

           iv.      It’s important to note that in baptism, we are not boasting in something we have accomplished, but trusting in what God accomplishes (Col. 2:12).

           v.      God saves us from our sins.

           vi.      We don’t obey to earn grace, but we obey because we trust the gracious God.