The Lost Son, Part 4a

Luke 15 is where we are this evening in our study of the parables, the searchlights of the soul. We've been looking at this parable of lost things and coming to understand that this is a picture of salvation and how Christ works in the life of an individual. And when he works in their life, there is a true turnaround in their life as they come to him in full repentance. And we have seen how the Lord responds to that person who is repentant. by looking at the father in the story of the lost son and understanding how he responds when the son returns because of the true repentant heart of that son and how he longs to embrace him and to kiss him and to hug him and to accept him back into his home.

It's a wonderful picture of salvation and how God works. You know, the Bible says that God longs to reconcile us to himself.

That's the way our God is. And God himself is a God of mercy. He longs to bestow mercy upon his people. And I think that so many times we have a misconstrued picture of our God. And that's why we have spent some time in Luke chapter 15, coming to understand what God does when a sinner repents, because that's the heart of God. And what happens in Luke chapter 15 with the parable of the lost son is the explanation of verse number 7 and verse number 10. You will note in verse number 7 and verse number 10 of Luke chapter 15 that it says in verse 7, I tell you that in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, than over 99 righteous persons who need no repentance.

And then down in verse number 10, in the same way I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. And so you think about the joy, you think about the excitement in heaven, you think about the celebration in heaven. And then it goes on about the parable of the lost sun to tell you exactly, what that celebration is all about. How God in his mercy, in his kindness, and his compassion embraces this one who repents, and how the fatted calf is killed, and the ring is put on his hand, and sandals on his feet, and a robe on his back.

To go into great detail as to what God does and how God celebrates the fact that some individual has repented of his sin and God himself bestows mercy upon him and celebrates with this individual. And the Bible says in verse number 24, and they began to be married.

There was a great celebration, a wonderful celebration. And the Lord goes into detail to help the sinners and publicans and the Pharisees and scribes understand why our Lord eats and associates with sinners, because he longs for man to repent. And when he does, this is his response. This is what he does. This is how he acts. And you know what? It'd be really good if the parable just stopped right here. But it doesn't. He's already talked about the sinner. He's already talked about the tax gatherer.

They know they're defiled. They know they're wretched. But the Pharisees, see, they think they're pretty good. They don't think they're bad at all. They're self-righteous. And so the Lord has to address those people. And so in a marvelous way, as only our Lord can do, the story continues. And let me read it for you.

Verse number 25. Now his older son was in the field. And when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things might be. And he said to him, your brother has come and your father has killed the fatted calf because he has received him back, safe and sound. But he became angry and was not willing to go in. And his father came out. And his father came out. out and began in treating him. But he answered and said to his father, look, for so many years I have been serving you, and I have never neglected a command of yours, and yet you have never given me a kid that I might be married with my friends.

But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with harlots, you killed the fat and calf for him. And he said, my child, he have all always been with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to be married and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live and was lost and has been found. Three things I want you to see about this elder brother, that we need to understand about what the Lord is doing. The first thing we need to see is his reaction.

Then we're going to look at the result of his reaction and then the ramifications. Then we'll be at the end of this parable, Luke 15, and we'll give you some implications. But the thing you see, first of all, is his reaction.

The Lord goes on with a story and tells us. Remember, parables are earthly stories with the heavenly meaning. the whole story is a picture of salvation how the son of man came to seek and to save that which is lost that's the character of our god and he demonstrates that through the parable of the lost sheep and the lost coin and then he tells us about how man responds to his search and rescue mission and then as a result of that excuse me how he then responds to their repentant spirit and so now he he wants to talk to the Pharisees because they are representative by the elder brother and he says the older son comes back on the field he hears something he hears the music he hears the celebration he hears the rejoicing and he wants to know what's going on so he asked one of the servants.

What's going on? Why is everybody so happy? What's happening on the inside? Servant tells him. He says, your brother's come. Your father has killed the fat and calf because he has received him back safe and sound. And listen to what it says. But he became angry and was not willing to go in. He was angry. Why was he angry? Why did he refuse to go in? What was it that ticked him off? What was it the setting going off with this angry spirit? The answer, listen carefully, is because he did not understand the nature, and the character of his father.

That's why he became angry and that's why he didn't go in. You say, wait a minute. Wait a minute. This is the man's son. How can this man not know his own father? How come this young elder brother doesn't understand the nature of his father? what was he missing all along? By looking at the man's response, you begin to realize that this man truly did not understand his father's nature, nor his character. He lived with him, he ate with him, he listened to him, he worked with him, he worked for him, but he still did.

did not understand the character of his father. Folks, let me tell you something. That's a lot of people today. That's a lot of people in the church of Jesus Christ today. They work for God, they serve God, they sing for God, they say they live for God, but they don't really know God. They don't. There are a lot of people who are on the outside, like this elder son, they look good. I mean, he was obedient, he was dependable, He was trustworthy. You could count on him. He was always there. And yet, and yet, while he had all the outward trappings of the best son, all the outward looks of the great son, he never brought a reproach upon the name of his family.

The younger son did that. But while he was on the outside, looking so clean, so fine, so stately, on the inside, it was a different story. You see, how can that be? How can that be? How could he not understand the character of his father? Let me explain to you.

You got your Bible? Turn me to 1st Corinthians chapter 2. 1 Corinthians chapter 2 it says this in verse number 14 says but a natural man does not accept the things of the spirit of God for they are foolishness to him and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually appraised but he is spiritual appraises all things yet he himself is appraised by no man for who has known the mind of the Lord that he should instruct him but we have the mind of Christ. Paul talks about the natural man and the spiritual man.

The natural man is what Jude 19 says is the sensual man. That's the man who is devoid of the spirit of God. He is the unbeliever. Oh, yes, he is good, he is moral, he's upstanding, he's cultured, he's refined, he's refined, but the Bible calls him the natural man. He's natural because he's only been born once. The spiritual man has been born twice. He's been born again. He has the spirit of God in him. But the natural man is devoid of the spirit of God. So therefore, he doesn't appreciate the things of God, nor does he appropriate the things of God.

He doesn't appreciate them because they're foolishness to him. They're absurd to him. They're insipid to him. He will never experience the riches of Christ. Oh, he can grasp them superficially, but never come to know them personally or deeply. This elder son returns. and he doesn't understand what his dad has done. He doesn't get it. Why? Because it's foolish to him. It's ridiculous to him. It is stupid for him, his father, to throw a party for the son that defamed the name of the family. It's ridiculous for him, his father, that is, to throw a party for the son that blew all of his money, who lived riotously, who was unwilling.

to submit to his father's authority. And now to come back and say, I'm sorry, and then throw a party for him, that is foolishness to the older son. After all, he says what? I have never neglected one of your commands. I have obeyed them all. And this is your son, your son. He didn't say, my brother. He said, this, your son, which is by the way, is very significant to understanding the text. Your son, what he did, you've accepted him back, but you never did anything like that for me. To him, it's foolishness.

He doesn't appreciate the things of God. That's what the Bible says over 1st Corinthians 1. For the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness. So we get our English word moron. It's moronic. Stupid. It's ridiculous. The word of the cross, the long gossip of the cross is the speech about the cross. That's what the gospel message is all about, right? It's sent us around the cross of Christ. And to the unbelieving, to those who are perishing, it's foolishness. It's ridiculous. It's stupid that Jesus Christ would come and die for the sins of the world?

Why would he do that? And that if man would just put his faith in trust in the finished work of Christ that he'd be saved from his sin, and there'd be just a great celebration in heaven. What's that? It's foolishness to the unbeliever. Not only that, The Bible says that he cannot understand them.

He can't appropriate them. He can't know them. He doesn't know them. That's important. He can't know whether or not it's true. It's good or it's beautiful. It's not that he doesn't do it or that he will not. He cannot. He cannot know it. He cannot see it because he's natural. He's not spiritual. He's unregenerate. He has not been regenerated. by the spirit of God. He's not spiritually discerning. In order to be that way, he'd have to come to the Lord and receive what the Lord has to give. Now, understand this.

Very important. The Old Testament speaks of God as Father 14 times. 39 books, 14 times God has mentioned as Father. The Nation of Israel didn't see God as a father personally. They saw them as their father corporately. he was their national father but to understand God in a personal way was unknown to them was far fetched from them and so Jesus comes on the scene in the New Testament and 60 times in the Gospels alone he refers to his to God in heaven as as his father see when the Lord comes what he wants to do is transform the nation's concept of God.

That somehow they will see him as their heavenly father. And so every time Christ prays, he mentions God as his father, except one time. That's what he's on the cross. My God and my God, why hast thou forsaken me? But every other time, it's always about God being the father. Jesus came to transform man's relationship with God. from a distant corporate experience into an intimate personal bond with the God of the universe so that when you give your life to Christ you now become a son of his that's why the elder son says what your son not my brother because you see spiritually they were not brothers important to understand that spiritually they were not brothers physically they were both Jews, but spiritually they were not brothers.

It says over in Galatians 4, these words, and because you are sons, God has sent forth the spirit of a son into your hearts crying, Abba, Father. Therefore, you are no longer a slave but a son, and of a son than an heir through God. We are the sons of God. When we give our life to Christ, we become the sons of God. We become joint heirs with Christ. That's an amazing thing. And this elder son could not fathom that his father would do something so merciful, so kind, so compassionate, because he did not understand the nature and character of his father.

Didn't get it. The Christian is partnered with God. Now, the liberals speak of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man. So in one sense, everybody's under the fatherhood of God. fact Malachi 2 verse number 10 says have we not all one father hath not one God created us so in a sense God is the father of all men in the creative sense and yet there is something very significant about the individual who gives his life to Christ because no longer is God his father in a creative sense physically but God now becomes his father in a creative sense spiritually because now he's born again.

And he actually is adopted into the family of God. And therefore he becomes a son of God. And that's why the Bible says, to as many as received him, to them gave me power to become the sons of God.

So the son comes back. He's angry. He will not go into the house. Very significant. He refuses to go in. Why? Because he does not understand the nature and character. of his father. He is angry. He is angry. He needs a change of heart. He needs a change of heart. If his heart is changed, he'll be changed. If his heart's not changed, he won't be changed. Now, to a degree, from a human standpoint, we can kind of understand the older brother's concern. I mean, after all, he was loyal, he was faithful, he was thrifty, he was exemplary.

Remember, he received his inheritance as well. Read back in Luke chapter 15, the inheritance was divided up. he kept his, he was thrifty with his money. He didn't go out and spend it on righteous living. And you can kind of understand why he would be upset. But I want you to understand something. Remember when Paul himself was saved on the Damascus Road? He gives his testimony over in the 1st, Timothy chapter 1. When he says, I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has strengthened me because he considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor, and yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief.

And the grace of our Lord was more than abundant with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world of safe sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Remember when he was born again? Anonias was supposed to go and disciple him. But Anonias had some reservations. He was a little scared. You mean, Lord, you want me to go to this guy named Saul who has persecuted your people? you want me to go and talk to him and and teach him the things of you Lord are you really sure you want me to do something like this and God said yeah how about the disciples they also had a problem with it didn't they they were scared to death of this guy they didn't know so we can kind of understand how how the older brother would be really skeptical of what was happening here with the younger brother and yet and yet Mr.

Performance Mr. Do Good Mr. Goody Tooshoes Mr. Self-righteous Mr. No Mercy couldn't understand what his dad was doing because he had not received mercy, nor had he received grace. He had trouble. Oh, he understood works. He understood works real well, because that's what he focused his life on. You see, remember, the Pharisees were into works. They were into religiosity. They considered themselves a part of the family of God. I mean, they were the offspring of Abraham. They're in the right family.

They're in the right nation. God loves Israel. They could never, ever dream that they were apart from God. I mean, they were the chosen people. And yet Christ came to them to win them to himself, and they rejected them. And yet when he came, they saw themselves as so pious and so self-righteous. And this was this man's problem, you see. He says, you know, I didn't neglect one of your commandments. Not one. So he says. And that's the way the Pharisees were. We do it all right. We don't do anything wrong.

We make the laws. We redefine the laws. We keep the laws. We do all the right things. So when you read Matthew 5, 6, and 7, what do you find? Christ says, wait a minute, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you'll never enter the kingdom of heaven.

People are saying, what? You've got to be kidding me. I mean, they do everything right. We can't do it. And Christ goes on to say, oh, you have heard that it was said. But this I say into you. He goes back and he talks about these Pharisees and how they have redefined the law of God, how they would live lives of lust after women, even though they didn't commit adultery on the outside, on how they pride of themselves in no murder. And yet they would hate their brother. And God says, if you hate your brother, you're a murder.

And God would condemn them because their hearts were evil. Their hearts were vile. In fact, over in Matthew chapter 23, it says this in verse number 25. Woe do you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. For you clean the outside of the cup and another dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup.

and of the dish so that the outside of it may become clean also. Wo to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you are like whitewashed tombs, which are on the outside appear beautiful. But inside, they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so, you too outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. Christ says, I want you clean on the inside.

You're focused on cleaning up the outside, but that's irrelevant to me. I want you clean on the inside, because if you're clean on the inside, you then, in turn, will be clean on the outside. And so this man was self-righteous because he was quick to point out his brother's sins. Oh, look what he did. He took your money. He spent on wine, living in song. And that's a self-righteous person, right? Quick to point out the sin of his brother, but I'm willing to look at his own sin in his own life.

This man was full of pride. Why? Because as long as his brother was away, he looked pretty good. As long as his brother was off living the way he wanted to live in goody-to-shoes son was at home, I mean, he looked good. But as soon as brother comes back and repents, he doesn't look the same anymore. He was angry. He was stubborn. He was jealous. You never killed a calf for me. You never had a party for me. And I didn't neglect one of your commandments. He was jealous, angry, stubborn, prideful, self-righteous.

And yet, and yet, his father loved him. His father loved him. If you're here tonight and never given your life to Christ, you'd do so. Why? Because Jesus said, all, all. all that is mine is yours. Will you come in? We'll have to cover the rest next week. Let's pray together. I'm