Pastor Slaughter
3-27-2022
Lent 4
Grace, Grace, More Grace!
Text: Luke 15:1-3, 11-32
As you come here to worship today, what do you need to hear? What is weighing on your heart and mind? Do your thoughts gravitate to a sin that you committed and are just burdened by the guilt? Where you just feel the sorrow and hopelessness of your sins. Did you come here today to try to make up for your sins because you just feel like you have to do something? Does your attention lie with someone else, where you wonder, “How can the pastor say that their sins are forgiven when they did or said that?” Where it just leaves you with bitterness and anger.
Whatever circumstance you find yourself in, every single one of you needs the exact same thing…grace…grace and you guessed it more grace.
Our lesson for today is from Luke 15 and it is the parable of the Lost Son or the Prodigal Son, but I think a better title would be the parable of the Father’s love. In this parable Jesus shows us what God’s grace looks like. So today my prayer is that we see how God responds with grace even when his grace is 1) abused, 2) underestimated, 3) resented and 4) my hope is that it leads us to rejoice in God’s grace. As we go through this parable ask yourself, “Where do I see myself in it?”
A father had two sons. The younger one came to his father and said, “Father, give me my share of the estate.” What a terrible thing to say! How the father’s heart must have hurt. That gut wrenching feeling you get when you hear something you don’t want to. Essentially saying, “I am ready to man up! To go out on my own! Dad, I really don’t care about you just give me your things and I will be on my way.”
But the father loved his sons so much that even though it seemed like his youngest wished he was as good as dead and just wanted his things, he divided his property among his two boys. What kind of love would do that? What kind of love would still give his son this tremendous blessing even after what he said. That is what we call grace. Undeserved love.
So the father divided his property between them. The younger one cashed it in and went as far away as he could. You almost get the feeling that the father watches his son go down the road and his heart is just breaking inside. The son thought he had what he wanted. He thought he could find happiness apart from his father’s love.
He took his money and wasted it. He spent it on reckless living. He spent his money on prostitutes. It’s like he had this deep longing to fill his life with the comfort from the world, comfort from the pleasures of sin, comfort anyone or anything other than what he had at his Father’s house. Grace Abused.
Can you find yourself relating to this son where God’s grace is abused? You know that Jesus died and rose and gives you forgiveness. You heard it growing up. You received that grace, hearing that forgiveness of sins, partook of the Lord’s supper but when you go out into the world nothing changes. Instead you return to the very things you know you shouldn’t. The world starts to pull you away. “You want to feel loved? It’s just one click away on your computer. You want to have fun? All you have to do is go out partying with your friends. You want to be happy? Then all you need is to do is buy whatever will make you happy.”
When you start to abuse God’s grace by filling yourself up with the empty promises of the world, before you know it you find yourself drifting away. Hearing God’s word less and less and before you know it, you are in some distant land away from what you need most…the fathers love. Before you know it, you stop hearing about the forgiveness of sins. You stop hearing the beautiful message of God’s grace!
What happens when we abuse God’s Grace? We sell ourselves to a world of lies and hit rock bottom. Look at the younger son in our lesson. Wasted all of his money. A famine hit. He hired himself out to someone and sent him to fields to feed pigs, which was detestable for any Jew. It couldn’t get any worse for him. He not only was starving for food that the pigs were eating but starving for the companionship from humans but there wasn’t anything for him.
Isn’t that true for us? When we sell ourselves to world of lies, it may be enjoyable for a time. It may make us happy for a moment. But there will come a time where we will hit rock bottom. Where we realize that sin can’t give us what we need, that there is something missing. A tragic event, a death, facing the consequences of our sin, might be that thing that jars us awake, reminds us to run back home.
Standing in the filth of pigs with a hungry stomach, the younger son came to senses. He thought back to his fathers house and realized that the servants in his house are treated better than he. So he devised a plan and thought to himself, “I will get up, go to my father, and tell him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.’” Not even in his wildest dreams did he ever think his father would take him back as a son. Not after what he did and said.
Grace underestimated. The son would have never guessed what was going to happen next. He made the journey back to his father. You almost get the impression that the father was constantly looking for his son to return. Waiting for him to come back. When he finally saw him, the father was full of compassion. He ran to his Son. The stench of his son working with the pigs didn’t bother him. He threw his arms around him. Hugged him and kissed him. The son said to his father, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight. I am no longer worthy to be called your child.”
He didn’t even get to finish his speech before his father told his servants to bring out the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Let’s kill the fattened calf and have a celebration! The Son underestimated his fathers grace. Never in his wildest dreams would he think that his father would take him back as a son, let alone without doing anything!
God’s grace is such a foreign concept to us. If we sinned we want to make up for it. We think that have have to do something, or say something to make up for what we did and if we don’t then we can’t or won’t be fully forgiven.
But God’s grace is completely different. He did it all. He was the one who ran to the cross. He is the one who covered the filth of our sins with the robe of his righteousness. He is the one puts his ring of grace on our fingers. He celebrates over the sinner who repents! How does God respond to the sinner? He responds with grace and more grace!
But the older brother saw what his father did for his younger brother. He heard the celebration going on. He heard the music and dancing but refused to go in and celebrate. Here we see Grace resented.
Who could blame him? He spent all of his time with his father. He served his father. He spent his time laboring and toiling and he never received so much as a young goat to celebrate. And now there is party going on for the one who wasted his inheritance with prostates and wild living?!
Really the older son and the younger son were just wanting their fathers stuff. Just going about it two different ways. The younger son had said that he was blessed to be apart from him and the older son I am your slave therefore you owe me.
Do we think that God owes us something? That we are more deserving of his grace than someone else? Whether it is hours spent serving others, or time spent volunteering at church, it is dangerous for us to focus on ourselves because we can so easily loose the joy in God’s grace in our lives and become bitter when God’s grace is shown to others!
But the father comes ever so gently to us with his grace and pleads with us. To come and celebrate the joy of his grace. To partake in the joy and dancing in knowing that our sins are forgiven. To celebrate the sinner who repents! Because God’s grace isn’t merited. God’s grace is freely given! Rejoice in his grace! Grace celebrated!
My family in Christ. We assume that people get what they deserve. That what goes around comes around. We assume God helps those who help themselves. But today we realize that isn’t the case. God doesn’t operate on the principal of merit but of Grace and no one is beyond the reach of God’s grace. When we feel the weight of our sins God reveals his grace. Let us rejoice in God’s grace! Amen.