And he said, A certain man had
two sons: And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the
portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. And
not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey
into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And
when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began
to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and
he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his
belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. And when
he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread
enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my
father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before
thee, And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired
servants. And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way
off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and
kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven,
and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father
said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a
ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and
kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive
again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. Now his elder son
was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard musick
and dancing. And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things
meant. And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed
the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. And he was angry,
and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him. And he
answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither
transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid,
that I might make merry with my friends: But as soon as this thy son was come,
which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the
fatted calf. And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I
have is thine. It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy
brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found. Luke 15:11-32
KJV
The prodigal son is a story of
conflict of interests. The interests of the father vs. the interests of his
son.
It's a story of a clash of wills.
The father's will vs. the son's will.
It's a story of choices and
consequences. The son made his choices and had to deal with the consequences.
It's a story of selfishness and
selfish desires. The selfishness and desires of both sons were on display.
But the story of the prodigal son
is also a beautiful picture of the Love, grace and mercy of the Father!
It's the story of a father who
stands waiting daily for the return of his lost child.
It's a story of a father who
stands ready to forgive, willing to forgive, wanting to forgive!
It's the story of a father who is
willing to embrace you in all your wretchedness and despair!
It's the story of a father who
never stops looking for his prodigal's return.
It's the story of a father who
wants to bring you back into his family!
The younger son was Self Willed -
wanted to do his own thing. It's opposite to God's will, against God's will,
therefore it's sin.
Sin is a dangerous thing!
Whether it's a little sin, it is
a dangerous thing.
A big sin is a dangerous thing!
Sin goes contrary to the law of
God.
Sin leads you into a far country.
Far away from home.
Far away from family.
Far away from security.
Far away from shelter.
Far away from God.
Far away from restraint.
Far away from the right
influence.
Far, far away!
We see Cain - self-willed; doing
his own thing! Abel offered the right sacrifice. Cain offered what he felt like
offering.
Without
the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins!
The lamb offered by Abel had
blood - a covering for sin.
The fruit of the ground has no
blood!
Corn and wheat have no blood!
Vegetables have no blood!
Potatoes and yam do not have
blood!
All your self-efforts are in vain
man! Come on Now!
A blood sacrifice is needed!
And so, one sin leads to another
sin. From a small sin to a bigger sin!
Take
us the little foxes that spoil the vines the wise man said!
God respected Abel's right
offering.
God rejected Cain's wrong
offering!
Cain got jealous of Abel and said
"Brother let's take a walk in the field!" Unsuspecting Abel
accompanied Cain and was murdered for his effort!
Disobedience and doing one's own
thing resulted in jealousy, it resulted anger and it resulted finally murder!
And so Cain went out of the
presence of the Lord!
Sin drives us away from the
presence of God!
Sin effectively isolates us from
the presence of God!
Sin brings us into the clutches
of the enemy who seeks only to isolate and destroy!
Today men get jealous of you when
you live right!
Men get jealous of you when God
favors you!
Men get jealous of you when they
see you happy!
Men get jealous of you while they
are self willed themselves!
But
we need to remember that it is God who justifies!
He
can put a man down or He can set him high up!
Nebuchadnezzar thought highly of
himself!
He became exalted with pride when
he looked around and saw the magnificent spread of his realm!
He became exalted with pride when
he saw the subjection of the captives to his rule!
He became exalted with pride when
he saw the grand palaces he had built!
He became exalted with pride when
he looked around and beheld the famous hanging gardens! He forgot that pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit
before a fall!
He
forgot that he who exalts himself before God shall be abased!
He forgot to give glory to the
Almighty God of the Heavens and the earth, Who had given all into his hands!
His self pride wanted to have his
own way and all the glory!
He became wild about himself and
declared, "This is Babylon the great! I have built it! I am the greatest!
There is none greater than I!"
But at that very moment he was
humbled and became like a beast!
His hairs grew long.
His nails grew long.
He lost his reason because he was
wrong!
He lost his mind and forgot his
song!
He became mad!
He ate grass like an ox for seven
years!
You might believe you are it!
The high and mighty!
But
you could have no power except it was given to you from above! Otherwise you
are simply a mad beast walking like a man! Give the glory to where it is due!
The prodigal realized too late
that money is not power!
He realized too late that fame is
not power!
He realized too late that he lost
the power when he moved away from the Father!
He was brought low!
He was humbled He was in want!
Famine was in the land and now he
had to abase himself! He was a Jew and now he had to tend pigs!
According to Moses' law pigs are
unclean, but he was now willing to eat the pigs' food if he could get any!
Brought Low!
Brought Low!
Many a person is brought low
because of wandering away from God!
You find yourself doing the
humble and vile things!
When you put God and His holiness
aside, you end up where you are not supposed to be!
You end up like the prodigal son
in the field of pigs! A Jew mixing it up with the pigs!
You end up like Nebuchadnezzar in
the fields eating grass like an ox!
A king turned beast, now grass
was his feast!
Your reason has left you!
Your money is gone!
Your fame and popularity has
vaporized!
The
pleasures of sin were just for a season!
Now you taste the bitter fruits
of your labor!
The
wine has at last stung like an adder, and you find it is painful!
You
have reaped what you sowed!
You
sowed to the flesh and reaped corruption!
You
sowed to the wind and reaped the whirlwind!
Sin has become your master and
you reap disaster, because you indulged in it!
You committed it! Now it has you
bound to hard labor!
Samson tasted of it!
A man of God with the power of
God on his life!
He became lifted up in his pride
and thought himself to be the greatest! Come on!
He was seduced by a woman!
Delilah had him in her lap!
She made him into a wretched sap
One sin leads to the next!
From disobedience, to lust!
From lust to lies in order to
hold on to his strength!
Sin is like a chain reaction!
You set it off and it keeps going
on exploding and damaging you and those close to you!
Only One can check it! That's
Jesus!
How long could Samson hold out?
Sin is going to wear you down!
It's going to wear you out!
You can't fool around with sin
and not obtain scars!
You can't play with fire and not
get burnt!
Feel the heat man and turn!
Run! Run! But it's too late!
Like little drops of water
constantly falling and wearing out the hard rocks! So little temptations which
are not resisted yield sorrow!
They break you down eventually
man!
Samson finally yielded completely
and gave up the secret of his strength!
Oh! He's drunk with lust and does
not realize the danger! He goes to sleep in the devil's lap and his hair is
shorn!
His strength is gone and he does
not know it!
Delilah shouts, "Samson, the
Philistines be upon you!"
Samson starts up like the old
Samson, but his power is gone!
He is just a shadow of his former
self!
He has been tempted, enticed,
sliced and diced, and drawn away by his own lust.
He ended up in sin's snare!
Poor foolish man of God!
See the Philistines bind him with
ropes, blind him, and put him to grind in their prison house!
That's the work of sin!
It binds you and you become its
servant!
It blinds you, so you cannot see
clearly anymore!
It drives you in a never ending
grind, round and round and round, led by a ring held by the devil! You are led
into places you don't want to be!
A place of humility eating grass
like an ox!
A place of uncleanness like a Jew
minding pigs!
A place of bondage like in the
prison house of Satan!
A place of selfishness, sin, seduction, and slavery!
You fondly believe you are free
but you're enslaved by the enemy!
Many go and stay under, unable to
get out! They refuse to heed God's
warnings and so are given over to a reprobate mind!
They tampered with sin too long!
But those with will and desire to
come back to God will make it!
Hear the prodigal son, "I
will arise and go to my father!"
Whosoever will my come!
Oh Hallelujah!
The prodigal made it because he
was determined to come back, to return home! He realized he had sinned! He was
going back to confess his sin!
He humbled himself and you can do
the same!
Confess your sins!
God will forgive you for He is
faithful!
While he was a great way off his
father saw him.
He saw him because he was looking
out for him.
Day after day he kept watch for
him.
And God is looking out for you.
Constantly He waits, looking and
longing for you to return home!
Come on home now!
Come humbly to Him and he will
exalt you!
Come on! It's time to come back!
It's time to get up and come home!
When you walk towards God once
more He runs towards you! Hallelujah!
When you humble yourself He
forgives you...and lifts you up!
Come
home! God's calling, "Come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden!
I will give you rest!"
Nebuchadnezzar came back!
At the end of seven years reason
returned and he recognized God as supreme, and worshiped Him!
He worshiped the God of gods, the
Eternal Father of Heaven and earth!
Samson came back!
While yet in prison his hair
began to grow!
His strength returned!
He's had a lot of time to repent!
God was with him once again!
The Philistines just didn't know
it yet!
They wanted Samson brought out,
to make fun of him while he made sport for them! They were having a feast in honor
of their idol god Dagon They thought Dagon had given them victory. They were drunk
and blind with celebrating.
Samson came out led by a little
boy.
Samson said, "Little boy,
put my hands to the main pillars of the temple and then run out of here!"
The little boy asks, "Why Samson?"
Samson said, "Because I am
going to bring this house down!"
The lad looks at Samson, and
believes him. He places Samson's hands to the main pillars and then runs for
his life!
The people laugh and sneer!
"Look at the strong
man!"
What is he doing?
"He wants to pull down this
strong building!"
"Come on! Pull it
down!"
"Show us your strength
Samson!"
With his hands on the pillars
Samson breathes a prayer to Almighty God! He says, "Forgive me God! Avenge
me for my eyes! Let me die with the Philistines!"
He pulls at the pillars!
The people laugh!
He pulls again!
The pillars tremble!
The laughter dies and the people
tremble!
They now cry out in fear!
"He's going to pull it down!
"
"His God has returned to
him!"
"Run for your life!"
But it's too late!
Samson pulls one more time!
His knees bend!
His body trembles!
The Spirit of God has come
mightily on him!
The pillars shake, and crumble
and fall!
Then everything comes down,
including the people, on Samson!
But look on his face!
It is calm!
Peaceful!
With a smile on his lips he dies!
His God is back with him and
everything is just all right!
When God is with you everything
is all right!
Bad habits go!
Lusts are purged!
He puts the robe of righteousness
on you naked body!
He puts the ring of sonship on
your fingers.
He puts the shoes of the
gospel of peace on your feet!
There is joy in heaven!
The angels rejoice!
They are waiting!
Come home wanderer!
Come home!
Let's rejoice says the angels!
We want to rejoice with you!
Come home!
The prodigal came back!
Samson came back!
Nebby came back!
You can come back too!
You can do it!
Come on home now!
So many have strayed!
So many of us have strayed...away
from God!
You may now be thinking, "Well
excuse me! What has all this to do with me? I'm a believer! I'm a Christian! I
attend church! I am involved!"
Are you? Are you really?
We're right there sitting in the
chairs and pews, but we have strayed!
We're right there singing and
worshipping, but we have strayed!
We're right there playing that
guitar, beating that drum, pounding those keys, but we have strayed!
We're right there teaching that
class, but we have strayed!
We're right there fixing that
light, cleaning that floor, but we have strayed!
We're standing there praying and
reading our Bible but we have strayed!
We're right there in that pulpit
preaching our hearts out man, but we
have strayed!
We're there but still not there!
We're near but yet far away!
So near and yet so far!
It looks like we're taking a
stance but we're still keeping our distance!
Our godliness only has a form but
our foundation is not firm!
Our testimony's loud, but we're
lost and lonely in a crowd!
But God loves you still!
He has not given up on you!
Come on home now!
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