These are my notes from a recent message with our discipleship group. They are really notes, so if anything is unclear, ask and I can elaborate. I know that some of the thoughts are leaning toward the basic side of things, but there is a reason for everything.
Luke 15:11-32 “The Prodigal Son”
We know the key elements of the story.
- A man had 2 sons
- The younger son wanted the gifts of his inheritance
- The younger son gets the inheritance and squanders it
- A famine hits
- The younger son remembers how his father’s servants were provided for.
- He gets to his father and declares that he is no longer worthy to be called son (the only thing he did right haha)
- He asks to be as a hired slave
- —-(Missing the father completely.)
- They have a feast
- Older son won’t go in
- Father pleads with older son
- Older son complains about being obedient but not getting anything (notice the contempt, “I want to have a fatted calf or something to make merry with HIS friends
- Father tells older son that younger son was once dead but now is alive.
It’s interesting to see how both miss the true inheritance.
The younger son (The Lost) missed several things in his “wake up”
- He was performance based and gifts based.
- He saw that the workers were taken care of and was thinking from a place of guilt in squandering his gifts of inheritance
- He was willing to settle for fewer gifts but
didn’t see the bigger picture.
- He had envy based on the gifts
I wonder if he saw the bigger picture in his father’s actions.
- The father willingly gave him his portion
- The father didn’t try to control or demand anything when the son left since he gave him the inheritance
- The father covered the sons shame and took it on by running to him
- The father didn’t acknowledge the son’s speech so much, but began a feast in his honor
- He willingly restores the younger son
The older son (Self Righteous) also missed things
- He was superficial
- He reveled in his obedience and was also performance based
- He felt that his obedience demanded some reward
- His reward that he was looking for was for himself and his friends, rather than with his father
- He had contempt based on his obedience
What I think they both missed of the father was that the father felt that the inheritance Was neither from the gifts or the obedience. The inheritance was the value of the relationship with him.
We know from Scripture that Christ’s inheritance has a number of facets, such as all authority being given to Him, but the one that is missed is to be seated at the right hand of the Father.
John 10:30 I and the father are one
John 5:19, the son does nothing unless he sees the father doing it. It implies not only obedience, but loving relationship
Proverbs 7:1 “My son, keep my words and treasure my commandments within you.”
- The whole books of Proverbs points to the fact that the true inheritance is relationship and wisdom.
- This is why my friend, Terisa’s word on sonship (spoken at LHCFWarren) is so important (CLICK HERE TO LISTEN)
- It is why I have preached sonship for so long.
- Sonship, not the gifts, nor the actions, is the basis of, and the reward in Christ.
- From true sonship healing happens
- From understanding what it means to be a son comes knowing the Father’s love
- From sonship a real desire to please Him happens
- From sonship, a sharing of the Father’s blessings happens
- From sonship comes an understanding of the freedom of certain behaviors, and not a contempt due to works
- From sonship comes an understanding of grace.
I could go on and on about unity in the church. I could go on and on about judging about sin and superficiality. I could go on and on about fake holiness.
I could go on about generational issues and cite Malachi 4:6 “He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”
- Interesting to note that there is a response on that if we don’t get unity generationally…