They started running toward the bear hollering, “Bad Bear! Bad Bear!” The bear raised up on its back legs, and it appeared to be around 7 or 8 feet tall. They realized that they had made a serious mistake by approaching the bear. Needless to say, both of them were frightened. One of them picked up a bottle of honey that was on the ground, and he said to the bear, “Honey! Honey!” Then, to save his own hide, he took the honey and squirted it on his good friend, and the bear started chasing after him.
Later on, the young man is at their campsite with a young lady, and she said, “Didn’t you have a friend camping with you?” And he stated he did. And if you look beyond the young man, in the distance you can see his friend up in a tree, and the bear is at the bottom of the tree trying to get to him.
We all know what a “Bad Bear” is, but today I want to talk to you about a “Bad Boy” who is known by most as the Prodigal Son.
There is a very important message in this parable for today’s church. To understand what that message is, you have to examine why the Lord gave us this parable.
Illus: The reason the Lord gave us this parable was because the church leaders of that day, the Scribes and Pharisees, came to Him complaining that He was spending too much time with SINNERS, DRUNKARDS, AND TAX COLLECTORS.
However, the Lord's answer was simple: "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick."
The clear message in this parable of the Prodigal Son is that the Lord came to save sinners.
While many are doing everything they can do to turn the church into a social club, to entertain all ages, we must never forget that the purpose of the church is two fold.
• EDIFY THE SAINTS OF GOD. (Through praise and worship)
• REACH THE LOST! (Through evangelism)
While the focus in this parable is on the lost son, it is also on the "The Loving Father" that loved his lost son. Let’s look at this parable to see the PRODIGAL SON and the LOVING FATHER. The first thing we see is:
I. THE REBELLION OF THE SON
WHAT KIND OF REBELLION WAS IT? It was a rebellion against many things, such as:
A. HE REBELLED AGAINST AUTHORITY
The Prodigal son wanted to leave his father’s house for several reasons, but most likely, one of the primary reasons was that he was rebelling against the AUTHORITY OF HIS FATHER.
This is the same reason that a lot of children leave home today, they want to live their life with no one telling them what to do.
But the Prodigal son’s Father’s house provided three things.
• PARENTAL DISCIPLINE
• PROTECTION
• PROVISION
When a young person leaves home, they leave the DISCIPLINE, but they also leave the PROTECTION and PROVISION of their father. Rebelling against AUTHORITY is a bad way to start out in life as a young person.
Because some young people start out in life rebelling against authority, it may take them decades to overcome the damage they have done to themselves, and sometimes they never do!
Illus: Some adults in this congregation would tell you that many of the problems they have today, can be traced back to their rebellious youth.
The Bible teaches that once young people get married, they should be willing to leave Mother and Father to establish their own home. BUT NOT UNTIL THEN! They should not leave because they are trying to escape authority. Why?
• Because you can not be a productive citizen and not respect authority.
• Because you can not be a good employee and not respect authority.
• Because you can not be a good church member and not respect authority.
• Because you can not be a good soldier and not respect authority.
• Because you can not be a good marriage partner and not respect authority.
• Because you can not be a GOOD SON or a GOOD DAUGHTER and not respect authority.
Many do not like authority! In fact they enjoy bucking the system, and challenging those who are over them.
Illus: This reminds us of a young fellow whose name was Charlie. It was early on a spring morning, when Charlie went walking down to the lake, carrying his fishing rod. From behind a tree stepped the game warden, and he said, "Okay Charlie, I need to see your fishing license." Charlie stared back and said, "There ain't no law against carrying a fishing rod."
The Game Warden knew he had a point, and he couldn't say anything else, so he watched Charlie start walking toward the woods beside the lake. The warden let him get about 20 yards ahead and then he began to follow him.
• Charlie walked up a steep hill, and the game warden was behind him.
• Charlie crawled under a barbed wire on his belly, but the game warden
continued to follow from a safe distance.
• Charlie waded through a shallow creek, and the game warden was still
behind him.
Finally Charlie came to the lake, attached a worm to a hook, and tossed it into the lake.
The excited game warden came out of the bushes and said, "Aha, Now you are fishing!" Without batting an eye, Charlie responded by saying, "And NOW you can see my fishing license!"
The Prodigal son was the same way, he had no respect for authority. He wanted to leave home because his dad had too many rules for him to follow. He REBELLED AGAINST AUTHORITY. But also-
B. HE REBELLED AGAINST CIRCUMSTANCES
WHAT WERE THE CIRCUMSTANCES? He knew that as long as he was in his father’s house, he had to COMPLY TO THE STANDARDS OF THE FATHER.
By the way, this is how it should be! Good parents have standards for a child to live by. They establish early in the life of a child, that there are some things they CAN DO, and there are some thing they better NOT DO!
• Show me a home that does not have SUCH STANDARDS for the children, and I will show you a home where the kids are as confused as a termite in a yo-yo!
• If the parents do not have the courage to set the STANDARDS, the children will.
When the children set the STANDARDS, then the parents live a life where THEY are as confused as a termite in a yo-yo!
Illus: Today, we have these spineless parents who do not know what to do when little Johnny is pitching a fit!
But listen, many of us were blessed with parents who knew what to do! And when our parents got through with us, we knew what to do!
Today we have parents that have lost control of their children, and the children are setting the standards, and taking the leadership in the home!
These parents do not set standards for their children.
• Some of them will say, “I do not like my child drinking beer, but I’d rather have my child stay home and drink so I can keep an eye on him, and he won’t drive while he is drunk.”
• We have parents who say, “I do not like my son bringing his girl friend over and spending time alone in the bedroom together!”
Listen, dumb parents like this soon become dumb grandparents also!
Some might say, “Preacher, if you set up standards, then some young people, like the Prodigal son, will rebel and leave home!” THAT IS TRUE! Some young people can have the finest parents on this earth, and they are going to rebel against what this Bible teaches, BECAUSE THEY ARE BENT ON DOING EVIL.
No one can help these children that are bent on doing evil, until they come to their senses, like the prodigal son. Children are destroyed by parents NOT HAVING STANDARDS, not because they do have standards.
We see THE REBELLION OF THE SON, then we see ...
II. THE RECKLESSNESS OF THE SON
He could have had such a wonderful life, but he blew every opportunity that was put before him.
Illus: Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” -(Leadership, Vol. 16, no. 2.)
The reason that many take the road to sin, is because it is the path of least resistance. The Prodigal son was looking for the easy way to success and happiness.
A. HE WENT AWAY
Notice that he didn’t just go down the street and move into an apartment, he went into a FAR COUNTRY.
Look at verse 13, we read, “And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country…” He wanted to go where no one knew him, and he could do as he pleased.
B. HE WENT ASTRAY
Look at verse 13 again, “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.”
It was great fun while it lasted.
• New friends
• Probably pretty girls flocked to his side
• He was young, rich, and probably good looking too
• The music played, the wine flowed
• This was what he had wanted all along! This was fun!
But verse 13 says that this was “Riotous living”.
Illus: Riotous living is similar to people who we see on the streets, rioting. They have no respect for others or themselves. Their behavior is out of control.
But he was in for a sudden shock. It was something he didn't expect would happen so soon. Two things happened:
(1) His money ran out. (Sin is expensive)
(2) A mighty famine arose in the distant land to which he had fled.
Look at verse 14, we read, “And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.” This RECKLESS life he thought was so great, had begun to turn sour on him.
We see THE REBELLION OF THE SON, and THE RECKLESSNESS OF THE SON, then we see ...
III. THE REALIZATION OF THE SON
Now we come to a turning point in the story. This was possibly the most important event that took place in this young man's life. Sometimes before a person can be picked up, they FIRST have to be taken down.
Notice, this father was a wealthy man. He loved his son, and you know that it hurt him to know his son was going lacking. But sometimes we have to use TOUGH LOVE to help those we love.
That is, sometimes the best thing we can do for our children is to DO NOTHING! If we bail them out of trouble every time they get in trouble, they will keep getting in trouble. It is a proven fact that when we do this, we are not helping them, we are hurting them.
The father in this parable is a picture of God the Father. And this father knows this prodigal son cannot get any help until he comes to his SENSES! He also knew that part of the consequences of rebelling against righteousness, are TOUGH TIMES. And it takes TOUGH TIMES to get some people to come to their SENSES!
He had the resources to rescue him from the tough times, but he knew that the best thing he could do for that son, was to let him feel the misery he got himself involved in. NO PAIN! NO GAIN! He knew that if his son never felt the pain of sin, he never would come to his senses.
What brought this young man to his senses? When his money ran out, he realized he had to find a job. Notice the kind of job he got.
A. HE RESORTED TO UNCLEAN WORK
Look at verse 15, we read, “And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.”
Some folks have learned some amazing lessons in some of the places sin has carried them.
• Some have learned those lessons in a jail cell
• Some have learned those lessons in a divorce court
• Some have learned those lessons in a hospital bed
• Some have learned those lessons when a catastrophe struck
But the prodigal son learned his lesson when he landed in a hog pen. It was there the Bibles says, “He came to himself.” As he sat in that stinking pig pen, he considered his sad and filthy state.
This is how his thoughts are recorded in the scriptures. Look at 17-20, we read, “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.”
He is now thinking differently than he was before he left home.
Notice that once he came to his senses:
• For the first time ever he saw what he had done to himself. He concluded that his father's servants were better off than he was.
• He came to the conclusion that he had sinned against his earthly father and his heavenly father.
• He had squandered his inheritance in wickedness, and now he could only get the lowest of jobs, and that was feeding pigs.
HE RESORTED TO UNCLEAN WORK, but also-
B. HE RECOGNIZED HIS NEED
Illus: Scott Peck said, “Often the most loving thing we can do when a friend is in pain, is to share the pain--to be there even when we have nothing to offer except our presence, and even when being there is painful to ourselves. -(Leadership, Vol. 15, no. 2.)
But we see no one there to share his pain. He only had the pigs! When one is rich and prosperous, there is no shortage of folks ready to help you spend your money. RICH PEOPLE HAVE NO SHORTAGE OF FRIENDS.
But life is very different when you are poor and in need. So-called friends tend to keep away, because they are afraid you might ask them to help you.
He was desperate, alone, starving, and terribly unhappy. And, “…no man gave unto him.” This young man found himself in such a situation, that he desired the pig food to satisfy his hunger! Then …
C. HE REMEMBERED HIS FATHER’S HOUSE
Look at verse 17. “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!”
Notice his situation:
• HE DIDN’T HAVE FOOD TO EAT
• NO ONE WOULD HELP HIM
But HE REMEMBERED HIS FATHER HAD PLENTY.
It is truly a wonderful thing to be aware of the abundance of God, and to know that there is sufficient supply to meet all our need. Coming to this realization, he came to the conclusion that he was going to do something about his situation.
Look at-
IV. THE RESOLUTION
• Did you know that you can face the fact that you have messed your life up with sin, and still go to a Christ-less eternity?
• Did you know that you can come to church every week, and sit on a church pew, and go to a Christ-less eternity?
Coming to your senses means there are some things you must do. Look at-
A. HIS DETERMINATION
Look at v. 18a. “I WILL ARISE AND GO TO MY FATHER,....,” Change does not occur until there is a determination to change. People do not change by accident, there must first be a decision made, and then change follows. Look at -
B. HIS DECLARATION
Look at v. 18b. “...I HAVE SINNED against heaven, and before thee,” There was no excuse given, just a declaration of guilt.
It is not hard to say:
• IT IS MY PARENTS FAULT
• IT IS SOCIETIES FAULT
But sometimes the hardest thing in this world to say is, “I have sinned…” This was his declaration, “I have sinned…” Then look at -
C. HIS DESIRE
Look at v. 19. “And am no more worthy to be called thy son: MAKE ME AS ONE OF THY HIRED SERVANTS.”
He found out that to be a servant in his father’s house, is far better than to have the pleasures of the world. Finally, in this amazing story let’s look at-
VI. THE RECEPTION OF THE SON
Look at verse 20, “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.”
I can imagine that this father looked up the road every time he went out of the house. When he saw someone approaching, he would stare intently, hoping that it might be his son. He knew his son well enough that he could recognize him while he was still a great way off.
What a beautiful picture of the sinner coming to God through Christ, and the open arms of God welcoming him.
How excited this loving Father must have been.
• When a sinner comes to Christ, or a backslider is restored, the whole church ought to rejoice.
• Notice that it was not just the father who was rejoicing, it included all the servants as well.
Even the angels in heaven rejoice when someone gets saved!
Luke 15:10 “Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.”
I. THE REBELLION OF THE SON
II. THE RECKLESSNESS OF THE SON
III. THE REALIZATION OF THE SON
V. THE RESOLUTION OF THE SON
VI. THE RECEPTION OF THE SON
