Welcome-ish

 Welcome-ish

Depending on who you are and what you did

I spent the majority of my life going to church. Sunday morning, Sunday afternoon, and Wednesday night. 

Sunday morning, Sunday afternoon, and Wednesday night.  Repeat... repeat again. 

I cannot recall the number of times I heard the story of the Prodigal Son.  Although I am not sure when or who first shared the story, I am confident in saying that at some point, I probably sat in a room full of other children my age as my Sunday School teacher told the story using a flannel board (I am totally dating myself). 

The basic gist of the story is...

A man has two sons.  The younger son asks his father for all of his inheritance.  

His father agrees, he leaves home and spends all of his money. 

Seems pretty normal. 

Eventually, the younger son decided to go back home. 

His father throws him a huge party and his older brother is salty. 

 

Again, seems normal or understandable. 

If I am being honest, the majority of my life I have sided with the older brother. 

I mean, I would be salty too!

First of all, 

• he has remained at home working for or with the father while his younger brother went out and  lived his life.  

Secondly, 

• while he is out here working for or with the father's field, someone let the party begin without him. 

"Now his older son was in the field, and as he drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing" 

(Luke 15:25). 

And we are not even going to talk about that meal they were all enjoying.  

I am sure he had some role in how that calf became... fattened. 

... And now it is dead, he is probably sweaty and dirty from all that work he just did in the field and he comes home to see people are enjoying a party without him. 

But I want us to take a closer look at this story. 

Over the past four months God has guided me through this story and allowed me to see his will from different perspectives.  I have learned that when we put worldly criteria on situations... people... HIS word, we cause ourselves to miss the opportunity to experience God at work. 

And let me tell you, I have been blessed with a front row seat to experience God at work. 

Let's look closer at this story, so I can show you what I have missed all these years. 

 

Depending on the translation, we learn the younger son mastered his money on wild living (New Living Translation) or squandered his property in reckless living (English Standard Version).  He was described as undisciplined and dissipated (The Message). 

Dissipated, that is a new one...

Over indulging in sensual pleasures. 

Okay... moving on. 

He finds himself broke and working in someone else's fields to take care of pigs.  The scripture does not stop there.  It goes on to say that it was there he found himself at the point where he would have eaten the "corn-cobs in the pigs slop, but no one would give him any" (Luke 15:16, The Message). 

I need to pause right here and just say... EWE!!!  

 

He realizes that even his father's farmhands eat better than this. 

"I'm going back to my father.  I'll say to him, Father I've sinned against God, I've sinned before you; I don't deserve to be called your son.  Take me on as a hired hand. "  He got right up and went home to his father (Luke 15:17-20, The Message). 

 

Please do not miss this next part. 

We know what the son was thinking and planning to say. 

And if we are being honest, from a worldly perspective, we can probably agree on the following:

• There is A LOT he needs to say, but he can begin with an apology
• I am sure there are a lot of things we could think of to call him

But that isn't what the father does. 

The message says, 

"When he was still a long way off, his father saw him.  His heart pounding, he ran out, embraced him, and kissed him" (Luke 15:2). 

The son was a long way off. 

The son did not have his life together before coming back home.  

Often we choose to let people get close when we feel like they have met our worldly criteria... and have it all together. 

His father saw him. 

HIM.  The father did not see all of his previous choices, current problems, and baggage.  He saw him. 

The father ran out

He met the son where he was. 

And embraced him. 

The son did not have to say a word; not one single word. 

No worldly criteria was needed. 

 

Scripture goes on to say that the father called for clean clothes, the preparation of a feast, and they had a party. 

So what about that salty brother?

 

It is my understanding that he refused to join the party.  Even when the father came out and begged him (New Living Translation). 

I want to leave you with a couple of thoughts for reflection

 

At some point in your life, you might find yourself

• In the role of the younger brother. 

If so, please do not listen to the  world and its criteria.  Just come home to the Father. 

•  In the role of the salty brother. 

If so, please take a look in the mirror.  For we are all sinners and unworthy of God's unconditional love, grace, and mercy. 

 

• In the role of the father.  Please do not put worldly criteria as a condition for your child’s return.  And if you already have, STOP.

Trust me there is nothing someone can say that will take away worldly emotions.  Don't wrestle with the carnal.  Instead, embrace the eternal by choosing love, grace, and mercy. 

 

And yet, while we were yet sinners… 

 

Christ arrives right on time to make this happen.  He didn't, and doesn't, wait for us to get ready.  He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready.  And even if we hadn't been so weak, we wouldn't have known what to do anyway to get ourselves ready.  We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice.  But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him. 

 

 

(Romans 6-8, The Message)

 

To be continued…. 

 

 

 

Dedicated to Hope