It's kind of embarrassing to have to admit sometimes that we've made a mistake. And even when it's the right thing to do – we still sometimes get mixed reactions.
Have you ever been dreading something, a trip to the doctor's or the dentist, or maybe a confrontation at work or a reunion after a broken relationship? You know that sick feeling you get in the pit of your stomach, the sleeplessness the night before, the sweaty palms and cold fingers. But then when the time arrives it turns out so much better than we could ever have hoped. We look back on the event and think, "I just don't know what I was so worried about."
But before hand, the apprehension is so real, that's because we don't know how it's going to turn out, and in our not knowing state somehow we imagine six different terrible outcomes as though they're all going to happen at the same time. I wonder for someone wandering around in a spiritual wilderness, I wonder whether it isn't the same for them, when they look at God.
Whoever we are, wherever our journeys in life have taken us, we've all felt a sense of spiritual yearning. We may look at the glossy ads and the seductive images of success and prosperity and all those things. But it's empty, wandering out there yearning, like we're being called home. Something we can't explain but we look at God, we look at Jesus with a sense of apprehension because when we look at where we are, what we've done and admit our rebellion it's really hard to take a step on to that long road home.
Jesus knew that and we've been looking this week at a story that He told, the story about the prodigal son. I'm going to read it again for one last time today because it's a beautiful powerful story, and today when I read it we're going to include the ending because the ending is awesome. Here's how it goes:
A man had a two sons, the younger of them said to his father, 'Dad give me my share of the estate that I have coming to me.' So the father distributed the assets to them. Not many days later the younger son gathered everything he owned together and he traveled to a distant country where he squandered his estate in foolish living. After he had spent everything a severe famine struck that country and he had nothing. Then he went to work for one of the citizens of the country who sent him out into the fields to feed the pigs.
When he came to his senses he said. "How many of my father's servants have more than enough food and here I am dying of hunger. I'll get up and I'll go to my father and I'll say to him – 'Dad I've sinned against you and in your sight, I'm not worthy to be called your son anymore, but make me like one of your servants'."
So he got up and he went to his father but while the son was still a long way off his father saw him and was filled with compassion. Dad ran and threw his arms around the sons neck and kissed him and the son said to him, 'Father I've sinned against heaven and against you, I'm not worthy to be called your son anymore.' But the father told the slaves, 'Quick bring out the best robe and put it on him, put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet, then bring the fattened calf and slaughter it and we'll celebrate with a feast. Because this son of mine who was dead is alive again, he was lost and he's found.' So they began to celebrate.
It was a cycle that began with rebellion, that the notion that we all have that sometimes life should just be fun. I want to go out and let it all hang out and do it when it feels good and of course, reality set in, there was an impact. Ultimately the son of this wealthy farmer found himself starving working as a laborer feeding pigs in a foreign land. And when he finally came to his senses, when he made the decision to say, "Look at my rebellion, look at the impact that it's had on me and in my best interests it's time to journey home again."
But while he was still along way off, Dad was out there waiting and watching and straining and stretching his neck to see further, to see if his son was there, and when he was a long way off he sees his son and his heart is filled with compassion. He comes running out to meet him.
Do you think that's what the son was expecting when he was back there feeding Porky the pig on the pig farm starving? Do you think in his wildest dreams and imagination the son would have thought, "Dad will be out there watching and waiting for me. And when I come over the hill he'll race out and hug me and put a robe on me." Would you think he was expecting that? We know he wasn't. We know he was going back with an expectation of maybe getting a job as one of the servants just for food.
The robe is a symbol of honour, the ring is a symbol of the family signet - you belong to us. And the party with a spit roast was a barbecue; it was a celebration! Because "this son of mine who was dead is alive again. The one that was lost is found again." Not a word of condemnation, no scalding, total acceptance for no other reason than this boy was Dad's son.
Jesus is saying here, 'You have to understand something. This is what Dad's like, this is what God's like.' It's crazy, the son was there, we don't know how long he stayed starving feeding the pigs but I'm sure he spent time putting it off. All the time delaying with the apprehension of going back to his father and what that would mean. It's like us, all the time wandering in a spiritual wilderness and Jesus is saying, "No, no, don't you understand, don't you get it, this is what Dad's like. He's waiting on the road for you, he's straining, looking, can't wait to see you back with Him again." Dad, God, Jesus … "My son was lost and now he's found, my daughter was lost and now she's found."
What about you? Have you spent anytime wandering round in a spiritual wilderness, apprehensive about going home? Come on, what rebellion is keeping us from God? What is it that's stopping us from going back? Is it fear, is it embarrassment, is it this sense of 'well I'm not good enough?' Look at it, while the son was still a long way off his father saw him and was filled with compassion, he ran and threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. The son said to the father, "Dad I've sinned against you, I'm not worthy to be your son."
But the father told his slaves, "quick bring the best robe, put it on him, put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet and slaughter the fattened calf and let's celebrate, let's party, my son's back." Now the older brother was out in the field and as he came near the house he heard music and dancing so he called one of the servants over and said, "What's going on?" And the servant said, "your brother's back and your father's slaughtered the fattened calf because he's back safe and sound."
This older brother became really angry and didn't want to go in so his father came out and pleaded with him but the son replied, "Look Dad I've been slaving my guts out here for years for you. I've never disobeyed you, I've never rebelled against you, but you haven't even given me as much as a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who devoured your assets with prostitutes comes back you slaughter a fattened calf." And Dad says, 'Son, you're always with me, everything I have is yours, but we have to celebrate, we have to rejoice because this brother of yours was dead and he's alive again, he was lost and he's found.'
See when we're out in that wilderness we expect everyone including God to react like the older brother. That's why Jesus put the older brother in the story, that's how people react, they want to judge us, they want to condemn us. And the biggest thing he's saying here is God is not like that at all. God is the father on the road waiting for you, waiting for you to come back and be with him. That's the point
