"The Gospel of Luke (67): Parable of the Lost Son" (2) June 30, 2024

First Baptist Church Leominster

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Jesus. Amen. Please be seated. Well, we chose that hymn because of the refrain, again taken from Luke 15, about the blind seeing.

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This is an amazing grace. Well, Pastor Jason's going to read for us Acts 19 as we read through this book of the

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New Testament. And last week we read of Paul's ministry in Corinth, and here in Acts 19 we have

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Paul's ministry in Ephesus. And the Lord was blessing the gospel, and we see a manifestation of that blessing in this great riot that took place at Ephesus.

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Acts chapter 19. And it happened while Apollos was at Corinth.

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Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples, and he said to them,

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Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? And they said, No, we have not even heard that there is a

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Holy Spirit. And he said, Into what then were you baptized? They said,

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Into John's baptism. And Paul said, John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is

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Jesus. On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when

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Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.

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There were about twelve men in all. And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God.

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But when some became stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the way before the congregation, he withdrew from them and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus.

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This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both

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Jews and Greeks. And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them.

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Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying,

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I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims. Seven sons of a

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Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit answered them, Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?

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And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastering all of them and overpowering them, so that they fled out of that house, naked and wounded.

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And this became known to all the residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks, and fear fell upon all, and the name of the

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Lord Jesus was extolled. And many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices.

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And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all.

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And they continued, and they counted the value of them, and found it came to 50 ,000 pieces of silver.

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So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily. Now after these events,

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Paul resolved in the spirit to pass through Macedonia and Achaia, and go to Jerusalem, saying, after I have been there,

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I must also see Rome. And having sent into Macedonia two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, he stayed behind in Asia for a while.

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About that time there arose no little disturbance concerning the way. For a man named

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Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought no little business to the craftsmen.

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These he gathered together with the workmen in similar trades, and said, men, you know that from this business we have our wealth.

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And you see and hear that not only in Ephesus, but in almost all of Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a great many people, saying that gods made with hands are not gods.

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And there is danger not only that this trade of ours may come into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess

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Artemis may be counted as nothing, and that she may even be deposed from her magnificence.

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She whom all Asia and the world worship. When they heard this, they were enraged and were crying out, great is

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Artemis of the Ephesians. So the city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed together into the theater, dragging with them

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Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul's companions in travel. But when

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Paul wished to go into the crowd, the disciples would not let him. And even some of the Asiarchs, who were friends of his, sent to him and were urging him not to venture into the theater.

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Now some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together.

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Some of the crowd prompted Alexander, whom the Jews had put forward. And Alexander, motioning with his hand, wanted to make a defense to the crowd.

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But when they recognized that he was a Jew, for about two hours, they all cried out with one voice, great is

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Artemis of the Ephesians. And when the town clerk had quieted the crowd, he said, men of Ephesus, who is there who does not know that the city of the

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Ephesians is the temple keeper of the great Artemis, and of the sacred stone that fell from the sky?

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Seeing then that these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rash. For you have brought these men here who were neither sacrilegious nor blasphemers of our goddess.

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If therefore Demetrius and the craftsmen with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are opened, and there are procouncils.

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Let them bring charges against one another. But if you seek anything further, it shall be settled in the regular assembly.

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For we really are in danger of being charged with rioting today, since there is no cause that we can give to justify this commotion.

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And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly. Let's pray.

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Our Father, you are the one true God. You are the only God, the

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King of kings and the Lords of lords. And Lord, you are our Father, and we rejoice that we know you.

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We rejoice that you have saved us, that you have purchased us from the market of slavery, that you have redeemed us through the precious blood of your

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Son. And we thank you for the life that we have in Jesus Christ, and we pray that we would extol his great name.

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In our lives, in our words, and in our thoughts. Lord, help us now as we open up your word.

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We pray that we would be mindful of what it says. We pray, Lord, that you would teach us something about yourself, something about the gospel, something about ourselves.

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We pray, Lord, that in the power of the Spirit, we would conform our lives to you. Thank you,

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Lord, in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, let's return to Luke chapter 15, as we continue our consideration of Jesus' teaching regarding the lost son, this being the third parable in this chapter.

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We began to address this passage last time, which was what, about three weeks ago? And now it's gone two weeks.

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There are, by way of reminder, two parts to this parable. The first speaks of the prodigal son, and his return to his father, found in verses 11 through 24.

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And then the second part of the parable addresses the attitude and reaction of the elder son upon the return of the prodigal brother.

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And this is set forth in verses 25 through 32. And so let's read the parable once again.

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It's in its entirety. Then he, Jesus, said, a certain man had two sons, and the younger of them said to his father,

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Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me. So he divided to them his livelihood.

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And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.

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But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want.

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And then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.

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And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.

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But when he came to himself, he said, how many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger.

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I will arise and go to my father and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I'm no longer worthy to be called your son.

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Make me like one of your hired servants. And he arose and came to his father.

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But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.

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And the son said to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.

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But the father said to his servants, Bring out the best robe and put it on him.

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Put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet, and bring the fatted calf here and kill it and let us eat and be merry.

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For this my son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found.

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And they began to be merry. Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing.

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So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him, your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.

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But he was angry and would not go in, and therefore his father came out and pleaded with him.

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And so he answered and said to his father, lo, these many years I've been serving you,

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I never transgressed your commandment at any time, and yet you never gave me a young goat that I might make merry with my friends.

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But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.

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And he said to him, son, you were always with me, and all that I have is yours.

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It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.

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When we began to address this passage last time, we addressed the wayward son principally, but not exhaustively.

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And so we'll give some final words respecting the returning prodigal son and his father, and then we'll consider the lesson that our

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Lord taught to his older brother in verses 25 through 32.

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And so some more thoughts about the prodigal son. As we ponder the experience of this prodigal son, we can discern three stages of his defection and eventual return.

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We mentioned these. We read of the parting son in verses 12 through 16, when he journeyed into a far country.

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We then read of the penitent son in verses 17 through 20, verse A, in which he came to himself.

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But then we read of the pardoned son upon his return to his father in verses 20B through 24.

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So let's consider each one of these again. The parting son.

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Our Lord intended to illustrate through the parting son, that is the son's defection and departure, the nature and ways of all people who are born sinful into God's good world.

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God is a good God in every way, as the Lord Jesus said before us through the father of this parable.

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God is provided for all people everywhere. He's bestowed upon them everything good and needful for life.

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We have a good God who's given us a good world. But because people are sinners, they disregard and rebel against their

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God. Their hearts depart from him and they desire and purpose to live contrary to his will.

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The testimony of God's Word is that all since Adam and Eve are born into this world sinful.

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You were, I was. As the psalmist wrote, the wicked are estranged from the womb.

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They go astray as soon as they are born speaking lies. Their poison is like the poison of a serpent.

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They're like the deaf cobra that stops its ear, which will not heed the voice of charmers, charming ever so skillfully.

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John Gill addressed the beginning of life in sin. The time when the corruption of nature takes place in man, the lowest date of it is his youth.

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He takes a older child and then moves back to birth, as it were. The imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth.

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Genesis 8 21. That is, as soon as he's capable of exercising his reason and of committing actual sin, which at this age chiefly appears in lying and disobedience to parents.

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And this is said not of some particular men or some individuals, but of men, people in general.

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And not only as in the times of Noah, but in the succeeding generations to the end of the world.

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This depravity of nature is in some passages carried up higher, even to a man's birth.

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In other words, it goes back earlier than just youth to a man's birth. The wicked are estranged from the womb.

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That is, from God, alienated from the life of God, being under the power of a moral death or being dead in trespasses and sins.

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They go astray as soon as they are born speaking lies. That is, as soon as they are capable of speaking and the sin of lying.

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Children are very addicted to, and this is said not only of such who in the event turn out very wicked, profligate, and abandon sinners, but even such as are born of religious parents, have a religious education, and become religious themselves, are called transgressors from the womb.

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That is, as soon as capable of committing actual transgression, David carries the pollution of his nature still higher, still, goes back.

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Behold, I was shapen in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me.

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This describes the human race. Now, the Old Testament law of God revealed the sinfulness of the child born into the world, and that the law gave instructions as for the purification of the mother in childbirth.

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Leviticus 12, we read that a woman was regarded as ceremonially unclaimed. She couldn't participate in the temple for a period of 40 days after the birth of a son.

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The Mosaic law's requirement for ritual purification before allowed to come into the presence of God reveals the truth that from infancy people are sinners.

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She gave birth to a sinner. Children are not born innocent and then grow up to become sinners because they learn and practice sin.

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No, children sin because they are sinners. We are born sinners.

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That is, it's our very nature to sin against God. That God's law required a sacrifice for the mother who had given birth to a child reveals that not that she had sinned by becoming a mother, for that's a wonderful thing, but that she had brought a sinner into the world.

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Now, of course, we stress strongly that Jesus was not born with a sin nature, as all of us having been born of a virgin mother, but a sacrifice had to be offered in the case of every child born into the world.

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And so, even Jesus's mother, of course, had to offer a sacrifice.

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And so, Jesus was identified with sinners even at birth, though he himself was not a sinner.

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And so, the need to offer a sacrifice upon the birth of a child showed the fact that all people are by nature sinners and under God's holy and just condemnation.

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We're born sinners. The point to be understood is this, that not only do our acts of sin deserve

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God's condemnation, and in the day of judgment, we'll answer for every act of sin we've committed, but our very nature warrants condemnation.

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It's not subject to the law of God, neither can be. Again, as the psalmist testified, the wicked are estranged from the womb, they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies,

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Psalm 58. If we receive what we deserve, it would be permanent estrangement from God, never to be allowed into the fellowship of his presence, resulting in the forfeiture of life, even the forfeiture of eternal life.

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And, of course, the contrary is eternal death, eternal damnation. All of God's creatures should be thankful for his goodness and desire to dwell with him, to serve him joyfully, if we were thinking rightly.

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But this is not how we are, naturally, for our hearts are corrupt, as was this young son's heart in our

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Lord's parable. He was unappreciative of his father, so we are unthankful toward our good

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God. We despise God's goodness and his right to govern us. We take what belongs to him, as his son did from his father, and claim those things to be ours by right, ours to control, give me what's rightfully mine.

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We do not desire to dwell under God's eye, and so we say, as did this young man, give me, it's mine.

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And so this young man portrays the thoughts and aspirations of the unregenerate man, the one who's not a

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Christian. The one born in sin and lives his life in and for sin, who orders his life and lives his life for himself, rather than God.

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Last time we read a quotation from J .C. Ryle, which we'll rehearse again because of its pertinence.

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We have in these words a faithful portrait of the mind with which we were all born. This is our likeness.

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We are all naturally proud and self -willed. We have no pleasure in fellowship with God.

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We depart from him and go afar off. We spend our time and strength and faculties and affections on things that cannot profit.

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The covetous man does it in one fashion, the slave of lusts and passions in another, the lover of pleasure in another.

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In one point only, all are agreed. Like sheep, we all naturally go astray, turn everyone to his own way.

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And in the younger son's first conduct, we see the natural heart. He sets forth who you and I are by birth.

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The parting of the prodigal son reflects the desires and delights of the unregenerate soul.

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That is, the sinner who's not experienced the grace of God in drawing him to salvation.

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One of the great manifestations of sin in the individual is that he desires to have all in his hands in this life, and he desires to be free to do as he pleases with what he possesses.

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That's the very essence of sin. He has no or little view to the future or the consequences of his choices and actions.

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He insists on being the determiner of his own life. He insists on being his own lord.

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His father's governance, God's governance is too restrictive, too narrow to suit him, for his desires and longings will not be bound by the rules and restrictions of his father.

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He did not desire to remain under the same roof with his father. It was a prison to him.

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He would be on his own, determining for himself his course of life. Matthew Henry rightly wrote of him, he was proud of himself and had a great conceit of his own sufficiency.

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He thought that if he had but his portion in his own hands, he could manage it better than his father did and make a better figure with it.

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There are more young people ruined by pride than by any one lust whatsoever. Our first parents ruined themselves and all theirs by a foolish ambition to be independent and not to be beholden even to God himself, and this is at the bottom of sinners persisting in their own sin.

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They will be for themselves. If you yourself are the principal desire and design of your life, you are as this prodigal son.

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The young man did not regard or value the goodness of his father toward him, and as all sinners, he was unappreciative and unmindful of the kindness shown to him.

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And so this is how fallen people are. But before long, this young man would see the foolishness of the course he chose for himself.

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He began to experience the consequences of his life, his action. He was brought to an end of his resources and brought to an end of his ability to fend for himself.

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And this was, of course, due to the mercy and grace of God in his providence that he was brought to an end of himself.

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To set his heart once again upon his father, grace produced in this son the desire to reconcile with his father, to see his relationship with his father restored.

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And so in his departed state, the prodigal son depicted the sinful state of the unconverted soul.

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And so just by way of description, what is the sinful state of a fallen man like?

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Well, if we take this man as an illustration, we see a sinful state as a state of departure in distance from God.

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God said of the wicked, they are all estranged from me by their idols, Ezekiel 14, 5.

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They've taken the gifts of God and made them into idols, which they serve with their time and treasure.

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And with distance from God comes soul misery, for true life is in God alone.

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Not in the things themselves that God has given. He's given us all things richly to enjoy, but only when we see them in relation to him and from his hand and use according to his way and his purposes.

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When we begin to look and serve those things in and of themselves separate from God, they become idols and they destroy our souls.

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As one wrote, it's the misery of sinners that they are far off from God, from him who is the fountain of all good and are going further and further from him.

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What is hell itself but being a far off from God? Secondly, a sinful state is a wasteful state.

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As this son wasted his substance with riotous living and before long he spent all.

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Another once wrote, as to this world, they live riotously, waste what they have and will have a great deal to answer for that they spend that upon their lusts, which should be for the necessary sustenance for themselves and their families.

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But this is to be applied spiritually. Willful sinners waste their patrimony, for they misemploy their thoughts and all the powers of their souls, misspend their time and all their opportunities, do not only bury but embezzle the talents they are entrusted to trade with for their master's honor.

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And the gifts of providence, which were intended to enable them to serve God and to do good with, are made the food and fuel of their lusts.

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This is the nature of fallen man. But the word of God declares, but one sinner destroys much good.

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And that's true of every one of us outside of Jesus Christ. And certainly a sinful state is a needy state, for the consequences of sin are hard.

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The Lord had said to his prophet, to a wicked people, because you've forgotten me and cast me behind your back, therefore, you shall bear the penalty of your lewdness and your harlotry.

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There's always consequences to sin. Always consequences of departing from the

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Lord. In sin, there's no escape from the consequences of sin outside of Christ.

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The scriptures declare, be sure your sin will find you out. This man met with famine.

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Matthew Henry wrote, a sinful state is like a land where famine reigns, a mighty famine, for the heaven is as brass, that is,

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God doesn't hear his prayers. The dues of God's favor and blessing are withheld, and we must need, want, or need good things if God deny them to us.

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And the earth is as iron, the sinner's heart that should bring forth good things is dry and barren and has no good in it.

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Sinners are wretchedly and miserably poor. And what aggravates it? They brought themselves into that condition, and they keep themselves in it by refusing the supplies offered.

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We're in a sad state. And then a sinful state is a servile state, it lends to bondage.

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The young man wrongly thought that departing from his father would bring him freedom. Sinful people wrongly believed departing from God and his laws will bring them freedom.

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But actually, what results is the worst kind of bondage, bondage to sin.

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Jesus told the Jewish leaders who foolishly thought that they were free, even when they were under Rome's yoke, most assuredly, say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.

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Wrote one, the business of the devil's servants is to make provision for the flesh to fulfill the lust thereof.

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And that is no better than feeding greedy, dirty, noisy swine. How can rational, immortal souls more disgrace themselves?

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And this prodigal son certainly disgraced himself. Paul wrote, do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one slaves whom you obey?

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And then he posed two options, whether of sin leading to death, slavery to sin, or of obedience leading to righteousness, slavery to obedience to God.

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Romans 6, 16, according to that verse of the Holy Scriptures, everyone is either a slave of sin or of a slave of obedience to God through Jesus Christ.

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You are nothing but a slave. You're either a slave of sin or a slave of Jesus Christ, which brings great pleasure and freedom, by the way, for we read that his yoke is easy and his burden is light.

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Slavery to Christ is the path of true joy and freedom. And five, a sinful state is a state of continual disappointment and dissatisfaction.

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This prodigal son was in misery, far from his father. Life was void of value and meaning, and even survival was difficult.

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He had come to be in want, the old English word for need, and he did not see it coming.

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He didn't see the famine coming. He wasn't ready for it. The wise saying was realized in this young, the way of the wicked is like darkness.

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They do not know what makes them stumble. And it came upon him. Six, a sinful state is a state of helplessness.

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There was no way out. No one gave him anything. Verse 16, the devil would help him along to bring him down to this lowest of lows, but the devil would not help him out of his misery.

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Not at all. Proverbs 522, his own iniquities entrap the wicked man, and he's caught in the cords of his sin.

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Everyone outside of Christ. But this young man needed to come to this place before he would come to himself.

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Matthew Poole, whom Spurgeon highly recommended his commentary on the

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New Testament. It pleases God by his providence sometimes to bring these men into straits, old

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English for difficulties. When they are so brought, they will make any base sorted course to relieve themselves rather than they will think of returning to their heavenly father.

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Of themselves, they will rather choose to serve swine as his prodigal son did. But if they belong to the election of grace, in other words, if God has purpose to save them, the providence of God will not leave them.

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Though there be little food for a soul in the husks of sensible satisfactions, yet they shall not have a belly full of them.

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God will bring them off satisfaction in anything and make every condition uneasy to them.

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The Lord drives them back to himself as it were. That's what part you had in your salvation.

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The Lord started dealing mercifully and graciously with you and you resisted him and fought him and rebelled.

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But he wouldn't let up, would he, until he subdued you and returned you to himself.

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But in our Lord's parable, he not only revealed the sinful nature of fallen humanity and is setting forth of the parting son.

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But also when this son became the penitent son, which we read in verses 17 to 28 or perhaps 19.

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Our Lord illustrates the manner in which many come to repent of their sin and turn their hearts toward God in Christ, the penitent son.

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The younger son came to face himself and desire repentance for his father and restoration to his household.

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But most importantly, he desired to become right with God. When he came to himself, he said, how many of my father's hired servants have bread enough in despair and I perish with hunger.

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I will arise and go to my father and will say to him, father, I've sinned against heaven and before you.

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The Jews would often instead of saying the word God, they would describe heaven because that's where God dwelt.

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He's basically saying I've sinned against God and I've sinned against you, father. And I'm no longer worthy to be called your son, make me like one of your hired servants.

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And so the Lord will bring one of his elect to experience the demeaning and defeating effects of sin in order to awaken him to his foolishness.

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And his need of his father, recklessness leads to misery and misery prompts reflection.

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Matthew Henry wrote of the means of God's grace in bringing upon his chosen people afflictions in order to bring them to repentance.

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Note, afflictions when they are sanctified by divine grace prove happy means of turning sinners from the error of their ways.

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By them the ear is open to discipline and the heart disposed to receive instructions.

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They are sensible proofs both of the vanity of the world and of the mischievousness of sin.

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Apply it spiritually. When we find the insufficiency of creatures to make us happy and have tried all other ways of relief for our poor souls in vain, then it's time to think of returning to God.

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It's a testimony to sin that God is the last resort to the sinner. When we see what miserable comforters, what physicians of no value, all but Christ are, for a soul that groans under the guilt and power of sin, and no man gives unto us what we need, then surely we shall apply ourselves to Jesus Christ.

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The Lord Jesus depicted this son's actions in departing from his father, going into a far country as having been unreasonable and even deranged.

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It was insanity with regard to the expression, but when he came to himself it was said, this is a very expressive phrase.

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It's commonly applied to one who's been deranged, and when he recovers we say that he's come to himself.

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In this place it denotes that the folly of the young man was a kind of derangement, that he was insane.

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One of the great punishments in hell will be a sense of regret. Why didn't

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I listen? Why didn't I respond when the way of Christ was so open to me?

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Regret, eternal regret of the lost soul. It was insanity, and so it's true of every sinner.

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Madness is in their hearts, according to Ecclesiastes 9 .3. They are estranged from God and led by the influence of their evil passions, contrary to their better judgment and the decisions of a sound mind.

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Well, this penitent son came to himself and then determined that he would come to his father.

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He said, I will arise and go to my father and will say to him, father, I've sinned against heaven and before you.

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I'm no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.

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And so his repentance was true and heartfelt. He knew that he had not only sinned against his earthly father, but that in rebelling against him, he had rebelled against God.

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He'd come to see that not only how foolish he had been, but how wicked he was in the manner that he had regarded and treated his father, who had always been faithful to him.

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He knew a desire that not only his father would receive him, but that God would forgive him for his defection and prodigal living.

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He had an understanding of mercy and grace. But then our

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Lord illustrated the way of repentance and restoration to this young man as the pardoned son.

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Verses 20 through 24. And he arose and came to his father. When he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.

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And the son said to him, father, I've sinned against heaven and in your sight and I'm no longer worthy to be called your son.

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But the father said to his servants, bring out the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet and bring the fatted calf here and kill it and let us eat and be merry.

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For this my son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found.

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And they began to be merry. And so when he had come back to his father, he hoped to be admitted as a slave.

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But we see the father running to him and lavishing on him the honor due to a cherished and respected son.

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I was interested to see that verse 20 must have been one of Charles Spurgeon's favorites.

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I have an index of his 64 volumes of sermons and I have all 64 volumes in print as well as in digital format.

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And Spurgeon preached on Luke 1520 on six occasions at least.

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The expression which he addressed repeatedly reads, but when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.

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And I know Spurgeon preached on this text early in his ministry and toward the end of his ministry and in between as well.

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In one of his e -sermons, Spurgeon declared these words. We're happy when God blesses us, but not so happy as God is.

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We are glad when we are pardoned, but he that pardons is gladder still.

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The prodigal going back to his home was very happy, but not so delighted as his father who could say, this my son was dead and is alive again.

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He was lost and is found. The father's heart was by far the larger heart so that it could hold more joy.

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In verse 20, we read that as the son was returning to his father, his father saw him and had compassion and Spurgeon commented on these words.

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First of all, we have here divine observation. When he was yet a great far, a great way off, his father saw him.

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It's true, he has always seen him. God sees the sinner in every state and in every position.

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Yes, and sees him with an eye of love too, such as a chosen sinner, as is described in this text, not with complacency, but with affection of God looks upon his wandering chosen ones.

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I say that the father saw his son when he spent his living with harlots. He saw him with deep sorrow when he gladly would have filled his belly with the husk which the swine ate.

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But now, if there can be such a thing as for divine omniscience to become more exact, the father sees him with an eye full of a more tender love, a greater care.

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His father saw him. Oh, what a sight it was for a father to see.

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His son, it is true, but his reprobate son, who had dishonored his father's name, brought down the name of an honorable house to be mentioned among the dregs and scum of the earth.

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There he is. What a sight for a father's eye. He is filthy as though he'd been rolled in the mire, and his fine clothing has long ago lost its fine colors and hangs about him in wretched rags.

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The father does not turn away and try and forget him. He fixes his full gaze upon him.

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Sinner, you know that God sees you this morning. Sitting in this house, you're observed by the

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God of heaven. There's not a desire in your heart unread by him, not a tear in your eye which he does not observe.

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I tell you, he has seen your midnight sins. He has heard your cursing and your blasphemies, and yet he's loved you, notwithstanding all that you have done.

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You could hardly have been a worse rebel against him, and yet he has noted you in his book of love and determined to save you.

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The eye of his love has followed you wherever you have gone. Is there not some comfort here?

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Why could not he see his father? Was it the effect of the tears in his eyes that he could not see, or was it that his father was of quicker sight than he?

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Sinner, you cannot see God, for you are unbelieving and carnal and blind, but he can see you.

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Your tears of penitence block up your sight, but your father is quick of eye, and he beholds you and loves you now.

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In every glance there is love. That's a wonderful appeal for sinners.

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Now, when we first opened to this parable, we then voiced the main idea of the parable, that the

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Lord Jesus was emphasizing the willingness and delight that his father has in sinners repenting of their sins and returning to him as their

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God and Father. And Spurgeon's words press home to us this most important lesson of our

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Lord, desired to be conveyed through this parable, which is the same lesson as the lost coin and the lost sheep that was found earlier in Luke chapter 15.

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But now let's give our attention to this elder brother. This is a secondary, nevertheless important word of our

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Lord addressed to the Jewish Pharisees and scribes before him. It was our Lord's rebuke of the uncharitable

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Jewish Pharisees and scribes who murmured against Jesus. It was our Lord's rebuke of the uncharitable

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Jewish Pharisees and scribes who murmured against him for going among sinners and making them his disciples.

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And we saw that back in verse 1 of chapter 15. We see that our

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Lord, through this parable, charged the Jewish leaders with wickedness, them who had set limits on the grace and mercy of God, who forgives with fatherly kindness.

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And so here we again read, Now his older son was in the field. He was out there working.

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As he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant.

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And he said to him, Your brother is come and because he's received him safe and sound. That's where that expression comes in English, safe and sound.

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Your father has killed the fatted calf, but he was angry and would not go in.

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And therefore, his father came out and pleaded with him. So he answered and said to his father,

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Lo, these many years I've been serving you, I never transgress your commandment at any time. And yet you never gave me a young goat that I might make merry with my friends.

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But as soon as this son of yours came, who devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.

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And he said to him, son, you're always with me and all I have is yours.

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The curious thing that Jesus puts on the lips of the father too, with regard to the

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Jewish Pharisees and scribes, and we'll speak to that in a moment. But he said this, this word, you're always with me.

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All that I have is yours. It was right that we should make merry and be glad for your brother was dead and as alive again was lost and is found.

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Calvin gave a good summary of our Lord's teaching of these verses. The latter portion of the parable charges those persons with cruelty who would wickedly choose to set limits to the grace of God as if they envied the salvation of wretched sinners.

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He's being sarcastic there. For we know that this is pointed at the haughtiness of the scribes who did not think that they received reward due to their merits.

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If Christ admitted publicans and common people to the hope of the eternal inheritance, the substance of it therefore is that if we are desirous to be reckoned, the children of God, we must forgive in a brotherly manner, the faults of brethren, which he forgives with fatherly kindness.

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Amen. In other words, if we would be true Christians, we are being merciful to others as God has been merciful to us in Christ.

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That's essential. The news given to the elder son that his younger son had returned to his father should have brought great delight to him.

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That is if he truly had loved his brother and loved his father. But when he realized that the celebration was due to his father, his brother's return, jealousy and bitterness raged in his heart.

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We see that this older brother was characterized by wrong and sinful attitudes toward all about him.

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With respect to his opinion and attitude toward his younger brother, he was angry, unforgiving, envious of him, critically judgmental of him, and with respect to himself, he was clearly an angry and merciless man, sinfully proud, self -righteous, and probably greedy and covetous.

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And then with respect to his father, this older brother was angry with him. He failed to honor his father, and he had no regard for his father's will.

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Clearly, he was without love for his father. We read that this brother was angry and would not go in, and therefore his father came out and pleaded with him.

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The father is patient and reasons and appeals to his son, telling him of the great happening that he had desired and waited to occur, had taken place, his son had returned home.

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But then we read of the elder son's response to his father. He answered, said to his father, all these many years

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I've been serving you, I never transgressed your commandment at any time. You never gave me a young goat that I might make marry with my friends.

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But as soon as this son of yours came, who devoured your livelihood with harlots, he may or may not have.

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Maybe the son, this older son, was exaggerating, reading into the younger son's behavior.

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We don't know. You killed the fatted calf for him. Our Lord concluded his parable with the words of the father, justifying his joy and the legitimate reason for celebration.

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He said to him, son, you're always with me. All I have is yours. It was right that we should make merry and be glad for your brother was dead and his life again was lost and is found.

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And as we mentioned earlier, these words were penned by John Newton in his hymn Amazing Grace. He had to have had this parable before him when he was penning that probably most well -known

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Christian hymn. Now, a problem arises when we stand back and consider this elder son and how the

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Lord used him to depict the Pharisees and their scribes. The main difficulty is in the words of the father to the elder son in verse 31.

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My son, the father said, you're always with me and everything I have is yours. Can this describe the relationship between God, the father, and the self -righteous

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Pharisees and scribes, the ones who had opposed the person of Jesus in his ministry from the beginning?

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Do you see the difficulty? Would it not indicate that these religious leaders are in a right relationship with God and standing as firmly as any of Jesus' disciples?

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Well, at a casual glance, it might appear so. The elder brother complained the father never gave him a robe ring or fatted calf, and the father responded, these were all yours if you did not enjoy them.

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It was not because of my unwillingness to bestow them upon you. And so you see the problem.

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How can the father describing this elder son be used by Jesus in the parable to depict the ungodly and self -righteous and damned

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Pharisees, Jewish Pharisees and scribes? Well, there's three possible ways that people try and explain this.

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Some, wrongly of course, say that Jesus was suggesting these Jewish Pharisees and scribes are saved and were on an equal plane with the disciples of Jesus because they were

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Jews. For they had a faith in God and ordered their lives according to the light, according to the law they had.

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But this is surely incorrect. John the Baptist said the Lord himself had denounced them and declared

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God's judgment on them unless they repent clearly. Second, the

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Lord was but humoring them. In other words, here we see some sarcasm coming out in our

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Lord's words. This may be, the Lord did show sarcasm and was rather ironic in some of his expressions.

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That is, they assumed, that is, these Jews assumed, as everybody else assumed, they had a right standing with God.

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And the Lord was, in essence, saying to them, if this be true and you are right with God, that your sons, as you think you are, then you should be as a brother who rejoices with his father over a returning son.

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But this does not seem to give a true representation of the words recorded in verse 31. You are always with me and everything

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I have is yours. I think the third way to understand this is the proper way.

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These Jewish Pharisees and scribes, although self -righteous, nevertheless were within the covenant community of Israel, national

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Israel, and as such were promised all that the Father owned. Under the old covenant, the

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Mosaic covenant, the Jewish covenant people were indeed in a covenant relationship with God under the promises and the terms of the

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Mosaic covenant. The Apostle Paul acknowledged they had great historic privilege, the

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Jewish people. Paul wrote, I tell you truth in Christ, I'm not lying. My conscience also bearing a witness in the

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Holy Spirit. He said, I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. Why, I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my

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Jewish brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, your Israelites. And then he describes their privileged position and all these

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Pharisees and scribes standing before Jesus had these blessings upon them.

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To whom pertained the adoption. They were regarded as the son of God, Israel in the

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Old Testament. The glory, glory of God manifested himself to Israel, the skin of glory, the covenants,

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Mosaic covenant, Abrahamic covenant on its ethnic side. The giving of the law, the service of God, all the tabernacle and temple service and the promises of God of a coming

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Messiah of salvation of whom are the fathers and from whom according to the flesh

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Christ came, who is overall the eternally blessed God. These Jewish Pharisees and scribes were greatly privileged and greatly blessed of God.

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As Israelites, a people in a covenant relationship with God, they, of course, had a responsibility to respond to the grace of God, to embrace

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Jesus Christ as their promised Messiah, the promised King of Israel. And of course, rather than embracing him and submitting to him as Lord, they crucified him.

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And the result was their breaking of the Mosaic covenant with God by which they enjoyed so much privilege and blessing.

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And as a result, God rejected them as a special ethnic people in relationship with him.

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Because of their sin, they came to be regarded as guilty as the Gentiles. The epistle of Romans declares that clearly, that unbelieving

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Jews are as great a sinner as Gentiles, and they both need salvation in Christ.

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And as a result, God rejected them as a special ethnic people in relationship with him, only embracing them who believed and submitted to his son as Lord and Savior.

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All unbelieving Jews were removed from being numbered among the people of God.

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We read of this as having happened in Acts 3. There we read of Peter preaching to unconverted

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Jews, telling of their guilt and accountability before God for having crucified their promised

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King, the Messiah. Repent, therefore, be converted that your sins may be blotted out so that the times of refreshing may come from the presence of the

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Lord, and that he may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which

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God has spoken by the mouth of all his prophets since the world began. For Moses truly said to the fathers,

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The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever he says to you.

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Moses prophesied of Jesus Christ. And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that prophet, these

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Pharisees and Jewish scribes, shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.

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They're removed. Yes, and all the prophets from Samuel and those who follow as many as have spoken, the entire

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Old Testament scriptures have foretold these days, the days of this New Testament church age.

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You are the sons of the prophets of the covenant, which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, In your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

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To you first, that is to Jews first. God, having raised up his servant Jesus, sent him to bless you and turning away every one of you from your iniquities.

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And so these Jews, they were privileged when they were standing before Jesus. When they crucified him, they lost all that privilege and blessing.

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They come under the curse of God when they rejected their Messiah. We can give the following conclusion of this parable.

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In conclusion, it's a wondrous thing to be a pardoned sinner and receive the glorious things freely given to us by our father.

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Our father delights in bestowing his free grace upon returning sinners. We should always recognize and acknowledge the nature of God in this respect.

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On the other hand, it's a very wicked thing not to receive freely and fully them whom

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God has received on the merits of Christ. We're not to be as the Pharisees and scribes.

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But one final point before we leave this chapter. Let me draw your attention once again to the crowd that was listening to Jesus.

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Yes, there were Pharisees and scribes before Jesus, but the group was largely composed to despise sinners.

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Some of these had already returned to their heavenly father, having repented of their sin. They had become disciples of Jesus.

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But their reputation was known by the Pharisees and scribes. Matthew was known as a traitorous tax collector of Rome.

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And here he is a disciple of Jesus. Mary was a woman out of whom came seven demons.

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The Lord's followers were characterized as sinners. Although they had left their former ways, and here they sat eagerly listening to the

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Lord, joyful and celebratory. But then these Jewish Pharisees and scribes cast before the

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Lord the past failures of his disciples. They reasoned that these ones who bring reproach to God because of how they had once lived.

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And the Lord addressed these words in this parable, not only to justify his dealings with the Jewish leaders, to rebuke the murmuring legalists, but also to reassure his followers that they have every reason to be celebrative.

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They are a cause of as much joy to their heavenly father in their returning to him as a recovered sheep, which had strayed from his shepherd early in chapter 15.

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As much joy as a recovered coin to a poor woman, or as much joy as a restored son to his loving father.

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And perhaps there's one sitting here among us, rejoicing on the one hand that you've been restored to your father, but you feel ashamed for being here.

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You ought to be ashamed of that, feeling ashamed for being here. Thinking I do not belong, you say to yourself, and perhaps you've so degraded yourself to your past attitudes and actions.

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You see yourself as defiling the people of God about you by simply being among them.

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And over the years, I've had some Christians come to me. I'm so wretched pastor.

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The Lord is not going to bless your church if I'm here. And I have to preach the gospel to them all over again.

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And perhaps you yourself may be of experience firsthand, a Phariseic spirit among the people of God, which has rejected you or been patronizing toward you for your past, that indeed is now past.

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What are you to do? How are you to react? How are you to respond? What would the younger brother say to his elder brother when he levels the accusation?

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You're not deserving to wear those garments or even be in your father's house. What are you to think?

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And what are you to say? Well, the right response would be, you're right.

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I'm not fit to be here. I do not deserve the things that have been bestowed on me.

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But do you see this robe? It's my father's robe, not mine, that he's placed on my shoulders.

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You see this ring? This is my father's ring he's placed on my finger. And these shoes and this feast, all that I have are undeserved gifts given to me freely bestowed because my father loves me.

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And so the Christian responds to all charges. Am I guilty? Yes.

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Am I deserving of rejection and wrath? Absolutely. Have I disgraced and sinned against my father more than you or I will ever know this side of judgment?

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Am I unworthy of any privilege or blessing? Absolutely. But I have a robe of righteousness which is not my own, but which has been provided me by Christ with which he has clothed me.

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Do I deserve honor? No. But he has chosen to bestow abundantly his glory upon me.

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Was I not enslaved to sin? Yes, but he set me free. I now enjoy my freedom from sin's mastery and walk as a free man in Christ.

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But should I have cause to rejoice given my past? Yes, when it's based on the fact that I've been delivered from my past and now enjoy full pardon and fellowship with my father through his mercy and grace alone in Jesus Christ alone.

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And so may our Lord enable us to live with these truths before us. Amen. Let's pray.

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Thank you, Father, for your word and for the teaching of Luke 15. Help us always, our

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God, to set forth you, our Father, as one who delights in receiving guilty sinners returning to you from this fallen world, from their fallen lives, through Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray.