The Remarkable Reality of the Love of God: the Parable of the Loving Father

“THE REMARKABLE REALITY OF THE LOVE OF GOD: THE PARABLE OF THE LOVING FATHER”

LUKE 15:11-32

TEXT: LUKE 15:11-18

INTRO: We have all heard this story many times. Sermons beyond number

have been written and preached about the story of the boy who was

so selfish, so unthinking and so uncaring that he basically wished

his father was dead. Jesus told this story, but he didn’t give it a title.

In Bibles you will see a title of “Parable of the Lost Son” or “Parable of

the Prodigal Son.” It could easily be called the “Parable of the Jealous

Brother” when you look at that part of the story. But we are going to

look at it this morning as “The Parable of the Loving Father.”

Jesus, the Master Storyteller told this story and all the elements of a

great story are present. We could have expected nothing less from

Jesus. Jesus introduces us to a family. We know that they have

some means and there is a father and two sons. We don’t know

anything about the mother or the daughters, but for the story it

doesn’t really matter.

There is an older brother, we will call David. He was the good son.

He always did what the dad told him to do. David was a model child,

always respectful to his dad. He worked and did his work well. He is

the type of child we desire our children to grow up to be. Very hard-

working, industrious, a real future ahead for him. Then there was the

baby of the family, the younger son. We will call him Benjamin. He

was the normal baby of the family. Benjamin always compared him-

self to his brother and he never seemed to measure up. He wanted to

grow up, to get out on his own. He wanted to get away from his

brother, but also from his dad as well. He was a young man now. He

had it all figured out. He knew it all. He was ready to see the world

and make his own decisions. After all, the world had changed since

his dad grew up. It was completely different. He was ready to get out

and make his own decisions.

Jewish law set out how property was to be divided upon the death of

the head of the household, the death of the father. Basically, the

property was to be divided into parts. The number of parts depending

on the number of male children plus one. The oldest son would

receive a double portion because he had to take care of any unmarried

women in the family, including his mother. Each son would receive

his portion, but only after his father had died.

Benjamin didn’t want to wait that long. He went to his father, and in

that society in essence told him, “I wish you were dead!” He wanted

his inheritance there and now. How do you think his father must

have felt? Oh I am sure he was heartbroken. I am also sure that the

father didn’t given in to his request right away. After a period of time,

with Benjamin begging, pleading, whining, the father gave in.

Now before we think that his father was overindulging him, consider

this. Sometimes, when all else fails, love requires that we let our

children make the mistakes they want to make. We can try and try to

keep them from it, but they must make their own mistakes. “Surely

the father understood the folly of his son’s request. His granting of it

was not an act of parental weakness, but of wisdom and courage.

Sometimes it is necessary for loving parents to let their children go off

on their own even when it is obvious that they are neither mature nor

trustworthy.” (R. C. Sproul, Loved By God, p. 211.)

Can’t you almost see the happiness of the son as he gets his money

and off he goes, as fast as he can, as far as he can. Can’t you also see

the tears in his father’s eyes as he watches him go. He gets smaller

and smaller in the distance, and then, he disappears over the horizon.

We know the rest of the story. He wastes everything and finds himself

with nothing. He can’t find any work and eventually finds a farmer

who will let him live with his pigs as long as he will make sure he

feeds them. Now think about that for a moment. Here is a good

(well, maybe not so good) Jewish boy having to feed and take care of

pigs! Any other time he would have stayed as far away from them as

he could. But his need drove him farther than he ever planned on

going! That’s what sin does! Sin will take you farther than you want

to go, cost you more than you want to pay, keep you longer than you

want to stay!

Verse 17 tells us, “And when he came to himself…”, he realized that

his father, his loving father was at home and treated his servants far

better than he was being treated. Now it was time for him to swallow

his pride and go home. He, in his mind, is thinking about what he

will say to his father when he sees him; and he begins the long, lonely

hard trip home, back to dad. What has his dad been doing this whole

time? He was watching, waiting for him to come home. Every day,

day after day, he would look into the distance to see if this was the

day that Ben would come home. Each day, he would turn back, only

to return with hope.

One day, a murmur started in the neighborhood. “Ben’s coming

home,” someone said. Others were angry at Ben because of the

disrespect he had shown his father and the pain it caused him. Some

even talked about stoning this “disrespectful son” as an example to

their sons so that this would never happen again. The father paid no

mind to any of this. He was excited. He started off down the road,

but he couldn’t go fast enough. So he took off his long robe and tied

it up around his waist and started running as fast as he could toward

his son.

Can you picture this sight with me? An old man, distinguished in his

community, baring his legs and running down the road. The shame

that would come to his family and name would be great, but he didn’t

care. He was willing to face it, because he loved his son. The father

didn’t give his son a chance to explain. He didn’t listen or want

excuses. He accepted him back into his family, as his son once

again. Do you get the picture? Do you see the agony Benjamin

caused his father, and the joy he brought his father when he came

home?

Do you see the agony you cause your Heavenly Father when you

decide to go your own way? Do you see Him standing, waiting, look-

ing for you to come home? Do you see Him running toward you with

arms wide open as you, with excuses and speech in hand, come home

in disgrace? Do you see Him putting the robe and ring on you

because His son who was lost is found? That is the kind of Heavenly

Father we have. He is waiting for us to come home. Consider 4

things with me as we look at “The Parable of the Loving Father”…

(1) THE FATHER IN THE STORY LET HIS SON GO HIS OWN WAY

LUKE 15:12b-13—“And he divided unto them his living. 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.”

*Even though it literally broke the father’s heart, he let his son go his own

way. God loves man but he does not force His will upon us. Note two

things with me:

A. God has a will and desire for each of us. This will and desire of God

is two-fold:

1) That We be Saved. The Word of God makes it plain that God’s

desire is that all men be saved (1 Timothy 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9).

Christ died for all men, and God would have all men to be saved.

The only reason that judgment has not already fallen on this

sinful world is that God wants sinners to come to Christ and be

saved from the coming wrath.

2) That We be Serving. God has saved us for a purpose. And once

we belong to Him it is His desire that we fulfill that purpose.

Ephesians 2:10 tells us, “For we are his workmanship, created in

Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that

we should walk in them.” Salvation is not OF works; but salvation

is “unto good works.” Works have nothing to do with redemption;

but works testify that redemption has been wrought in the heart.

Our eternal reward will be determined by our faithful works…our

faithful stewardship…We are His workmanship, we are created in

Christ Jesus unto good works…God hath before ordained “THAT

WE SHOULD WALK IN THEM.”…We should walk daily, working

daily, in such a manner that others might see our walk and our

works, and glorify God because of the display of the miracle of

grace in our lives! (1).

B. God will let us make the decisions we want to make. Although God

desires all men to be saved. Not all men will be saved. Although God

desire His children to serve Him. Not all His children serve Him.

1) Some choose to remain lost. It is not that God has not provided

the way of salvation (John 3:16; 14:6). It is not that God cannot

save anyone and everyone who will come to Him (John 5:24;

Romans 10:9-10, 13). But it is that some choose, of their own

free will, to remain in their lost condition (John 5:40). The son in

the parable was lost because of his own willfulness (2). He chose

the far country over home. It must have broken this father’s heart,

but he gave the boy his share of the wealth. God likewise has

shared His wealth with a world of lost sinners, and they have

wasted it (3). (Romans 2:4).

2) Some choose the far country over fellowship. Child of God, the

a step toward the far country begins by an attitude of the heart.

When this world is more precious to us than the Word of God, when

we are more intent on pleasing self instead of pleasing the Savior,

and when serving God seems more of a duty than a pleasure then

our heart is already in the far country. God desires that we serve

Him with our all, but God will let us make the decisions we want to

make.

ILLUS: It is difficult to be honest about the choices we make. Rather

than "I decided to ..." we say, "God directed me to..." When

things don't work out as we had hoped, we point the finger of

blame at lack of faith or disobedience to God's plan. We rarely

stop to consider whether the decision itself was unwise.

Seeking direction from the Lord is certainly appropriate, but

making choices is ultimately our responsibility. -- Kurt D.

Bruner in Responsible Living in an Age of Excesses.

Christianity Today, Vol. 37, no. 6.

The Father let his son go his own way, but also…

(2) THE FATHER WAITED AND WATCHED FOR THE SON TO RETURN AS

GOD WAITS FOR US TO TURN BACK TO HIM

LUKE 15:20a—“And he arose, and came to his father. But when he

was yet a great way off, his father saw him…”

*The father must have been waiting and watching for the son to come

home, for he saw him a long way off (4). God sees our waywardness and

He longs for our return! Friend, are you in the far country?

ILLUS: Are you backslidden now? I'm going to help you answer that

question. A backslidden Christian is any Christian who is not as

close to Jesus as he use to be. Was there ever a time in your

life when you were more consecrated to the Lord than you are

now? Was there ever a period in your life when you felt the

presence of God more than you feel it now? Was there a moment

in your life when your love for Jesus Christ was more real than it

is this minute? If so you need a revival! - Jerry Vines

*When we find ourselves in the “far country,” we need to remember:

A. God is waiting for us to turn back to Him. It breaks the heart of

God when we backslide and get out of fellowship with HIM. But it is

during these times when we have turned our back upon HIM and are

following our own way, will, and wisdom that he continues to convict

us of our sin and draw us back to HIM. As Jeremiah said in

Lamentations 3:40, from time to time we need to “..Search and try our

ways, and turn again to the LORD.” Have we forsaken HIM, have we

made our journey to the “far country”? If so, He is waiting for us to

turn back to HIM. When we do, he offers forgiveness (1 John 1:9).

ILLUS: There sat one day upon the platform of the Bethany Sunday

School an Englishman who told the story of the young girl

who had gone away from her home to live a life of sin. Her

broken-hearted mother came to the home of the rector of this

Englishman and besought him to help her find her child. He

said, to her, "If you will bring me every picture you possess I

will do my best." The pictures were brought and the clergyman

wrote underneath the face in red ink just two words: "Come

back." These pictures were placed in the mission stations and

the haunts of vice. Weeks passed by until at last one day the

young girl was passing into a place of sin when she saw this

face of her mother. She paused to look, and the tears so

blinded her eyes that she could not for a moment see the

words. Then, brushing the tears away, she saw the invitation;

turned her face toward her home on the edge of London. She

reached her home in the night time, put her hand upon the

latch of the door, and behold, it yielded to her touch. She had

no more than crossed the threshold when she found herself in

her mother's arms, greeted with this salutation, "My dear

child, the door has never been fastened since you went away."

And this is God's message to his wandering children, to those

who have forgotten him and yielded themselves up to the life

of sin: "The door has never been shut since you turned away;

return unto me, and I will have mercy upon you. Come back

to me and I will abundantly pardon." -- J.W.C. By J. Wilbur

Chapan, "Present Day Parables."

B. God didn’t move, we did. It is us who have made our journey to the

“far country”. God didn’t move. We left Him, he never left us. It is us

who must come “home”. There we will find our Heavenly Father

watching and waiting for our return. The son in the parable “came to

himself” and said, “I will arise and go to my father…” Jesus believed

that as long as a man was away from God he was not truly himself; he

was only truly himself when he was on the way home (5). But we

must choose to come home. It is a conscious decision.

The father let his son go his own way, the father waited and watched for his son to return and …

(3) THE FATHER DID NOT WAIT FOR THE SON TO GET ALL THE WAY

HOME, BUT MET HIM ON THE WAY

LUKE 15:20b—“..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.”

*The father’s response on the son’s return makes it clear that he was

thinking about the departed son all along (6). He was looking and longing

for his son’s return. God is the same with us. When we are not as close

to HIM as we once were, when our heart is in the “far country, “ He longs

for us to return. Notice two things:

A. God will meet us where we are. God is waiting for us to turn back to

Him. Unlike the son, we don’t have to even get most of the way home.

God will meet us where we are. The father ran out to meet his son

showing us his great love for him. In the ancient world the common

attire for men was an ankle-length robe. In order for males to run

freely; they had to “gird up their loins.” This meant hiking up the robe

above the knees and then fastening it with a belt so the legs would be

free to pump quickly. We see the prodigal’s father running down the

road, with bared knees pumping, in order to greet his son. The

greeting had no rebuke, no stern reprimand for wasting the father’s