Grumbling at God While He Rejoices

Go ahead turn in your Bible to Luke chapter 15 And I'm gonna pray and then we're gonna start reading. I'm gonna give some comments Eventually we're going to Near the end actually read the entirety of the prodigal son when I get to that point and do that Don't think I'm about to do the same thing and make a whole bunch of other specific comments okay, because I think at that point you might feel like wait, you're just getting to that portion, but Just want to give you a heads up on that let's pray and then we're going to consider Luke chapter 15 And see what God has for us here today Well father Lord, I thank you so much for what even hearing from Ken that answered prayer about Praying they'd have an open door with family and they they had that the other day four hours of a conversation Lord, you're the God who hears prayer Lord Paul prayed that a He might have an open door that he might have words to know how to speak as he ought and Lord You no doubt gave the Apostle Paul that very thing. And so father.

We're grateful. You're a God who hears prayer We're in such a fallen world. There's so much Disruption confusion people who are focused on everything, but you everything but your word everything but eternity and Lord here We are today to think about the one thing that matters father.

It's you it's not politics. It's not society. It's your kingdom It's the kingdom of God and the age to come and so Lord.

We're here anticipating the one day the heavens are going to roll back and you're going to come down and you're going to judge the world and you're Going to come and receive us to yourself if we've not yet died and gone to be with you And so Lord, this is what we're concerned about Lord. We're concerned about People who are lost and without you Lord, I'm concerned about the three Lord homeless Sinners Lord who I drove by today on the way here Lord even Daphne who? Lord invited to church father. She's here every Sunday outside.

She won't come in Lord We we want to have hope for these individuals father that they would not lose their soul Or they wouldn't remain in their drunkenness and in removing themselves from having the ability to have a sober mind, but father that they would wit soberness Receive the Word of God receive the truth. So Lord. Thank you for your word.

We thank you. You've given us a book We thank you. You've given us truth So I pray you'd help me now in Christ's name Amen And then we'll Luke chapter 15 Luke 15 now the tax collectors That's people who are traitors Exploiters of their own people you could say a modern equivalent maybe corrupt officials or politicians now the tax collectors and sinners And we use that word kind of light sometimes on a sinner now these people really sinners immoral They were all drawing near to him They were all drawing near to him this is remarkable They were drawing near to him outcasts and sinners of the worst kind were drawing near to him and who's the him? Okay, but who's Jesus he's yeah, he's the Holy One who's Jesus He's the one he's not yet.

He's not defiled. He's the one who knew no sin. He's the one that people Angels and cherubim say what to Jesus? Holy holy holy Right.

This is the one we see right here with these sinners these wicked people these people that society especially religious society hates And we see them drawing near to Christ. This is remarkable. So easy to just read that over They drew near to him and he didn't repel him.

He didn't shoo them away This is incredible. This is the Savior. This is the Lord that we've got If you couldn't draw near to Christ if you shooed them away right here, that would mean we're all going to hell I mean we have no no hope at all this morning of any sort of salvation Because that would reveal the very character of God, but Christ is revealing the character of God as one whom the sinners they draw Near and what versus that phrase drawn here.

What book does that make you think about in the Bible? Hebrews. Oh, yeah Hebrews. You got to love all those drawn ears in Hebrews Christ let sinners drawn near to him But they might hear the truth They might draw near with heart sprinkled clean from an evil conscience that they might then with Confident draw near to the throne of grace Is that amazing the Lord let you draw near to him and then all these other drawn ears start to happen in your life We can say this morning the nearness of God is my good Now who couldn't but rejoice at this? I mean we can right We're if you're a Christian here today you look at these tax collectors and sinners drawing near to the Lord Jesus Christ and you just rejoice I mean, this is incredible.

This is a reminder of me and my sin coming to this Savior. I Mean, isn't that the only way to respond is to rejoice that we can actually draw near to God Well verse 2 Not everyone's happy and the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled Complaining they're critical. They're accusing him saying this man You see they were looking they don't think Christ is really the Son of God.

They don't think he's really representing the father They don't think as they see the son they see the father. They're not thinking in that way They're disconnecting him from the father. It seems and they're looking at what the son is doing and they're saying This is wrong.

This is sinful this man. He's receiving them and he's not only receiving them. He's eating with them He's eating with them this great close Association with them and this is not the first time Luke Luke brings this up and this is not the last time Luke brings this up In Luke 5 you have the exact same thing 5 verse or 5 verse 30 if you have your Bible you could even read that with me 5 verse 30 He says right here and the Pharisees and their scribes Grumble or verse 29 Levi made him a great feast in his house And there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples Saying why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners? Jesus answered them those who are well have no need of a physician But those who are sick, he's saying these tax collectors these centers.

They're sick. They recognize they're sick And then he says in verse 32. I've not come to call the righteous but sinners to Repentance and so this is already this grumbling is already happening and then you get to Luke 19 You know what you find there now It's no longer just the tax collectors or sorry No longer just the Pharisees and the scribes grumbling at Christ receiving sinners.

Now, it's all the people It's all the people you see when the religious leaders in your day when they start grumbling about Something the people who are submitting under them They see this response and they start imitating and copying it So by the end of Luke you got all manner of society is upset at Christ and thinking this is wrong. They're in Luke 19 So Christ he's got to respond Right the tax collectors and the sinners are drawing near to him The Pharisees are grumbling and Jesus doesn't just look at their grumbling and ignore it He responds and that's what we see in verse 3. So then he told them this Parable, so then he told them this parable notice Luke says he told them this Parable you get to verse 8. It doesn't say he's telling them another parable you get to verse 11 It doesn't say he's telling them another parable. And so many would say this is just one parable at all It clearly all goes together.

He says he tells them this Parable and then he shares these three different Examples right here and so those who grumble and complain about his compassion towards Sinners his close association with them. He's got to respond to those I mean these people in a way they would rather Take up the Old Covenant law like the woman who was caught in adultery and they would rather we pick up stones and stone these individuals then Christ received these individuals He's got to respond to those who don't see that they're sick They just think they're righteous they think they're really good they And we're going to see that More clearly when you see the older brother and how he's represented at the end of Luke 15 The older brother makes the statement in verse 29. I never disobeyed your command.

You see that's the Pharisees. They've got this perception I've never disobeyed God I've perfectly kept and done everything that he wants And so we've gotten the rest of this chapter is Christ's response He told them this parable in view of this accusation that they made towards him And so yeah, if you got accused of that, how would you respond? Well, we got Jesus and Jesus shows us how he responds Right here, and there's a lot. I mean you could preach five sermons out of Luke 15 I mean, there's a lot you could say out of Luke 15.

I'm not going to cover all of it But I want to look at the main thing because clearly there's one main aspect here that leads Christ to say everything He does and so just just briefly is a brief overview if you look at verse 6 the first Example he gives is a lost sheep gets found right and then verse 6 it says he lays it on his shoulders Rejoicing in verse 5 and then in verse 6 he tells him rejoice with me I found my sheep that was lost and then you go down to the next section You got a lost coin and verse 9. She calls together her friends and neighbors saying to them Corporately rejoice with me. I have found the coin that I had lost And then you've got in this last section a lost son in verse 32. You have the you have the same conclusion Right Jesus is it's right To be receiving these people and rejoicing when they Repent verse 32 it was fitting to celebrate and be glad For this your brother was dead and is alive.

He was lost and he was found and you know This made me think about Jacob remember Jacob when Joseph he found out Joseph was alive He found it says when he found that out the his father was revived Revived Right that what a response to a sinner Repenting and being saved and here Christ is going to show us. That's not only his response is rejoicing It's not only the father's response is to rejoice But that should be our response is ones who've been saved by Christ and you're seeking to be made more like Christ But that's the opposite of the Pharisees right the Pharisees. Look at this.

They grumble and they complain They're not happy with the way the Lord Jesus is Conducting this so there's a primary lesson that this parable is designed to teach Right some will look at this and they're going to try to find every single aspect of the gospel And I'm not saying you might be able to make a really good case about certain aspects of the gospel in here What I'm telling you here Jesus brought all of this up. I Hope is pretty evident He brought it all up right there at the beginning as a response to the grumbling of the scribes who were accusing him That what he was doing was wrong, and he's simply Justifying and defending that this is absolutely right the way that I am responding and this should be your response You shouldn't be complaining. You should be rejoicing because God is rejoicing and so that Is a theme throughout the whole thing with the coin the sheep and then the Sun it's fitting To celebrate and be glad Right, it's fitting and you think we're trying in our lives to become more and more like Christ and know what is fitting, right? I like that word the ESV.

It says it's fitting. You know, you look at certain things in your life You say is this fitting is it right? Well here we've got an example of the Lord showing what what is fitting what is right? in his perspective And so Christ has to expose the religious legalist Their wickedness and grumbling rather than celebrating by showing them who is Celebrating right here in the passage and maybe we should even look at that just right here at the beginning look at verse 10 This is a verse that is often misunderstood. I think for years.

This is a verse. I misunderstood. It's a read this verse carefully and prior to reading it remember The Shepherd in verse 6 whoever that Shepherd represents will say it represents the Lord He's saying rejoice with me.

The Shepherd is doing the rejoicing right and then you go to verse 8 You've got a woman who finds the coin verse 9 She says to her friends rejoice with me and then look at verse 10. He says just so in the same way I tell you So now he's saying look I'm seeing what really is happening here. This is actually what's happening in Heaven I tell you there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents Now who's doing the rejoicing right there in verse 10? Yeah, it's God, right and we might often quote it You know, there's more the angels have more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents.

That's not the point He's saying God is rejoicing there's someone before the angels who is Rejoicing and it is God. It is God the father. They're Rejoicing.

I mean you you look at the Bible and you try to make a list of what are specific things that are going to bring joy to God I Mean it's not good I mean in some ways it could be a long list if you look at the way things there's inferences and there's something implied But this really stands now And so let's look at verse 4. Let's work through a little of this Section right here. So he told them this parable what man of you having a hundred sheep if he lost one of them Does not leave the 99 in the open country and go after the one that is lost And look at this phrase until he finds it Until he finds it Right, he's asking the question he's asking you and I a question He's asking these religious leaders a question and so we could just keep reading but no we should stop and we should think about What's behind his question and how would you even answer this? What man if he had a hundred sheep if you lost one of them? He's saying he's saying it's somewhat obvious that the sheep has enough of a value That if you lost the one sheep, you don't just say You know, I it's a sheep I'm not gonna go after that sheep, right? I was just walking by out there a moment ago and Tim Ferguson dropped the colored pencil and it rolled and Tim Ferguson went over there and he picked up the colored pencil and I asked him. Why'd you pick up the pencil? Did it have value to you or was it just because you didn't want to litter and you knew it was a waste but you Knew it needed to end up in the trash and you know what he said.

He said no it has value to my daughter Right, I mean he's bringing something like that up into their mind that they could relate to this man is a sheep and I should say here another thing I think is often misunderstood that the people will read into the fact that he's using the imagery of the sheep and say that this person is already a Christian and They're you know, they went and they fell into sin and this is somehow depicting Christ's love for his believers and he's gonna go after them and he's gonna bring them back to the fold, right? But I'd remind you just because they're sheep imagery We can't read into that that that means he's talking about a Christian who the very people he's addressing here The Scribes and the Pharisees are accusing him of receiving tax collectors and sinners who are coming to hear him These aren't people who are yet saved and throughout this Parable he speaks about people who are lost and then they end up being found and you could have a whole debate on who the 99 are I think the 99 are the Pharisees that they're the people who they think they're righteous But they're not righteous like the older brother who says I've never disobeyed my father But that I don't think that's the main point trying to describe who those 99 are his main point is you've got one that someone Goes after he's bringing up something they could relate to Jesus saying you'd search until you found your sheep Right, you'd cert you'd call around until you found that sheep and If you do that towards the sheep Because the sheep has value and you go after that and if you do it for the coin Which the coin that the lady loses is about a day's work Right if one of you'll say you made a hundred and fifty dollars you make a hundred and fifty dollars in the day I mean if you get home and a hundred and fifty dollars It falls out of your pocket and you can't find it. You don't just say yeah, no big deal Right because it has value to you There's value there for the that money those resources And so I think what Jesus is saying them if you do that for an animal of yours You Pharisees because I imagine they would have answered said yes. Yes.

Yeah, if I lost a day's wages, I'd go and find that Yes, if I lost one of my sheep, I'd go find that And Jesus kind of said I mean look you guys you're saying you're gonna put more value on Money and an animal than on a human soul You're gonna hold that as more valuable and he ends with an example of a human soul a son. I mean what father? Is not wishing it You know It's one thing for the Pharisees to look at other kids who rebellious and bring up Deuteronomy and say they should be stoned But if it was one of the sons of these own these Pharisees it was one of their sons who's off in the far land They're not they're most likely not thinking. Let's pick up some stone.

They're wanting mercy And so in this last example, he gives he brings up something. It's not a coin. It's not a sheep He actually brings up a son a human soul not an animal not a piece of currency but a soul It's common sense you go and find that which you lose and that has value and so clearly the massive problem in The Pharisees mind is that they don't put any value on these lost sinners They don't see there's any hope they don't understand how they could even be forgiven and have value in God's eyes Because they look at value being gained through self-righteous keeping of law And so it's kind of like there's no there's no hope for these individuals They have no sense of hope and so Christ is showing I and the father We have value on these sinners that I'm eating with there's a goal here to see this lost coin found And brethren those those absolutely lovely words.

He searches until he finds it He's not quitting and I know I shared this years ago, but I was struck when I read on the news in 1997 Mr. Gao and China his son was kidnapped Very young boy and Gao Gong time spent 24 years Searching for his son. He drove ten motorcycles into the ground He was robbed beaten For 24 years in a country of a billion people he searched for his one lost coin His lost son eventually he found his son He found his son Why did he not quit? It's his son Yeah, his son is valuable to him But what value do lost sinners have for you and I I mean that's part of what hit me even driving here You've got I forget the ladies the lady who's missing one leg who down Martin Luther. She's always right there You've got Daphne who lives over there in the bushes and it will cane out in the bushes and we'll sit over here Those aren't my kids, but how does God if they repent? Their angels are going to see joy From the throne when the message is brought That that lost sheep is found and has turned from this evil way.

I Mean that's absolutely incredible In the fairs they if the Pharisees they don't get it and they don't put value on the human soul They self-righteously look at themselves as righteous we could say well, there's no way that you know I we can't relate to that and whatever look this isn't that far off I was gonna bring this up at some point later, but here should say it now What what's what's something Paul has to correct in the thinking of the Corinthians? That's very relevant to what Jesus is teaching right here I've told you what I didn't mean brethren is not to associate with the immoral of this world Because then you would have to come out of this world What I meant was if anyone bears the name of brother and he is guilty of immorality Why would Paul even need to say something like that to the Corinthians? My deduction is he's saying that just like many other things in the letter because he's addressing something They were actually doing something they were doing wrong That you had Christians who are not wanting to us taking the same position as the as the Pharisees here We're not going to have these prostitutes these sinners these wicked people of society We're not going to have them over for a meal Because we're going to be corrupted by them and Paul's coming in and saying no That's not my point. My point is if they're bearing the name of brother They're not bearing the name of brother. You're to be salt to them.

You're to seek to win them And you know, we're talking to one family I some of you might not know this but for a couple years ago, you know in a span of a few months there was a lady who was a homosexual who came to our church every Sunday and she heard the Word of God and She would go over to a family's home and they would seek to Care for this person and minister for this person. I Mean that to me that's incredible and you can say well, that's kind of troubling. Why would she sit here? Are we not preaching the truth? No, we are preaching the truth and God can use that in ways You don't perceive and yes, thankfully, we're not taking certain top Hot-button issues and just hammering on them and in driving people away The sinner is a sinner regardless of maybe the specific sort of sin that they have committed So we too should see lost sinners with such value and go to such an extent to bring people to Christ I mean, can you and I say I? Want to remain alive until Every one of those lost sheep is found until every one of those coins is brought in until every soul that Christ died to save is saved and brought in And so here Christ is tirelessly searching until he finds and saves his sheep and the religious leaders are complaining about it And you know what? That's sadly there's many People who complain about missionaries and church history and they treat they treat the missionary in the exact same way That these Pharisees were treating these people guys like Darby and others They didn't even believe the church should be involved in the Great Commission They thought it was a waste of time a waste of energy God is going to save who he's going to save I'd say they're taking up the exact same wicked perspective of the Pharisees and the scribes So how much more will they complain when one repents? And it's now walking with Christ and they've got to love them so verse 7 Just so I tell you there will be more joy in heaven Over one sinner who repents and over 99 righteous persons who need no repentance If you get 99 self-righteous people who trust in themselves that they're righteous It doesn't produce joy in heaven But you get one prostitute one person who maybe they've even murdered someone and they turn to Christ You get an abundance of joy and a celebration The I'm telling you the self-righteous person they do not like this type of logic Because they think they're righteous There's there's so many examples I could give but until you realize you're sick Until you realize you're wicked as long as you're standing like the older brother and you're saying that I've never disobeyed your command You're I mean you're in a more dangerous person being in the truth Not obeying the truth than the person who's out there living in a pagan land living it up in sin I'd have more hope for them than the self-righteous person and Luke 18 just a few chapters later.

You know this very well. We actually see a tax collector being converted Two men went up into the temple to pray one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector the Pharisee stood by himself He prayed God. I thank you.

I'm not like the other. I'm not sick. I'm not unrighteous I'm a good guy.

I'm not an extortioner. I'm not unjust. I'm not an adulterer and I'm or To make it even let's add something even far more wicked than an adulterer or I'm not even a tax collector I mean, that's how bad they view tax collectors What makes this guy righteous? What's he going to talk about here? I fast twice a week.

I give tithes of all I get But the tax collector he stood far off he wouldn't even lift up his eyes to heaven He beat his breast and said God have mercy on me The sinner and you get you know, when you read the prodigal son you get that same sense there I tell you this man went down to his house declared righteous before God He went down to his house having the wrath of God. It had been propitiated. It had been removed It had been satisfied rather than the other for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled But the one who humbles himself will be exalted and right there in Luke 18, there's joy in heaven And yeah, I don't think it's just God is rejoicing.

Obviously the angels and all of heaven and redeemed saints There's joy. How can there be more joy added in heaven to a place? It is already indescribable and full of joy I don't have the answer to that Because it's indescribable. So if I had the answer to it, then it wouldn't be indescribable So then yeah, you get the lost coin What becomes clear here? We already yeah, maybe we'll skip over that for the sake of time But it's the same idea you get a person they find that which is lost and they say rejoice with me The Pharisees are not rejoicing.

They're grumbling. They're complaining and now they know after the lost coin It's all the clearer There's joy before the angels of God. Jesus is saying God is rejoicing He's saying it in a veiled way So if you're that Pharisee there and you're grumbling at what he's doing and he's saying this God who you say you worship He's actually rejoicing at what is happening right there What are you gonna do about that? I mean what message taken before God brings about joy a Soul being saved.

I mean a soul can't be insignificant if it's salvation already adds to the indescribable joy of heaven That doesn't sound like it's something insignificant. That sounds like it's something of incredible value That would make someone like Charles Spurgeon say, you know as people are going to hell make them jump over our bodies We'll be clawing to their feet. We're going to be doing anything and everything we can to bring them to Christ And you know what looking at Luke 15, you know what looking at Christ here You know what it should do.

It should change us. I was thinking about 2nd Corinthians 3 18 Paul taught that as we behold the glory of the Lord We are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another When Paul says they're beholding the glory of the Lord in the Greek. It's clear.

He's speaking of an ongoing action That should be presently happening in your life and in my life It's not just something that's once and it's done and the same is for the phrase being transformed There's this ongoing progressive sanctification in your life and in my life and is happening as we behold the Lord We're beholding the Lord right here in Luke 15 and so if you and I look to God as attributes his character to see who he is if we praise him Change is going to happen in your life and in my life and Paul goes on in the very next chapter in 2nd Corinthians in verse 4 And he says that we had the light shining our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God and where Is the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ? That is the glory of God is displayed in Christ the God-man in other words as Jesus said Whoever is seeing me has seen the Father people want to fight over Well, who are these people represent here is that the Son is at the Father? I would just say to you whoever has seen me has seen the Father. It's the Father in the Son. It's God This is the Lord.

This is his character. Christ is displaying to you God He has joy and rejoices just as Christ rejoices over one sinner who repents because there's value upon that soul and these Pharisees are putting more value on a sheep and a day's wages than a human soul And they're rejoicing over not just sinners in general right but a sinner who? repents Another person that comes to your mind when you're thinking about this, it's Jonah Right Jonah came to my mind you and I don't want to be like Jonah. You see a city turned from its evil way You see God relent of disaster.

It was Jonah over there eating Maybe nothing grows on a juniper tree But was he there rejoicing in the shade about the incredible thing that God had done? Was he rejoicing in the mercy of God? No, he wasn't It displeased Jonah exceedingly That's the preacher who just saw one of the greatest revivals ever happened and he's upset that it happened So if you say oh, there's no way any type of Pharisaical legalism could be in my heart in any way brethren. Look at Jonah right here and The Lord said do you do well to be angry? No, you shouldn't be angry you do well to rejoice to be full of pleasure and joy and Happiness and just being ecstatic over the fact that you have a God Who let these wicked sinners of Nineveh draw near to him and he pardoned them and he didn't put destruction on them Because Jonah isn't that exact same thing that happened to you? And if you are angry that he didn't wipe him out Then why don't you look in the mirror and why didn't he wipe you out in a century later? Zephaniah the book records the Lord's attitude towards those. He's recovering and Restoring chapter 3 the Lord your God is in your midst a mighty one who will save he will rejoice over you With gladness, I mean he's there recovering restoring his people and he's rejoicing over with gladness He will quiet you by his love.

He will exalt over you with loud singing Verse 19 look at the time. I will deal with those who have mistreated you. I will rescue the lame sheep I will gather together the scattered sheep I will take away their humiliation and make the whole earth admire and respect them that amazed that prostitute who got converted and God rejoices and heaven rejoices There's no joy over that Pharisee that self-righteous person who's trusting in their own works and Guess what? The whole earth is going to admire that person We even at one of the studies recently just pointing out in the genealogy.

You've got people like Rahab the harlot Being put there Honored to be part of the lineage of Christ. I mean, that's absolutely incredible. You think God doesn't rejoice at sinners being saved Edward Payson he said if we love and prize and rejoice in any object in proportion to the labor The pain and expense which it has cost us to obtain it How greatly must Christ love and prize and rejoice in every repentant sinner? I mean you think about the expense he went through he who knew no sin became an offering of Sin for us and suffered the wrath and indignation of God his father and his father Turned his back on him that we might become in Christ the righteousness of God and have his great given to our account I mean, that's that's a cost For God did not spare He could have spared his son.

We all perish and God remains just but he didn't spare his son Like Abraham was allowed to do but the knife came down and he slaughtered his son So what causes Christ's great joy in the father it's sinners being recovered and they don't remain slaves of sin they're transformed Some of you you've probably heard of David Berkowitz he was known as the son of Sam a demon-possessed dog Gave orders to him and he went and murdered multiple people He got put in prison. Someone tried to slit his neck and kill him They hated his guts and then the Lord saved this guy still alive in prison to this day I watched just to see where he's at before I even brought him up I watched some interview and I was blown away by the truth. This man was saying about Christ If it disturbs you that when David Berkowitz the murder Repented in prison that there's joy in heaven over that if that disturbs you that's something in your heart remaining of the Pharisee It's something you got to kill that that is not unjust of God to pardon a man through the blood of his son if you say it is wrong for God to do that you're insulting his Son's blood as if it's not sufficient to pardon someone as vile as that The world says it's not fair women.

He knew maybe they were he murdered Some weren't even Christians. They died and went to hell. Why can he now repent and believe and go to heaven? Brethren, there's nothing unjust about that The world they don't believe God can truly change someone.

So the compassion and forgiveness of God is incredible I mean, that's one of the thrust right here in this whole passage. He's showing these people his compassion His love his for he's talking to people who don't understand forgiveness. They don't get it They don't they don't get it because they haven't been forgiven Of course, they're going to criticize Christ because they've not been forgiven themselves So they look at all of this and they're really disturbed because their system is wrong and they think you obtained eternal life by your works You know shock and we're going to read in one moment the actual part of the prodigal son You know shocking this should shock you what we're about to read just listen to listen from Hudson Taylor's biography volume 2 There was a cotton weaver who got saved through the preaching of a Chinese believer He was saved through a hole in the wall.

You'll understand that in a moment. He was just a poor orphan boy The slave and drudge of a family who had adopted him one day when he got home He heard unusual sounds of merriment one day from the name one day from the neighboring house He left his work and he went to a little opening He knew of where a knot had dropped out of the wooden pickets You have your fence and a knot dropped out and he went up there to listen To see what was happening. The son of a neighboring family had just returned from the city and was telling of his experience He was mocking Someone he had heard talking to a crowd And it was this well-known man who had been converted who had been a former gambler who'd embraced the foreign religion quote-quote and whose life Was changed and that man out there in the square had been telling the matchless story of the prodigal son Telling it from a full heart.

Well, this young boy is has his ear up to the hole in the fence And he's hearing this man mock What was just shared about the prodigal son and it was being misrepresented. It wasn't even an accurate representation of it But it appealed to him and the dejected lonely listener It appealed to him as nothing he had ever heard before ever had Could it be? That there was a God a father in heaven who loved like that And that man he got converted hearing a lost man Mock what we're about to read and and I'll tell you this it's it's at least obvious enough in the prodigal son You know, we could really try to define all these different things. I'm not saying that's wrong But I'll tell you you just read it just reading it.

It's obvious enough That it's a picture of God the Father extending love And so let's read this for ourselves. Maybe you've here. You've never even heard this verse 11 and he said There was a man who had two sons and the younger of them said to his father Father give me the share of property that is coming to me And he defied divided his property between them not many days later.

The younger son gathered all he had He took a journey into a far country and there he squandered his property and reckless living and when he had spent everything a Severe famine arose in that country and he began to be in need so he went and he hired to himself out to one of the citizens of that country who sent him into the fields to feed pigs and He was longing to be fed with the pods that pigs ate and no one gave him anything But when he came to himself He said how many of my father's hired servants they have more than enough bread But I perish here with hunger. I will arise. I will go to my father I will say to him father.

I have sinned against heaven and before you I'm no longer Worthy to be called your son treat me as one of your hired servants And he arose and he came to his father But while he was still a long way off his father saw him and felt compassion That's not what the Pharisees had. They didn't feel any compassion and he ran and he embraced him and he kissed him and The son said to him father. I have sinned against heaven and before you I am no longer worthy to be called your son But the father said to his servants bring quickly the best robe put it on him Put a reed on his hand and shoes on his feet and bring the fat and calf and kill it Let us eat and celebrate for this my son was dead.

Then he is alive again He was lost and he is found and they began to celebrate Now his older brother his older son was in the field and as he came and drew near To the house the Pharisees they drew near to a house when all this began They drew near to hear he's picturing them right here. They drew near They heard music and dancing and he called one of his servants and he asked what these things meant Jesus is telling them what he means by all of this and he said your brother has come and your father has killed the fat and Calf because he received him back safe and sound But he was angry and he refused to go in his father came out and entreated him And Jesus is entreating the Pharisees right now But he answered his father look these many years. I've served you.

I never disobeyed your command You never gave me a young goat that I might celebrate with my friends but when this son of yours came who's devoured your property with prostitutes you killed the fat and calf for him and He said to him son You're always with me and all that is mine is yours All those Pharisees had so much knowledge It was fitting to celebrate and be glad for this your brother was dead and is alive. He was lost And he is found Man, isn't that a that is glorious You can see how this young Chinese boy Heard this a boy who had no father. He had been adopted.

He heard about this type of love This God who so loved the world And he gave his only begotten Son But whoever believes in him will not perish But have everlasting life you go read in the Old Covenant You read about a son who's a glutton and a drunkard and Deuteronomy and it says the men of the city They took him out and they stoned him They purged the evil from your midst brethren. We've got something much greater than that We don't gather the young person who's the drunkard and the glutton and we gather him and stone them But instead we point him to Christ and he purges their sin You see we don't purge the evil person from our midst Christ purges The old man from their midst and if any man's in Christ He is a new creation behold the old has passed away. The new has come all this is from God who is reconciling us to himself so brethren a few minutes we've got left here a few applications are again, I realize not all has been said that could be said but These three stories they show us the perfect Son of God coming and being around those who are not like heaven in Order to bring them to heaven Do you put such value on people? I? Was thinking this morning as I was thinking about this at Lord How do you even like recognize apathy in your life in certain areas and you know, I thought about I thought about amber alerts When you get an amber, you know was a girl who had got lost and that's I Don't even know the story.

Did they ever actually find her? I don't know but that's the term when our phones beep and you get an amber alert it means Some person's been kidnapped or they're lost and it's alerting us. What tends to be the response when the amber alert goes off Man sorry about that my phone silent it You know, I'm gonna I'm gonna Google this why why do people have apathy towards amber alerts and I thought the three points that brought up We're very applicable to us as Christians and our love To lost sinners listen to these three things that came up number one alert fatigue Frequent alerts can desensitize people causing them to become less responsive over time When too many alerts are received individuals start ignoring them Perceiving them is less urgent or important brethren. Don't let that happen There's a hundred.

Yeah, there's 150,000 people dying every day in the world and they're going before a holy God Keep talking about evangelism. You keep talking about the lost just too many amber alerts too many lost prodigal alerts too many lost coins alerts Yeah, there's a lot of lost souls What do you expect the rest of our lives that's going to be one of the things on the forefront of our mind is People are going to hell and we've got the cure So don't become desensitized But don't have fatigue secondly The second reason it gave a lack of relevance Some people may feel the alerts are not relevant to their location or their circumstance. Oh You know those people in Burkina Faso who are perishing without Christ over there, you know, I you know, they're far over there.

I'm over here, you know Pray for laborers right there He's looking down Pray pray for people to go right that God would raise labor. It's where in the world is not relevant to GCC Tell me I'm really curious name one city or one place on this earth That has lost sinners. That's totally irrelevant to our church.

Let me hear it We're work because I'm having a hard time figuring that out. Anyone have the answer to me No, you see everything's relevant Everything's relevant and the third reason it gave You know and lack of relevancy. I'm too far away.

I don't know the person Oh Brethren if one of us had one of our kids kidnapped What do you think the whole church is going to do? I? Mean come on well We should have that same heart spiritually for the souls In the world you understand and the third reason it gave why people are desensitized to amber alerts They perceive an inability to actually be able to help Many individuals they feel that they're unlikely to encounter the missing person or the suspect Therefore they see the alert of something You know, I can't I can't directly influence that just leading to a sense of helplessness and disengagement You see all those can apply in the spiritual realm brother. I felt all of those before all some sort of whatever Thought like that that can kind of make your heart lose some sensitivity here in these areas Another thing to consider an application consider the power of hospitality When you look at this tax collectors and sinners were drawing near to hear him At least they're hearing right here. But the Pharisees say this this man receives sinners and eats with them Eats with them and you see that in different places, there's actually a meal happening Hospitality Where the person comes in and they are absolutely a lost filthy pagan using profanity maybe even at your table and all that's happening and that's the very opportunity by which they end up coming to hear the truth and being saved and found and I even in the car.

I'll sell my wife if he parked up. I thought you know, it's interesting There's people I've given food to there's people I've given money to I try not to give money I try to give food give something necessity, but there's times I didn't have anything So I gave him some money, but I have I had them into my home at the meal and actually had a meal with them What do you think should be more impactful to them opening the window and giving them the food or actually saying hop in the car? Let's go home and I'll go cook a brisket for them But take a while so we'd have a long time to talk but you get I'm saying like what's gonna have a greater impact on them Many have heard Rosario Butler Butterfield a staunch you know homosexual and A pastor and his wife they had her into the home. They fellowship with Fellowship, they talked with her, but now they have fellowship with her The Lord saved her and what was a direct means God used them being willing to receive this lost sinner Into their home.

Don't say it's far removed from me Don't say that Another thing I think an application from this just you and I might think I'm not like the Pharisees But I would just ask you this It's are you complaining to God about anything right now in any way? Is there some situation the Lord wants you to rejoice in and you're grumbling? Because that that's look if we let that in through this door a little bit It's gonna start to permeate and affect other areas in our lives like how we view lost sinners you see what I'm saying There's a progressive decline when you grumble about Your car problems you can say well, you know, it's justifiable It's a car you let that grumbling spirit and not rejoicing in all circumstances into your heart It will start to affect these other areas don't disconnect it all from one another Yeah, what happened to the older brother? Doesn't say isn't this amazing it ends With the Pharisees and the scribes. I don't know. Did any of them get converted? I'd be amazing.

Oh That'd be the stabby the sermon to do it, right? I mean, I hope I'd hope so maybe they went away all the angrier at the Lord another application Do you and I get criticized for being like Christ in the area of showing compassion? Or are we getting criticized in an opposite area of being at times? Too strong in a way where compassion leaves the room. I Yes, Paul says rebuke them sharply that they may be sound in the face He's saying that to those who are professing to know Christ there at Crete But brethren, we want to be full of compassion you and I we are going to face in the next 10 years We're going to face all the more people who are practicing homosexuals people who are transgender all these types of Individuals and you could feel very sheltered and just have a sense like man I don't want to be a part of that You don't want to be a part of the greatest rescue mission ever and see some of those people brought into the kingdom You're going to miss out and when they repent and heaven rejoices and you one day are going to be there to see this great joy and Christ for the joy set before him endured the cross To save people Yes, should we avoid unnecessary interactions that might lead you into temptation? Sure, you got to figure that out. Look there are situations that I feel like in my own life It's unwise to put myself going down.

Let's say to us whatever a certain beach to evangelize or something I don't want to be a part of that. It's not a lack of compassion. It might be a sense of trying to avoid Unnecessary temptation but when Christ love grips you you might be in some of the darkest situations and all that a woman caught in the act of adultery What was she what were they even wearing right at that point? But you know what all that can go to the side when you're overwhelmed with the love of Christ There's no temptation because you're just so full of the Savior and another application.

We should be very evangelistic It's interesting and John it says when a child is born into the world You know, the woman has anguish prior to that and then it says what happens I'm sorry, some of you have anguish soon in the birth process, but there's joy. I mean, I remember every one of my kids Coming out and being birthed There's such joy excitement Brethren, I don't read heaven Getting excited when a baby is born God isn't rejoicing in heaven But there is a type of baby being born that makes God rejoice newborn, babe Who starts to receive the milk of the Word? That saved through the gospel of his son. That's the compassion.

That's the value God puts on a sinner being saved And yeah a broader question in all of this is do you and I rejoice with what God rejoices in not just in this area? You and I want to be people who we see how God thinks what brings God joy And it should be bring us joy as well Christ point is to cause It's the causes of the joy of God should be a cause for joy for you Too one would scarcely die for a righteous person Though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die But God showed his love for us and that while we were still sinners Christ died for us And so look if you're lost here today, if you don't know the Lord I would call you come to your senses stop spending your life away in a foreign land and Starving when you could be seated at the table having the very Son of God Serving you there's nothing greater than this. There's nothing greater than the gospel. There's nothing greater than what Christ has done on that cross That's why Paul could say he is determined to know nothing among anything except for Jesus Christ and him crucified Right, that's why Paul could say I don't account my life of any value It's not precious to myself.

If only I complete the course the ministry I received from the Lord Jesus Christ to testify of the gospel the grace of God. And so we want to have those same Feelings in our own souls. Let's pray Father thank you for Lord this point that your son drives home right here Lord We do want to be people who are who are rejoicing as we see sinners brought to know you Lord We thank you that you have made a way to be just and the justifier of the one who has faith In your son the Lord Jesus Christ Lord.

I pray you'd work in our heart our hearts more compassion Lord you looked out and had compassion Among the sheep without a shepherd or again that imagery of sheep their sheep is dangling over the cliff. They're going to die They need to be rescued and Lord you showed compassion and Lord in view of that. I do pray you would Lord raise up more labors that we could send into the harvest because the harvest is plentiful The labors are few and Lord do help us to just love our neighbors in a greater way our co-workers in a greater way Lord the homeless people on the street those Lord at Haven for hope on Saturday night Lord, you know the situations we face Lord, you know the areas we might be failing the test Lord help us to pass the test to believe you to do what is right to honor you And so Lord, we just thank you.

You're such a good God You