INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• Over the next three weeks we are going to examine the interesting interactions of a family. This is a story of a father and his two sons. We have a father who owns what is likely a vast amount of property. His sons worked the land with him.
• The younger of the two sons seems to have an itch to get away from the farm and the older one seems to be content with working with his father.
• The story we are going to observe over these three weeks is the parable that is called the Parable of the Prodigal son.
• In the morning worship we will look at the issues that both plagued and blessed this family. We will examine the issues of selfishness and jealousy along with the blessing of forgiveness.
• In the evening study time we will look at the story of the Prodigal son from the perspective of first the younger son, then next Sunday evening from the perspective of the elder son and finally on Father’s Day evening, from the perspective of the father.
• The evening study will build on what we do in the morning and will feature a 15 minute video written and acted out by Jason Hildebrand that will help us to gain each characters different perspective on the parable. We will then have a time of discussion.
• The word prodigal is not found in the text but it is an appropriate given title to the parable.
• The word “prodigal” means: extravagantly wasteful, wasting parental money.
• It would be more pleasant to just skip to the blessing of forgiveness; however, examining the negative issues that plagued this family will give us a deeper understanding of how beautiful and awesome forgiveness really is.
• The younger son will illustrate a behavior and attitude that is very destructive. Let’s see what his picture of selfishness looked like and what it did to him.
• Let’s begin in verse 11-12
• SLIDE #2
• Luke 15:11-12(ESV) 11And he said, “There was a man who had two sons. 12And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them.
• SLIDE #3
SERMON
I. The selfish son only cared about himself. (11-12)
• When look at the beginning of the parable, we see that the younger son makes to what amounts to a request from his father.
• The young man wanted HIS part of the inheritance right NOW!
• The young man did not even care enough about his loving father to wait until the father had died so as to collect his inheritance.
• The son, being the younger had legal rights to 1/3 of his father’s property, but not until the death of the father.
• The eldest son would receive 2/3’s of the inheritance (Deuteronomy 21:17). Of course being the oldest in my family, I think that sounds fair!
• For whatever reason this young man only cared about himself. How would you like to be the father, the son is basically saying, I wish you were dead so I can get what is mine, but since you are not, give it to me anyway.
• Selfish people as a rule, only care about themselves, they pay no mind to the feelings of others.
• The son was selfishly demanding a favor from his father. The father did not have to acquiesce, but out of love for his son, he did.
• The father divided the property between the two sons.
• Can you imagine how much this must have hurt?
• We have to realize that only caring about self is destructive and hurtful.
• Can you imagine where we would be today if Jesus had only thought about Himself?
• SLIDE #4
• Philippians 2:4-8(ESV) 4Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,£ 6who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant,£ being born in the likeness of men. 8And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
• I wonder if the selfish son gave a thought one about his father or his older brother? His selfishness was going to affect more than just himself.
• Our selfishness will do the same thing. When we make selfish decisions, others will be affected by them.
• Paul tells us that we are to not only look out for our selves, but also to the interests of others.
• Sometimes we make decisions based on being happy instead of doing what is right. They young man apparently was not happy, and instead of doing what was right, he chose to be selfish.
• Instead of trying to deal with the situation, he chose to be selfish. He wanted what he wanted RIGHT NOW!
• Let’s drop down to verses 13-14
• SLIDE #5
• Luke 15:13-14(ESV) 13Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 14And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need.
• SLIDE #6
II. The selfish son only lived for himself. (13-14)
• Well, the young man got what he wanted, now it was time to live life the way HE wanted to live it.
• Not many days later…
• I wonder how many that was.
• It was time to leave the work and responsibilities of home and go off and live the life.
• By the way, from these verses we get the title for this parable, we are told in verse13 that the young man squandered what he had.
• How many times have we seen people squander away a potentially good life because they wanted to selfishly pursue other things and other people?
• This young man was living what he thought was a free life, a life without restraints, a life without rules.
• Party on!
• This young man was doing what HE wanted to do, he was not being responsible. When we are selfish, we will live how we want to live no matter what. I have seen it so many times, people doing what they wanted to do to the detriment to their families.
• I bet we could all share stories of people we knew who ruined themselves financially because they had to have what they wanted not matter what the cost.
• Jesus shared a story of a man who had a great harvest and instead of doing something productive with it, decided to build bigger barns and more or less take care of himself. God responded…
• SLIDE #7
• Luke 12:20-21(ESV) 20But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
• This man was going to live for himself and that was not pleasing to God.
• As a follower of Jesus, as a Christian, we are called to live a different life we are called to NOT live for OURSELVES!
• We need to make sure our life is not trying to make people to do what WE want and if they cross us, then we cross them off our list.
• SLIDE #8
• Galatians 2:20(ESV) 20I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
• Let look at verses 15-16.
• SLIDE #9
• Luke 15:15-16(ESV) 15So he went and hired himself out to£ one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 16And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
• What ultimately happens to us when we are selfish?
• SLIDE #10
III. The selfish son only had himself. (15-16)
• The party is over, the money is squandered. I wonder where the people were with whom he spent his money with.
• This selfish man only had himself, his life was empty. He had no possessions, no friends, and he thought no family.
• Selfish people are empty people and no matter what they do they will always be empty.
• As Jesus was dealing with the rich young ruler in Mark 10, He was telling the young man that he needed to sell all his stuff and come follow Jesus.
• SLIDE #11
• Mark 10:21-22(ESV) 21And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
• This man had his stuff, but he was going to live the rest of his life empty. As a matter of fact, the young man KNEW something was missing from his life but he was not willing to pay the price to receive true fulfillment.
• CHRISTMAS ILLUSTRATION. GIFTS.
• This prodigal son was now down and out and he was now feeding pigs, which is the WORST job imaginable for a Jewish person. I would imagine Jesus audience really understood just how bad it was for the selfish young man.
• When you care only about yourself, live only for yourself, when it is all said and done, you will only have yourself.
• The young man is now at a crossroads, what will he do? Will he continue on his chosen path or will he wake up?
• Let us finish with verses 17-20
• SLIDE #12
• Luke 15:17-20(ESV) 17“But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ 20And he arose and came to his father…
• SLIDE #13
IV. The selfish son finally assessed himself. (17-20)
• This young selfish man gets a wakeup call. He starts to assess his situation and realizes that he has been a fool.
• He knows that if he were but a servant for his father he would be treated better.
• This young man finally is seeing the error of his ways.
• While his motivation at first seems to have been his hunger, he could have saved his pride by never going back. He could have searched for a job as a hired hand anywhere (although his present experience showed him that not all hired hands were treated as well as those on his father’s estate).
• He could have avoided his older brother’s inevitable scorn over what he had done by staying away. Instead, this young man chose to go home.
• The key was verse 19; he was repentant for his selfishness.
• “I have sinned against both heaven and you.” He wanted to tell his father he was sorry. He wanted to repent of his selfishness that had sent him away and spent all the money that his father had set aside for his future. Even if it meant living as a hired man in his own home, he would return there in order to say these things to his father.
• This young man was willing to change, but had the damage done been too great to fix, was his sin so egregious that it could not be fixed or forgiven?
• Find out in 2 weeks when we look at the father’s story.
CONCLUSION
• We have to always be on the lookout to make sure we are just caring and living for ourselves.
• We are not called to be selfish. We are called to put others first even when that is not easy.
• Next week we will examine the issue of jealousy as we examine the heart of the eldest son.
• Come back tonight and see the story of the Prodigal son from the perspective of the prodigal himself.
