Preached · June 28, 2015
The prodigal son
Luke 15. Jesus gives this parable:
There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, "Father, give me my share of the estate." And so the father divided his property between the two sons. Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country, and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. The son longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. When he came to his senses, he said, "How many of my father's hired servants have food to spare? Here I am starving to death. I will set out and go back to my father and say to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.'" So the son got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him, was filled with compassion for him. He ran to his son, threw his arms around him, and kissed him.
Now, when we hear this section of the parable, it leaves us with one simple question: Do you believe that this story that Jesus is using to describe God is true? Do you believe it's true? And not just in some literal, historical sense, like Jesus is reciting someone's biography. I mean something deeper than that. Is it true? Does it explain something real about who God is and who we are? Does it honestly say something about the character of God?
Which father do you believe in?
Did you know that the Buddhists have a story a lot similar to this one? It was written a couple hundred years later, but it has some striking similarities. There's a father with a son, and one night the son sneaks off to go live on his own. He lives prodigiously, squanders what he has, blowing all his money on the thrills that life can give. But finally, when he's at the end of his rope, he realizes that he should have been living with his father, so he sets back to find him. The father sees the son coming from a distance, and this text literally says the father was filled with compassion for his son—and then he stays seated and sends some servants to go fetch the son. The son is grabbed by the servants, doesn't know why the servants are grabbing him, and he starts fighting. The father, seeing all this from a distance, sends some other servants to call the first servants back, and then the father disguises himself and goes to meet his son. He realizes that the son is still a long ways off from maturity, and so he sets the son up with a scavenging job, which the son works for 20 years. Then, finally, when the father is close to death, he reveals himself to his son, and the son, after 20 years of labor, has finally matured to the point of being able to inherit the father's estate. The father dies, and the son takes over.
Notice any differences? Which God do you believe in? Which father do you believe in? In one, the father runs to the son, throws his arms around him. In the other, the father stays seated and sends servants. In one, the father kisses the son. In the other, the father disguises himself. In one, the father immediately bestows honor on the son by giving him a ring and a robe and a party. In the other, the father keeps distance for 20 years.
Do you believe that this story that Jesus tells about God is true?
Genesis 3: Where are you?
There's another ancient story that the Israelites told about God and people. It goes back 4,000 years, and we find it in the book of Genesis, chapter 3. And it goes like this:
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals that the Lord God had made. And the serpent said to the woman, "Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden?" The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say you must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die." "You will not certainly die," the serpent said to the woman, "for God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took it and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was right there with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord among the trees. But God called to them, "Where are you?" The man answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid."
Did you catch the amazing part of this story? Adam and Eve just messed up royally. They rejected God's word for the word of a serpent. They assumed the worst out of God, that he did not have their best at heart. They sinned, messed up, screwed up, failed. And what did God do? He showed up. He arrived. He came. He came looking for Adam and Eve and said those words which reverberate throughout history: "Where are you?"
The God who shows up
Some of us grew up with a view of God that went something like this: God made humans. Humans sinned. God wished that he could love humans, but couldn't stand to be in their presence anymore because of sin. So God sent Jesus to bear our sin. And when we've cleaned up our act enough, we can finally become Christians. And now, finally, God can spend time with us.
Now, some of this is true. There's a nugget of truth in this. And some of us look at this and think, "Well, what's wrong with that?" But I've got news for you: this is not the God that Scripture talks about.
When Adam and Eve sinned, God came to the garden and asked, "Where are you?" When Moses ran away from Egypt, God showed up in a burning bush. When Israel was still enslaved, God redeemed them. When Israel lost all hope, God parted the Red Sea. When David was caught in idolatry, God sent his prophet. When Judah was caught up in idolatry, God sent his prophets. When we were still sinners, enemies of God, the Father sent the Son to show us what love looks like. While the prodigal was still a long ways off, the Father came running.
Do you believe that this story that Jesus tells about God is true? Because let's get this straight. John Walton says, "Sin doesn't change God's ability to have relationship with us. It wrecks our ability to have relationship with him." Sin isn't just some arbitrary rules that God made so he could get angry at us. Sin is and always will be what's worst for us. In philosophical terms, there is no possible universe or set of conditions in which sin is good for you. Because we were created to glory in God's glory, to take pleasure in God's pleasure, to be loved by God's love. And when we wreck that relationship, it's bad for us.
Friends, brothers, and sisters, I firmly believe that God is chasing after each one of you. He loves you. He desires the best for you. And he wants you to experience true and holy happiness.
The American gospel versus good news
Last week, we discussed the American gospel. Work hard. Do the right things. Make your own luck. Rely on God only when absolutely necessary. Believe anything is possible because you exist to feel good. But that is not good news. That all relies on me. And I am prone to wander and fail.
This is good news. This is good news:
For it is by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not from yourselves; it is a gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Now this is good news. It is not hard work; salvation is a gift, it is grace. It is not "make your own luck"; it is God is on your side, he is with you, have faith in something other than yourself. It is not "believe in yourself so you can get happy"; it is you exist for something larger than yourself.
But this all depends on our ability to say, "I can't do this on my own." As long as you think you can be happy, find success, find meaning in life all by yourself without relying on anyone or anything, then nothing will change. But once you realize that you can depend on someone else, on God, that's when things can change.
The 30-day wager
This is why we want to encourage everyone to take part in the 30-day wager. In our book that we're using this summer, Finding Your Way Back to God, in the last section there is a section called the 30-day wager, and the logic behind it is basically this. Maybe you're right. Maybe there is no God. Maybe there's no one that cares about you, no God that created anything, no God that loves you. But what if you're wrong? Wouldn't it be worth it to find out if that God exists?
The authors of Finding Your Way put it like this: "God wants to be found by you more than you want to find him. That's why we can promise that if you seek him with an open heart and an open mind, you will find him. He'll make himself known to you." And the authors can be so bold to declare this because that is what Scripture says.
And so, basically, this is what the 30-day wager is: Take 15 minutes a day. Reflect on a simple question that comes from Scripture. Record some thoughts. And pray one of five simple prayers. And so we want to encourage everyone at Good News to take part in this, that we all together would be finding our way back to God.
Now, many of you are thinking, "Oh, I know God already. I'm good, thank you." But I still want to encourage you to do this, because as far as I can tell, I don't think any one of us is quite perfect yet—no offense. And so maybe even if you know God, you know Jesus, you're acquainted with the Holy Spirit, it would behoove us to maybe take some steps closer to this God who is still reaching out for us.
The five awakenings
And so, over the month of July, we're going to take these 30 days and pray these prayers together. Find and search for God who is searching for us, together.
For July 1 through 6, it's the awakening to longing: there's got to be more to life than this. And the prayer: "God, if you are real, make yourself real to me. Awaken in me the ability to see that you are what is missing from my life." Because all of us, no matter who we are, have chunks that we have tried to replace with things that are not God. Are we willing to let those things go?
July 7th through 12th, the awakening to regret: "God, if you are real, make yourself real to me. Awaken in me the possibility that with you I could start over again." Because all of us have things in our lives that we wish we could start over again.
July 13th through 18th, the awakening to help: we can't do this on our own. "God, if you are real, make yourself real to me. Awaken in me the willingness to turn toward you for help." Because all of us have turned to things other than God for help.
The awakening to love, July 19th through 24th: "God, if you are real, make yourself real to me. Awaken in me the awareness that I am your unconditionally loved child." Because all of us, at one time or another, have thought God's love for us was filled with conditions.
And an awakening to life, the last part of July: "God, if you are real, make yourself real to me. Awaken in me the confidence that I can live a brand new life."
And so, what I and Pastor John, the staff and the elders and the leadership of Good News are challenging each and every one of us to do is to take on this wager. To be willing to say, "God, if you're real, make yourself real to me." To assume that even if you know God already, that you can know him better. That you can open up yourselves to allow him to know you better. Because, friends, God is chasing after you with love and compassion, and he yearns to wrap his arms around you, to show you what a new life of love could be.
