Sermon Tone Analysis

Aspire:

Come as You Are

Jeff Jones, Senior Pastor

January 8~/10, 2009

Luke 15: 1-32

 

Happy New Year everybody!

For those of you who are a committed part of the Chase Oaks family, I can promise you that 2010 will be quite a ride, a very eventful year around here, and I couldn’t be more excited heading into it.

I’m also excited today because we are starting a new series, /Aspire,/ built around our most significant aspirations.

All of us aspire to something, multiple things.

This time of year many of us would aspire to lose some weight, get in shape—maybe actually start to use that fitness equipment we bought a couple of years ago, or maybe buy some, join the gym, or actually use the membership we already have.

Some maybe want to learn a language, improve a golf swing or tennis game, maybe travel somewhere you’ve always wanted to go.

Some, a relative few, aspire to a national championship (comment about this based on results).

Most of us around here can agree on the aspiration to a Super Bowl for the boys.

We all have aspirations, for significance, for career, for relationships, but the most significant is the one we want to cover in this series, the aspiration to connect to God, and find significance and meaning in Him…the aspiration to grow closer to our creator, to be more like him, to be used by him to make a difference in this world.

Since we are all sitting in a church service, I can probably assume that most of us are here because of that larger aspiration.

Sure, some of you were dragged here, or guilted here, but even if that’s true, in the deepest part of us is a longing for something bigger, for a transcendent connection, for God.

The sad truth is though that most of us try to satisfy that in all the wrong ways, which means it will never happen.

We have the aspiration but keep it in the aspiration category because our approach is all wrong.

It’s like me with one of my lower aspirations, learning a decent and repeatable golf swing.

Should be easy, but I can’t get there.

Yet, the truth is my approach will never get me there.

I just keep practicing my swing flaws, reinforcing my mistakes.

I could hit a million balls but that just means I’m getting better and what I do wrong.

My approach will never get me there.

The same is true in the bigger search for God, for a deepening connection to him.

Most find that aspiration elusive, even if you begin a relationship with him, the idea of a rich and vibrant connection to God seems like a reality for someone else…kind of like a good golf swing for me.

I assume it’s only for other people.

So, today we are going to hear from God himself.

When Jesus came to this planet, he told a story that is one of the best known in all the Bible but often misunderstood.

And in this story we find ourselves, and the reason why our biggest aspiration stays in the aspiration category.

In the story we see the two most common approaches to God, and both of them are dead ends.

All of us tend to tilt one of these ways or the other, so let’s bring our aspiration and here what Jesus says about it.

Turn with me in the Bible to Luke 15.

The story of the two dead end approaches to God is a story of two brothers, both of whom are lost at the beginning of the story.

Many of us know this as the story of the prodigal son, but it is actually a story about a father and two sons.

To understand the story, we have to set it in context…so let’s read

 

Slide: ______________ ) Luke 15:1-2

 

/Now the tax collectors and ‘sinners’ were all gathering around to hear him.

But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, ‘This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.’/

The Pharisees prided themselves as the best of the best when it came to obeying the laws of God.

They were the religious leaders and people who were regarded as being very good at being good.

Alongside them listening to Jesus were tax collectors and ‘sinners,’ people who were not good at being good.

These were swindlers and prostitutes, not the kind of people good people are supposed to hang around.

So, Jesus tells this story that illustrates both groups that are approaching Jesus, in the story about these two brothers, the older one and the younger one.

The younger one you could call the bad boy and the older one the good boy.

As we’ll see, both boys are lost boys—only one realized it.

As we tell the story, consider which one you are most like.

Jesus begins by emphasizing the younger brother, the one who was not good at being good.

Slide: _________________ ) Luke 15:11-12

/ /

/There was a man who had two sons.

The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’

So he divided his property between them./

The younger son does something unthinkable in that culture.

He asks for his share of the estate before his dad is dead.

He’s basically saying, “I don’t want you, I just want your money.”

What he would have gotten would have been 1~/3 of the estate, because that’s the way it worked back then.

The older son would have gotten 2~/3 and the younger 1~/3.

He decides he wants his portion, the 1~/3 now.

To that request, most fathers would have thrown the kid out, disowned him.

Anyone listening to the story would have expected that to come next—but not with this father.

He simply honors the request, and gives the 1~/3 to his son.

The story continues:

 

Slide: _________________ ) Luke 15:13

 

/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 /(eating twinkies for breakfast and that kind of thing).

He spends all his money, and finds himself destitute and homeless.

He’s only able to find one job, the worst job a Jewish person could imagine, a job taking care of pigs.

Even though he is feeding pigs, he has no food for himself, and he’s starving to death.

He’s penniless and homeless and desperate.

But then the story says:

 

Slide: _________________ ) Luke 15:17-20a

/ /

/When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and 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 men.’

So he got up and went to his father.

/

 

He comes up with a plan, a way to approach his dad.

He knows he’s blown the whole son thing and is disowned.

It would be unthinkable for that to change.

He’s way unworthy for that, but his dad is a gracious man, and maybe his dad would allow him to be one of the hired field workers.

That would be a lot of grace, but it’s worth a shot.

So, he walks back to his dad rehearsing his little speech, knowing how unworthy he is of any thing.

Probably many times he considered turning around, but he keeps walking.

Slide: _________________ ) Luke 15:20b-c

 

/But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him./

That was not expected!

Patriarchs didn’t run.

They had this big fancy robes that showed their standing.

To run, you’d have to cinch them up in your hands between your legs and look very undignified.

But this dad didn’t care.

He had been looking for his son to come back, every day hoping against hope.

The son starts his little speech about maybe he could be a hired hand, and the father ignores the speech.

He commands his servants to bring out the best robe, a signet ring, which was the equivalent of the family credit card, and shoes for his feet.

He tells them to kill the fattened calf and call everyone they know for a party.

He says,

 

Slide: _________________ ) Luke 15:23b-24

 

“/Let’s have a feast and celebrate.

For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’

So they began to celebrate.

/

 

What did he call him?

Son!

The robe, sandals, and ring were all about restoring him to full sonship.