27 November Introduction One day, I called my father and asked him, “Hey dad, what will you do if I wasted all the money that you have given me in Australia?” My father said to me, “I will kill you if you do so.” State Point Father gives the son what he doesn’t deserve. Show Point 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. (v.20) And the father said to his servants; “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. (v.22-23) Explain Point At the beginning of this story, the younger son asked his father to give him his share of the estate. What I feel from it is this; the son doesn’t want to have a relationship with his father. He doesn’t care about his father. The only thing he wants and cares is money. After he got his share, he left home and he wasted all his money in another place. He is working there for a while. And then he came to his senses and he went home. If you are the father, what will you do? My dad will kill me. For me, I will at least give him some punishments because he deserves it. What did the father do to his son in this story? (v.20, 22, 23) The father loved his son so much, right? He gave his son what he doesn’t deserve. Let me tell you another story. Illustrate Point There was an international student like you and me. However, he didn’t put a lot of time on his study like me. Mostly he spent his time in casino. He loves gambling. He wasted money that given by his parent. He will only call to his parents when he doesn’t have enough money. His parents worried about him. They don’t understand why their son will use a lot of money as a student. One day, the son wasted all his money in casino again, this time, he met some bad people and borrowed a large amount of money from them. Of course, he had to return but he didn’t have enough money to return. He was ashamed. He felt guilty. He was struggling and he worried for a long time. At last, he called his father and told him everything. His father said to him, “Come home and I will fix the problem for you.” Apply Point Do you want to have a father like this? A father that will forgive every mistake that we make. A father that will give the best things to us even we do not deserve it. Conclusion Tonight let me tell you this: You have a father like this too!! He doesn’t care what mistakes you have made before. The only thing he wants from you is to return to him. He is heavenly father, God. But how do you treat God? Will you just only enjoy the thing that God has given to you? Will you only seek for God when you are in trouble or you want something from him? Did you ever think to have relationship with him? Everyone who is here tonight, let me encourage you: Come home! Come and know God! You will never know how much he loves you if you don’t come to know him. Like the younger son in this story, if he didn’t make the decision to go home, he will still be feeding pigs in a farm. He will never know that his father loves him so much. The thing that we deserve from God is Death but luckily God is like the father in this story. He gives us what we don’t deserve. He loves us so much. How much does God love us? In Roman 5:8, it says “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” This is God’s love. He fixed the problem by dying on the cross for us. God is always there and waiting for us to come home and have relationship with him. Return to him and you will know how much he loves you. |