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| Getting Out Of the Muck August 1, 2010
Luke 15: 11-24 11And he said, A certain man had two sons: 12And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. 13And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. 14And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. 15And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. 17And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, 19And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. 20And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. 21And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. 22But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: 23And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: 24For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. I think everyone here knows what it’s like to end up where the prodigal son did BEFORE he went back to his father. The Pig Pen. Maybe we’ve never ended up in a literal pig pen covered in pig muck, but we probably all know what it’s like to go through trials or bad situations that leave us feeling like we are out of control and covered in all the muck the world can throw at us. Some pig pens can look very nice! James 5: 1-3,5 1 Go to now, you rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come on you. 2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver is corroded; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. You have heaped treasure together for the last days. 5 You have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; you have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. . What is a pig pen? (Spiritual) 1. Places where we are FAR away from God. (v 13; 24) 2. Where we are not in a right relationship to God and others. (v 24) 3. Where God does not want us to be. (v 13) 4. Where we do things God doesn’t want us to do. (v 13) 5. Surrounded by compromise because we feel we have no choice. (v 15) How do we end up in these PIG PENS? a. We don’t think God wants us to have fun. ( example: I want to have fun first and then become a Christian) b. We think we know what’s truly best for us. --- I know what I need to make me happy. c. God cares more about rules than He does me. (Don’t feel valued) d. I want to be my own boss--- no one telling me what I have to do--- including God. ? HOW DO WE GET OUT OF THE PIG PEN? I. HE TOOK PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR HIS OWN CHOICES ( v 17) He looked at where he was and how he got there. I HAVE SINNED. What he had done to contribute to the problem. What gets us into trouble? a. When we sin against God. b. When we sin against others. c. When others lead us wrong. ( riotous living-- others ) II. HE NEEDED TO GO BACK AND FACE WHAT HE RAN AWAY FROM OR GET STARTED IN A NEW DIRECTION. ( v 18) In some cases we need to go back and face what it is we run from. We need to face what it is that causes us to keep running. III. HE WAS WILLING TO CHANGE WHO HE WAS. ( v 19) He was not going back to be the same person he was when he left. Why we must be born again. Put new wine into new bottles. GOING BACK TO THE SAME HOUSE--- SAME FATHER. IF HE DIDN’T CHANGE, NOTHING WOULD CHANGE. IV. HE WAS COMMITTED TO DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY. ( v 19 ) He was going to do things differently. --- a different way of thinking Lots of people want change, but they don’t want to do things differently. V. HE WAS WILLING TO BE WHO GOD WANTED HIM TO BE. ( v 24) God wanted him to be His son. Difference in a hired servant and a son. RELATIONSHIP A hired servant has to earn favor and is measured in terms of works. |