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The Forgotten Prodigal Son | Warren Wiersbe Sermons
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[Music]
you are listening to the teaching and
preaching of Dr Warren weby this message
was recorded while he served as pastor
of Calvary Baptist Church in Covington
Kentucky or the Moody Church in Chicago
Illinois for additional resources please
visit tofit you.com that's the number
two p r o p h tu.com and now Dr Warren [Music]
[Music]
weby for several Sunday evenings now we
have been looking at the very familiar
parable of the prodigal son found in
Luke 15 beginning at verse
11 our Lord is speaking and he said a
certain man had two
sons and 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 and not many days after after
that the younger son gathered all
together and took his journey into a far
country and there wasted his substance
with riotous
living and when he had spent all there
arose a mighty famine in that land and
he began to be in
want and he went and joined himself to a
citizen of that country and he sent him
into his fields to feed
swine and he would Fain have filled his
belly with the husks that the swine did
to eat and no man gave unto
him and when he came to himself he said
how many of my father's hired servants
have bread enough and Des spair and I
perish with Hunger I will arise and go
to my father and will say unto him
father I have sinned against heaven and
before thee and I'm no more worthy to be
called thy son make me as one of thy highed
highed
servants and 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 and 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 but the father said to
his servants bring forth the best robe
put it on him and put a ring on his hand
and shoes on his feet and bring the
fatted calf and kill it and let us eat
and be merry for this my son was dead
and is alive again he was lost and is
merry now as you read this story you are
confronted with the fact that actually
there are three
sons involved in in the
story there is the younger
son and there is the older son he's
25-32 and there is the Eternal
son Jesus Christ who was telling the
story it doesn't cost us a great deal to
tell a story I'm not talking about
telling a lie that always costs I mean
simply telling a story mothers and
fathers sit down with their younger
children and tell them a story doesn't
cost anything these stories have been
passed down from generation to
generation it cost Jesus Christ
something to tell this
story for when he was telling this story
he was revealing what he had to do to
make this story
possible you see the greatest truth that
we can learn is truth about Jesus
Christ all Bible knowledge focuses on
Christ Beyond The Sacred page I seek
thee Lord my spirit pants for thee thou Living
Living
Word it's tragic that we waste so much
time that we could be spending learning
more about
Christ I was telling my Sunday school
class this morning that when our lord
Jesus returns and we face him some
Christians are going to be
ashamed Jesus Christ will be a stranger
in some respects to some
people my dear friends 30 seconds after
you see Jesus Christ you will
wish you could live your life all over
again and so will
I then why don't we start living that
way now and one of the most important
things that we can do is to learn more
about him now this parable of the
Prodigal Son teaches us a great deal
about the Lord Jesus Christ and it does
so in a very interesting fashion if
son and compare him with the Lord Jesus
Christ I did not say
contrast I said
compare you'll learn a great deal about
the savior here you see when we contrast
we show how things
differ when we compare we show how they are
are
alike of course immediately Your
Righteous Soul speaks out and says how
could this young man who was such a
picture of wickedness and Rebellion ever
teach us anything about the Lord Jesus
well if you look deeply enough you'll
find that there are a number of
comparisons between the Prodigal Son and
the Lord Jesus that teach us about him
and I think in the end help us to love
him more for
example both of them were beloved of their
their
father the younger son came to his
father and said father give me the
portion of goods that falleth to me now
this man loved his son he loved his son
while he was at home he loved his son
after he left home he loved his son when
the boy came back home the trouble was
this young man didn't realize how much
his father loved him this young man had
to learn the hard way what it meant to
be embraced and kissed and forgiven and
clothed and fed by the love of his
father I suppose there are young people
like that today they take their parents
for granted and never really realize how
much their parents love them both of
these were loved by their father the
prodigal son was beloved by his father
it's too bad he had to learn the hard
way the father loved him so much he even
permitted him to go and have his own
way the father could have constrained
him the father could have bribed him he
didn't he said Son the only way you're
really going to learn how much I love
you is the hard way you could stay here
and learn the easy way but you won't do
it I love you too much to make a robot
out of you I love you too much to wind
you up like a little toy I'll have to
let you have your way but I want you to
know that eventually my love is going to
draw you home that's what drew the boy
back home what did he say he said my
father takes better care of his hired
servants than these people are taking
care of me
you're better off being my father's
hired servant than you are being a son out
out
here you see he awoke to the fact that his
his
father loved him and that's what took
him back home now pause with me and
think about how much God the father
loved his son now when you're witnessing
to unsaved people and you want to
convince them that God loves them you
turn to the Gospel of John and that's a
good place to turn over and over again
in the Gospel of John we're taught about
God's love for a lost world God's love
for Sinners did you ever page through
the Gospel of John and learn how much
God the Father loves his
son you see we don't think about this
when we come to Calvary and we see one
hanging on the tree in agony and blood
we say oh how much God loves me
but we don't pause to think how much he
loves his son that's why the story of
Abraham and Isaac is in the Bible every
father can identify with that story in
Genesis 22 because there is the heart of
a loving father as he places his only
son upon the altar oh what a picture of
Love well turn to John chapter 3
we always read verse 16 God so loved the
world how about verse
35 Jesus says the Father loveth the Son
and hath given all things into his
hand The Prodigal came and said father
give me the portion of goods that
belongs to me now according to the Old
Testament law if a man had two sons the
old son got 2/3 of The Inheritance the
younger son got
one3 but here's Jesus Christ saying my
father loves me so much he has put all
things into my
20 Jesus says for the Father loveth the
Son and showeth him all things that he
himself doeth
you see if the younger son had come to
his father and said father give me my
inheritance and father show me how to
use it show me what I should do with it
that would have been a different story
but he didn't he said give me what
belongs to me and he took off and spent
it the way he wanted to Jesus says my
father loves me and he has put all
things into my hands and more than that
he shows me all the things that he's
doing and so I can take what he G gives
me and use it the way he wants me to use
it how about John 15 here is a remarkable
remarkable
statement John
15:9 as the father hath loved me says
Jesus so have I loved
you now that's a remarkable
statement young lovers have a difficult
time expressing to each other how much
they love each other our songwriters are
making a fortune figuring out new ways
for people to say I love you Jesus
Christ is saying here that he loves us
as much as the father loves him now the prodigal
prodigal
son could not share any
love the tragedy was he loved only
himself but Jesus Christ is saying my
father father loves me he's put all
things into my hands my father loves me
he shows me what he's doing and the love
that he has shown toward me I'm showing
toward you I can understand why God the
father would love God the son God the
son is perfect I can't understand how
God the son could love me as much as God
the Father loves him that just staggers
me how about John
17 verse 2 3 Jesus Christ is praying to
his father and he says that the world
may know that thou has sent me and that
thou Hast loved them as thou Hast loved
me now there it is again the Lord Jesus
loves me as the father loves him and the
father loves me as he has loved the Lord
Jesus now the love that the prodigal son
had was very selfish he wanted what he
wanted and he went out and bought his
friends and bought his popularity and
when he ran out of money he ran out of
friends and his popularity rating
dropped considerably in fact he wasn't
even liked very much by the
pigs but Jesus Christ is saying I love
you as the father loves me and the
father loves you as he has loved me our
whole experience is an experience of
love both of these Sons were loved
greatly beloved of their
father now this makes Calvary much more
meaningful to me when I come to the
cross of Jesus Christ and realize the
love that's there is not a selfish
love the father loves me as he loved his
son the son loves me as the father loved
him both were beloved of their
fathers there's a second comparison
between the Prodigal Son and the Eternal
Son of God and it's this both of them left
left
home now I know the prodigals motives
were wrong he left home for the same
reason many people leave home when
they're young he wanted Freedom he
didn't know what it was but he wanted
Freedom he ended up in bondage he wanted
enjoyment he ended up in sorrow
emptiness he wanted to live and he ended
up dying he wanted to find himself and
he ended up losing himself many kids
have done this it's the going thing
today but our Lord Jesus Christ when he
left home left home with a different motive
motive
altoe he left home that he might go to
the far
country and bring people back with him
now consider with me two amazing facts
number one the home that Jesus left was
far greater than the home that the
prodigal left I don't know much about
this man's home I get the impression
they were rather well-to-do people they
had hired servants they could afford to
kill a fatted calf many Jews couldn't do
that they didn't they didn't have that
kind of wealth his son his older son
worked out in the field they were able
to call in an orchestra and have music
and celebration as you read this story
you sort of get the impression this boy
left a pretty good home they weren't
living in some sh back somewhere they
had things pretty well but I want you to
know that when Jesus left his home to
come to this earth he left a far greater
home it always amazes me to consider
that Jesus Christ was willing to come to
this earth he came into his own his own
received him not the hym writer puts it
out of the ivory
palaces into this world of wo only his
great eternal love made my savior goal I
would suggest a second astounding fact
not only did the Lord Jesus when he left
home leave a greater home behind but
when Jesus came into the far country he
went into a much more difficult
situation now the prodigal son got
exactly what he
deserved when we look at this story we
say it's exactly what you deserve you're
reaping what you've sown you've made
your bed lie in it stewing in your own
grease it's exactly what you ought to
have we can say that cuz it's not
happening to us it's happening to somebody
somebody
else ever stop to think how far away was
the far country that Jesus came to watch
this now he not only came from Heaven to
Earth but he came from Heaven to Earth
to the depths of
hell when Jesus Christ died on the cross
it was as though he visited the very pit
of Hell because on his body was placed
the sin of all the world now don't ask
me to explain it I can't the most
brilliant Theologian in history can't
explain it we have theories we have
explanations we don't really understand
it they stretched out his hands and
nailed him to a cross with one hand he
reached all the way back to Adam the
first sinner with the other hand he
reached all the way down to the end of
time to the last Sinner and somehow
between those two hands he was able to
take upon himself that gigantic burden of
of
sin talk about going to a far
country The Prodigal Son went to a far
country and suffered for his own sins
Jesus came into a far
country and suffered for sins that were
not his own both of them were beloved of
their father both of them left home
there's a third
comparison both of them were
lavish in their spending that's where
the word prodigal comes from the Latin
Vulgate version of the New Testament has
a little note in the margin with the
Latin word prod
which really means lavish or wasteful it
comes from that verse that says he
wasted his substance with riotous living
to be prodigal doesn't mean to leave
home many people have left home and
never been prodigal to be prodigal means
to be wasteful to be extravagant to
waste what you have it means to be
lavish in your spending it can be used
in a good sense or a bad sense for
prodigal did you ever
ever
visit some area in this world where
there were just thousands and thousands of
of
flowers and very few people to look at
them do you know that right now up in
the crevices of some of our highest
mountains our little flowers growing
that nobody's ever going to
see on a clear night in Chicago which
you occasionally happens you can look up
and you can just see all those stars and
then you get dizzy by considering the
fact that Beyond them are trillions more
and Beyond them are zillions more Galaxy
upon Galaxy is all of this really
necessary God the father in creation was
so prodigal he just
spent so lavishly he's decorated this
world with beauty he's decorated the
heavens with Glory well God the son was
prodigal he wasn't prodigal with money
because he didn't have
any Peter had to go catch a fish to pay their
their
taxes Jesus said the foxes have their
dens and the birds have their nest but I
have no place to lay my head he wasn't
carrying any Conrad Hilton or uh Motel
credit cards he just was poor and yet he
was prodigal I mean by that he was
lavish in the way he spent of himself
consider for
example the lowest sinner could come to
him and he'd receive that Sinner and
forgive you didn't have to have a ticket
or an appointment
appointment the
stricken most socially
rejected sick person could come to him
and be
healed a leper could
come Jesus after a synagogue service
went to Peter's house and Peter's
mother-in-law was sick and Jesus raised
her up from her sickness and the word
got around the town that Jesus was there
healing people and everybody waited for
the Sabbath day to end because these
good Orthodox Jews would not want to be
healed in the Sabbath day and as soon as
it was Sundown and Sabbath was over they
came to the door of Peter's house the
whole town met at the door says Mark and
Jesus spent those next hours just
magnificently extravagantly healing
you he met 10 lepers one day and he said
go show yourself to the priests and they
turned and were healed and out of the 10
one came back and said thank
you you see my Lord was very lavish in
his spending especially when he went to the
the
Cross when he went to the Cross he gave
the ultimate in spending now it doesn't
cost me a great deal to hand somebody
some money for a place to sleep or a bit
of food to eat or some clothing to wear
but if you go to someone and say look
I'll give my life for you that's the
ultimate you can't do much more than
that greater love ha no man than this
that a man lay down his life for his
friends and Jesus laid down his life for
his enemies and he gave that
final gift of the spending of
himself you see the prodigal son was
wasteful in sin Jesus was extravagant in
Grace both of them were lavish in their
spending now the prodigal made himself
poor which leads us to our next
Point both of
them became
poor for you know the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ says 2 Corinthians 8:9 that
though he was rich yet for your sakes he
became poor that ye through his poverty
might be rich now there's nothing
nothing difficult about that verse he
was rich he became poor we were poor he
made us rich The Prodigal Son started
off Rich father give me Father gave it
to him the Greek word here uh verse 13
He gathered all together literally means
he turned his Goods into money he took
all of his inheritance and turned it
into money pocketed the money and went
off and wasted the money he started off
rich and became
poor when he got back home again he
became Rich put a ring on his finger put
shoes on his feet let's have a party the
Lord Jesus Christ started out rich
we could just spend the rest of this
week discussing how rich he was before
he came to this
earth The Riches of his glory The Riches
of his power The Riches of his wisdom he
was rich he became poor he did not
become poor to try to build himself a
reputation as the prodal son did he did
not become poor to try to gather around
him a group of cheerleaders saying oh
what a wonderful person as did The
Prodigal Son no the Lord Jesus became
poor because he knew we were
poor he came where I
was poor and he made himself poor for my
sake I'm not talking simply about
poverty of material
things I'm talking about poverty of
spiritual things my Lord Jesus Christ
entered into I don't lose this my Lord
Jesus Christ entered into the tragic
waste of
sin let me go one step further what are
the wages of sin
death and he suffered those wages Now
The Prodigal Son spent everything was
left broke ah but he was able to go back
home again the Lord Jesus Christ spent
everything he had he gave every
everything that he
had not that he just might go home again
but that he might take somebody with him
I've often wondered what happened to the
Friends of the prodigal
son what about those girlfriends he used
to have what about those friends that
used to Crows with him what kind of a
what kind of a crowd did he leave
behind our lord Jesus when he went to
the Cross became poor not that he make
might make other people poor but that he
might make his Rich which leads us to
our fifth
comparison both were beloved of their
father both left home both were lavish
in their spending and both became poor
and both became
servants Now The Prodigal Son never
intended to be a servant he intended to
be a
ruler and he had his money in his
pockets and he headed off for the far
country and said I'm going to be Big Man
on Campus or whatever they said back in
that day I'm going to be Joe college or
whatever they said back in that day I'm
going to be the vi or whatever they
called it back in that day and he was
boy when he hit town something really
hit he was interviewed on the TV
programs and he was interviewed on the
radio programs and he was important till
his money ran out when his money ran out
that was the end he became a servant
actually he was a servant before he left
he was a servant of things things had
gotten a hold of his life somebody has
well said that money is a marvelous
servant but a terrible
master and money had become his master
popularity and reputation and
entertainment and enjoyment and thrills
and Pleasures had become his master and
so he became a slave to thing
he became a slave to people he had to
have these people around him he'd pay
any price to be important he became a
slave to people and he became a slave to
pigs there's a little bit of sarcasm in
this story Jesus is saying the pigs were
in better shape than he because they at
least had someone taking care of them
nobody took care of him they at least
had something to eat he had nothing to
eat you know what our Lord is saying
here now if this shocks you I'm sorry
but it's scriptural Jesus is saying here
that a man out of the will of God is
lower than an
animal you know why we were created
higher than the animals these pigs were
at least fulfilling their purpose in
life by being pigs he wasn't fulfilling
his purpose in life he was meant to be a
son and he became a
servant the Lord Jesus Christ became a servant
servant
one of the most beautiful passages
anywhere in the Old Testament is there
in Isaiah where the prophet Isaiah talks
about Jesus Christ the servant behold my
servant shall deal prudently he says
chapter 53 of Isaiah you have God's
righteous servant going to the Cross
Jesus came as a servant he said to his
disciples the Gentiles like to Lord it
over each other if you have a position
among the Gentiles you Lord it over
people and show how important you are
and you throw your weight around he said
it won't be this way among you if you
want to be great become the servant I am
among you as one who
serves can we ever forget that picture
in the upper room where Jesus laid aside
his outer garments put on a towel got
down on his hand hands and knees and
washed his disciples
feet a
servant and his ultimate Act of service
was on the cross Philippians chapter 2
he humbled himself and became obedient
unto death many people have been
obedient unto death but Paul goes on to
say even the death of the Cross and the
people that Paul was writing to never
could be crucified a Roman citizen could
could not be
crucified and a Roman citizen wouldn't
even talk about
crucifixion and Paul says he became a
servant he became obedient obedient unto
death obedient under the death of the
Cross both of them became servants well
we move on quickly to a sixth
comparison both of them were
forsaken now when the prodigal son was
home he had people taking care of his
father cared for him the servants cared
for him I doubt that his elder brother
did but perhaps at some point he did but
at least the father did his father cared
for him and the father told the servants
take care of my son but you know when
the younger son left home and got
involved in sin he was
forsaken I wish we could somehow
convince people that sin leads to lonely
less and
isolation I watch it here in the city of
Chicago I meet people who are
lonely I don't mean Solitude I enjoy
Solitude there's sometimes when I just
get away and go sit on a park
bench and just just think and pray and
meditate you're all alone the phone's not
not
ringing I enjoy
solitude but nobody enjoys loneliness
when you're lonely you can be in the
middle of a big crowd and still not feel
it you're lonely down inside sin always
leads to loneliness sin leads to being
forsaken this fella had purchased
friends when his purchase price was gone
his friends were gone he had purchased
Thrills when his purchase price was gone
the Thrills were gone everything he
lived on was a substitute you see when
he left home he left the real thing
you'll excuse the term his father had
sincere love for him his father had
sincere care for him his father would
have loved to have showered blessings
upon him but the boy wouldn't let him
and little by little this boy moved into
lonel and isolation and he was forsaken
he admits it how many hired Servants of
my fathers have breed enough in despair
I'm perishing with Hunger no man cared
for him did you notice that no man gave unto
unto
him the Lord Jesus Christ was
forsaken it's interesting as you read
the Gospel of John to see how popular he
is at the beginning he's invited to a wedding
wedding
Feast he's invited to be with the people
5,000 people follow him and he feeds
them and they say let's make him
King and then the numbers start to to
diminish until you get to uh chapter 13
of the Gospel of John and you have Jesus and
and
12 then Judas goes out and you have
Jesus and
11 they go to the garden and you have
Jesus in
three they arrest Jesus the disciples
forsake Him and flee and it's Jesus and
two Peter and John Peter denies him and
goes about to weep John goes away it's
Jesus and the father remember Jesus said
to his disciples all of you are going to
leave me but the father won't leave me
but there on the cross what did Jesus
cry out my God my God why hast Thou forsaken
forsaken
me you see he knew what it was to be
forsaken now hear me God has never
forsaken you I've had people come up to
me with bitterness and say why has God
forsaken me and I've said sir man God
hasn't forsaken you if God forsook you
for one second do you know what would
happen to you you'd die in him we live
and move and have our being God has
son and like the prodigal the Lord Jesus
Christ was forsaken which leads us to
our final
comparison both were welcomed home again
now it's not hard for us to understand
why the prodigal would be welcomed home
technically he could have been killed
according to the Old Testament law a man
had a rebellious wasteful son he could
kill him he could call the Elders of the
city together and say my son is a rebel
and they'd pick up stones and stone
him but the father didn't do that the
whole point of this story is that God
welcomes Sinners who repent and who will
come home again
and so prodigal came home and he was
welcomed in fact everything he was
looking for out in the far country he
found it
home what did he want out there in the
far country well he wanted to have
enjoyment parties he found one at home
he wanted music he found it at home he
wanted clothes put a robe on him put
shoes in his feet he wanted jewelry put
a ring on his finger he wanted to eat
kill the fatted calf everything he was
looking for out in the world of sin he
found back home again when he
repented I wonder what it was like when
the Lord Jesus Christ was welcomed back to
Glory look ye Saints the sight is
glorious see the Man of Sorrows
now oh I tell you what must it have been
like when our Lord Jesus Christ ascended
thing all of the Angelic hosts were
gathered together to sing his
Praises welcoming the son back home
again he came back home not because he'd
run out of
money he'd come back home because his
work was
done you see the prodigal son wanted to
come home to
work make me a servant Jesus Christ
Christ came home because his work was
sovereign for on the cross he said it is
finished in the garden he said father I
have finished the work that you gave me
to do now give me the glory that I had
with you before the world
was when the Prodigal Son came home they
put a ring on his finger a picture of
sunship oh but when Jesus came back back
there was no need to affirm his sunship
he was the son of God from all eternity
when The Prodigal Son came home they put
a robe on him but when Jesus came back
light and you see if Jesus Christ had
not gone home
again nobody could ever go
home but because he went home you can go
home that's why Jesus said I am the
way the truth the life no man comes to
the father but by
me and because the Lord Jesus Christ
went back
home it says to me there is a way of
Salvation there is a fountain filled
with blood drawn from Emmanuel's veins
and I can say to anybody here
tonight if you'll come through Jesus
Christ you'll come to the father and
welcomed this then is The Prodigal
Son as I look at this story and consider
these comparisons and there are many
more I say to myself what a wonderful
savior is Jesus my
Lord a wonderful savior to me
I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus
the Nazarene and wonder how he could love
love
me a sinner condemned
unclean I have to say Amazing
Grace how sweet the sound that saved a
Wretch like
Me what about you have you come to know
Jesus as your savior and if you do know
him him do you really appreciate what he
you heavenly
father thank you that Jesus Christ was
willing to do all of this and more for
us I pray for any here who don't know
the Savior that Lord they'll trust him
they'll come to trust him believe on him
and receive everlasting life thank you
that we have this living way this true
way to
Heaven oh I pray that there will be
those here now who will believe and be
saved and father help those of us who
are believers to love the Lord Jesus
more for it's in his name that we pray
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