Luke 15:11-32

“I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.”

Abraham Lincoln

Jesus’ parable in Luke 15 of the prodigal son tells the story of a grace-filled father, a wayward son, and a resentful brother. Consider the elder brother’s perspective on the departure and return of his younger brother.  Little brother had taken off with his prematurely obtained portion of their father’s estate. Elder brother is angered not by little brother’s return, but by his father’s response to that return. If the father had accepted little brother back on his stated terms of “I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men," elder brother might have thought, “fair enough.” To receive him back as a son—and as a son with honors and privileges—that was too much, it was painfully unfair. The eldest son was not seeing his little brother through the eyes of grace, but through the eyes of justice.  The eldest son’s perspective is  “comparison accounting”: spiritual and moral accounting that is precise and accurate and one-dimensional. It is an accounting that does not allow for another to pay for the price of justice.  It terms for you and I to understand, this philosophy dictates that we become clean before, and without, Calvary.  Comparison accounting records actions but not attitude, deeds but not heart. Debits and credits are made and paid through works alone.  According to the eldest son’s one-dimensional accounting system, it was entirely unjust for his father to show favor to little brother before he had at least “made good” his debt through restitution. Receiving him coolly as a slave would have been just (if not totally denying him). Embracing and giving gifts and celebrating the return of someone with an impossible debt seemed shockingly unjust, weak, and inconsistent. Comparison accounting has never, and will never, make the acquaintance of grace.  God’s accounting is not limited to one dimension: He records action and attitude, deed and heart, works and motivation. In Jesus’ parable, both sons were in the red in their father’s books. The eldest son displayed right actions, but his deeds were motivated by duty not by honor and love: “Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders”. The younger son—in the midst of his wanderings—discovered the connection between rebellion and misery and stumbled upon a truth that the eldest could not comprehend: “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son”. While you and I may be able at times to judge a situation or a brother or sister from the father’s perspective, how often does your grace outweigh your justice?  God operates on a system where His grace overpowers the penalty that should rightfully be paid. To the resentful eldest the father spoke tender truth and showed concern. To the broken youngest the father opened his arms and called for celebration.  Grace rises to greet sincere and sober estimations of our sinfulness.

Matthew 7:7, Luke 11:9

“Paralyze resistance with persistence.”

      Woody Hayes

I just learned a lesson.  It is a powerful lesson and I didn’t read it out of a book, listen to it on a tape, or see it on a DVD.  I learned this lesson from my 2 ½ year old son.  Yes, this 35-year-old preacher that has been in the ministry for 17 years has been reminded of a great principle from a little boy that still has not learned to speak clear English.  It is the lesson of persistence.  He wanted me to help him find his hammer (that dreaded instrument that Papa gave him to pound on everything in the house).  Well, I, in my brilliance as a father, thought that if I distracted him with another toy I would not have remove myself from the lazy-boy to search for the hammer.  Oftentimes, that principle of distraction works, and he goes on to find another of the million or so toys he possesses to play with.  However, at this instance, he WANTS the hammer and will not leave me alone until I find it.  It seems like he can say, “Dad” a thousand times without taking a breath.  I think sometimes it is that way with my heavenly Father.  Sometimes I wonder if He is really hearing me when I pray.  I ask Him to do something or give me something, and it seems like nothing happens.  Didn’t we read in the scriptures above that if I ask, it shall be given?  Could it be that God is just trying to see how serious we really are about the request that we made?  I think sometimes He does what I did with my son (most likely for other reasons, however!!!).  He knows that if He waits for a time that we may find something else to satisfy our supposed need.  However, I believe that if He sees the persistent asking, seeking and knocking of our spirits, that He cannot help but to help us.  If we, as human fathers do for our children when they are persistent, how much does our heavenly Father do when He sees our persistence?  When was the last time you focused on something in prayer until you saw God move in that particular situation?  Maybe He’s just waiting to see how serious you are about receiving what He has for you?  Take some time right now for an inventory on things you may have forgotten you asked God for, and then begin to pursue Him persistently.  Oh, excuse me; I need to find that hammer…

Psalm 130:5

“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under the trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.”

      Sir John Lubbock, Lord Avebury

“…and Father please…

and remember to…

and I need…

and watch over…

and help us with…

…thank you for this quiet time, amen.”

“Child, I missed something.”

“Yes, Father, what did you miss?”

“Where was the ‘quiet’ in this ‘quiet time’?”

“Oh Father, I did it again. I forgot to pause, to rest, to wait, to listen.”

“Understandable Child, you do have a lot on your mind.”

“Father, You’re smirking!”

“Ah, but it’s a love-filled smirk! Remember to add quiet to your quiet time Child.

   Quietness creates a pause that re-aligns your values with My own.

   Quietness realigns your faith and refreshes your peace.

   Quietness frees you from the forceful currents of business and magnetizes your soul to eternity.

   But most of all, quietness gently ushers you closer to Me—which is exactly where I long for you to remain.”

It is at the very moment that I wrote this that my wife had just stated that she needed some quiet time at the end of a long day. Quiet time did not mean closing her up with our 2 and half-year-old son in a room and hoping he decided not to be active for a few minutes. Quiet time was when there were no interruptions, no loud noises and definitely no little boys running around your ankles. All too often when we enter our prayer time, we think of all kinds of things that we want to ask God, and things that demand our attention ravage our brains and we fail to stop and just let God talk. How much time have you spent listening to God? 

How about reading His Word or concentrating on his promises?  Take some time every day to see what God is trying to speak into your spirit and you will be amazed at what God has to say.

DANIEL 4:1-27

“Often the convictions of one generation are the rejects of the next. That does not deny the possibility that, as time goes on, we shall accumulate some body of valid conclusions. But it does mean that we can achieve only by accumulation; that wisdom is to be gained only as we stand upon the shoulders of those who have gone before. Just as in science, we cannot advance except as we take over what we inherit, and in statecraft no generation can safely start at scratch, so personal, basic beliefs must be slowly built from our experience, but also from a study of the experience and conclusions of others.”

      Learned Hand

The hour has come where everything that can be shaken will be shaken.  The winds of the last days are blowing strong, and the bride is about to be united with her groom, Jesus Christ.  It is in these times that the church must take a hold of the convictions that God has produced in our lives.  There are some boundaries and habits that I know the Lord gave to me.  It is those convictions that carry me when the ship of life is tossed about with every wind of the world.  There is no difficulty, no trial or tribulation that can dissuade me of my convictions.  The prophet Daniel faced some tough situations. His unflattering interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream could have cost him his life. One of the Bible’s most popular stories recounts the man’s decision to pray even though the punishment was a one-way trip to the lion’s den. Those hard circumstances arose from Daniel’s own commitment to his convictions. The king might never have known if he had received a false interpretation of his dream. Daniel could have stopped praying, or at least made his daily prayers less public. However, dishonoring God seemed far worse than death. While his convictions often put him in a vise, the kings he served also rewarded his principled life. Today, we have the same choice to live by conviction or preference. Would you be willing to spend some time in a lion’s den for your convictions?  If you lived in a place where it was illegal to worship God, would you?  Are you willing to face the angry teeth of a hungry adversary that desires your demise?  Do other people know you as principled—someone who cannot tolerate dirty jokes or gossip, who refuses to pad his time sheet, and who responds to hurts with forgiveness? This is not an example of a super-saint; this is the God-honoring role believers are called to fulfill every day: we are to know Scripture and consistently model righteousness. Some days, while trying to live out our convictions, we will feel like Daniel facing the lion’s den. Nevertheless, God provides courage. If we are willing to make right choices, our determination will intersect with His divine bravery at just the right moment. The result is a life full of godly influence that will earn these words from our King: “Well done, good and faithful servant”.

Genesis 24:1-14

You are where you are today because you have chosen to be there.”

      Harry Browne

Probably the most asked a question from believers in the world is, “What is God’s will?”  Have you ever been in a place where you knew you were lost, but you couldn’t find the place you were on a map?  When I was in college, several friends went to a wedding in Chicago.  I had my car filled with no one that knew where we were, except that we were in Chicago.  The two other cars whose passengers knew where they were going decided to leave us in the dust.  It wasn’t until we were well into Wisconsin that we figured out that we were lost.  It has been that way in our spiritual lives at times, as well.  We keep walking, and it just seems that everyone and everything has passed you by.  You find yourself buried in a corner giving God ultimatums for direction.  There is a way for you to find what God desires of your life.  The first principle for receiving God’s guidance is knowing God’s Word.  We must have a thorough knowledge of God’s will and purposes to help direct our actions and decisions. That knowledge of God’s will comes primarily from God’s Word. God’s Word reveals God’s plan, principles and purposes. Knowledge of these is essential to even beginning to receive God’s guidance. It is Abraham’s knowledge of God’s word that leads him to make the first step in the right direction in receiving God’s guidance.  The second principle for receiving God’s guidance is commitment to God’s will.  It is one thing to know what God’s will is through His Word and another thing completely to be committed to doing His will without compromise. One of the conditions under which Abraham received God’s providential guidance was his complete commitment to doing God’s will. This story reveals to us that God guides us when we are committed to His will and not our own, no matter how difficult it sometimes is to do God’s will. The third principle for receiving God’s guidance is trusting in God’s Ways.  Trust is absolutely essential if you are to be led by God because you will never maintain your commitment to obeying Him and waiting on Him unless you really trust in Him. You must trust that He will provide everything necessary to fulfill His will for your life in His own way. This is what Abraham did. He trusted God to providentially provide a wife for Isaac from outside of Canaan, even though that was extremely unlikely.

The fourth principle for receiving God’s guidance is to pray for God’s Wisdom.  The servant did not just assume that he would recognize whom God had provided as a wife for Isaac. He prayed for guidance and wisdom.  Do you desire God’s guidance?  It I never too late to begin to learn His Word, commit to His will, trust His ways and pray for His wisdom.  In fact, why not spend some time right now doing just that.