The Lost Ones - Part 7 | The Waste, The Work, The Worship
Opening Illustration: The Bank of Time
Imagine there is a bank that credits your account each morning with $86,400. It carries over no balance from day to day. Every evening, it deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to use.
What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course.
Each of us has such a bank. Its name is TIME.
Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off as lost whatever you have failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft. Each day a new account opens for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day. If you fail to use the day's deposits, the loss is yours. There is no going back. There is no drawing against "tomorrow."
You must live in the present on today's deposits. Invest it to get the utmost in health, happiness, and success.
The clock is running. Make the most of today. Treasure every moment that you have - and remember that time waits for no one.
- Author Unknown
Main Text: Luke 15:11-32 (AMP) | The Prodigal Son
Today we see Jesus telling a story about us. All of us, in some shape or fashion, have been lost sons and daughters that God had to go after.
Prodigal primarily means being recklessly extravagant, wastefully lavish - spending money and resources without thought of the future.
Whenever Jesus introduces a parable, He does so purposefully. Here, He is answering the criticism that He welcomes sinners - just as He states in Luke 19:10:
"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost."
- Luke 19:10
The Younger Son: The Waste
"A certain man had two sons."
- Luke 15:11 (AMP)
The focus tightens immediately: two sons, two paths, two responses to the same father. Both need grace.
"The younger of them [inappropriately] said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the property that falls to me.' So he divided the estate between them."
- Luke 15:12 (AMP)
His demand parallels humanity's voice in Eden - seizing independence rather than trusting the Father's timing. "My share" exposes entitlement. The father's silent allowance reflects the cost of human choice.
Scripture warns about this:
"An inheritance obtained too early in life is not a blessing in the end."
- Proverbs 20:21 (NLT)
"A few days later, the younger son gathered together everything [that he had] and traveled to a distant country, and there he wasted his fortune in reckless and immoral living. Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to do without and be in need."
- Luke 15:13-14 (AMP)
God often uses external circumstances to expose internal need. Famine throughout Scripture is a call to repentance, not merely a natural disaster.
- In Genesis 41:54, famine drove nations to Joseph - and ultimately to God's provision.
- In Ruth 1:1, famine forced Naomi's family to Moab, setting the stage for redemption.
- In Amos 4:6, God says: "I gave you empty stomachs in every city and lack of bread in every town, yet you have not returned to Me."
Money runs from mismanagement. Money runs to management.
"So he went and forced himself on one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs."
- Luke 15:15 (AMP)
He is no longer an heir but a hireling - exchanging sonship for servitude.
"He would have gladly eaten the [carob] pods that the pigs were eating [but they could not satisfy his hunger], and no one was giving anything to him."
- Luke 15:16 (AMP)
Sin never delivers what it promises. It always leaves a person longing. Carob pods were cheap fodder for livestock - never meant for human consumption. When you are out of position, don't be shocked when your diet changes. Things you thought you would never do. People you thought you would never hang out with. Things you thought you would never eat.
The Turning Point: Coming to His Senses
"But when he [finally] came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough food, while I am dying here of hunger!'"
- Luke 15:17 (AMP)
Four truths live in this moment:
- God often permits consequences to run their course before the breakthrough comes.
- True repentance always begins inside before it shows outside.
- Desperation often becomes the doorway to deliverance.
- The pit provides proper perspective - producing power.
"I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight.'"
- Luke 15:18 (AMP)
Sin is first vertical - an offense against God's holiness. Then horizontal - damage done to those around us.
"I am no longer worthy to be called your son; [just] treat me like one of your hired men."
- Luke 15:19 (AMP)
Recognizing he has forfeited every privilege, the son stops demanding rights. He does not negotiate terms. He submits.
The Father's Response: The Worship
"So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him."
- Luke 15:20 (AMP)
God searches long before the sinner senses His nearness:
"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
- Romans 5:8
Distance does not intimidate divine grace. Isaiah 59:1 reminds us, "Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save."
The father does not wait to evaluate the son's speech first. Mercy leads. Judgment follows. The embrace signals full acceptance before a word is spoken.
"And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'"
- Luke 15:21 (AMP)
No excuses appear.
"But the father said to his servants, 'Quickly bring out the best robe [for the guest of honor] and put it on him; and give him a ring for his hand, and sandals for his feet.'"
- Luke 15:22 (AMP)
Look at what the father does - and what each action means:
- "Bring the best robe" - full acceptance, covering before cleansing. Grace precedes works.
- "Put a ring on his finger" - restored authority and family status. Sonship sealed.
- "Sandals on his feet" - a distinction between son and servant. Slaves went barefoot.
The father meets every need - robe for covering, ring for belonging, sandals for the journey.
"And bring the fattened calf and slaughter it, and let us [invite everyone and] feast and celebrate; for this son of mine was [as good as] dead and is alive again; he was lost and has been found.' So they began to celebrate."
- Luke 15:23-24 (AMP)
In first-century households, a specially fed calf was reserved for the most important occasions. The father's command pictures God's readiness to pour out His very best. From famine to feasting. The father claims the prodigal openly, even after rebellion.
The Older Son: The Work Without the Heart
"Now his older son was in the field; and when he returned and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. So he summoned one of the servants and began asking what this [celebration] meant. And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.'"
- Luke 15:25-27 (AMP)
God's heart is always for reconciliation - He "desires everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9).
"But the elder brother became angry and deeply resentful and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him."
- Luke 15:28 (AMP)
The son's anger exposes a heart untouched by the compassion that moved his father. His refusal breaks fellowship with his family during the celebration - illustrating how self-righteousness isolates:
"He who [willfully] separates himself [from God and man] seeks his own desire, He quarrels against all sound wisdom."
- Proverbs 18:1 (AMP)
The father does not shame or disown him. He lowers himself to meet the son where he stands - embodying the Shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine.
"But he said to his father, 'Look! These many years I have served you, and I have never neglected or disobeyed your command. Yet you have never given me [so much as] a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends.'"
- Luke 15:29 (AMP)
Three revealing things about the older son:
- Proximity to the father's house does not guarantee fellowship with the father's heart.
- He defines the relationship by labor, not love.
- He measures worth by longevity rather than intimacy - forgetting that every year in the father's house was already grace.
"'But when this [other] son of yours arrived, who has devoured your estate with immoral women, you slaughtered that fattened calf for him!' The father said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.'"
- Luke 15:30-31 (AMP)
The father addresses the elder brother with an intimate, family term: "Son." Presence is emphasized before possessions. The elder brother has enjoyed unbroken fellowship with the father all along.
"You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore."
- Psalm 16:11 (AMP)
Familiarity can dull gratitude. This verse calls us to rediscover joy in simply abiding with the Father:
"If you remain in Me and My words remain in you [that is, if we are vitally united and My message lives in your heart], ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you."
- John 15:7 (AMP)
Closing Illustration: A Thousand Marbles
There was an old ham radio operator named Jack Parker who had a habit every Saturday morning of talking to other operators across the country. One morning, he said something that changed the way a younger man thought about time forever.
"The average person lives to about 75 years old. Multiply 75 by 52 - that's 3,900 Saturdays in an average lifetime. I didn't think about this until I was 55. By then I had already used up more than 2,800 of them. That meant I had about 1,000 left.
So I went to a toy store and bought every marble they had. I counted out 1,000 of them and put them in a large glass jar. Every Saturday since then, I've taken one marble out and thrown it away. Watching those marbles disappear made it very clear that time was running out - and that I needed to prioritize what matters.
This morning I took the last marble out of that jar. If I get to see next Saturday, I'll have been blessed with a little extra time. We could all use a little more time. Think about it."
The listener who heard that broadcast walked back into his house, kissed his wife good morning, and said, "Get up, sweetheart. Let's grab the kids and go out for breakfast."
She looked at him and asked, "What's gotten into you?"
"Nothing really," he said. "It's been a while since we spent a Saturday together. And oh yeah - we need to stop by the toy store too. I need to get some marbles."
- Author Unknown
3 Key Points
1. Unconditional Forgiveness The father ran to his son while he was still far off - before a single word of apology was spoken. God's forgiveness is not earned by performance. It is given freely, fully, and immediately to those who turn and come home.
2. The Power of Humility and Repentance The son's restoration did not begin when he arrived home. It began the moment he came to his senses and said, "I will get up." Repentance is the turning point. It is the doorway from the pigpen to the party.
3. The Danger of Self-Righteousness The older son served faithfully for years but missed the joy of what was right in front of him. Service without love becomes ledger-keeping. Obedience without relationship becomes bitterness. Don't be the one who was always home but never really came in.
Discussion Questions
- The Bank of Time - The opening illustration compared time to a daily deposit of 86,400 seconds. If you honestly evaluated how you spent last week, what would your "withdrawals" reveal about your priorities? What is one area where you want to invest more intentionally?
- The Far Country - The prodigal son ended up in a place far from where he was designed to be - feeding pigs and longing for scraps. Have you ever found yourself in a "far country" - a season of life where you were out of position spiritually, relationally, or morally? What did it take for you to "come to your senses"?
- The Father's Run - The father saw his son while he was still "a long way off" and ran to meet him. What does this picture of God tell you about how He views you in your worst moments? How does this challenge the way you think about coming back to God after failure?
- The Robe, the Ring, and the Sandals - The father restored his son's identity before the son even had a chance to clean himself up. In what areas of your life are you still trying to clean yourself up before you come to God? What would it look like to receive grace rather than earn it?
- The Older Son's Anger - The older brother was in the field working faithfully, yet he was angry, resentful, and refused to celebrate. Is it possible to be physically close to God's house but distant from God's heart? Where might duty, comparison, or bitterness be robbing you of joy in your relationship with the Father?