Good Afternoon! This is Terry Pursley writing this blog because Cindy was unable to attend the "Prodigal God" discussion session this past (July 10, 2011) Sunday and she asked me to take on the task. Therefore; if you do not like the way this blog edition is produced you should blame Cindy because 1) she failed to attend the class and 2) and her poor judgement in selecting her replacement!
This week's discussion of the "Prodigal God" was very interesting with numerous people joining in on the discussion. The theme of both the worship service sermon as well as the discussion session was "He Refused to Go In" and related to the situation where, per the parable, the elder son is standing outside the room wherein the father is hosting a party for his returned Younger son, but the Elder son is mad and debating whether he will attend the party or stay away as a means of protesting his Father's actions.
The discussion group initially focused on how important "possessions" where to both sons and how easy it was for the sons, and us, to focus on our possessions. The Elder son is clearly upset by the fact he is losing some of his promised possessions because in essence the Father is giving a part of them to the returned Younger son. This is extremely irksome to the Elder son because in his mind he has earned, by his hard work, the "right" to receive these possessions whereas the Younger son has simply squandered away the possessions the Father had previously given to him. Both sons were therefore more focused on the possessions rather than the relationship with their Father.
The Discussion Group then asked the question - How do we, as modern day Christian value our possessions relative to our relationship with Christ? Do we value our possessions over our relationship with Christ, or do we value our relationship with Christ over our possessions? The Discussion Group generally agreed we all struggle with this "possession vs Christ" issue and is indeed a part of our lives we need to improve upon.
It was pointed out on page 43 of the book "The Prodigal God" the author Timothy Keller summarizes a key issue with respect to sin and the parable of the Prodigal Son. In summary Keller says "...sin is not just breaking the rules, it is putting yourself in the place of God as Savior, Lord, and Judge...." In the parable, both sons, as a result of their desire for possessions, proceeded to place their judgement above that of their Father and began to pursue courses of action to accomplish their own selfish judgement rather than follow the judgement of their Father. That is what Keller is stating sin is. The Elder son stands outside the party refusing to come in even though his Father has invited him in. The Elder son is sinning, not because he is standing outside the room, but because he is refusing to obey his Father. Similarly in our own lives, acquiring and enjoying possessions is not a sin, but if we do so in any specific instance in direct violation of our heavenly Father's instructions - then we sin. The Elder brother wanted what he determined was his "birth right" because in his mind "he had earned them" and the Elder brother was unable to understand that all of the possessions came from his Father - out of the Father's Grace.
When we as modern day Christians can stand outside our Father's door and agree to enter into his presence on His terms we will find an inner peace that will allow us to reach out to others in the Love of Christ. Just like the two brothers of the parable, we all are at times lost and the parable tells us when we find ourselves in this situation we should simply listen to our Father and joyfully accept his instructions for our lives.
I hope you enjoy this summary and I encourage everyone to come join us to share by both speaking and listening to the deeper meanings of this great parable. Until then -
Have a Great Day and Enjoy Life!
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