WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.379 So I'm super excited to be here with you because 00:00:02.379 --> 00:00:05.040 I do believe that God wants us to do some great 00:00:05.040 --> 00:00:07.879 work together. But before we can do great work 00:00:07.879 --> 00:00:11.580 together, I think you need to know who I am because 00:00:11.580 --> 00:00:13.759 you can't really work with somebody if you don't 00:00:13.759 --> 00:00:16.620 really know somebody. So I want to tell you a 00:00:16.620 --> 00:00:19.899 little bit about myself. I know today's Father's 00:00:19.899 --> 00:00:22.600 Day, but the message isn't really going to be 00:00:22.600 --> 00:00:27.059 about Father's Day. It is about a father, a heavenly 00:00:27.059 --> 00:00:31.109 one. who changed everything for me. And so that's 00:00:31.109 --> 00:00:33.590 kind of my story. See, I'm a husband to an incredible 00:00:33.590 --> 00:00:37.090 wife named Eliza, who's the reason I think people 00:00:37.090 --> 00:00:40.289 keep me around. She's really awesome. And so 00:00:40.289 --> 00:00:42.789 when I am not so awesome, they just remember 00:00:42.789 --> 00:00:44.270 her, and they're like, okay, we can deal with 00:00:44.270 --> 00:00:48.030 them. I'm the father of two crazy little boys 00:00:48.030 --> 00:00:51.850 that are also awesome, but again, crazy, and 00:00:51.850 --> 00:00:55.549 I'm sure you will hear them plenty. But I'm also 00:00:55.549 --> 00:01:00.479 a man. who was once a boy, who grew up in a home 00:01:00.479 --> 00:01:03.140 where marriage and fatherhood wasn't a present 00:01:03.140 --> 00:01:06.180 reality. It's not something that I knew. And 00:01:06.180 --> 00:01:08.099 I want to share that part of myself with you 00:01:08.099 --> 00:01:11.500 because today's message is about how I found 00:01:11.500 --> 00:01:15.579 a father who would never leave me and who would 00:01:15.579 --> 00:01:20.040 never let me be lost. See, I found a father who 00:01:20.040 --> 00:01:22.920 would eventually mold me into the man, the husband, 00:01:22.959 --> 00:01:24.920 and the father that I want to be. And I say I 00:01:24.920 --> 00:01:26.579 want to be because I'm not there yet, but I hope 00:01:26.579 --> 00:01:29.719 to get there one day. I grew up in a home that 00:01:29.719 --> 00:01:35.060 was, I would say, marked by dysfunction. My background 00:01:35.060 --> 00:01:37.900 deals a lot with addiction and mental illness 00:01:37.900 --> 00:01:41.959 and brokenness. And so that was home for me. 00:01:42.299 --> 00:01:45.700 But somewhere around the age of eight, I decided 00:01:45.700 --> 00:01:47.319 that I was just going to get up and go to church. 00:01:47.840 --> 00:01:51.120 And my aunt had been going to the Church of Christ 00:01:51.120 --> 00:01:53.420 there in town, and it was right across the street 00:01:53.420 --> 00:01:55.500 from our apartment. So I just got up and went 00:01:55.500 --> 00:02:00.040 to church. And before I could leave this place 00:02:00.040 --> 00:02:02.980 that I'd never been before, before I could even 00:02:02.980 --> 00:02:07.319 find my way out the door, I was met with love 00:02:07.319 --> 00:02:13.620 and grace and embrace by people that didn't know 00:02:13.620 --> 00:02:17.770 me, that had no reason to love me. They love 00:02:17.770 --> 00:02:21.590 me. And because of those people, because of the 00:02:21.590 --> 00:02:26.550 way that they accepted me, not for who I was, 00:02:26.569 --> 00:02:30.530 but for who they saw me capable of being, because 00:02:30.530 --> 00:02:34.229 of who they saw God working in and working on, 00:02:34.370 --> 00:02:39.469 I'm here. And so that's me. And I'd love to tell 00:02:39.469 --> 00:02:42.110 you a little more about that story. about my 00:02:42.110 --> 00:02:44.830 story in individual conversations, and maybe 00:02:44.830 --> 00:02:47.870 you'll hear more of it through sermons, but it's 00:02:47.870 --> 00:02:52.229 a home without a father. And so a story about 00:02:52.229 --> 00:02:55.469 a father who is present, who's not just present, 00:02:55.550 --> 00:02:58.530 but who is loving, who is forgiving, who's gracious, 00:02:58.610 --> 00:03:02.330 who's compassionate, who is caring, that's a 00:03:02.330 --> 00:03:05.930 father that I want to know. It's not only a father 00:03:05.930 --> 00:03:07.590 that I want to know, it's a father that I want 00:03:07.590 --> 00:03:10.050 to be. And it's a father that I want to share. 00:03:10.250 --> 00:03:13.009 And so in order to share that, I've got to share 00:03:13.009 --> 00:03:16.509 this story that Jesus tells us in Luke chapter 00:03:16.509 --> 00:03:18.490 15. And so I know we just read part of it, but 00:03:18.490 --> 00:03:21.830 I want to read more of it. And I like to read 00:03:21.830 --> 00:03:24.990 entire passages. I think the scripture is good 00:03:24.990 --> 00:03:27.490 enough on its own. And then for some reason, 00:03:27.530 --> 00:03:29.629 you guys need somebody like me to kind of talk 00:03:29.629 --> 00:03:31.770 to you about what the scripture says. So I'm 00:03:31.770 --> 00:03:32.889 going to do that, but we're going to read the 00:03:32.889 --> 00:03:34.969 scripture first. And so we find ourselves in 00:03:34.969 --> 00:03:38.210 Luke chapter 15, verses 11 through 24. And this 00:03:38.210 --> 00:03:40.469 is the story of the prodigal son. And if you've 00:03:40.469 --> 00:03:41.949 been in church for a long time, you've heard 00:03:41.949 --> 00:03:43.789 it. But I'm not going to assume that you have. 00:03:44.229 --> 00:03:45.949 Because maybe there's somebody out here who's 00:03:45.949 --> 00:03:47.710 never heard this story before. And you need this 00:03:47.710 --> 00:03:50.009 message of hope. And so I'll read it. It'll be 00:03:50.009 --> 00:03:52.750 on the screen. You can read along with me. There 00:03:52.750 --> 00:03:56.289 was a man who had two sons. And the younger of 00:03:56.289 --> 00:03:58.150 them said to his father, Father, give me the 00:03:58.150 --> 00:04:00.430 share of property that is coming to me. And he 00:04:00.430 --> 00:04:03.439 divided his property between them. Not many days 00:04:03.439 --> 00:04:05.860 later, the younger son gathered all he had and 00:04:05.860 --> 00:04:08.439 took a journey into a far country. And there 00:04:08.439 --> 00:04:10.800 he squandered his property and reckless living. 00:04:11.199 --> 00:04:13.780 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine 00:04:13.780 --> 00:04:16.240 arose in that country, and he began to be in 00:04:16.240 --> 00:04:19.819 need. So he went and hired himself out to one 00:04:19.819 --> 00:04:21.899 of the citizens of that country who sent him 00:04:21.899 --> 00:04:25.199 into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing 00:04:25.199 --> 00:04:28.100 to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and 00:04:28.100 --> 00:04:31.290 no one gave him anything. But when he came to 00:04:31.290 --> 00:04:33.689 himself, he said, how many of my father's hired 00:04:33.689 --> 00:04:37.149 servants have more than enough bread that I perish 00:04:37.149 --> 00:04:41.410 here with hunger? I will arise and go to my father 00:04:41.410 --> 00:04:43.230 and I'll say to him, Father, I've sinned against 00:04:43.230 --> 00:04:45.709 heaven. And before you, I am no longer worthy 00:04:45.709 --> 00:04:48.689 to be called your son. Treat me as one of your 00:04:48.689 --> 00:04:52.930 hired servants. And he arose and he came to his 00:04:52.930 --> 00:04:55.769 father. But while he was still a long way off, 00:04:55.829 --> 00:04:59.709 his father saw him and felt compassion. and ran 00:04:59.709 --> 00:05:04.029 and embraced him and kissed him. And the son 00:05:04.029 --> 00:05:06.949 said to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven 00:05:06.949 --> 00:05:10.709 and before you. I'm no longer worthy to be called 00:05:10.709 --> 00:05:13.850 your son. But the father said to his servants, 00:05:13.990 --> 00:05:16.490 Bring quickly the best robe and put it on him 00:05:16.490 --> 00:05:19.389 and put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet 00:05:19.389 --> 00:05:22.529 and bring the fattened calf and kill it and let 00:05:22.529 --> 00:05:26.250 us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead. 00:05:27.879 --> 00:05:32.120 And he's alive again. He was lost. And now he's 00:05:32.120 --> 00:05:36.079 found. And they began to celebrate. And I love 00:05:36.079 --> 00:05:38.639 the way that the New Living Translation said 00:05:38.639 --> 00:05:41.680 it, and the party began. See, here we have a 00:05:41.680 --> 00:05:45.220 son who's in this loving and caring home who 00:05:45.220 --> 00:05:48.759 basically says, Dad, I wish that you were dead. 00:05:50.040 --> 00:05:52.319 See, in that time, to ask for your inheritance 00:05:52.319 --> 00:05:54.639 early would be like saying, I wish you were dead 00:05:54.639 --> 00:05:56.709 so I could go ahead and have what's mine. And 00:05:56.709 --> 00:05:58.509 I wish you were dead so that I could have what's 00:05:58.509 --> 00:06:00.730 mine so that I could go do what I want. So I 00:06:00.730 --> 00:06:02.290 can go do my own thing. And the father gives 00:06:02.290 --> 00:06:06.470 it to him. And within just a few days, he takes 00:06:06.470 --> 00:06:11.250 off. Before we continue, I want to pray. Because 00:06:11.250 --> 00:06:14.470 I want us to hear this story. And I want us to 00:06:14.470 --> 00:06:16.930 see two challenges in it. And we'll get to the 00:06:16.930 --> 00:06:18.949 challenges at the end. And maybe as we go along, 00:06:19.029 --> 00:06:20.889 you'll hear them. But I want us to pray that 00:06:20.889 --> 00:06:24.449 as we discuss this story and we see these challenges. 00:06:25.149 --> 00:06:28.230 That we see what God needs us to. And that our 00:06:28.230 --> 00:06:31.689 hearts receive what God needs us to. Let's pray. 00:06:32.509 --> 00:06:36.290 Father, I thank you for your word. And I do believe 00:06:36.290 --> 00:06:39.230 that your word is good enough on its own to change 00:06:39.230 --> 00:06:43.149 lives. I do believe that this story is one that 00:06:43.149 --> 00:06:46.089 is transformational because I've seen it. I'm 00:06:46.089 --> 00:06:49.509 an example of it. And God, I pray that for everyone 00:06:49.509 --> 00:06:51.050 in this room, whether they've heard this story 00:06:51.050 --> 00:06:55.410 a million times or this is the first time, message 00:06:55.410 --> 00:06:59.910 from Jesus speaks. I pray that something is stirred 00:06:59.910 --> 00:07:03.089 up in our hearts to receive the message that 00:07:03.089 --> 00:07:06.189 you want us to this morning. God, speak through 00:07:06.189 --> 00:07:09.670 me. More importantly, speak in the hearts of 00:07:09.670 --> 00:07:12.269 the people in this room and help us to receive 00:07:12.269 --> 00:07:15.170 the challenge in Scripture. God, we love you. 00:07:15.230 --> 00:07:16.949 We praise you. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 00:07:18.529 --> 00:07:21.629 So we fast forward a little bit and what we find 00:07:21.629 --> 00:07:25.110 is that this son ends up at rock bottom. He ends 00:07:25.110 --> 00:07:29.029 up sleeping in pigs. Verses 13 -16 show us how 00:07:29.029 --> 00:07:31.689 he wasted that inheritance that his father gave 00:07:31.689 --> 00:07:35.110 him. It says he squandered it. He used it for 00:07:35.110 --> 00:07:39.470 reckless deeds. You can't even say he used it 00:07:39.470 --> 00:07:42.490 for goods. It was reckless. It was pointless. 00:07:42.670 --> 00:07:46.329 He probably, likely, used it on things that were 00:07:46.329 --> 00:07:49.339 sinful. And even if those things weren't sinful, 00:07:49.519 --> 00:07:51.759 the fact that he wasted this money, he wasn't 00:07:51.759 --> 00:07:53.459 a good steward, I would say that that's sinful. 00:07:53.660 --> 00:07:57.300 And what he finds himself doing is wishing that 00:07:57.300 --> 00:08:00.579 he could eat what the pigs were eating. He wants 00:08:00.579 --> 00:08:03.000 to have some of what they've got. And I don't 00:08:03.000 --> 00:08:06.040 know about you, but I can't imagine ever being 00:08:06.040 --> 00:08:09.199 in a situation where I look at pigs eating slop 00:08:09.199 --> 00:08:13.139 and I'm like, yeah, that's what I want. I want 00:08:13.139 --> 00:08:17.290 some of that. No. You can't imagine wanting garbage. 00:08:18.230 --> 00:08:20.850 But he's there. He can't even afford to buy himself 00:08:20.850 --> 00:08:26.430 a Happy Meal. He is wanting for scraps. Even 00:08:26.430 --> 00:08:32.009 though he was gifted a great inheritance. So 00:08:32.009 --> 00:08:34.769 now you get to verse 17. You see this guy. He's 00:08:34.769 --> 00:08:37.350 recalling how well even the servants in his father's 00:08:37.350 --> 00:08:39.289 household lived. He says, they've got plenty 00:08:39.289 --> 00:08:42.370 of food and I'm stuck here perishing in hunger. 00:08:43.950 --> 00:08:46.730 He says, how many of my father's hired servants 00:08:46.730 --> 00:08:52.269 have more than enough? But I perish here with 00:08:52.269 --> 00:08:56.149 hunger. See, he realizes he's put himself in 00:08:56.149 --> 00:09:00.529 a pretty bad situation. He's in a bad spot. He's 00:09:00.529 --> 00:09:03.570 far away from home. He's not with his loved ones. 00:09:04.929 --> 00:09:07.929 He doesn't have anywhere to sleep. He doesn't 00:09:07.929 --> 00:09:11.309 have anything to eat. He's got no point to his 00:09:11.309 --> 00:09:19.100 life. He's hopeless. He's truly lost. And we've 00:09:19.100 --> 00:09:20.960 all been there in some way, and if we haven't, 00:09:20.960 --> 00:09:24.440 we will be, where we don't know what the point 00:09:24.440 --> 00:09:26.919 of our life is, where we don't know if we've 00:09:26.919 --> 00:09:28.639 got purpose, where we don't know if we have a 00:09:28.639 --> 00:09:30.279 home, where we don't know where our next meal 00:09:30.279 --> 00:09:33.539 is going to come from. We have no hope. We are 00:09:33.539 --> 00:09:38.399 truly lost. See, we've all had that moment of 00:09:38.399 --> 00:09:42.639 brokenness or emptiness, but what I want us to 00:09:42.639 --> 00:09:47.019 see is, Two things. One, what the son does. And 00:09:47.019 --> 00:09:51.360 two, the response. See, the son decides that 00:09:51.360 --> 00:09:54.000 he's going to go home and he realizes he's not 00:09:54.000 --> 00:09:58.139 worthy to be called a son. He's not worthy to 00:09:58.139 --> 00:10:01.080 be considered a part of the family, but he could 00:10:01.080 --> 00:10:04.960 be a servant. He could just be a hired hand and 00:10:04.960 --> 00:10:07.440 maybe if he's a servant, he'll at least have 00:10:07.440 --> 00:10:10.039 a place to sleep and he'll have a place to rest 00:10:10.039 --> 00:10:14.399 his head and to be safe from all storms and maybe 00:10:14.399 --> 00:10:16.659 from danger and he'll have some food. But he's 00:10:16.659 --> 00:10:20.440 not worthy to be a son. And he says, I'm no longer 00:10:20.440 --> 00:10:22.840 worthy because I've sinned against heaven and 00:10:22.840 --> 00:10:27.779 before you. But I question if he ever was worthy. 00:10:30.120 --> 00:10:34.240 And I question if I ever. was worthy because 00:10:34.240 --> 00:10:41.580 the way that the father responds to his son from 00:10:41.580 --> 00:10:43.539 the moment that his son asked for an inheritance 00:10:43.539 --> 00:10:45.759 early the father gives it to him instead of saying 00:10:45.759 --> 00:10:48.919 hey beat it because I got to tell you if one 00:10:48.919 --> 00:10:51.460 of my kids comes up to me and says hey I know 00:10:51.460 --> 00:10:53.639 you've got all this money which I won't but I 00:10:53.639 --> 00:10:55.600 know you've got all this money saved up for me 00:10:56.029 --> 00:10:57.830 I want it now. I don't want it when you die. 00:10:58.009 --> 00:10:59.970 I'm going to look at him and say, kick rocks, 00:11:00.049 --> 00:11:02.210 kid. You're not getting it now. You can wait 00:11:02.210 --> 00:11:05.370 till I'm dead. But the father gives it to him. 00:11:07.809 --> 00:11:12.710 And then what we'll see is the response of the 00:11:12.710 --> 00:11:15.470 father gives him when he comes back to beg for 00:11:15.470 --> 00:11:19.570 a spot as a servant. I don't think he was ever 00:11:19.570 --> 00:11:23.590 worthy. And likewise, I don't think I have ever 00:11:23.590 --> 00:11:30.710 been worthy. But the son returns. And this is 00:11:30.710 --> 00:11:35.429 what we read in verses 20 through 24. We'll read 00:11:35.429 --> 00:11:37.330 it again. And he arose and came to his father. 00:11:38.710 --> 00:11:43.350 But while he was still a long way off, his father 00:11:43.350 --> 00:11:49.730 saw him. He felt compassion. And he ran and he 00:11:49.730 --> 00:11:54.769 embraced him. And kissed him. And the son said 00:11:54.769 --> 00:11:57.149 to him, Father, I have sinned. Against heaven 00:11:57.149 --> 00:12:02.870 and before you, I'm no longer worthy to be called 00:12:02.870 --> 00:12:06.289 your son. But the father said to his servants, 00:12:06.409 --> 00:12:09.350 Bring quickly the best robe and put it on him 00:12:09.350 --> 00:12:12.629 and put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet 00:12:12.629 --> 00:12:17.230 and bring the fattened calf and kill it and let 00:12:17.230 --> 00:12:20.690 us eat. And here's the key word for this morning. 00:12:21.490 --> 00:12:27.129 And celebrate. For this my son was dead. But 00:12:27.129 --> 00:12:31.309 now he's alive. He was lost. And he's found. 00:12:32.529 --> 00:12:36.049 And they began to celebrate. Can you imagine? 00:12:39.169 --> 00:12:43.529 It's not like the father hears a knock on the 00:12:43.529 --> 00:12:46.169 door and he looks through the glass and he sees 00:12:46.169 --> 00:12:47.610 it's his son. He's like, oh, here we go again. 00:12:48.299 --> 00:12:50.960 And his son walks in and he asks for a spot as 00:12:50.960 --> 00:12:52.820 a servant. He's like, yeah, you know, sure. Come 00:12:52.820 --> 00:12:55.179 on in. We'll get you set up in the bunkhouse 00:12:55.179 --> 00:12:57.620 with the rest of the servants. That's not the 00:12:57.620 --> 00:13:01.259 response here. It's not a phone call. And he 00:13:01.259 --> 00:13:04.080 says, Dad, I'm in a bad spot. Can you send somebody 00:13:04.080 --> 00:13:05.940 to pick me up or can you send me some money to 00:13:05.940 --> 00:13:09.419 get a plane flight home? And when I come back, 00:13:09.419 --> 00:13:11.840 I'll work it off. That's not what this is. The 00:13:11.840 --> 00:13:15.600 son comes walking up and the father runs to him. 00:13:18.029 --> 00:13:24.070 He sees him. He runs. He doesn't just run. When 00:13:24.070 --> 00:13:26.789 he gets there, he embraces him and he kisses 00:13:26.789 --> 00:13:32.889 him. And he says, bring my best robe. Bring a 00:13:32.889 --> 00:13:36.049 ring and put it on his hand. Bring the fattened 00:13:36.049 --> 00:13:38.649 calf. Kill it. Let's throw a party. Let's celebrate 00:13:38.649 --> 00:13:42.610 because my son is home. The father celebrates. 00:13:43.230 --> 00:13:46.629 his return, and he restores his position as son. 00:13:46.950 --> 00:13:49.889 That's the kind of father that I longed for growing 00:13:49.889 --> 00:13:57.129 up. That's the kind of father I want to be. And 00:13:57.129 --> 00:14:00.330 this is why the story changed my life at nine 00:14:00.330 --> 00:14:03.730 years old. See, I was sitting in a chair at Gulf 00:14:03.730 --> 00:14:05.610 Coast Bible Camp down in Lewsdale, Mississippi, 00:14:05.889 --> 00:14:09.649 when a guy, and I don't even remember who it 00:14:09.649 --> 00:14:12.980 was, but he's speaking. And the message he gives 00:14:12.980 --> 00:14:16.940 is on the prodigal son. And I'm sitting there 00:14:16.940 --> 00:14:19.840 as this kid that's angry. That's anxious. That 00:14:19.840 --> 00:14:22.259 feels like the world's against him. That doesn't 00:14:22.259 --> 00:14:25.220 know what hope means. He's never had this concept 00:14:25.220 --> 00:14:28.419 of love and grace. And so I'm sitting there. 00:14:28.480 --> 00:14:30.460 I'm mad at the world. And I hear this story about 00:14:30.460 --> 00:14:33.500 a father who doesn't care how sinful. Doesn't 00:14:33.500 --> 00:14:36.039 care how wasteful. Doesn't care how disrespectful 00:14:36.039 --> 00:14:38.879 his son is. He runs. He embraces him. And he 00:14:38.879 --> 00:14:41.779 restores him. And he celebrates his return. And 00:14:41.779 --> 00:14:46.940 that story right there changed my life. Because 00:14:46.940 --> 00:14:50.299 I heard a message. I said, it doesn't matter 00:14:50.299 --> 00:14:53.460 if you've got a bad father. It doesn't matter 00:14:53.460 --> 00:14:55.779 if you've got no father. You've got a father 00:14:55.779 --> 00:15:00.039 that no matter what will love you and will receive 00:15:00.039 --> 00:15:09.720 you and will restore you. And I saw that play 00:15:09.720 --> 00:15:15.960 out in the church. I saw a church that when this 00:15:15.960 --> 00:15:18.360 angry little kid walks in, they embrace him. 00:15:19.039 --> 00:15:21.000 And when the kid's getting in fights on the church 00:15:21.000 --> 00:15:23.960 van, they don't tell him he can't come back anymore. 00:15:24.120 --> 00:15:25.820 Well, I did get suspended, and that's a story 00:15:25.820 --> 00:15:30.139 for another time. But they love me through it. 00:15:31.299 --> 00:15:35.039 And they said, he's rough around the edges, but 00:15:35.039 --> 00:15:38.139 we can smooth that out a little bit. He doesn't 00:15:38.139 --> 00:15:39.919 really love God. He doesn't really love people, 00:15:40.039 --> 00:15:44.299 but we can work with that. I saw a church that 00:15:44.299 --> 00:15:46.720 didn't see somebody that was lost, that didn't 00:15:46.720 --> 00:15:48.340 see somebody that was different, that didn't 00:15:48.340 --> 00:15:51.000 see somebody that was not like them or that was 00:15:51.000 --> 00:15:53.159 a problem and say, we don't want any of that. 00:15:53.240 --> 00:15:55.340 I saw a church that said, we'll embrace him, 00:15:55.419 --> 00:15:57.720 we'll love him, and we're going to help him to 00:15:57.720 --> 00:16:00.419 be restored. And when restoration happens, we're 00:16:00.419 --> 00:16:09.919 going to celebrate. And that's crazy. It's crazy 00:16:09.919 --> 00:16:15.500 that God. Can work through people. And often 00:16:15.500 --> 00:16:18.580 God does some of his best work. Through people. 00:16:20.519 --> 00:16:24.940 Specifically the church. And so if you're wondering. 00:16:25.000 --> 00:16:26.720 Well how do we apply this? We don't care about 00:16:26.720 --> 00:16:30.559 you. This is how we apply it. Because I share 00:16:30.559 --> 00:16:34.059 this story. One because I feel like you need 00:16:34.059 --> 00:16:37.379 to know. Who I am and where I come from. But 00:16:37.379 --> 00:16:40.039 I also share this with you. Because I do believe. 00:16:40.620 --> 00:16:44.460 that this is the way that I want to live. I want 00:16:44.460 --> 00:16:47.100 to live a life that looks for the broken, looks 00:16:47.100 --> 00:16:50.820 for the lost, and says, I love you, I've got 00:16:50.820 --> 00:16:53.679 compassion for you, and I want to restore you. 00:16:54.799 --> 00:16:58.100 I want to help you find the Father that restores 00:16:58.100 --> 00:17:00.080 you. And when you're restored, I want to celebrate 00:17:00.080 --> 00:17:02.320 that with you. Even though you're lost, I want 00:17:02.320 --> 00:17:04.079 to embrace you. Even though you're far away, 00:17:04.279 --> 00:17:06.440 I'm going to run to you. That's what I want to 00:17:06.440 --> 00:17:08.539 do. And that's what I believe God wants us to 00:17:08.539 --> 00:17:13.660 be as a church. It's not about this room. It's 00:17:13.660 --> 00:17:15.579 not about us sitting here. It's about out there. 00:17:16.759 --> 00:17:19.160 You notice the father's not sitting in his living 00:17:19.160 --> 00:17:22.420 room on his recliner watching TV and he's expecting 00:17:22.420 --> 00:17:25.119 the son to come in and beg for forgiveness. What 00:17:25.119 --> 00:17:27.420 the father is doing is he's looking for his son. 00:17:27.619 --> 00:17:29.960 How else does he see him from far away? He's 00:17:29.960 --> 00:17:32.500 looking. He's actively seeking. And when his 00:17:32.500 --> 00:17:37.359 son starts walking to him, he runs. He embraces. 00:17:37.839 --> 00:17:40.940 He restores. And he celebrates. And that's what 00:17:40.940 --> 00:17:44.220 the church is supposed to do. That's what we're 00:17:44.220 --> 00:17:49.200 called to be. See, God wants us to join him in 00:17:49.200 --> 00:17:52.799 seeking out the lost. He wants us to be a part 00:17:52.799 --> 00:17:58.160 of running to the wayward. He wants us to embrace 00:17:58.160 --> 00:18:02.900 and celebrate the broken when they return home. 00:18:05.400 --> 00:18:10.519 And then God does. the amazing work of restoration. 00:18:11.740 --> 00:18:17.480 He restores us. It's nothing we do. He restores 00:18:17.480 --> 00:18:23.740 us. And He restores us not to be slaves, not 00:18:23.740 --> 00:18:28.000 to be servants, not to be poor boys that sleep 00:18:28.000 --> 00:18:31.059 in the bunkhouse, but He restores us to be children 00:18:31.059 --> 00:18:35.019 that have a home in His house that have an inheritance 00:18:35.019 --> 00:18:42.240 that is only found in... This message isn't about 00:18:42.240 --> 00:18:45.619 biological fatherhood. It's not even about being 00:18:45.619 --> 00:18:50.079 a man. This is a message that is a call to all 00:18:50.079 --> 00:18:58.839 of us. Men, women, young, old. To reflect. To 00:18:58.839 --> 00:19:03.640 be like the father. To run toward the wayward. 00:19:04.319 --> 00:19:08.819 To embrace the broken. And to celebrate their 00:19:08.819 --> 00:19:13.660 story. That's what we're called to do. That's 00:19:13.660 --> 00:19:16.480 who we're called to be. And that's who I want 00:19:16.480 --> 00:19:19.420 to be as a minister, as a man, as a child of 00:19:19.420 --> 00:19:24.759 God. That's my hope for my life. And I believe, 00:19:24.819 --> 00:19:27.599 just in conversations with some of you all, and 00:19:27.599 --> 00:19:29.960 especially through conversations with Chad and 00:19:29.960 --> 00:19:32.559 Phil, that that's what this church wants to be. 00:19:33.440 --> 00:19:37.259 Is a church that seeks. That runs to the lost. 00:19:37.940 --> 00:19:41.200 That embraces those that are coming to find salvation. 00:19:41.559 --> 00:19:44.980 And that helps in the restoration. And that celebrates 00:19:44.980 --> 00:19:48.980 the restored. And if that's not the church we 00:19:48.980 --> 00:19:51.920 want to be, I'll leave. But I think I'm going 00:19:51.920 --> 00:19:54.740 to find. And I think you'll find that that is 00:19:54.740 --> 00:19:57.779 the church we want to be. And if it's not, I'm 00:19:57.779 --> 00:20:01.059 going to tug and pull. And I know the elders 00:20:01.059 --> 00:20:03.319 and all the leadership here, we're going to pull 00:20:03.319 --> 00:20:05.509 as well. Because we want to seek. We want to 00:20:05.509 --> 00:20:10.750 save. We want to celebrate. And so that's the 00:20:10.750 --> 00:20:13.769 challenge for the church. But there's also a 00:20:13.769 --> 00:20:17.390 challenge for the lost. This is also a call to 00:20:17.390 --> 00:20:19.970 those who may feel like they're lost or they're 00:20:19.970 --> 00:20:24.210 at the bottom. And so maybe you've been far off. 00:20:24.289 --> 00:20:27.069 Maybe you've been searching. Maybe you are looking 00:20:27.069 --> 00:20:29.589 for restoration or you're just looking for some 00:20:29.589 --> 00:20:33.900 little bit of hope. See, the son, when he starts 00:20:33.900 --> 00:20:35.720 thinking about going back home, he says, well, 00:20:35.740 --> 00:20:38.339 maybe I can just be a servant and maybe the servants, 00:20:38.380 --> 00:20:41.279 they've got bread. Bread is it's good, but bread 00:20:41.279 --> 00:20:45.180 doesn't make a meal, does it? But sometimes that's 00:20:45.180 --> 00:20:48.960 all we we're just hoping for a little bit. And 00:20:48.960 --> 00:20:51.779 so if that's you, I want you to hear me when 00:20:51.779 --> 00:20:56.819 I say this. The father in heaven is looking for 00:20:56.819 --> 00:21:01.700 you. He's searching. And if you will just take 00:21:01.700 --> 00:21:08.839 one step to him, he'll run to you. He'll embrace 00:21:08.839 --> 00:21:13.180 you. And he wants to restore you. He doesn't 00:21:13.180 --> 00:21:15.299 want to leave you in your lost state. He doesn't 00:21:15.299 --> 00:21:17.359 want to let you stay broken. He doesn't want 00:21:17.359 --> 00:21:19.240 to let you stay wayward. He doesn't want to let 00:21:19.240 --> 00:21:23.240 you keep living recklessly. But he wants to see 00:21:23.240 --> 00:21:27.920 you restored to his household. He wants to call 00:21:27.920 --> 00:21:35.740 you son. Daughter. Heir to the kingdom. And so 00:21:35.740 --> 00:21:40.339 if you're far off, just take a step. He longs 00:21:40.339 --> 00:21:43.700 for you to return and He cannot wait to celebrate 00:21:43.700 --> 00:21:45.660 your restoration. And I will speak for the church 00:21:45.660 --> 00:21:48.980 here. We cannot wait to celebrate your restoration. 00:21:51.119 --> 00:21:54.259 If you need prayers, if you need support, if 00:21:54.259 --> 00:21:58.359 you want to take that step towards being... brought 00:21:58.359 --> 00:22:02.240 back into the household of God. We can help you 00:22:02.240 --> 00:22:07.180 with that here. I'll be up here. We're going 00:22:07.180 --> 00:22:09.960 to sing a song of invitation. There are shepherds 00:22:09.960 --> 00:22:11.440 in this room. There are people in this room that 00:22:11.440 --> 00:22:13.900 want to pray with you, pray for you, to love 00:22:13.900 --> 00:22:17.859 you, to embrace you, and that are looking to 00:22:17.859 --> 00:22:21.180 celebrate your restoration. I pray as a church 00:22:21.180 --> 00:22:25.559 that we will be the people that seek to restore. 00:22:27.279 --> 00:22:30.440 and celebrate the restored. And I pray that you, 00:22:30.539 --> 00:22:32.779 if you're out there and you're lost, that you 00:22:32.779 --> 00:22:36.640 will start walking towards a Father who wants 00:22:36.640 --> 00:22:38.960 to restore you and bring you back home.