In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit. The voice is not mine. It came upon me
last night. I was struck with laryngitis. So
I appealed to the rector to release me from my
responsibility. But you know the answer. In the
name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Glory be to Jesus Christ. It has been said many
times by many biblical scholars that if we had
lost all of the sayings and teachings of Jesus,
but we had in our possession the only one parable,
and that being the parable of the prodigal son,
which was read this morning, we still would have,
in essence, the very nature and very heart of
Christ's teachings. Because this parable portrays
God's compassion, his immeasurable compassion,
his love and his concern for the lost sinners.
This story is so well known that there's no need
to repeat it. But I do want to underscore certain
aspects of this parable. And the first thing
I want to point out is why Jesus gave this parable
on this particular occasion to those who are
listening to him. And I quote, There drew near
to Jesus all the publicans and sinners to hear
him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured,
saying, This man receiveth sinners and eateth
with them. Do you remember last Sunday the gospel
that the Father preached on the publican and
Pharisee? The Pharisees considered themselves
the separate ones. And so Jesus, wanting to point
out how important it is not to forget those who
have strayed, gave three parables in this 15th
chapter of St. Luke. And I would urge you to
read this particular chapter. St. Luke, 15th
chapter. In this chapter, Jesus spoke of the
lost sheep and the other parable he spoke on
was the lost coin and the third parable, the
most magnificent of all, was the prodigal son.
The Pharisees had no time to be concerned with
sinners. Nor could they stomach Christ's teachings
about our Lord's concern about sinners. And so
Jesus spoke these three parables. All three have
the same objective. All three point to the same
point. God does not sit passively while people
are going to hell. He seeks out sinners. He loves
them, pursues them, and longs for them to be
saved. As we have. In the 33rd chapter. The prophet
Ezekiel saying. The words of God. As I live.
I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked.
And the prophet Isaiah. Said this. As the bridegroom
rejoices over his bride. So does. God rejoiced
over the sinners. What magnificent imagery. There
is joy in the presence of angels of God, says
the scriptures, over one sinner who repents.
Notice, my dear people, over one sinner who repents.
And on this second pre -Lenten Sunday, both the
Gospel and the Epistle alerts us to the need
of repentance. For if we are to take Lent seriously,
I prophesy to you that it will be a struggle.
But it will also bring you joy. Jesus teaches
in his parable that repentance is not related
necessarily to doom, gloom, and the fires of
hell, but with joy. And then our Lord relates
this parable. The father of the parable, the
father of the son, seeing his son a distance
away, says the scriptures, Runs to him. The father
runs to him. Embraces him. Kisses him. And then
what does he do? He arranges a joyous celebration.
For the return of his son. This is scriptural.
It's amazing. Now the father is like. Of the
parable is God. This is how God welcomes us.
When we come with. Before him with repentance.
So what does he see when. When his son returns.
He turns to his servants as hurry. Hurry. Bring
out the best robe. Put it on him. Put a ringer
up. Put a ring on his finger. Put shoes on its
feet and then butcher the finest calf and let's
be merry. Let's be merry. Again, I want to say
this is how God welcomes us when we come before
him in the spirit of repentance. Now notice what
the son's, the brother had done, the oldest son.
He heard the music. And he said, what's going
on? And they told him that his brother returned.
And his father went out and said, come son, come.
Come, participate in this joy. For your son was
dead and now he is alive. He was lost and now
he is found. Come and enjoy the feast. And what
does his brother say to him? Father, you've erred.
Man, you've erred. Your son is a no good Nick.
He took the inheritance. He spent all of it.
He dishonored you. He dishonored the family.
And yet, you welcome him with open arms and arrange
a party for him. Yes, he said, son, I have. Because
your brother was dead, and now he's alive again.
He was lost and now he is found. So rejoice.
Be happy for me and with me. My dear people.
God is like that. In our relationship with him.
When we are away from him. The Lord learns and
yearns for our return. Just like the father of
the prodigal. He patiently waits for us. Now
we do not generally associate joy with penance.
More often than not, I know when I go to my spiritual
confessor, I feel that way too. I find it sometimes
difficult and painful to admit that I went astray.
And I have shortcomings. But from the gospel
of today, we learn, That to God, repentance is
a moment of joy. Because it's a sign of our spiritual
restoration. We're no longer lost. Because repentance
is not a religious duty. Not a legal transaction.
Not some... Church obligation. To be filled.
For the sake of God. Rather. Repentance. Is our
willingness to come before the Lord. And trust.
In his love. And mercy. And kindness. There's
one other aspect of this. that always has intrigued
me. When one falls into sin and cries out with
sincere contrition and repentance, the fall is
not into the pit of nothingness, but into the
loving arms of God our Father. And in the words
of the psalmist, we hear these incredible words.
The mercy of God runs after us all the days of
our life. And we hear this passage so frequently
during the vigil. For his mercy endures forever.
His mercy endures forever. In the book, Dialogue
with the Savior, which is written by a monk,
and I know it's in our bookstore, because I have
reread it a couple of times. The author pictures
Jesus saying, follow me. And the monk answers,
but Lord, I have often and for many years have
heard your call. I started many times to follow
you. But I have fallen on the wayside. And I
have lost sight of you, my Lord. And yet, and
yet deep within me, I always felt you were saying
to me, get up, get up, get up again. Master,
do you mean I am not rejected because of my failures
and my betrayal? and jesus said to him as he
says to each one of us this morning come come
and follow me who could ever forget what saint
paul wrote in that glorious epistle to the romans
god has shown how much he loves us while we were
sinners. While we were sinners, Christ died for
us. Glory be to Jesus Christ.