WEBVTT 00:00:09.130 --> 00:00:12.910 In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy 00:00:12.910 --> 00:00:24.149 Spirit. The voice is not mine. It came upon me 00:00:24.149 --> 00:00:32.509 last night. I was struck with laryngitis. So 00:00:32.509 --> 00:00:35.710 I appealed to the rector to release me from my 00:00:35.710 --> 00:00:44.579 responsibility. But you know the answer. In the 00:00:44.579 --> 00:00:47.719 name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. 00:00:48.399 --> 00:00:55.140 Glory be to Jesus Christ. It has been said many 00:00:55.140 --> 00:01:02.719 times by many biblical scholars that if we had 00:01:02.719 --> 00:01:08.000 lost all of the sayings and teachings of Jesus, 00:01:10.439 --> 00:01:16.140 but we had in our possession the only one parable, 00:01:16.180 --> 00:01:20.060 and that being the parable of the prodigal son, 00:01:20.260 --> 00:01:26.500 which was read this morning, we still would have, 00:01:26.700 --> 00:01:33.859 in essence, the very nature and very heart of 00:01:33.859 --> 00:01:39.579 Christ's teachings. Because this parable portrays 00:01:40.040 --> 00:01:44.599 God's compassion, his immeasurable compassion, 00:01:44.980 --> 00:01:50.780 his love and his concern for the lost sinners. 00:01:55.060 --> 00:02:01.260 This story is so well known that there's no need 00:02:01.260 --> 00:02:05.299 to repeat it. But I do want to underscore certain 00:02:05.299 --> 00:02:11.020 aspects of this parable. And the first thing 00:02:11.020 --> 00:02:21.500 I want to point out is why Jesus gave this parable 00:02:21.500 --> 00:02:26.300 on this particular occasion to those who are 00:02:26.300 --> 00:02:31.740 listening to him. And I quote, There drew near 00:02:31.740 --> 00:02:38.580 to Jesus all the publicans and sinners to hear 00:02:38.580 --> 00:02:43.620 him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, 00:02:43.620 --> 00:02:49.680 saying, This man receiveth sinners and eateth 00:02:49.680 --> 00:02:56.819 with them. Do you remember last Sunday the gospel 00:02:56.819 --> 00:03:03.240 that the Father preached on the publican and 00:03:03.240 --> 00:03:06.219 Pharisee? The Pharisees considered themselves 00:03:06.219 --> 00:03:15.349 the separate ones. And so Jesus, wanting to point 00:03:15.349 --> 00:03:20.409 out how important it is not to forget those who 00:03:20.409 --> 00:03:27.509 have strayed, gave three parables in this 15th 00:03:27.509 --> 00:03:32.169 chapter of St. Luke. And I would urge you to 00:03:32.169 --> 00:03:38.889 read this particular chapter. St. Luke, 15th 00:03:38.889 --> 00:03:48.360 chapter. In this chapter, Jesus spoke of the 00:03:48.360 --> 00:03:53.960 lost sheep and the other parable he spoke on 00:03:53.960 --> 00:03:59.719 was the lost coin and the third parable, the 00:03:59.719 --> 00:04:02.780 most magnificent of all, was the prodigal son. 00:04:05.620 --> 00:04:09.460 The Pharisees had no time to be concerned with 00:04:09.460 --> 00:04:16.040 sinners. Nor could they stomach Christ's teachings 00:04:16.040 --> 00:04:25.439 about our Lord's concern about sinners. And so 00:04:25.439 --> 00:04:33.639 Jesus spoke these three parables. All three have 00:04:33.639 --> 00:04:40.000 the same objective. All three point to the same 00:04:40.000 --> 00:04:48.120 point. God does not sit passively while people 00:04:48.120 --> 00:05:00.220 are going to hell. He seeks out sinners. He loves 00:05:00.220 --> 00:05:05.360 them, pursues them, and longs for them to be 00:05:05.360 --> 00:05:10.569 saved. As we have. In the 33rd chapter. The prophet 00:05:10.569 --> 00:05:17.550 Ezekiel saying. The words of God. As I live. 00:05:18.449 --> 00:05:22.350 I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked. 00:05:24.629 --> 00:05:30.610 And the prophet Isaiah. Said this. As the bridegroom 00:05:30.610 --> 00:05:38.290 rejoices over his bride. So does. God rejoiced 00:05:38.290 --> 00:05:50.509 over the sinners. What magnificent imagery. There 00:05:50.509 --> 00:05:57.889 is joy in the presence of angels of God, says 00:05:57.889 --> 00:06:03.490 the scriptures, over one sinner who repents. 00:06:05.360 --> 00:06:09.480 Notice, my dear people, over one sinner who repents. 00:06:12.240 --> 00:06:18.740 And on this second pre -Lenten Sunday, both the 00:06:18.740 --> 00:06:27.360 Gospel and the Epistle alerts us to the need 00:06:27.360 --> 00:06:35.050 of repentance. For if we are to take Lent seriously, 00:06:35.189 --> 00:06:43.189 I prophesy to you that it will be a struggle. 00:06:46.149 --> 00:06:55.089 But it will also bring you joy. Jesus teaches 00:06:55.089 --> 00:07:01.120 in his parable that repentance is not related 00:07:01.120 --> 00:07:06.379 necessarily to doom, gloom, and the fires of 00:07:06.379 --> 00:07:12.339 hell, but with joy. And then our Lord relates 00:07:12.339 --> 00:07:17.639 this parable. The father of the parable, the 00:07:17.639 --> 00:07:24.560 father of the son, seeing his son a distance 00:07:24.560 --> 00:07:33.639 away, says the scriptures, Runs to him. The father 00:07:33.639 --> 00:07:41.800 runs to him. Embraces him. Kisses him. And then 00:07:41.800 --> 00:07:48.980 what does he do? He arranges a joyous celebration. 00:07:49.500 --> 00:07:54.420 For the return of his son. This is scriptural. 00:07:54.579 --> 00:07:59.920 It's amazing. Now the father is like. Of the 00:07:59.920 --> 00:08:06.560 parable is God. This is how God welcomes us. 00:08:06.660 --> 00:08:09.480 When we come with. Before him with repentance. 00:08:11.860 --> 00:08:16.639 So what does he see when. When his son returns. 00:08:18.319 --> 00:08:21.720 He turns to his servants as hurry. Hurry. Bring 00:08:21.720 --> 00:08:26.060 out the best robe. Put it on him. Put a ringer 00:08:26.060 --> 00:08:30.800 up. Put a ring on his finger. Put shoes on its 00:08:30.800 --> 00:08:36.379 feet and then butcher the finest calf and let's 00:08:36.379 --> 00:08:45.299 be merry. Let's be merry. Again, I want to say 00:08:45.299 --> 00:08:52.500 this is how God welcomes us when we come before 00:08:52.500 --> 00:09:00.820 him in the spirit of repentance. Now notice what 00:09:00.820 --> 00:09:07.139 the son's, the brother had done, the oldest son. 00:09:08.519 --> 00:09:13.679 He heard the music. And he said, what's going 00:09:13.679 --> 00:09:21.440 on? And they told him that his brother returned. 00:09:24.600 --> 00:09:28.220 And his father went out and said, come son, come. 00:09:32.100 --> 00:09:41.000 Come, participate in this joy. For your son was 00:09:41.000 --> 00:09:53.500 dead and now he is alive. He was lost and now 00:09:53.500 --> 00:10:00.750 he is found. Come and enjoy the feast. And what 00:10:00.750 --> 00:10:07.730 does his brother say to him? Father, you've erred. 00:10:07.830 --> 00:10:17.129 Man, you've erred. Your son is a no good Nick. 00:10:22.350 --> 00:10:27.750 He took the inheritance. He spent all of it. 00:10:27.960 --> 00:10:30.899 He dishonored you. He dishonored the family. 00:10:33.379 --> 00:10:39.379 And yet, you welcome him with open arms and arrange 00:10:39.379 --> 00:10:47.799 a party for him. Yes, he said, son, I have. Because 00:10:47.799 --> 00:10:53.759 your brother was dead, and now he's alive again. 00:10:55.149 --> 00:10:58.929 He was lost and now he is found. So rejoice. 00:10:59.929 --> 00:11:09.389 Be happy for me and with me. My dear people. 00:11:11.509 --> 00:11:17.669 God is like that. In our relationship with him. 00:11:19.450 --> 00:11:27.690 When we are away from him. The Lord learns and 00:11:27.690 --> 00:11:34.049 yearns for our return. Just like the father of 00:11:34.049 --> 00:11:43.429 the prodigal. He patiently waits for us. Now 00:11:43.429 --> 00:11:52.250 we do not generally associate joy with penance. 00:11:54.919 --> 00:12:01.740 More often than not, I know when I go to my spiritual 00:12:01.740 --> 00:12:06.360 confessor, I feel that way too. I find it sometimes 00:12:06.360 --> 00:12:14.080 difficult and painful to admit that I went astray. 00:12:15.960 --> 00:12:21.919 And I have shortcomings. But from the gospel 00:12:21.919 --> 00:12:27.559 of today, we learn, That to God, repentance is 00:12:27.559 --> 00:12:33.600 a moment of joy. Because it's a sign of our spiritual 00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:42.820 restoration. We're no longer lost. Because repentance 00:12:42.820 --> 00:12:50.399 is not a religious duty. Not a legal transaction. 00:12:51.279 --> 00:12:55.929 Not some... Church obligation. To be filled. 00:12:56.049 --> 00:13:02.629 For the sake of God. Rather. Repentance. Is our 00:13:02.629 --> 00:13:08.950 willingness to come before the Lord. And trust. 00:13:09.490 --> 00:13:19.090 In his love. And mercy. And kindness. There's 00:13:19.090 --> 00:13:23.000 one other aspect of this. that always has intrigued 00:13:23.000 --> 00:13:32.740 me. When one falls into sin and cries out with 00:13:32.740 --> 00:13:39.200 sincere contrition and repentance, the fall is 00:13:39.200 --> 00:13:44.759 not into the pit of nothingness, but into the 00:13:44.759 --> 00:13:54.980 loving arms of God our Father. And in the words 00:13:54.980 --> 00:14:00.539 of the psalmist, we hear these incredible words. 00:14:00.700 --> 00:14:06.879 The mercy of God runs after us all the days of 00:14:06.879 --> 00:14:12.299 our life. And we hear this passage so frequently 00:14:12.299 --> 00:14:17.779 during the vigil. For his mercy endures forever. 00:14:21.899 --> 00:14:31.559 His mercy endures forever. In the book, Dialogue 00:14:31.559 --> 00:14:36.960 with the Savior, which is written by a monk, 00:14:37.080 --> 00:14:40.580 and I know it's in our bookstore, because I have 00:14:40.580 --> 00:14:45.259 reread it a couple of times. The author pictures 00:14:45.259 --> 00:14:53.710 Jesus saying, follow me. And the monk answers, 00:14:54.009 --> 00:15:02.029 but Lord, I have often and for many years have 00:15:02.029 --> 00:15:10.990 heard your call. I started many times to follow 00:15:10.990 --> 00:15:19.110 you. But I have fallen on the wayside. And I 00:15:19.110 --> 00:15:23.509 have lost sight of you, my Lord. And yet, and 00:15:23.509 --> 00:15:28.529 yet deep within me, I always felt you were saying 00:15:28.529 --> 00:15:38.889 to me, get up, get up, get up again. Master, 00:15:39.250 --> 00:15:48.450 do you mean I am not rejected because of my failures 00:15:48.450 --> 00:15:58.070 and my betrayal? and jesus said to him as he 00:15:58.070 --> 00:16:05.009 says to each one of us this morning come come 00:16:05.009 --> 00:16:13.789 and follow me who could ever forget what saint 00:16:13.789 --> 00:16:19.049 paul wrote in that glorious epistle to the romans 00:16:19.049 --> 00:16:28.090 god has shown how much he loves us while we were 00:16:28.090 --> 00:16:34.250 sinners. While we were sinners, Christ died for 00:16:34.250 --> 00:16:37.250 us. Glory be to Jesus Christ.