Luke 15:11-32
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. 13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. 17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. 21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. 25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ 31 “ ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ”
This was a dad who:
#1 - Set A Good Example For His Sons
This ornery prodigal son even said so himself:
"...‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!'"
Luke 15:17
Think about the facts this father's prodigal son had to consider as he reasoned with himself about returning home:
Dad was a fair man
Dad was a decent man
Dad had a good reputation with others
Can I just tell ya something? The example a father sets for his child can make ALL the difference in how that child grows up! And this faith dad from our parable set a great example for his boys.
This was a dad who:
#2 - Had Rules And He Expected Obedience
God expects obedience from us. Parents who don't EXPECT obedience from their children are simply training their kids to sin. We don't really know which of dad's rules this prodigal son didn't care for but we do know he didn't want to live under his father's roof any longer. I'm guessing he didn't want to work AND that he just wanted to do what HE wanted when HE wanted to do it. I also have to assume that once he hit the road, he surrounded himself with questionable friends. Note Verse 13:
“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living."
Luke 15:13
Notice here that this story, which...just a reminder: Is a parable JESUS told... does NOT tell us that dad said anything along the lines of:
"Well, gee son, I'm so sorry I offended you with my rules..."
"Hey, let's talk about it buddy..."
"Maybe we can work something out..."
"If you'll just stick around, I'll bend the rules for you..."
"Aww heck son, nevermind the rules...do what you want... just don't leave!"
And, why didn't he say that? He refused, on principal, to keep his son in his home at the cost of allowing him to have a world-centered personality. He didn't want a rude, rebellious, and resentful son in his home to corrupt the rest of his family. Therefore, he refused to give in to the boy's "desires".
Faithful fathers realize something important: As dads, God holds us accountable and responsible for the influences we allow into our home. That's our job!
Can I just tell ya something? We're not doing our kids any favors why allowing them to do whatever, whenever just to make them happy! This dad was willing to set up some rules and stand by them. He expected obedience.
Then, because this dad put his faith in God, he allowed his son to walk out that door. This was a man of means with servants and large herds. He had money. But we're not told that he hired detectives to track down his son and beg him to come home. We're not told that he sent his son more money to help him. We're not told how this dad helped his son avoid the consequences of his rebelliousness.
Our faithful father here in the parable refused to be an enabler to his son's sinful life choices. Instead, he waited. Keeping a watchful eye on the horizon, he waited. He waited in hopeful and faithful expectation of his son's return. Sometimes, that's what faithful parenting looks like.
Sometimes, when we don't wait patiently on the Lord, when we don't trust in God, when we refuse to faithfully "be still"... Well, you know... we can end up doing all kinds of stuff to our relationship with our Creator and to our families that we'll later regret. The right answer is not always to do nothing. But, in this case it was.
This entry is taken from my notes for the sermon: "Faithful Parenting". Click the link to listen to the entire sermon. This is the fourth sermon in a series. The entire sermon series audio is available here:
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