Participants: Greg & Jill Morikone (Host), Pr. Wes Peppers
Series Code: AOT
Program Code: AOT000174A
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00:12 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth,
00:15 live from the 3ABN Worship Center. 00:22 Happy Sabbath and welcome to Anchors Of Truth 00:25 with Pastor Wes Peppers. 00:27 If this is the first time you have been joining 00:30 Anchors Of Truth for this five part series, 00:33 don't take this wrong, but shame on you. 00:35 This has been a fantastic series. 00:37 This is part four of, 00:39 Before Men and Angels: The Theater of the Universe. 00:43 And today's message by Pastor Wes Peppers is, 00:46 Posh Pigs and Precious Prodigals. 00:49 - I had a hard time saying that. - It's a mouth full. 00:51 Posh Pigs and Precious Prodigals. 00:53 I was able to say it. 00:54 I was a little worried that I may not be able to say it. 00:56 But anyway, welcome to Anchors Of Truth. 00:57 We thank you, for those of you that are joining on 3ABN. 01:00 It's a blessing to have you joining us by either the radio, 01:03 the internet, television. 01:04 It's a blessing to have you joining us today. 01:06 Now Pastor Wes and his wife Marion have been with us, 01:09 and their family is here, their two little kids. 01:11 Her mom and dad are also here with us today. 01:15 It's a blessing that the family is able to join. 01:17 We're thankful for our family that is here 01:19 in Thompsonville, Illinois, 01:20 the Thompsonville Seventh-day Adventist Church. 01:22 It's a blessing to be praising the Lord on the 01:23 Sabbath, isn't it? 01:25 Amen. It is indeed. 01:26 And we've been so blessed by Pastor Peppers' messages. 01:31 I just think the anointing of the Holy Spirit is on him. 01:34 And you just see how he has come from a background of atheism, 01:39 how God brought him out of darkness into this 01:42 marvelous light, into the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 01:46 And how now he and his wife have dedicated their lives 01:49 to spreading the gospel message with a lost and dying world. 01:53 Pastor Peppers is the senior pastor of 01:55 the Lansing Seventh-day Adventist Church 01:57 there in Lansing, Michigan. 01:59 Greg and I have been to their church, 02:00 and it's just a beautiful church family. 02:02 And they have a powerful ministry. 02:04 His wife Marion will be singing the song for us today. 02:07 And her song is entitled, Were It Not For Grace. 02:12 But before she sings, we want to go to the Lord in prayer. 02:16 It's a blessing to talk to the Lord, isn't it, in prayer. 02:18 I mean, what a communication we have with God. 02:20 Think about that; He's always there, He's always listening. 02:22 No matter what our troubles are, He's always there, always. 02:25 Let's go to the Lord in prayer. 02:27 Father in heaven, Lord, we're thankful, 02:28 because You're a good God. 02:29 Father, there are so many blessings that we have 02:32 to be thankful for. 02:33 Lord, we're grateful for life itself. 02:35 Lord, that's a precious thing. 02:37 Lord, we just pray that You would be with Pastor Peppers 02:40 as he brings us the message today. 02:42 Lord, just anoint his lips. 02:44 And may our hearts... 02:45 Lord, those of us here in the audience here in 02:47 Thompsonville, Illinois, wherever people are 02:50 tuning in today, Lord, that their hearts will be changed. 02:52 Lord, turn their hearts towards You. 02:54 We pray for Marion as she brings the message in music. 02:57 Lord, that You would anoint her lips as well. 02:59 Lord, thank You for this opportunity of being able to 03:02 worship with You on Your Sabbath day. 03:04 And in Jesus' name we pray, amen. 03:07 Amen. 03:30 Time measured out my days, 03:37 life carried me along; 03:44 in my soul I yearned to follow God, 03:51 but knew I'd never be so strong. 03:57 I looked hard at this world 04:02 to learn how heaven could be gained, 04:10 just to end where life began, 04:15 where human effort is all in vain. 04:25 Were it not for grace 04:33 I could tell you where I'd be. 04:40 Wandering down some pointless road to nowhere 04:47 with my salvation up to me. 04:53 I know how that would go, 05:00 the battles I would face. 05:07 Forever running but losing the race, 05:14 were it not for grace. 05:25 So here is all my praise, 05:32 expressed with all my heart; 05:39 offered to a Friend who took my place 05:47 and ran a course I could not even start. 05:53 But when He saw in full 05:57 just how much His love would cost, 06:06 He still went the final mile between me and heaven 06:13 so I would not be lost. 06:21 Were it not for grace 06:29 I could tell you where I'd be. 06:35 Wandering down some pointless road to nowhere 06:43 with my salvation up to me. 06:49 I know how that would go, 06:55 the battles I would face. 07:03 Forever running but losing the race, 07:10 were it not for grace. 07:17 Forever running but losing the race, 07:25 were it not for grace. 07:48 Well good morning, friends. 07:51 It's such a blessing to see each one of you here today. 07:54 And for those that are joining us online, we want to 07:57 welcome you as well, wherever you are. 07:59 Here in Thompsonville, it is Sabbath morning. 08:03 So I don't know where it is, what time it is 08:05 wherever you are, but we are glad to be here 08:07 in our divine worship hour. 08:09 And we are thankful for our friends here joining us locally. 08:12 And once again, those of you watching around the world, 08:15 we welcome you as well. 08:16 We're grateful that you are joining us. 08:18 How many of you were blessed by that special music? 08:21 I have to be careful not to talk too proudly, 08:24 because it's my wife. 08:25 But I'm so thankful for her, and she is a blessing. 08:29 And we just enjoy being able to be a team. Amen? 08:32 I believe every husband and wife ought to be a team. 08:35 Well we're excited this morning about Anchors Of Truth 08:38 number four in this series. 08:41 Precious... Oh, excuse me. 08:43 Posh Pigs and Precious Prodigals. 08:47 Depending upon how fast you try to say that 08:49 fast three times, you might be in trouble, right? 08:52 But I love to try to have those titles that really stand out 08:56 and give a very direct appeal to the message. 09:00 So we're going to bow our heads this morning 09:03 and invite the Lord's presence to be with us, 09:05 and then we're just going to dive right in. 09:06 Would you bow your heads with me, wherever you are. 09:08 Father in heaven, we thank You so much this morning 09:11 for the sweet truth of Your word, 09:15 the sweet promise of Your presence, 09:18 the sweet joy of Your Holy Spirit that fills our hearts 09:22 with Jesus. 09:24 And we need more of Jesus today. 09:26 And as we look at this story today, a very familiar story, 09:29 I pray, Lord, that You would speak to our hearts 09:31 wherever we are at in our journey. 09:34 And so, Lord, we appeal to You this morning, 09:36 and we ask You to draw near to us in a very special way. 09:39 Open our eyes, our hearts, and our ears 09:43 to the truth that You want to speak to us today. 09:45 And we ask this in Jesus' name, amen. 09:48 I remember, friends, when I was a young man, a teenager, 09:53 I accepted Christ and became a Seventh-day Adventist 09:56 when I was 22 years old. 09:58 I was on the verge of suicide. 10:00 And I told a bit of that story the other night. 10:03 But I remember when I was a teenager, 10:06 actually my uncle came to an Amazing Facts prophecy seminar. 10:11 And he and my aunt were the first Seventh-day Adventists 10:15 in my family. 10:16 And since that time, that number has grown. 10:18 And that includes me. 10:20 But I remember that when I was a young man, a teenager, 10:23 I went with them to church on one Sabbath morning. 10:27 And there were some ladies there that met me, 10:30 and they were so kind to me, so loving. 10:32 I went to church for a few times, 10:34 and then I just stopped going. 10:36 I got into sports and other things that pulled me away. 10:39 But I remember that these ladies, they would 10:42 write to me a birthday card every year. 10:45 For more than ten years they wrote these cards to me. 10:49 And any time I happened to bump into them somewhere in the 10:54 community, they would always be so loving 10:56 and so kind. 10:58 And I remember that when I was wrestling 11:01 with the decision to follow Jesus or to go my own way, 11:06 when I was an atheist on the verge of suicide, 11:08 I was studying the Bible, I remembered 11:10 the kindness of those ladies. 11:13 In fact, when I was in that time of wrestling, 11:15 one of those cards came just at the right time, and said, 11:20 "We've been praying for you for many years. 11:23 We know and believe that God is going to call you back 11:27 to Himself." 11:28 I found that to be amazing. 11:29 And it came just at the right time that I needed it the most. 11:33 Many of these young ladies, or these elderly ladies, 11:36 had written in their cards that, "One day we believe 11:39 you'll be a preacher for God." 11:41 And I thought to myself, "No way," you know. 11:43 "That will never happen." Right? 11:45 And in fact, my mother told me just this morning, 11:48 I was speaking to her through texting, and she said that, 11:51 she said, "When you were two years old, 11:53 I told your dad you'd be a preacher someday." 11:55 And these words just kept haunting. 11:58 And I thought, "Not a chance." 12:00 But here I am today. 12:01 God has a sense of humor, amen? 12:03 And I always tell people, He had to make me a preacher 12:06 because I can't really do anything else well. 12:08 But I'm thankful to serve the Lord with all my heart, 12:11 and we are so glad. 12:13 But it's amazing, friends, how there's always somebody 12:19 who's watching out for us. 12:23 Isn't it true? 12:24 Often times we feel alone, we feel desperate, 12:27 we feel by ourselves. 12:28 But there's always somebody who's looking out for us. 12:32 And that launches us into our story this morning. 12:35 We're going to turn in our Bibles to the book of 12:37 Luke chapter 15. 12:39 A familiar story, I'm sure, for many of you. 12:41 The story of the prodigal son. 12:44 With a title like I had, you had to almost know 12:46 we were going to Luke 15, right? 12:48 So we're going to go to Luke chapter 15 12:51 and we're going to see a beautiful powerful story 12:54 of the love of God. 12:56 And at the end of this message, friends, 12:58 I'm going to make a very specific appeal 13:02 to those here and especially to those who are watching online. 13:06 So I hope that you will allow the Lord to speak to your heart 13:10 as we continue through this message. 13:11 Luke 15:11 13:15 The Bible says in verse 11, 13:18 "Then He said," Jesus here telling a parable, 13:20 "A certain man had two sons. 13:23 And the younger of them said to his father, 13:26 'Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.' 13:29 So he divided to them his livelihood." 13:34 Now it's very interesting that this young man 13:37 had somehow came to the conclusion in his father's house 13:41 that he did not want to be under his father's authority anymore. 13:45 You know, often times when we're young, we think 13:48 we know everything when we really don't. Right? 13:51 I saw this ad one time that said, "Hurry up," 13:54 while you're a teenager, they said, "Hurry up, move out, 13:57 and get a job while you still know everything." 14:00 Right? As a teenager. 14:01 And often times in our youth we are rash, we are hardcore. 14:06 We think we can do it all. 14:08 And ten foot tall and bullet proof, right? 14:10 This young man probably said, "I don't want to be 14:13 under my father's rule anymore." 14:15 He didn't really understand at that point in his life 14:18 that it was under the father's care where he would find 14:21 his greatest happiness. Right? 14:23 So he goes to his father and he says, 14:25 "Father, give me my inheritance," essentially. 14:29 "The portion that is due to me." 14:31 Now in this culture, if someone were to say, 14:36 "Give me my inheritance," there is only one time 14:40 in the event of their life that they would 14:41 receive the inheritance. 14:42 And when would that be? 14:44 At the death of the father, right? 14:46 Or the parents. 14:48 And so it is today as well, often times. 14:50 And so essentially, when this young man went to his father, 14:53 he was saying to him, "Father, I want you to..." What? 14:57 "I want you to die. 14:59 I want you to perish, and I want what is duly mine. 15:04 Give me my inheritance." 15:07 You know, it's very interesting that the young man, 15:10 even though he was trying to get away from his father, 15:15 still believed enough in his father's goodness to know 15:19 that his father would give him his inheritance. 15:23 Isn't that very interesting? 15:25 You know, it's often times that we know that God is good, 15:30 and yet often times in our lives we still try to 15:34 run away from Him. 15:35 Isn't that true? 15:37 A young lady walked into our church a couple of weeks ago, 15:39 it was about a month ago. 15:41 And she was sitting in one of the messages. 15:44 And she came to me afterwards. 15:46 And she had been raised up in the church, 15:49 had left the church. 15:51 And when she left the church, she said, "I will never 15:53 step foot in a Seventh-day Adventist church again 15:56 for the rest of my life." 15:58 And there she went for about 20 something years. 16:01 Not going to church, going her own way, doing her own thing. 16:04 She became addicted to drugs and alcohol, 16:06 and all kinds of other things. 16:08 And eventually she found herself in a very destitute way. 16:13 We talked about the other night that sometimes you have to 16:15 hit rock bottom until you can recognize that God is 16:19 the Rock at the bottom. Amen? 16:21 And so she had hit rock bottom. 16:23 And she found herself in a place where she had 16:27 nowhere else to turn but back to God. 16:30 You know, God will always bring us to that point 16:32 in our life, won't He? 16:33 And it will be a crossroad for us to decide which 16:36 direction we're going to go. 16:37 We're either going to go with Christ or without Christ. 16:40 But God will always bring us to a point in our life 16:43 where we have that crossroad. 16:44 And she came back to church for the first time 16:46 in more than 20 years. 16:48 And she sat in the pew, and it just so happened 16:50 to be a communion Sabbath. 16:52 And she shared a testimony of what God had done for her. 16:56 She put her daughter in school. 16:58 And she said, "Twenty years ago, this would have 17:01 never happened in my life. 17:03 And yet here I am today." 17:06 There's always somebody looking out for us, isn't there? 17:09 Sometimes we drift so far away from God, 17:12 but God promises to continue to work in our lives. 17:16 Amen? 17:17 Very, very powerful. 17:19 You know, if you look in verse 13, it says, 17:23 "And not many days after, the younger son gathered 17:28 all together, he journeyed to a far country, and there wasted 17:31 his possessions with prodigal living." 17:35 You know, it's often true that the heart who's trying to 17:39 get away from God will go to any length 17:42 to get away from Him. 17:44 Have you ever noticed that to be true? 17:46 And yet, is there any place on earth that we can go 17:48 where God is not present? 17:50 The Bible tells us I can go into heaven; You're there. 17:53 I can go into the grave; You're there. 17:54 And You're everywhere in between and all around. 17:56 Amen? God is always there. 17:58 And there's no place we can go to escape. 18:00 But in our human foolishness we often try, don't we? 18:04 We often try. 18:06 And so the Bible says that he wasted his possessions. 18:09 It was actually his father's possessions, wasn't it? 18:13 You know, God gives us many gifts. 18:15 As His children, He gives us talents, He gives us blessings. 18:18 And He wants us to use them for His glory, doesn't He? 18:22 But often times in our human frail sinful natures, 18:26 we spend that which God has given to us 18:29 upon our own pleasures. 18:31 And we find that in the end of that time, 18:33 it brings only emptiness and loneliness. 18:36 How many of you have found that to be true? 18:38 You know, it says that he went out partying, essentially. 18:42 He had spent all. 18:44 And I'm sure that when he left that house of his father's... 18:48 I don't know if he had maybe a long string of camels 18:51 and donkeys, or some kind of transportation. 18:54 He probably took with him servants and other things. 18:57 And when he left that house, he thought, "Man, now I am free. 19:02 I am free." 19:04 And he gets out, and wherever the town was that he went, 19:08 as he pulled into town with that long train, 19:11 bags of money and wealth, I'm sure that there were a lot of 19:14 people that said, "Uh-huh, I need to make friends 19:17 with that guy." 19:18 Right? 19:20 You know, when you have money and you have wealth 19:22 and you have means, there's lots of people that 19:24 want to be your friend, isn't there? 19:26 My grandpa use to say, "You have friends, 19:29 and then you have so-called friends." 19:32 And he said, "And when the money runs out, 19:34 those so-called friends are so-called gone." 19:37 Right? 19:39 And they often leave. 19:40 And so when this young man, he probably had a lot of friends, 19:42 but the Bible says he spent all. 19:45 And when he spent all, all his friends were gone. 19:51 Is it not true in our own lives today? 19:54 There always comes a point in time when we have the 19:59 last party, we have the last drink, we dance the last dance, 20:03 we smoke the last cigarettes, 20:05 we go home, and when it's all said and done 20:09 we still have to look ourselves in the mirror, do we not? 20:12 We still have to look ourselves in the mirror and say, 20:14 "Who am I really? 20:16 What is my life really about? 20:18 What is the purpose of my life? 20:19 What is the meaning to my life? 20:21 Does my life have any significance whatsoever?" 20:25 The Bible tells us that many people live it up 20:31 to cover the emptiness that they have. 20:34 Look at this. 20:35 It says in verse 14, "When he had spent all, 20:37 there arose a severe famine in that land, 20:41 and he began to be in want." 20:44 That little phrase, "began to be in want," 20:47 is another phrase for the word, "emptiness." 20:52 You know, the emptiness that we feel when we separate ourselves 20:56 from our Father is a very sinking pit-filled feeling 21:02 that goes into your stomach. 21:04 How many of you know what I'm talking about? 21:06 Those of you watching online, you may understand 21:08 what I'm talking about. 21:10 When we estrange ourself from the Lord, 21:12 there's the emptiness that begins to creep upon our life 21:16 and it gives us a sickening feeling. 21:18 And nothing in this world can satisfy. 21:22 You know, friends, everything in this life is passing away. 21:24 How many of you would agree with that today? 21:26 It's very clear that everything in this life is passing away. 21:29 You know, it was just a few months ago, 21:32 last year, last fall, I bought a truck. 21:35 And it was not a brand new truck, but it was the 21:38 newest truck that I had ever had. 21:40 And I was driving that truck around, and I started to feel, 21:44 you know, at first I was very excited to have this truck. 21:47 I was like, man I just really love this truck, 21:48 and I like the way it rides, and etcetera. 21:51 And that just kind of grew. 21:53 And it kind of grew into this little pride. 21:56 I began to say, I was almost to the point where I was 21:59 worshiping the truck. 22:02 Not quite there, but you know. 22:03 You've got to be careful. 22:05 It kind of became an idol to me. 22:07 And I was at camp one day, Camp Au Sable up in Michigan. 22:12 And I was backing into a parking spot. 22:15 And all of a sudden, guess what. 22:19 I looked behind me, and there was this really long 22:22 parking lot, and there was only one tree in the whole 22:25 parking lot, and I happened to back right into 22:29 the only tree there. 22:30 You can imagine the sinking feeling that I had. 22:33 And so I was kind of moping around and kind of 22:36 felt bad about it. 22:37 And I was telling people, "Yeah, I put a dent in my truck." 22:39 And everyone was patting my back and saying, 22:41 "Oh Pastor Wes, it's okay," you know, and 22:43 "We're so sorry." 22:45 And then I went to one of my friends who was another pastor, 22:48 and I started to tell him my mope story. 22:51 And he looked at me and he said, "Well," he said, 22:52 "you know, that's really too bad." 22:54 He says, "I really hope that wasn't the truck 22:57 you were planning to take to heaven." 23:02 And I just kind of froze and my stomach just sank, 23:05 and I thought, "Oh man, he's right." 23:09 Everything in this life passes, does it not? 23:13 And when everything passes, the only thing that's 23:15 going to be left is who we are from the inside out. 23:20 Their characters. 23:22 And what's in our hearts. 23:23 And what God has made us in to be. 23:25 That's the only thing that lasts from this life to the next. 23:29 And so here is this young man, and he was feeling empty. 23:35 Severe famine. 23:37 God will sometimes, you know, He will sometimes 23:41 bring circumstances in our lives that cause those famines 23:47 in our lives, doesn't He? 23:49 And He does it because He's a God that loves us. 23:52 He's a God that cares. 23:54 And He's a God who is willing to do whatever it takes 23:57 to bring our hearts back in line with His. 24:01 He's a jealous God. 24:02 Not in an egotistical way, but He is jealous 24:06 for our happiness. 24:07 And He knows that because He's the only one, 24:11 He's the one who created us, and He's the only one 24:13 that has the ability to truly make us happy. 24:17 And He seeks and He longs to bring our hearts back to Him. 24:20 And sometimes that includes bringing severe 24:23 famines into our lives. 24:24 How many of you are thankful for a God like that? 24:26 Who loves us enough to do whatever it takes 24:29 to bring us back to Him. 24:31 I'm so thankful for that. Amen? 24:32 The Bible tells us in verse 15, it says, "Then he went 24:37 and joined himself to a citizen of that country..." 24:42 You notice, it's very interesting, friends, 24:44 that he left his father's house, and he didn't just go to the 24:48 next country, he went to a what? 24:51 A far country, the Bible says. 24:54 And when everything ran dry, when he was destitute, 24:57 it says that he attaches himself or he joins himself 25:02 to a citizen of that far country. 25:06 Who do you think that citizen might represent? 25:09 The citizen from a far country is Satan. 25:14 Now he had already joined himself to Satan, 25:16 he just didn't know it. 25:18 But you see, that's the way Satan works, is he gets us 25:21 to leave the Father's care, but he doesn't make it known to us 25:25 right away that we're coming under his care. 25:28 You see? 25:29 He waits until we get farther and farther 25:32 and farther away from God. 25:33 So far that it feels like an impossibility for us 25:36 to go back to Him. 25:38 And then he says, "Aha, now I've got you." 25:41 And then he reveals himself and says, 25:42 "You're under my house now. 25:45 You're in my control." 25:46 You see, that's the way sin works, friends. 25:48 Is it launches itself inside of our hearts 25:52 and it grows and it grows, and it seems so pleasurable. 25:55 You know, sin is not unpleasurable. 25:58 You realize, the Bible says that sin is pleasurable. 26:01 But for how long? 26:03 For a season. 26:04 Because ultimately, as it grows and grows in our hearts, 26:08 what happens eventually? 26:11 It brings what? 26:12 It brings death, doesn't it? 26:14 It brings death. 26:15 And this young man was beginning to experience 26:18 the death that his separation from his father was bringing 26:22 to the depths of his soul. 26:24 He was in want. 26:25 He was empty. 26:27 There may be some here today, 26:28 there may be some watching online, 26:30 you've sensed that emptiness in your own heart, 26:33 you've sensed that pit, 26:34 you've sensed that separation from your Father. 26:38 Do not fear, because there is great hope. Amen? 26:42 As we're going to see in the story. 26:43 The Bible tells us, "He went and joined himself to a 26:47 citizen of that country, and he sent him into 26:50 his fields to feed swine." 26:55 Think about that for just a minute. 26:57 To feed swine. 27:00 This young man was probably a Jew, wasn't he? 27:04 And here he was, left his father's house with bags of 27:08 gold and money in his pockets and on his camel, 27:12 and then he spends it all, and now he finds himself 27:17 doing nothing but the lowest job that any person could do; 27:22 which was feeding pigs. 27:25 Think about that for just a minute, friends. 27:27 And I want to make a very important illustration here, 27:30 a very important point. 27:31 That when we leave the Father's house, 27:35 when we leave His care, when we leave His presence, 27:38 we may think to ourselves, "Oh, I can do this 27:42 on my own. 27:44 I have strength, I have willpower, 27:48 I have ability. 27:50 I can do this thing. I don't need anybody." 27:53 That was my thought many years ago. 27:56 But ultimately, when we leave the Father's house, 27:59 we will find ourselves doing things that previously 28:04 we would have never thought possible. 28:07 Have you thought about that before? 28:09 We will find ourselves doing things outside of the 28:11 Father's presence that we never thought was a possibility. 28:14 We may sit in the church and say, "Oh, I don't see how 28:16 these people can go out and drink or smoke, or whatever. 28:20 I just don't see how they can do that." 28:22 You separate yourself from God, and nothing is impossible. 28:25 Just like nothing is impossible with Christ, 28:28 nothing is impossible for Satan to get you to do without Christ. 28:33 Are you with me here? 28:34 And we will find ourselves in a very bad way 28:37 doing the things we never thought we would ever do 28:39 when we leave the Father's house. 28:41 This young man sitting there feeding pigs. 28:44 And if you notice here, look at this, it says, 28:48 verse 16, "And he would have gladly filled his stomach 28:51 with the pods that the swine ate, 28:54 and no one gave him anything." 28:57 He's sitting there and he's feeding pigs. 29:00 And he's watching the pigs eat while his own stomach 29:05 is growling. 29:07 Think about it. 29:08 He's saying, "Man, the pigs here are eating better than I. 29:13 I have nothing." 29:15 "And no one gave him anything," the Bible says. 29:17 You know, when we put ourselves in that place, 29:20 when we put ourselves in that position, 29:23 there is nothing that anyone can do in this world to help you. 29:27 Are you with me? 29:29 You know, sometimes people are addicted, or whatever, 29:31 and those of us on the side that are trying to help them 29:36 think to ourselves, "What can I do to help them?" 29:39 And really, there is nothing that we can do 29:41 for a person until they're willing to turn their wills 29:45 over to the Master. Amen? 29:47 Until we're willing to submit ourselves to the Lord. 29:51 But look in verse 17. 29:53 Very powerful here. 29:55 I love this verse, I just love it. 29:57 It's so amazing. 29:59 Verse 17 says, "But when he came to himself..." 30:04 Think about that for just a minute. 30:06 When he came to himself. 30:09 You know, he didn't just come to himself, you understand? 30:13 It wasn't his own doing. 30:14 But when he was in that moment of emptiness, 30:18 when he was without hope, the Spirit of God 30:22 began to speak to his heart and speak to his mind. 30:26 How many of you can say amen? 30:28 Hebrews 7:25 tells us that Jesus ever lives to make 30:33 intercession for us. 30:34 How many are thankful for that this morning? 30:36 Jesus, even in our darkest hour, when it seems like everyone else 30:39 has abandoned us, Jesus still is interceding for us. 30:44 As long as there's breath in the body, there is hope. 30:47 Can you say amen this morning? There is hope. 30:49 And this young man is sitting there, and the Spirit of God 30:52 begins to impress upon him the need to come back 30:58 to the father's house. 31:03 It says, "But when he came to himself, he said, 31:06 'How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough 31:10 and to spare, and I perish with hunger!'" 31:16 Think about that for just a minute. 31:18 He says, "How many of my father's hired servants..." 31:22 That's not just his sons, but how many of his servants 31:26 eat their fill of bread, and yet have some left over. 31:30 And he thinks to himself, "Man, I remember the goodness 31:38 of my father." 31:39 Can you say amen? 31:41 He says, "My father is so good that he even feeds those 31:46 who are not his sons. 31:48 He even feeds his servants. 31:50 He feeds those who work for him. 31:53 Not only does he feed them, but he gives them 31:56 more than they need." 31:58 And the Spirit of God began to work on his heart 32:01 and point him back to his father's goodness. 32:05 I don't know what he remembered. 32:06 The Bible doesn't tell us every detail. 32:08 But he probably began to remember the times 32:11 that he had when his father lovingly and caringly 32:16 guided his direction, and yet he resisted. 32:19 And he saw in his mind all the times that his father 32:22 was reaching out to him in love, 32:25 and blessing him, seeking to make him happy and joyful 32:30 and successful. 32:31 In spiritual things, of course. 32:34 And he said, "Man, I remember this." 32:38 And he says, "I need to do something." 32:40 He says, this is the most difficult thing for most 32:44 people to do, but he says, "I need to get up 32:47 and I need to do something." 32:49 Right? 32:50 Notice what he says. 32:52 He musters within himself enough thought of this 32:57 that he begins to yield his will to God 33:00 and to his father even before he begins the journey home. 33:03 He determines within himself, he makes the choice, 33:07 he makes the decision that, "I will no longer feed pigs." 33:10 You know, friends, that's the first step 33:11 in coming back to Jesus, is to decide. 33:15 Now we can make the decision all day long, 33:17 but we have not the power to do it on our own, amen? 33:20 But as we reach out to Christ, as we yield the will to Christ, 33:23 He will take our weakened will and He will empower it 33:28 and He will strengthen us to rise and come to Him. Amen? 33:32 How many of you are thankful for such a good God? 33:34 I'm so thankful. 33:36 Notice what he says. 33:37 Verse 18, it says, "I will arise and go..." Where? 33:42 "...to my father..." He makes that decision. 33:44 He says, "I'm going to do this." 33:46 "... and will say to him, 'Father, I have sinned against 33:49 heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy 33:52 to be called your son. 33:54 Make me like one of your hired servants.'" 33:58 If you notice something, friends... 34:00 Well let's just keep going, and then we'll come back to this. 34:02 In verse 20 it says, "And he arose and came to his father. 34:06 But when he was still a great way off, 34:08 his father saw him and had compassion, 34:12 and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 34:15 And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned 34:18 against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer 34:21 worthy to be called your son.'" 34:25 It's very interesting, friends, that four things take place. 34:29 Firstly, he yielded the will. 34:32 He said, "I will arise and go to my father." 34:34 These are steps to coming back to Jesus 34:37 when we've separated ourselves from Him. 34:39 "I will arise and go to my father." 34:40 He yields the will. 34:42 Secondly, he confesses his sin. 34:45 He says, "I have sinned against heaven and against you." 34:48 Amen? 34:50 And we need to confess our sins to the Lord. 34:51 Not for His sake, but for our sake. 34:53 Yes? 34:55 Thirdly, he recognizes and declares his own righteousness 35:01 as filthy rags when he says, "I am no longer worthy." 35:06 And then the last thing that he does is demonstrate 35:09 the humility of a changed heart, because he said, 35:13 "Make me like one of your servants." 35:16 He didn't come back and say, "Make me your son. 35:19 Take me back, because I deserve it 35:22 because I'm your flesh and blood." 35:25 But he said, "Make me like one of your hired servants." 35:27 Now what were the two words that he said when he left? 35:29 He said what? 35:30 He said, "Give me." 35:33 That's an attitude of arrogance, pride, and selfishness. 35:38 But when he returns to the father, he doesn't say, 35:41 "Give me," but he says what? "Make me." 35:44 Can you see an entire transformation 35:46 between those two phrases? 35:47 "Give me..." "Make me..." 35:49 He was yielding himself to the molding and mercy 35:54 of his father. 35:56 And what was the father's response? 35:59 Praise be to God, friends. 36:02 The Bible tells us in verse 22, I'm sorry, verse 20, 36:08 "But when he was still a great way off, 36:11 his father saw him and had compassion, 36:14 and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him." 36:16 Now I want you to think about this for just a minute. 36:19 In this particular culture, in the Middle Eastern culture, 36:25 for a grown elderly man who is established and had property 36:32 and was wealthy, for him to run for any reason 36:38 was cultural taboo. 36:40 You see? 36:42 These men who were established and well to do would always 36:45 have to carry themselves with an upright nobility. 36:49 And they were elders, you understand. 36:52 They were respected by the culture and the society. 36:55 And for any reason for a man to run was considered, 37:00 "Oh, he is just being like, you know, like 37:02 unrespectful," and whatever. 37:04 But if you notice this, my friends, when the father 37:08 who was sitting on his porch, he was looking for his son, 37:12 he was watching. 37:13 I'm sure he sat there every day waiting for that day to come 37:16 when he would see the form of his son coming up 37:19 over the hill. 37:20 When he saw him, the Bible says, he saw him where? 37:24 When he stepped up on the porch? 37:25 Where? A great way off, the Bible says. 37:30 You realize, friends, that no matter how far away we are 37:34 from Jesus, we can be a great way off, 37:39 if we will take one step towards Him, 37:44 if we will turn our hearts and our minds towards Him, 37:51 He will come running and He will meet us 37:55 a great way off. 37:57 How many are thankful for that today? 37:59 It doesn't matter where we're at, He will come running. 38:03 And He will meet us where we are. 38:05 And it says that this man, so he ran. 38:09 So when the Father runs to us, essentially it's saying 38:12 that God cares more about us 38:16 than His own reputation to others. 38:20 How many are thankful for that today? 38:23 Such a good God we serve, amen? 38:25 Philippians chapter 2, the Bible tells us that Jesus 38:28 stepped down from His heavenly throne 38:30 to come and clothe Himself in the garments of humanity. 38:33 And it says that He made Himself of no reputation; 38:38 becoming obedient to the point of death, 38:40 even the death of the cross. 38:42 I wasn't quoting that, but just paraphrasing. 38:43 But you understand that God was willing to give up 38:46 His reputation for us to turn back to His goodness. 38:52 Oh friends, I get so excited when I think about 38:54 the goodness of God and the joy that He wants to bring 38:57 to our lives. 39:00 Now continuing, the Bible says in verse 21, 39:03 "The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against 39:05 heaven and in your sight, and am no longer 39:07 worthy to be called your son.' 39:08 But the father said to his servants, 39:11 'Bring out the...'" What? 39:13 The best robe. 39:15 Not just any robe, but which robe? 39:17 The best robe, it says. 39:20 "...and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand 39:23 and sandals on his feet." 39:24 Those three items have exceedingly great significance. 39:27 You notice, the Bible says, "Bring out the best robe." 39:30 What is the best robe in the house of our heavenly Father? 39:35 What's the best robe? 39:36 It's the righteousness of Christ. Amen? 39:40 That is the robe that was brought to this young man. 39:44 And that is the robe that will be brought to us 39:46 when we turn ourselves by faith to Him. 39:48 He says, "Bring out the best robe and put it in him." 39:52 It was covering his filthy rags. 39:54 You know, this young man, he had been feeding pigs, 39:57 he probably stunk, he had all these problems, 40:00 and his clothes were tattered and rags. 40:02 He comes back and he presents himself to the father, 40:05 and the father says, "Bring out the very best robe 40:08 and cover his filthiness." 40:13 Cover his filthiness. 40:16 You know, friends, there's nothing more that Jesus 40:18 wants to do for you and I than to cover our filthiness 40:24 when we turn our hearts to Him today. 40:27 The second thing that he says is, "Put a ring on his hand." 40:31 I want to make something very clear. 40:33 This was not a decorative ring. 40:35 It was a signet ring. 40:37 And it was a ring that was often used by men of authority, 40:42 and they would put their stamp upon a document, 40:46 or whatever, that was something of importance, 40:48 or a contract, or whatever. 40:49 And when people saw that seal, they knew that it was 40:53 the authority of that man. 40:54 So when he puts this signet ring upon his finger, 40:57 he is restoring his authority as his son. 41:02 In the Bible, it tells us in the gospel of John, it says, 41:06 "To them who received Him, to them He gave the power 41:11 to be called the sons and daughters of God." 41:17 What a blessing, that when we turn to Jesus, 41:21 our status as sons and daughters are restored. Amen? 41:24 The Bible says that he then put sandals on his feet, 41:28 as a symbol that he had a work for him to do. 41:32 Amen? We have a work to do. 41:34 We're given that status as sons and daughters, 41:36 but God sends us then as missionaries. Amen? 41:39 He calls us to preach the gospel to those around us. 41:42 He calls us to share the testimony of feeding pigs 41:46 to those around us, and say, "Hey friend, 41:48 you don't have to feed pigs either. 41:50 Come with me. 41:51 You can come to the father's house." 41:52 Amen? 41:54 He calls us to share the gospel. 41:55 Now, this is good news. Amen? 42:00 The Bible tells us in verse 23, he said, "'Bring the fatted calf 42:05 here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 42:08 for this my son was dead and is alive again; 42:13 he was lost and he is found.' 42:15 And they began to be merry." 42:17 And then they lived happily ever after. 42:20 Right? 42:21 Isn't that the way it went? 42:23 No, unfortunately it did not go that way. 42:27 But in the next verse, it says, "Now his older son 42:34 was in the field. 42:35 And as he came and drew near to the house, 42:38 he heard music and dancing. 42:39 So he called one of the servants and asked 42:41 what these things meant. 42:43 And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, 42:46 and because he has received him safe and sound, 42:49 your father has killed the fatted calf.' 42:52 But he was..." What, friends? 42:54 He was angry, the Bible says. 42:57 You mean to tell me he was angry because his brother came home? 43:00 How can this be? 43:02 What was the problem? Let's see what the Bible says. 43:05 "Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him. 43:10 So he answered and said to his father, 43:12 'Lo, these many years I have been serving you; 43:15 I have never transgressed your commandment at any time; 43:18 and yet you never gave me a young goat, 43:21 that I might make merry with my friends. 43:24 But as soon as this son of yours came...'" 43:26 Notice, he didn't call him his brother. 43:28 He said, "this son of yours." 43:29 Sometimes I'll say that to my wife. 43:32 "This son of yours has spilled milk on the floor." 43:34 Whatever, right? 43:35 And you detach yourself. 43:38 "'As soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured 43:41 your livelihood with harlots, you killed the 43:43 fatted calf for him.' 43:45 And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, 43:48 and all that I have is yours. 43:50 It was right that we should make merry and be glad, 43:52 for your brother was dead and is alive again, 43:55 and was lost and is now found.'" 43:59 This brother had the exact same problem 44:04 as his other brother. 44:08 The other brother left the father's house 44:11 in self-righteousness. 44:13 The other brother stayed in the house in self-righteousness. 44:18 He says, "Lo, I have served you all these years. 44:20 I have never transgressed your commandment." 44:22 He's boasting his own goodness before the father. 44:26 You see, friends, there are prodigals that leave the church. 44:31 But there are prodigals who stay in the church. 44:35 And there are those who are desperate to know Jesus 44:39 and to experience His transforming grace 44:42 in their lives who have sat in the pews of the church 44:46 every Sabbath for decades. 44:51 And there are those same people who will scoff at those 44:56 who leave the church, and say, "Well, I guess 45:00 they didn't love the truth enough." 45:03 Rather than going after them, they will stand in their pride 45:07 and say, "Let them go. 45:10 He's not worthy to be here. 45:12 But I shall remain behind and do the Father's will." 45:16 Right? 45:19 You know, I wonder if that brother who had left 45:24 and come home, if he overheard the conversation 45:27 between the father and his brother. 45:31 You know, there's often times that those within the church 45:35 will make hurtful slightful comments to folks 45:39 who leave the church. 45:40 Is it not true? 45:42 How many of you have had that experience. 45:43 Friends, if I left the church because someone had said 45:46 something hurtful to me, I would have left the church 45:49 hundreds of times. 45:51 But my eyes are not upon the people, 45:54 my eyes are upon Jesus. 45:55 And I pray, and hope you'll pray for me, that they'll stay there. 45:58 And I'll pray for you. 46:00 But friends, when we keep our eyes locked upon Jesus, 46:02 it doesn't really matter what people say, does it? 46:06 Now you know, I find it interesting, 46:08 I want to talk just a minute, just a second, to those 46:11 maybe who may be watching today, 46:13 or maybe some may be visiting here, 46:14 who have left the church and are staying at home and 46:18 not coming to the church. 46:20 I want to ask you a question. 46:21 Has anyone in your workplace... 46:26 ...ever said something negative to you? 46:29 Ever hurt your feelings? Ever called you a name? 46:32 Ever said something slightful to you? 46:34 But did you go back to work the next day? 46:37 Yes or no? 46:39 Yes. Why is that? 46:40 Because you need what? 46:42 You need money. Right? 46:44 And you've got to put food on the table. 46:46 But how much more do we need our Father's care? 46:50 How much more do we need our Father's blessing in His house? 46:53 And why would we go back to work when we 46:55 wouldn't go back to church? 46:57 Why would we go back to a sporting event where 46:59 people were maybe yelling and angry with you or your kid 47:04 because you said something or they messed up? 47:05 Why would people do that and not come to church? 47:10 Any event, it doesn't matter what it is. 47:15 You see, the church is a hospital for sinners, 47:19 not a hotel for saints. 47:22 God is working out His perfect will within us. 47:25 So if you thought, "Oh, I got my feelings hurt," 47:27 you should have been in with the twelve disciples 47:29 when they walked with Jesus. 47:30 Man, they tore each other up all the time. 47:33 They were like, "I'm going to be first." 47:34 "No, I'm going to be first. 47:36 You've got this problem, that problem. 47:37 I'm going to be first." 47:39 And then, that would have been enough to make 47:40 anybody leave the church, right? 47:42 So people are not perfect, but Jesus is. 47:45 And He's going to bring us into His perfection, amen? 47:48 He's going to bring us there. 47:50 Now I want to say this. 47:51 That the Father is seeking, friends, He is seeking 47:57 very vehemently to bring His children back together. 48:04 Now I'm not talking about what we talked about last night. 48:06 We talked about last night the ecumenical movement globally. 48:10 That's not what I'm talking about. 48:11 I'm talking about the remnant church. 48:13 Those who have left and those who are behind, 48:16 He's seeking to bring those folk back. 48:20 Just last month our church organized. 48:23 And we went out and did a visitation of folks 48:28 that had not been to the church in years. 48:30 And you would be amazed at the stories we heard. 48:33 But you would also be amazed at the miracle 48:36 that God touched people's heart, and they said, 48:39 "Because someone visited me, I'm coming back to church." 48:44 Friends, as those who remain, as the elder brother in the church, 48:48 we need to be reaching out to those 48:50 who have left, amen, to come back. 48:52 There are some people who have left, and they 48:55 don't have the story of the prodigal son. 48:57 But they've been faithful. 48:58 They've been watching 3ABN and Amazing Facts, 49:00 and all the other networks. 49:02 They've been faithful. 49:03 But friend's, I've got to say this. 49:05 That Jesus always loves us no matter where we are, doesn't He? 49:09 And His arms are always outstretched to us. 49:13 But He doesn't just want us in His arms, 49:16 He wants us in His house. 49:20 He wants us in His church. 49:22 And to stay at home separated from the body of God, 49:26 the body of Christ, is no good for anybody. 49:29 We must be willing to forgive, on both sides of the spectrum. 49:35 And those who have been away need to come home. 49:39 What do you say today, friends? 49:42 He is compassionate. 49:43 You can see in the story He is compassionate 49:46 to both brothers. 49:49 Are you thankful for that? 49:53 I want to make a special appeal this morning. 49:59 That those who are in the Father's house... 50:05 ...would make a decision today... 50:10 ...not to trust in our own self-righteousness, 50:14 not to trust in our own goodness, 50:18 but to look only unto Jesus who is our only hope 50:23 and our only opportunity to have true righteousness 50:27 before the Father. 50:30 I'm appealing to you today to make that decision 50:33 to lay down your own filthy rags of self-righteousness, 50:37 to lay down your pride. 50:39 And maybe someone who's in the church today 50:42 has hurt and spoken words to someone who's left the church; 50:48 put down your pride today and seek to bring them home. 50:55 Go to them and apologize. 50:57 Go to them and ask forgiveness. 50:59 Even if you think that you are not in the wrong, 51:03 friends, it doesn't matter in the eyes of eternity. 51:06 There will be lots of people who will be outside that city 51:13 who are faithful members of God's church. 51:16 I don't say, "faithful." 51:17 Who are members, baptized members, I should say; 51:19 not faithful. 51:20 If you're faithful, you'll be inside the city, right? 51:23 But there will be many on the outside who attended church 51:25 faithful every week. 51:30 Secondly, those who have been in God's house 51:37 who have driven people away, 51:39 who have had wrong attitudes, who have had... 51:43 And we all know those folk, don't we? 51:46 And we all know those folk, and we can point 51:48 them out sometimes. 51:49 But sometimes God shows us the mirror, and He helps us realize 51:52 that we were the ones with the bad attitude, doesn't He? 51:56 We need to have our arms open wide in love, 52:00 and we need repentance in our lives. 52:03 Because God will only pour out the Holy Spirit 52:07 when His people get on their knees and pour their 52:12 hearts out to Him asking Him, pleading with Him, 52:15 begging Him to transform their hearts by the 52:19 power of the Holy Spirit. 52:21 We need revival in the church, do we not, friends? 52:24 We see people leaving the church left and right. 52:26 And that doesn't mean the church is bad. 52:29 The church is good, the truth is good. 52:31 We've got issues in the church, but Jesus 52:33 is going to cleanse His bride. Amen? 52:36 He's going to work these things out. 52:37 And the bride is going to stand tall and firm and beautiful 52:42 before He comes back. 52:43 So it is not a good idea to jump out of the ship, right? 52:48 Because you're going to sink. There's no live saving boat. 52:50 The boat is it. 52:52 Jesus called the people through Noah onto the boat. 52:54 And that was the only life saving avenue. 52:57 Now we're not saved by the church, but when we're saved 52:59 we ought to be in the church. Amen? 53:02 We need not leave. 53:04 But we need repentance, we need renewal, we need revival. 53:06 We need the Holy Spirit to work in us like never before. 53:10 We need a revival like they had in the book of Acts, 53:15 where God's people are hungry and passionate 53:18 for His presence in their life and they have a burden 53:21 to reach lost souls. 53:24 Do you have that burden here today, friends? 53:26 Jesus wants to give it to you. 53:30 Now the next appeal I have is for those 53:35 who are the prodigal son, 53:37 who have been wandering away and have been feeding the pigs. 53:44 And maybe you've reached a point in your life 53:48 where that emptiness is too much to bear. 53:50 It's too heavy to carry. 53:52 And you have no strength within yourself to leave that pigpen. 53:58 But you hear the voice of Jesus today, and He's calling you. 54:02 He's calling you back home. 54:03 He's calling with compassion, and you sense His Spirit 54:07 talking to you, and you say, "I want to come home. 54:11 I want to come back." 54:14 There are many today, I believe, who fit this description, 54:19 who have been wandering for some time, but you 54:21 sense Jesus calling you home. 54:22 Would you make the decision this morning 54:25 to say, "Yes, Jesus, I'm coming home." 54:30 You may not have been to the church in 30 years, 54:32 or you might have been sitting in the church every Sabbath 54:34 for the past 30 years but wandering in your heart, 54:38 and you say, "Lord Jesus, I'm coming back." 54:41 Whatever your condition is, I'm appealing to you today 54:44 to make the decision now to come home. 54:49 And my last appeal is this. 54:53 There may be some who have left the church, 54:55 and especially our friends who are watching online today, 54:59 you may have left the church, but you still believe 55:02 in the truth, you still love the Lord, but you have not 55:06 been a part of God's people. 55:08 You have been away from God's church. 55:11 Jesus, as I said, He has His arms wide open, 55:15 but He doesn't just want you in His arms. 55:17 He wants you in His house. 55:18 And you sense the call this morning that He's calling you 55:22 back to church. 55:23 And you may say, "Oh, but you know, to go back to the church 55:26 means I have to face those people that hurt me." 55:30 Don't fear. 55:32 Because there is the Father, and He's calling you back. 55:35 And He will deal with that brother who's hurt you. 55:38 And He wants to have reconciliation. 55:41 He wants to have healing, He wants to have blessing, 55:44 and He's calling you back to Him. 55:47 Just like that young lady, Shalynn, she said, 55:49 when she left the church, she said, "I will never go back 55:54 to the Adventist church." 55:55 Maybe some of you today have said that. 55:57 And you've been watching 3ABN, you've been loving the Lord, 55:59 but God is calling you. 56:01 And friends, let me say that in these final moments 56:05 of earth's history, we have no time to be messing around. 56:11 We saw from last night's presentation 56:13 that we are on the verge of eternity. 56:15 And Jesus is calling all His children home. 56:21 If you fit that description, friend, would you 56:23 not make the decision today, would you not hear the 56:26 voice of Jesus and come, would you not yield your 56:29 will to Him and lay down anything that would separate 56:33 you from coming back, and say, "Jesus, I'm coming back. 56:37 Take me by the hand and lead me home." 56:40 Wherever you are, friends, whether you're watching here 56:43 or whether you are here in our local audience, 56:46 if you fit any of these descriptions, 56:49 if you find yourself being the prodigal or the older brother 56:53 in any capacity, would you not follow the voice of Christ 56:59 and come home? 57:01 Come to Jesus, because He wants you, He longs for you, 57:06 and His arms are stretched out for you. 57:08 Friend, would that be your decision this morning? 57:11 Would you make that decision? Say, "Yes, Jesus." 57:13 Those of you watching, would you raise your hands today 57:15 just indicating to Jesus your decision as we pray. 57:18 Father in heaven, this morning we long to be in Your presence, 57:22 we long to be on Your house. 57:24 We ask You to draw near to us today. 57:27 And wherever we are, friends, wherever we are, Lord, 57:30 whoever is out there in any capacity, Lord, 57:32 would You bring them home, back to Your church? 57:36 And we ask You to do this by the power of Your grace 57:39 and the might of Your Spirit. 57:40 In Jesus' name, amen. |
Revised 2016-04-13