Sermon at First Presbyterian
Church Lockhart
by James Greene
In this season of Lent we are called to be reconciled to the The King in
our lives and in the universe.
We need to remember our focus
on God, and on God’s standards. We are to remember how Christ
has come to reconcile us to the Father, so that we may have life and hope.
He came to show us God’s heart
and how we are to live in,
and to be in God’s Will, as
part of the people of God in our
being reconciled
to God.
In the reading from Joshua,
we see Israel, camped at Gilgal.
This is right after they have crossed over the Jordan
on dry land. The Tribes
gathered 12 large stones, from the riverbed to build a memorial. The word Gilgal means circle of stones. It was a
memorial of their
entering the Promised Land. In our hymn “Come,
Thou Fount”, we hear the words “Here I raise my Ebenezer”. The word Ebenezer, is a stone that
is a memorial of divine help and deliverance.
Israel celebrated the Passover
to remember their redeemption from slavery,
out of Egypt. They had been
saved in God’s economy. God had provided
for them in the wilderness with manna. Now God fulfilled the promise and provided for them as they entered the Promised Land.
It is the first time that they ate food from the Promised Land in the form of un-leaven bread and roasted grain. This celebration was also re-dedication, with the circumcision, of all those who were born during the 40 years in the desert. This is all in light of their being redeemed by the Lord, and given the Promised Land.
In Psalm 32 we see the theme of redemption
and being reconciled to God. It
is an illustration of God’s
grace, when we repent, and turn
to righteousness. We see God’s counsel, when he says “I will instruct, teach, counsel, and watch over
you.” It is illustrated in how the Lord wraps
His love around those who
trust him. It also demonstrates our response in being
called to rejoice, to be glad, and to sing in
our relationship with God. It is in thankfulness for our redemption. It is an honest repentance, and seeking or asking for the Lord “while
he may be found.”
We
are given the freedom to choose, to seek
the Lord, but we are also to be instructed
by the Lord in the way we should
go. We are shown the way, but we have been given
the freedom to choose the way we go.
When we hear God's instruction in our lives, we cannot help but respond, like the Psalmist, in praise and singing, yearning to be in tune with creation and the Creator. It is realized in this reconciliation to God.
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In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, is his ministry of reconciliation. We see how we, as The Body of Christ,
are called to be reconciled with those around us. We are called to love our neighbor as ourself. We are to be God’s instruments by representing his standard of excellence to the world. We are to be Christ’s ambassadors and called
to be in relationship with all people; even the sinners. We are to show forgiveness, even God’s forgiveness, to those who are in need
of it, because God is making his
appeal, through us, to those
around us. We are to be an active participant in helping to
reconcile people to God.
How can
some one forgive, if they have never experienced
forgiveness? With that experience, they can be freed from their guilt and able
to respond to God, in honesty, in a spirit with out deceit, and turn to the Lord, and the Lord will save and protect
them.
It reminds
me of what my parents used to
say, to me, when I was younger
and still in school. “When you
leave home to go out and set the world
on fire, don’t slam the door
too hard. You may have to come back for more matches.” It reminds us of the younger son.
The Story reminds me of contemporary thought in the importance
of birth order and the relationship of siblings. I discovered in an article the following:
The First Born, or older child had the hardest job. They are the
one, who has to brake the trails for the others to follow. They were
the dependable ones. They are the one who follows the rules.
They are, hardworking and had
a stick-to-it-iveness in their focus on school, work, or any
project. They also want to control the younger siblings. They make good engineers, with an attention to details.
The next born were a free spirit type,
and the rules were only
guidelines that needed to be tested.
They learn from the older
child’s mistakes and perfect the
technique of getting around the
regulations. They were more of a social personality, and developing people skills.
Now
in the Hebrew culture and law the first born male had a distinct roll
and identity within the
family. They were known as
the Go-el: the Kinsman Redeemer. As the eldest
son, he would receive a double
portion of the inheritance.
He was to redeem a kinsman that was in debt, or enslaved. He was called to redeem
and save them. He was to buy back property and save the lost
relative. He was also to accomplish
blood revenge for a murdered
kinsman, and vindicate them, and
he was called to raise up children by the widow of a brother who had died.
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The Younger Son’s inheritance by custom (Deuteronomy 21:7) is 1/3 of the fathers wealth. If the Father distributes the inheritance too soon, he runs the risk of falling into debt, and being dependant upon someone. He risks loosing his sovereignty as the head of the family.
He
wants to be reconciled to the Father.
The Older Son is angry at the father’s joy of the returned
younger son. (But let us look a little deeper). The Older Son did not fulfill his role as the Kinsman Redeemer. He did not go and try to save the lost brother. Like Cain he asks the question “am I my
brother’s keeper?” The Older Son separated
himself from the feast refusing
to join in the joy of the
return of his brother. He, like the
Pharisees, murmurs and lists all
his works and faithful service, forgetting his requirement
for righteous deeds.
He is resentful of his father’s provision for him. He does not remember the father’s fairness
and justice with both sons,
he does not see God’s economy of redemption and reconciliation. Finally, he demands the father’s loyalty because the Younger
Son has done everything wrong
and squandered the wealth of the
family. He is resentful because some of his wealth has already been given up to
this undeserving and sinful brother. He does not love his brother. The older son,
who already has access to all
that is the fathers, and full
rights as a son, if he “asks for it”. The key word here is “asks”.
He must humble himself, in
his demands and requirements, to the father. The father is considered dead to him, and he only
wants the father’s wealth.
He is outside of his
father’s and God’s Will with the focus of his
heart.
In the Hebrew culture if a son was rebellious, the father could take the son to
the city elders, and the son
would be stoned to death. But,- the
Father, in his love
for the Younger Son, released him with his inheritance. He gives both
sons the freedom to choose
who they will serve and who they will follow. He is reserved
in his response to the older
son.
The father has not done well
with his relationship with both
sons. He has been stingy with his
money. The Older
Son – by not letting him have a kid
to celebrate.
The Younger
Son – in making things so
hard he leaves home.
The father wants relationship with his sons.
His relationship with the younger son has caused him to leave home taking
his inheritance. His
relationship with the
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older
son is strained and he has hardened the son’s heart.
The younger son is reassured by his father of his redemption,
and is restored to position in
his father’s house. The father rejoices,
in the family being reunited, and
calls for reconciling between the
sons.
Finally like the father in the parable, even though both sons were outside of the Father’s Will they were never beyond his love. He strives for reconciliation between the sons, and within the family. He loves them, as they are, and where they are, in their lives, and in his wisdom.
We also see how God as the redeemer rescues and restores
Israel. We
know that Christ our kinsman redeemer
buys us back from sin and slavery (like the younger and older brothers) to reconcile us to the Father. He has come
to show us that we have hope with
our resolve to confess our sinfulness and return to
relationship with the Father. He calls us into community as a people who can forgive and realize they are redeemed in joy, and reconciled
with God the Father. We know and are reassured that God will be our shield and shelter
through out all of our lives. We are called
into relationship with God and with each other.
Christ is the way and the one, who calls us that we may be, reconciled to the father…..
In
the Name of … the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit. Amen
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The
alliteration of the parable – The R
factor
Younger Son
Rebels
against the father
Recognizes
his state
Resolves
to confess his sin
Returns
to the father
Requests
only Grace
Reassured
by the father of his redemption
Restored
to position in his father’s house
Older Son
Rejects
the father’s joy of the returned son
Removes
himself from the feast
Refuses
to join in the joy of the returned brother
Recites
his works and service
Resents
the fathers provision
Remembers
not the fairness and justice of the father
Requires
the father’s loyalty
Relinquishes
his responsibility as the family redeemer
The Father
Restrained
in his judgment of the sons
Releases
the Younger Son in his freedom to choose
Reserved
in his response to the Older Son’s resentment
Rejoiced
in the family being re-united
Reconciling
the Older Son to the Younger Son
Receiving
the Younger Son back to his position in the family
Reminding
the Older Son of his full rights as a son if
he asks.
Even
though both sons were out side of
the Father’s will, they were never
beyond the Father’s love.