WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.319 Welcome to the Awakening Church podcast. 00:00:02.479 --> 00:00:07.040 We pray this message encourages you and provides the hope and light of Jesus Christ. 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:08.640 Thanks for tuning in. 00:00:20.960 --> 00:00:26.399 Hi! Yeah! We're awake! Love it! Hi, guys. 00:00:26.719 --> 00:00:32.079 Those of you watching online in person, wow, thanks for not going to watch the game and being here. 00:00:32.240 --> 00:00:33.119 I'm happy. 00:00:33.439 --> 00:00:34.079 That's cool. 00:00:34.320 --> 00:00:35.200 So good to see you guys. 00:00:35.280 --> 00:00:36.640 If we haven't met, my name is Nassim. 00:00:36.799 --> 00:00:38.640 I'm our discipleship pastor here on staff. 00:00:38.799 --> 00:00:42.000 It is really exciting to dive into God's word with you. 00:00:42.240 --> 00:00:47.520 And this morning, we are in part three of a sermon series we're doing called Prodigal. 00:00:47.759 --> 00:00:50.960 We're going through Luke 15, the parable of the prodigal son. 00:00:51.439 --> 00:00:58.960 And if you weren't here last week, I really want to encourage you to go listen to Roland's sermon, our youth pastor, preached a powerful sermon on the younger son. 00:00:59.520 --> 00:01:07.519 And today I'm gonna be preaching out of Luke 15, but through the lens of a different character in the story, through the lens of the older brother. 00:01:08.640 --> 00:01:11.920 And I want to give you a little bit of a short recap just to give us some context. 00:01:12.000 --> 00:01:14.400 Maybe you forgot last week, maybe you weren't here to listen to it. 00:01:14.480 --> 00:01:18.159 Let me give you some context of the story in which we find ourselves in. 00:01:18.400 --> 00:01:29.280 This is a story in the Bible where Jesus is talking to the Pharisees, to the Jewish religious leaders, and he's talking to them in hopes that they would have ears to listen to what he has to say. 00:01:29.599 --> 00:01:33.760 And so I hope that we here today too have ears to listen to what God wants to say to us. 00:01:34.000 --> 00:01:36.640 In this story, we have three main characters. 00:01:36.799 --> 00:01:40.799 We have a father and his two sons, older son, younger son. 00:01:41.200 --> 00:01:48.239 And last week, I kind of I'm a TV nerd, so I'm kind of gonna do like a little thing of like previously on, you know, like before the episode starts. 00:01:48.319 --> 00:02:01.840 So previously on, what you might have missed last week is the younger son in the story decides that he wants to go out and rebel, live his best life, if you will, as the kids are saying these days, and basically walk away from the father. 00:02:02.000 --> 00:02:03.920 He basically wishes his father dead. 00:02:04.079 --> 00:02:10.240 He asks for his inheritance before the father has passed, and just says peace out to the family, and runs away. 00:02:10.400 --> 00:02:13.360 And spoiler alert, he does not live his best life, right? 00:02:13.520 --> 00:02:14.159 We know that. 00:02:14.400 --> 00:02:22.080 He comes back full of shame and has squandered all his money and basically comes back asking for the father's forgiveness. 00:02:22.319 --> 00:02:32.719 And as we learned last week, this powerful way that we ended the sermon last week, the father, instead of being angry, instead of shaming his son, he welcomes him home with open arms, right? 00:02:32.960 --> 00:02:40.400 He rejoices and he wants to throw a party in his honor to celebrate his lost son being found and coming home. 00:02:40.719 --> 00:02:42.479 So that was previously on. 00:02:42.639 --> 00:02:45.439 Now it's like next episode. 00:02:45.840 --> 00:02:49.840 Right in the middle of all that cliffhanger, I want to introduce you to the older brother. 00:02:50.000 --> 00:02:50.719 So read with me. 00:02:50.879 --> 00:02:53.120 We're in Luke 15, verse 25. 00:02:53.759 --> 00:02:57.599 Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. 00:02:58.000 --> 00:03:01.360 When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 00:03:01.520 --> 00:03:05.039 And so he called to one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 00:03:05.360 --> 00:03:07.280 Your father's come home, he replied. 00:03:07.599 --> 00:03:13.520 You're sorry, your brother's come home, he replied, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound. 00:03:13.759 --> 00:03:16.159 This is a very big deal for that context. 00:03:16.560 --> 00:03:20.319 And the older brother became angry and refused to go in. 00:03:20.560 --> 00:03:23.280 So his father went out and pleaded with him. 00:03:23.439 --> 00:03:30.000 But he answered his father, Look, all these years I've been slaving for you and I've never disobeyed your orders. 00:03:30.159 --> 00:03:34.080 Yet you never even gave me a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 00:03:34.400 --> 00:03:41.280 But when this son of yours, who squandered your property with prostitutes, comes home, you killed a fattened calf for him. 00:03:42.000 --> 00:03:47.599 My son, the father said, You are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 00:03:47.840 --> 00:03:54.000 But we had to celebrate and be glad because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again. 00:03:54.319 --> 00:03:56.479 He was lost and now he's found. 00:03:56.719 --> 00:03:58.159 Will you pray with me? 00:03:58.960 --> 00:04:02.879 Jesus, thank you, God, so much for your word, that is word of life. 00:04:03.120 --> 00:04:05.199 Your word is our daily bread. 00:04:05.599 --> 00:04:09.919 And God, we come to you, Lord, seeking to listen and to learn from your word. 00:04:10.240 --> 00:04:14.879 And Holy Spirit, I just pray that we would have eyes and ears attuned to you. 00:04:15.199 --> 00:04:20.079 Lord, that I would be so attuned to you, God, that you would just use me as an empty vessel that you'd speak through Spirit. 00:04:20.240 --> 00:04:21.439 We're here to receive. 00:04:22.079 --> 00:04:22.720 Amen. 00:04:23.199 --> 00:04:23.839 Amen. 00:04:24.079 --> 00:04:26.560 So I'm wondering, are any of you older siblings here in the house? 00:04:26.639 --> 00:04:27.360 So you raise your hand. 00:04:27.519 --> 00:04:28.079 Older siblings? 00:04:28.160 --> 00:04:28.240 Yeah. 00:04:28.319 --> 00:04:28.639 Okay, cool. 00:04:28.720 --> 00:04:32.160 I love Roland and I want to start our sermons this way because we're both older siblings. 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:33.759 Um I'm the big sister. 00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:36.639 I have a younger brother who is four years younger than me. 00:04:36.879 --> 00:04:41.439 And I'd like to say that growing up, the dynamic was just hard, right? 00:04:41.600 --> 00:04:42.399 The dynamic was hard. 00:04:42.480 --> 00:04:49.279 I think just being older sister, younger brother, four years, four and a half years, is just enough time where like you just kind of get on each other's nerves, right? 00:04:49.439 --> 00:04:50.079 Anyone else? 00:04:50.319 --> 00:04:51.519 Yeah, that's just what it was. 00:04:51.680 --> 00:04:55.199 Um, I have a photo of us at our cuteness prime that I want to show you. 00:04:56.000 --> 00:04:56.480 I know. 00:04:56.720 --> 00:05:02.000 I liked for you to just look at like my subtle side eye, kind of glancing over at his cake. 00:05:02.160 --> 00:05:08.079 I'm thinking my parents probably just got me a cake as like a supplemental, yeah, you can get attention too, but it was probably like his birthday, I think. 00:05:08.160 --> 00:05:09.839 But I'm like, is my cake as good as his? 00:05:10.000 --> 00:05:10.160 Right? 00:05:10.319 --> 00:05:11.439 Am I still gonna get attention? 00:05:11.680 --> 00:05:13.680 Just glancing over, look how cute he is. 00:05:13.839 --> 00:05:15.439 Um, and then this is us today. 00:05:15.600 --> 00:05:16.240 This is us today. 00:05:16.319 --> 00:05:18.160 This was at Thanksgiving a few months ago. 00:05:18.319 --> 00:05:19.839 I love my brother so much. 00:05:19.920 --> 00:05:24.240 Um, we've only grown closer as time has gone by, so love him. 00:05:24.560 --> 00:05:33.439 Being the psychology enthusiast that I am, as I've grown older, I've been really fascinated with tools that help us understand how we relate to the world. 00:05:33.680 --> 00:05:40.879 Things like, you know, family of origin or your sibling birth order, maybe plotting your genogram, any Pizza Gazero fans in the house. 00:05:41.040 --> 00:05:42.399 Just love to nerd out on that. 00:05:42.480 --> 00:05:45.120 Um, and how these dynamics can really affect us. 00:05:45.199 --> 00:05:50.879 You know, just as much as parenting can affect us, having or not having a sibling can really affect how you grow up. 00:05:51.120 --> 00:05:58.800 This um psychologist I follow says, I think of the sibling relationship like this natural laboratory for learning how to get along with people. 00:05:59.040 --> 00:05:59.920 Isn't that so good? 00:06:00.079 --> 00:06:00.720 So true. 00:06:00.959 --> 00:06:08.959 And what's interesting is there are actual studies that psychologists and sociologists have done to study different traits in siblings and their dynamics. 00:06:09.120 --> 00:06:12.639 And this one was done that I found really fascinating that I want to share with you. 00:06:12.800 --> 00:06:20.560 It was done on 320 undergraduate engineering students in India, both male and female, first year to fourth year. 00:06:20.720 --> 00:06:23.519 And they were studying the trait of perfectionism. 00:06:23.920 --> 00:06:31.600 And they categorized perfectionism under two umbrellas, what they called positive perfectionism and maladaptive perfectionism, or negative. 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:41.600 Positive perfectionism was classified with traits like leadership, intellectual ability, social connectedness, and achievement motivation. 00:06:41.839 --> 00:06:45.360 I'm gonna hold off on defining the negative till I share the results with you. 00:06:45.680 --> 00:06:55.600 So, what the study found was that by a large part in families of two or more children, the older sibling had a way higher tendency towards the maladaptive perfectionist traits. 00:06:55.759 --> 00:06:56.720 What does that look like? 00:06:56.959 --> 00:07:06.720 For those siblings, their parental influences were stronger when it came to decision making, demands of the family, and display of conscientiousness. 00:07:06.959 --> 00:07:12.959 They experienced things like higher personal and societal demands that sometimes led to a negative emotional state. 00:07:13.199 --> 00:07:23.439 And this is not to say that they didn't experience the positive traits, they they had those, but in fact, just between older and younger, the older siblings had a much higher um tendency towards the maladaptive. 00:07:23.600 --> 00:07:27.519 So I don't know about you guys, I read that as a firstborn, especially Iranian American. 00:07:27.600 --> 00:07:28.639 I felt very seen by that. 00:07:28.800 --> 00:07:29.199 Anyone else? 00:07:29.360 --> 00:07:30.319 Just kind of feeling seen? 00:07:30.480 --> 00:07:33.120 Yeah, I think I inhibit both of those. 00:07:33.360 --> 00:07:40.079 Um, if you if you know me, you would easily and very quickly know that my parents are the most important people in my life. 00:07:40.240 --> 00:07:41.600 Um, to know them is to love them. 00:07:41.680 --> 00:07:42.480 Can I get an amen? 00:07:42.720 --> 00:07:43.199 You know them. 00:07:43.279 --> 00:07:43.600 Yep. 00:07:43.759 --> 00:07:44.720 They're here today. 00:07:44.879 --> 00:07:47.199 Um, mom and dad, I'm sorry, I'm not sorry. 00:07:47.279 --> 00:07:52.560 We're just gonna go there a little bit about how I grew up and my dynamic with my brother. 00:07:52.720 --> 00:07:59.120 Um, you know, I was, you guys, your typical rule-following older sister, like responsible. 00:07:59.279 --> 00:08:03.279 In fact, I have this memory of do you remember getting progress reports in elementary and middle school? 00:08:03.439 --> 00:08:06.160 The teacher would write your, you know, the comments on the side. 00:08:06.480 --> 00:08:13.519 The consistent feedback in my comments every year, year after year for my teachers was Nassim is extremely conscientious. 00:08:13.759 --> 00:08:16.319 And that's not a word that we hear often often today. 00:08:16.399 --> 00:08:20.800 So that means the quality of wishing to do one's work well and thoroughly. 00:08:20.959 --> 00:08:22.720 That was me, through and through. 00:08:22.959 --> 00:08:30.160 My brother, on the other hand, was a class clown, free spirit, you know, kind of just like Street Smart, anything goes. 00:08:30.399 --> 00:08:33.279 I remember in high school, my brother took a lot of AP film classes. 00:08:33.440 --> 00:08:43.120 So on the weekends, he'd drive with his friends to San Francisco and like film movies, just do, you know, no curfew, come home whenever you want, just yeah, living his best life. 00:08:43.360 --> 00:08:54.720 Um, meanwhile, four years earlier when I was in high school, it's funny because two of my youth group friends are here today, when we were in youth group, we'd go to church after after lunch and sorry, we'd go to lunch after church on Sundays. 00:08:54.879 --> 00:09:01.440 And the common thing that my friends will even make fun of me to this day is how long do you think it'll take before NASA's parents call her to come home and study? 00:09:01.679 --> 00:09:05.360 That was what time do you think that she'll get called home to go home and study? 00:09:05.519 --> 00:09:07.600 And so I just say that kind of tongue in cheek. 00:09:07.679 --> 00:09:22.480 So maybe you find yourself either in my story or my brothers, whether you're oldest, youngest, only child, or middle, in today's message, I want us to look at arguably one of the most famous sibling dynamics of all time, in that of the older brother and the younger brother. 00:09:22.720 --> 00:09:26.639 I don't know about you guys, we don't hear a lot of sermons about the older brother, right? 00:09:27.200 --> 00:09:34.320 And I personally deeply connect with the older brother because I'm probably what you'd call a recovering older brother. 00:09:34.799 --> 00:09:41.519 And in this sermon, I hope to illustrate and unpack the power of this dynamic through the medium of a painting. 00:09:41.679 --> 00:09:43.600 It's an oil painting that you might be familiar with. 00:09:43.759 --> 00:09:46.559 It is Rembrandt's Return of the Prodigal Son. 00:09:46.720 --> 00:09:48.240 Let's take a look at it. 00:09:49.200 --> 00:09:56.799 Author, priest, and theologian Henry Nowin spent hours at the Ermitage Museum in Russia with this painting. 00:09:57.039 --> 00:09:58.240 I don't know about you guys. 00:09:58.320 --> 00:10:06.799 I don't I can't imagine spending probably more than 15, 20 minutes with one piece of art, but he spent days and days with this piece of art, which that's really cool. 00:10:06.960 --> 00:10:11.360 And so much so, he was so fascinated that he wrote a book on the painting and his insights. 00:10:11.440 --> 00:10:13.279 It's called The Return of the Prodigal Son. 00:10:13.519 --> 00:10:17.039 Side note, highly recommend that as a supplemental reading if you want to nerd out. 00:10:17.200 --> 00:10:17.840 Wonderful book. 00:10:17.919 --> 00:10:20.799 I will be quoting much of Henry Nowan in today's sermon. 00:10:21.039 --> 00:10:25.120 Henry Nowan was deeply moved by the older brother in this painting. 00:10:25.600 --> 00:10:38.399 And I want to read to you, he says of his experience with this painting, quote, I recall gazing at him, the older brother, for long periods and wondering what was going on in this man's mind and heart. 00:10:39.120 --> 00:10:43.279 He is without a doubt the main observer of the younger son's homecoming. 00:10:44.240 --> 00:10:51.679 I quickly realized the complexity of the reunion, the main observer watching the father embracing his son that appears very withdrawn. 00:10:52.240 --> 00:10:54.559 He looks at the father, but not with joy. 00:10:55.120 --> 00:10:58.559 He doesn't reach out, nor does he smile or express welcome. 00:10:58.879 --> 00:11:00.559 He simply stands there at the side. 00:11:01.360 --> 00:11:02.399 Pretty accurate, right? 00:11:02.639 --> 00:11:04.000 I want you to look at the painting now. 00:11:04.159 --> 00:11:05.039 What do you see? 00:11:05.440 --> 00:11:07.360 Maybe jot it down or just kind of make a mental note. 00:11:07.519 --> 00:11:08.799 What's your main observation? 00:11:09.200 --> 00:11:13.519 I I know for me, as I was looking at this, the first thing that stuck out to me was the space. 00:11:14.320 --> 00:11:17.519 The darkness and the space between the older son and his family. 00:11:19.039 --> 00:11:24.559 And Nallan observes this as well, and he says, It's true that the return is the central point of the painting. 00:11:24.720 --> 00:11:27.919 However, it's not situated at the physical center of the canvas, right? 00:11:28.000 --> 00:11:29.120 It's to the left side. 00:11:30.000 --> 00:11:32.720 While the tall older brother dominates the right. 00:11:32.960 --> 00:11:36.960 There's a large open space separating older son and father. 00:11:37.200 --> 00:11:41.120 It's a space that creates attention, asking for resolution. 00:11:41.440 --> 00:11:42.399 Oof, right? 00:11:42.480 --> 00:11:42.960 It's good. 00:11:43.120 --> 00:11:44.720 So I want us to let's look at scripture. 00:11:44.879 --> 00:11:46.240 You have your Bible open it up with me. 00:11:46.320 --> 00:11:51.120 If you want to look at the screen, look at your notes, I want us to unpack a little bit of Luke chapter 15 together. 00:11:51.279 --> 00:11:52.399 Let me give you a recap. 00:11:52.480 --> 00:11:55.279 We start with meanwhile, the older son was in the field, right? 00:11:55.360 --> 00:11:59.679 So he's working, he's slaving away, he's doing his thing, and he hears music. 00:11:59.759 --> 00:12:02.639 He gets closer to the house, he hears like a party kind of going on. 00:12:02.799 --> 00:12:03.919 And he's like, What's happening? 00:12:04.000 --> 00:12:04.399 What's going on? 00:12:04.559 --> 00:12:06.720 He finds out, oh my gosh, my brother's back. 00:12:07.279 --> 00:12:15.919 And instead of being excited, instead of any kind of like, oh my gosh, he's back, he becomes angry, wants nothing to do with the party or the celebration. 00:12:16.000 --> 00:12:18.960 But in fact, he tells his dad, Dad, what is going on, right? 00:12:19.039 --> 00:12:20.799 Like, I've been sleeping for you all these years. 00:12:20.879 --> 00:12:21.440 What is happening? 00:12:21.519 --> 00:12:22.000 What are you doing? 00:12:22.080 --> 00:12:23.200 Why are we throwing him a party? 00:12:23.360 --> 00:12:24.799 He's in the wrong. 00:12:25.279 --> 00:12:28.080 This son of yours who squandered your property. 00:12:28.480 --> 00:12:33.360 So there's a bit of a stark contrast between what we left off with last Sunday, right, and today. 00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:39.120 Last Sunday, this epic reunion, this like son and father being reunited, this joy. 00:12:39.279 --> 00:12:44.559 And then here we meet older brother, confused, angry, frustrated. 00:12:45.600 --> 00:12:51.679 Now, before we immediately go to blame him, you might be reading this and thinking, why is he so negative, right? 00:12:51.759 --> 00:12:52.639 Like your brother's back. 00:12:52.799 --> 00:12:54.159 Let's be excited. 00:12:54.559 --> 00:12:58.639 Now, I want you for a moment to put yourselves in his shoes. 00:12:59.360 --> 00:13:03.519 I would like to posit that he is in fact quite justified in his initial emotion. 00:13:04.879 --> 00:13:07.679 See, the older brother stayed with his dad. 00:13:08.399 --> 00:13:12.480 While the younger brother said, peace out and left, he committed. 00:13:12.720 --> 00:13:13.840 He stayed, right? 00:13:14.080 --> 00:13:22.000 I can imagine during that time he displayed a lot of loyalty to his dad, especially a dad who was probably dealing with a lot of grief that his son had just run away, right? 00:13:22.399 --> 00:13:24.720 I can imagine that his workload doubled. 00:13:24.960 --> 00:13:28.000 He was probably responsible for even more than before. 00:13:28.320 --> 00:13:32.799 He is conscientious, he is a good worker, he's taking care of things. 00:13:32.879 --> 00:13:36.240 I'm sure he had to display a lot of leadership in that season, right? 00:13:36.639 --> 00:13:39.759 So from the outside, these are really commendable qualities. 00:13:39.919 --> 00:13:42.320 In fact, I read that and I'm like, I feel for him, right? 00:13:42.480 --> 00:13:47.679 From the outside, it's like the sacrificial, committed love that we're observing. 00:13:48.159 --> 00:13:53.679 But we we know that our exterior actions don't always accurately affect what's happening inside, right? 00:13:54.240 --> 00:13:57.919 To put more simply, right actions don't always equal right heart. 00:13:58.399 --> 00:13:59.279 I want to say that again. 00:13:59.440 --> 00:14:01.759 Right actions don't always equal right heart. 00:14:02.720 --> 00:14:09.279 I want us to look at Luke 15 one more time, and I want to give you three observations about his heart. 00:14:09.519 --> 00:14:12.480 If we press in a little bit deeper, what do we see about his heart? 00:14:13.360 --> 00:14:22.639 Notice the first the son's language is extremely distant and insulting, both to his dad and his brother. 00:14:22.879 --> 00:14:25.919 The first thing I notice, he says, this son of yours, right? 00:14:26.000 --> 00:14:27.120 He doesn't say my brother. 00:14:27.279 --> 00:14:28.639 He says, Oh, this son of yours. 00:14:28.720 --> 00:14:30.480 To me, I'm like, I don't want anything to do with you. 00:14:30.559 --> 00:14:31.679 That's your problem, right? 00:14:31.759 --> 00:14:32.559 It's this son of yours. 00:14:32.639 --> 00:14:34.879 It's not my brother, no association. 00:14:35.120 --> 00:14:36.240 So it's distant, right? 00:14:36.320 --> 00:14:38.399 I don't have anything to do with my brother. 00:14:38.639 --> 00:14:41.200 And then second, notice the word look. 00:14:41.840 --> 00:14:46.480 The word look in the Greek here, and remember, this is a Palestinian Middle Eastern culture. 00:14:46.720 --> 00:14:53.279 The way that he's saying this is a very aggressive form of kind of just being like, look you, in a very disrespectful way. 00:14:53.440 --> 00:15:01.279 Um, I'm a native Farsi speaker, and if you here today maybe speak a different language, we in our language have two different forms for the pronoun you. 00:15:01.440 --> 00:15:04.480 And I want to just give you a little bit of a little bit of a Farsi lesson here. 00:15:04.639 --> 00:15:08.240 The pronoun you that in Farsi says to is familiar. 00:15:08.399 --> 00:15:10.399 That's how I would talk to a friend or a peer. 00:15:10.480 --> 00:15:11.759 It's extremely familiar. 00:15:11.919 --> 00:15:17.440 The pronoun shuma is you that you would reserve for a parent or an elder or someone in authority. 00:15:17.679 --> 00:15:20.960 In this case, it's literally like the son saying to his dad. 00:15:21.120 --> 00:15:23.519 I can't imagine what would happen if I would say to to my dad, okay? 00:15:23.600 --> 00:15:24.080 You don't do that. 00:15:24.159 --> 00:15:25.679 It's extremely disrespectful. 00:15:25.919 --> 00:15:28.720 So the language is distant and insulting. 00:15:29.600 --> 00:15:35.759 The second is there seems to be this sense of entitlement over what he is owed. 00:15:36.639 --> 00:15:40.320 Notice that he says, All these years I've been slaving for you. 00:15:40.960 --> 00:15:42.720 That word slave is actually slave. 00:15:43.120 --> 00:15:43.600 Can you imagine? 00:15:43.679 --> 00:15:47.600 Like it's like dad, like, yeah, I'm I don't delight in what I'm doing, I'm slaving away for you. 00:15:48.639 --> 00:15:52.399 It's almost like doing something in order to get something in return, right? 00:15:52.799 --> 00:15:55.360 All this time I've worked so hard for you, never gave me a party. 00:15:55.519 --> 00:15:57.200 Like I deserve XYZ. 00:15:58.000 --> 00:16:01.519 And many times at the root of our entitlement, it's always pride. 00:16:01.919 --> 00:16:05.519 Whether we want to admit it or not, there's a pride that is festering and brewing. 00:16:07.120 --> 00:16:11.759 And then finally, there's resentment and bitterness that is growing up in him. 00:16:12.320 --> 00:16:16.879 The text says he became angry and refused to go into the celebration. 00:16:17.440 --> 00:16:20.720 It's kind of like this overarching umbrella of like, it's not fair, right? 00:16:20.799 --> 00:16:23.279 I read that, I'm just like, yeah, it's just like he's like, it's not fair. 00:16:24.399 --> 00:16:32.480 Tim Keller, in his phenomenal book, Prodigal God, another excellent recommended resource for you to read, he coins the term elder brother lostness. 00:16:32.960 --> 00:16:45.840 Elder brother lostness, he defines it this way growing angry, bitter, or cynical towards God when life doesn't go the way you think it should, because you're being good or keeping the rules. 00:16:46.559 --> 00:16:47.679 Anyone else kind of? 00:16:48.399 --> 00:16:48.639 Yeah? 00:16:49.039 --> 00:16:52.000 This outlook that says life needs to go well because I'm being good. 00:16:52.159 --> 00:16:55.840 He says it's a moral observance that is results-oriented. 00:16:56.240 --> 00:16:59.039 A moral observance that is results-oriented. 00:16:59.279 --> 00:17:03.600 And friends, birth order or not, we all have elder brother syndrome in us. 00:17:03.679 --> 00:17:06.640 We all have elder brother lostness trying to peek through. 00:17:07.119 --> 00:17:09.200 And I'm curious, have you ever felt this way? 00:17:09.440 --> 00:17:11.920 You sitting here right now, you watching at home? 00:17:12.240 --> 00:17:16.079 This thought of like, God, I'm reading my Bible every day. 00:17:16.240 --> 00:17:20.160 I'm trying to forgive people, I'm serving at awakening church, right? 00:17:20.240 --> 00:17:22.079 I'm tithing, I'm doing all the things. 00:17:22.319 --> 00:17:24.240 God, why aren't you answering my prayer? 00:17:24.480 --> 00:17:24.720 Right? 00:17:24.880 --> 00:17:27.200 Like, God, why did this relationship go sour? 00:17:27.440 --> 00:17:30.240 God, why did my family get this diagnosis? 00:17:30.559 --> 00:17:33.119 Why have I not gotten that job I wanted? 00:17:33.519 --> 00:17:35.279 Why did this circumstance happen? 00:17:35.359 --> 00:17:35.599 Right? 00:17:35.680 --> 00:17:37.519 The list goes on, the questions go on. 00:17:37.759 --> 00:17:39.279 Very valid questions. 00:17:39.440 --> 00:17:47.279 However, I think the overarching question that I want us to center on and focus today, the question I hope you take away and that you meditate on, is simply this. 00:17:47.680 --> 00:17:48.880 Why do you love God? 00:17:49.440 --> 00:17:50.960 Why do you love God the Father? 00:17:51.440 --> 00:17:52.720 Why do you love Jesus? 00:17:53.440 --> 00:17:55.519 Is it because of what he can give us? 00:17:57.279 --> 00:17:59.920 Is it because of what we want him to give us? 00:18:00.880 --> 00:18:02.400 Or is it because of who he is? 00:18:03.119 --> 00:18:06.960 I put it another way, do we love God to just get things, or do we love God to get God? 00:18:07.119 --> 00:18:09.359 Like to get the person, right, to know him? 00:18:10.640 --> 00:18:15.680 See, in act one of this parable, the bad son, if you will, the lost son, he was found. 00:18:16.400 --> 00:18:22.960 But now we're seeing in act two of this parable, the good son that was home, he's actually the one who's lost, right? 00:18:24.400 --> 00:18:26.079 The elder brother lostness. 00:18:26.480 --> 00:18:31.519 Pastor Ian Simpkin says the older brother in this story shows us something profound. 00:18:32.160 --> 00:18:37.279 You can be in the father's home and still be distancing yourself from the father's heart. 00:18:37.920 --> 00:18:40.640 Like, oof, yeah, hit me. 00:18:40.960 --> 00:18:47.200 I can think of many instances in my own life where I have experienced elder brother lostness. 00:18:47.440 --> 00:18:56.000 And as a leader, I want to model openness and vulnerability and kind of go first and share with you how the Lord has really freed me from my lostness. 00:18:56.240 --> 00:19:02.559 And I was actually kind of secretly excited when I was assigned this one because I wanted to preach on older brother because I deeply resonate. 00:19:02.640 --> 00:19:04.559 I mentioned being a recovering older brother. 00:19:04.799 --> 00:19:09.359 I really want to share my story with you in this context. 00:19:09.599 --> 00:19:14.480 I mentioned earlier my trajectory growing up, this whole like nasty misconscientious, that narrative, right? 00:19:14.640 --> 00:19:17.440 That became this internal script that I was really proud of. 00:19:17.519 --> 00:19:18.799 I found a lot of pride in that. 00:19:18.880 --> 00:19:23.920 I felt very seen by teachers, by parents, by friends, friends as parents. 00:19:24.079 --> 00:19:25.920 And that in itself isn't bad. 00:19:26.000 --> 00:19:27.599 Um, but but hang with me. 00:19:28.000 --> 00:19:36.079 As I entered high school, for me, the goal, what I thought was the most important thing in high school was study hard, get into a good college, right? 00:19:36.160 --> 00:19:37.359 Maybe, maybe that was for you two. 00:19:37.599 --> 00:19:39.039 That was like the main goal. 00:19:39.279 --> 00:19:40.720 And I worked so hard. 00:19:40.880 --> 00:19:44.319 And I think just being from the Bay, my goal was to go to a UC school. 00:19:44.400 --> 00:19:46.559 So the top two were UC Berkeley and UC LA. 00:19:46.640 --> 00:19:47.519 I was like, that's what I'm doing. 00:19:47.599 --> 00:19:48.960 That's what the plan is. 00:19:49.119 --> 00:19:54.079 I graduated high school with a 4.3 GPA, and I didn't get into either school. 00:19:54.319 --> 00:19:56.079 And I was wrecked. 00:19:56.240 --> 00:19:57.759 I was absolutely floored. 00:19:57.839 --> 00:19:58.880 And I was like, God, what? 00:19:59.039 --> 00:20:03.039 I remember my exact lingo, my senior year was, I'm settling for UC Davis. 00:20:03.440 --> 00:20:07.359 Which no, and that's so entitled because our valedictorian went to UC Davis. 00:20:07.440 --> 00:20:12.799 It's a wonderful school, but in my pride and in my entitlement, that's kind of what my heart posture was. 00:20:13.440 --> 00:20:25.519 Even after high school, when I went to college, I graduated college in three years, and I kind of was like, you know, being from the Bay, being in the Bay, I figured, okay, what's next is I'm gonna come back to the Bay and work for like a Google, Apple, Facebook. 00:20:25.599 --> 00:20:27.359 That's just what success felt like, right? 00:20:27.440 --> 00:20:30.559 And maybe many of you sitting here today, maybe that's been your life trajectory too. 00:20:30.720 --> 00:20:36.079 I kind of felt like I've worked this hard, here's the path my life needs to go down, here's what I deserve, right? 00:20:36.319 --> 00:20:45.519 So I get home, graduate college early, I'm like 21, 22, and all these job interviews, no job offers, nothing. 00:20:46.000 --> 00:20:46.960 Crickets. 00:20:47.599 --> 00:20:54.799 And as I'm just sitting with this, I'm having this like internal complex start to brew where I'm like, God, like the formula isn't working, right? 00:20:54.880 --> 00:20:59.200 I did all the right things, I felt so prepared, I worked so hard, like all of my identity's in this. 00:20:59.279 --> 00:21:00.960 Like, why isn't this working? 00:21:01.440 --> 00:21:07.680 And then on top of that, my faith came into play, and I started thinking, God, I'm a good Christian. 00:21:07.920 --> 00:21:09.119 Whatever that means, right? 00:21:09.279 --> 00:21:14.559 I'm a good Christian, I'm going to church every Sunday, my parents are pastors, I'm serving, da-da-da-da. 00:21:15.039 --> 00:21:26.240 And then I started to unfortunately really fall into bitterness, fall into a lot of bitterness and resentment towards people around me, even my friends that I've really had to repent of. 00:21:26.400 --> 00:21:30.480 I started thinking things like, you know, so-and-so got this amazing job out of college. 00:21:30.559 --> 00:21:33.920 She's making bank, and she's out partying at the clubs every weekend. 00:21:34.079 --> 00:21:35.359 She's sleeping with her boyfriend. 00:21:35.440 --> 00:21:38.000 And she's at church on Sundays, like, what a hypocrite, right? 00:21:38.160 --> 00:21:38.880 Have you been there? 00:21:39.119 --> 00:21:40.160 So disgusting. 00:21:40.400 --> 00:21:42.000 But I'm I'm I'm the right one, right? 00:21:42.079 --> 00:21:42.880 I'm doing all the right things. 00:21:42.960 --> 00:21:44.000 I'm not sinful. 00:21:44.160 --> 00:21:48.000 And in all that, there's this like a major legalism brewing, this bitterness. 00:21:48.079 --> 00:21:50.880 I started comparing my faith and my journey to other people. 00:21:52.000 --> 00:21:57.680 And then I started just stewing over this complex of like, God, like, why do I even love you, right? 00:21:57.839 --> 00:21:58.799 Why do I obey you? 00:21:58.880 --> 00:21:59.599 You know, about a year. 00:22:00.240 --> 00:22:01.680 Into this, it's interesting. 00:22:01.839 --> 00:22:09.039 A group of my friends and I at church, we started a book club, and ironically, the book was Prodigal God by Tim Keller. 00:22:09.680 --> 00:22:16.799 And in that, I felt so just like on this journey with the Lord, finding myself and my elder brother lostness. 00:22:17.119 --> 00:22:19.119 And I look back now, I'm like, that was not ironic at all. 00:22:19.200 --> 00:22:22.000 That was all Holy Spirit being like, I'm gonna meet you in this space, right? 00:22:22.720 --> 00:22:25.200 And I started just talking to God about this. 00:22:25.359 --> 00:22:27.200 Like, God, like, why do I love you? 00:22:27.359 --> 00:22:28.640 Why do I obey you? 00:22:28.799 --> 00:22:30.720 It's like kind of in the worst end of the spectrum. 00:22:30.799 --> 00:22:34.319 It's like you can fall down this like prosperity gospel theology, right? 00:22:34.400 --> 00:22:40.319 Which is so not the truth or illegalism, or in the worst case, full-on deconstruction of your faith, right? 00:22:40.400 --> 00:22:41.759 Because you're like, who is God, right? 00:22:41.839 --> 00:22:41.920 Right? 00:22:42.000 --> 00:22:43.680 What can I actually even expect of God? 00:22:43.839 --> 00:22:48.319 I felt so lost, so confused, so rattled. 00:22:48.960 --> 00:22:52.480 Henry Nowan says it beautifully, more beautiful than I ever could. 00:22:52.559 --> 00:22:54.000 I want to read you part of this from his book. 00:22:54.160 --> 00:23:02.640 He says, the more that I reflect on the elder son in me, the more I realize how deeply rooted this form of lostness really is. 00:23:02.960 --> 00:23:05.440 How hard it is to return home from there. 00:23:05.759 --> 00:23:14.880 Returning home from a lustful escapade seems so much easier than returning home from a cold anger that has rooted itself in the deepest corners of my being. 00:23:15.279 --> 00:23:16.640 Go to the next slide. 00:23:16.880 --> 00:23:22.400 When I want to act out of my most generous self, I get caught in anger or resentment. 00:23:22.640 --> 00:23:26.880 Just as I want to be most selfless, I find myself obsessed with being loved. 00:23:28.240 --> 00:23:34.400 Just when I think I'm capable of overcoming my temptations, I feel envy towards those who give in to theirs. 00:23:34.640 --> 00:23:39.279 It seems that wherever my virtuous self is, there's also a resentful complainer. 00:23:40.240 --> 00:23:41.440 Mic drop, right? 00:23:41.599 --> 00:23:42.880 Like I'm done. 00:23:43.359 --> 00:23:46.400 So, friends, in this story, the older brother is trapped. 00:23:46.559 --> 00:23:53.359 He's trapped by his bitterness, by his resentment, the same way I was trapped, the same way maybe maybe you are sitting here today, maybe you are. 00:23:53.519 --> 00:23:54.960 So, what must we do? 00:23:55.279 --> 00:23:59.680 Jesus, our Lord and Savior, longs for us who are lost to be found. 00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:06.480 Whether you're lost in the younger brother's sense, as we cited last week or today as the older brother, he longs for us to return home. 00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:09.039 I want you to look at the painting again. 00:24:09.599 --> 00:24:19.119 And as you look at it, I wonder, what would it take for the older son to just walk his way over to the father and just allow himself to be embraced? 00:24:19.440 --> 00:24:24.400 To allow himself to just be embraced by the father and like let that be enough, right? 00:24:24.559 --> 00:24:25.759 That embrace. 00:24:26.160 --> 00:24:33.920 I want to give us two disciplines of our heart to help us with this, to help us with breaking free from older brother lostness. 00:24:34.079 --> 00:24:37.359 And I want to pause for a moment and just explain what I mean by discipline. 00:24:37.680 --> 00:24:39.200 I'm not here to give you a formula. 00:24:39.440 --> 00:24:41.759 Just mention formulas don't work in our walk with God, right? 00:24:41.839 --> 00:24:43.680 It's not about a formula, it's so much deeper than that. 00:24:43.839 --> 00:24:47.200 I'm not here to give you a to-do list or an XYZ checklist. 00:24:47.519 --> 00:24:56.319 A discipline is a posture I want to invite you into, a way of creating space to hear from God because He wants to speak to you and I. 00:24:56.559 --> 00:24:57.039 Amen? 00:24:57.200 --> 00:24:59.839 He wants to speak to you and I, but we have to make space. 00:25:00.079 --> 00:25:04.000 And so the good news of the gospel, friends, is we don't have to earn our way to get God to love us. 00:25:04.160 --> 00:25:04.559 Thank God. 00:25:04.640 --> 00:25:05.599 There's no earning required. 00:25:05.759 --> 00:25:06.960 He loved us first. 00:25:07.359 --> 00:25:14.079 However, apart from earning, there's a little bit of an effort that we put into our relationship with God, right? 00:25:14.240 --> 00:25:15.920 You and I are apprentices of Jesus. 00:25:16.079 --> 00:25:19.279 That means we're students of Jesus, so we put effort into that relationship. 00:25:19.519 --> 00:25:25.680 The same way you put effort into a marriage, into a friendship, into being a parent, we put an effort into that relationship. 00:25:25.920 --> 00:25:33.519 And so I want to just give us two of those disciplines, two of these efforts we can put into our walk with God to recover from our lostness. 00:25:34.000 --> 00:25:36.240 And the first is delight. 00:25:37.039 --> 00:25:37.839 Delight. 00:25:39.119 --> 00:25:41.119 Maybe not what you were thinking, right? 00:25:41.440 --> 00:25:45.680 The older brother was obeying to get his inheritance. 00:25:45.839 --> 00:25:48.160 It was results-based obedience. 00:25:48.319 --> 00:25:48.559 Right? 00:25:48.640 --> 00:25:52.559 There was joylessness, there was just dutifulness in what he was doing. 00:25:52.799 --> 00:25:55.200 All these years I've been slaving for you. 00:25:55.440 --> 00:25:58.480 There was no delight in even getting to know his father. 00:25:58.720 --> 00:26:04.160 And so I think we need to flip the script and kind of start to act out of this delight-based obedience. 00:26:04.400 --> 00:26:07.680 I know that's not scholarly, it's not Tim Keller, but it's a Nassim Khalili term. 00:26:07.759 --> 00:26:08.640 So let's hang with it, right? 00:26:08.799 --> 00:26:10.160 Delight-based obedience. 00:26:10.400 --> 00:26:11.759 I think it, I think it goes. 00:26:12.000 --> 00:26:14.240 What do I mean by delight-based obedience? 00:26:14.400 --> 00:26:16.000 I want us to look at scripture. 00:26:16.240 --> 00:26:18.240 Psalm 1, verse 2. 00:26:18.480 --> 00:26:20.960 Psalm 1 is one of my favorite Psalms in the Bible. 00:26:21.279 --> 00:26:29.759 It says, Blessed is the one whose delight is in the law of the Lord, who meditates on the law day and night. 00:26:30.400 --> 00:26:32.720 Now I want to normalize something as we read that. 00:26:32.880 --> 00:26:36.720 We might not always desire to be in God's Word 24-7, right? 00:26:37.119 --> 00:26:39.359 Just me, I'm sitting here as a pastor telling you that. 00:26:39.440 --> 00:26:39.920 That's not me. 00:26:40.079 --> 00:26:40.799 There's no shame here. 00:26:40.880 --> 00:26:41.599 Yep, that's normal. 00:26:41.759 --> 00:26:42.480 Let's normalize that. 00:26:42.559 --> 00:26:43.279 There's no shame. 00:26:43.440 --> 00:26:45.119 But but how can we get there, right? 00:26:45.200 --> 00:26:45.759 How can we get there? 00:26:45.839 --> 00:26:47.920 That's like something we like should be curious about. 00:26:48.240 --> 00:26:54.799 Pastor and author, Chris and I taught on these verses in a recent sermon that really moved me, that really challenged me. 00:26:54.880 --> 00:27:02.000 And he was saying, what if there's something cyclical about those two actions that's not necessarily linear in our walk with God? 00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:09.839 Almost like the more we discipline ourselves to meditate on God's word, the more then we start to delight in it. 00:27:10.000 --> 00:27:12.079 The more then we start to desire it. 00:27:12.319 --> 00:27:17.119 And then in return, the more we desire it, the more we delight in it, the more you crave it, right? 00:27:17.200 --> 00:27:18.319 The more you want to be in it. 00:27:18.400 --> 00:27:19.839 It's this cyclical thing. 00:27:20.000 --> 00:27:23.920 And so, friends, a life with God should yield this kind of delight. 00:27:24.079 --> 00:27:25.119 I don't know about you guys. 00:27:25.279 --> 00:27:28.880 I think so often, I was just telling our proteges this yesterday, our retreat. 00:27:29.039 --> 00:27:31.920 I think that we have this two-dimensional view of what the good life is. 00:27:32.079 --> 00:27:35.680 This social media grid of Instagram, what is like success. 00:27:35.759 --> 00:27:41.119 And if anything goes wrong in our lives or doesn't pan out the way we think or want, we're immediately crushed, right? 00:27:41.359 --> 00:27:44.799 And I think God is like, let me give you a 3D view. 00:27:44.880 --> 00:27:50.640 Let me crack open the dusty window and give you a 3D view of the life that you can have in me that is flourishing. 00:27:50.799 --> 00:27:52.960 The life that is just like, who is God? 00:27:53.119 --> 00:27:54.799 Simply, who is God, right? 00:27:54.880 --> 00:27:59.599 The more you delight in God's word, the more you can cling to promises of who he is. 00:27:59.839 --> 00:28:05.279 Gosh, I think even in my own life, just off the top of my head right now, I'm like, God, you bottle all my tears. 00:28:05.519 --> 00:28:10.799 Every tear I've ever cried in the quiet place, you not one tear has gone unseen. 00:28:11.119 --> 00:28:12.079 He bottles it. 00:28:12.319 --> 00:28:13.839 He is my sustainer. 00:28:14.240 --> 00:28:16.000 God is my comforter. 00:28:16.480 --> 00:28:18.000 God restores me. 00:28:18.240 --> 00:28:20.319 God goes before me and behind me. 00:28:20.480 --> 00:28:22.160 Those are just things that have been true to my life. 00:28:22.240 --> 00:28:23.440 Today I wonder, what is that for you? 00:28:23.519 --> 00:28:25.759 Those are promises that I'm clinging to. 00:28:26.000 --> 00:28:30.160 I crave to delight in the Lord as I get to know those things about God, right? 00:28:30.319 --> 00:28:34.160 I just want to linger in his presence because of who he is. 00:28:34.559 --> 00:28:36.799 I think about the worship song, nothing else. 00:28:36.880 --> 00:28:37.839 Maybe you're familiar with it. 00:28:37.920 --> 00:28:39.359 We sing it a lot at Awakening. 00:28:39.599 --> 00:28:40.960 I want to read these words. 00:28:41.119 --> 00:28:42.079 Should I sing them over you? 00:28:42.240 --> 00:28:42.640 Just kidding. 00:28:42.720 --> 00:28:43.279 I'm gonna read them. 00:28:43.359 --> 00:28:44.559 Just making sure you're still awake. 00:28:44.720 --> 00:28:47.039 I'm sorry when I forgot that you're enough. 00:28:47.279 --> 00:28:49.519 I'm caught up in your presence. 00:28:49.920 --> 00:28:51.920 I just want to sit here at your feet. 00:28:52.160 --> 00:28:53.519 I never want to leave. 00:28:54.400 --> 00:28:56.160 I'm not here for blessings. 00:28:56.400 --> 00:28:58.240 Jesus, you don't owe me anything. 00:28:58.880 --> 00:29:03.039 And this, more than anything that you can do, I just want you. 00:29:03.680 --> 00:29:06.400 Gosh, may that be true of us, right? 00:29:07.200 --> 00:29:07.599 Delight. 00:29:08.240 --> 00:29:09.359 Crave Him. 00:29:09.680 --> 00:29:10.640 Linger with Him. 00:29:10.799 --> 00:29:13.279 It is so freeing for our lostness. 00:29:14.559 --> 00:29:19.680 And then the second way that we can train our hearts to break free from that lostness is trust. 00:29:20.079 --> 00:29:21.200 Church, it's trust. 00:29:21.519 --> 00:29:26.400 Notice that the first thing the Father replies with, son, you're with me always. 00:29:26.720 --> 00:29:28.559 You're with me always. 00:29:28.880 --> 00:29:33.279 Gosh, I love that the first thing the dad tells him is like he reassures him of his identity. 00:29:33.519 --> 00:29:36.240 First thing he says, he reassures him of his standing. 00:29:36.400 --> 00:29:36.640 Right? 00:29:36.799 --> 00:29:39.279 In like today's lingo, it's like, I got you, right? 00:29:39.359 --> 00:29:39.839 I got you. 00:29:39.920 --> 00:29:41.200 You belong with me. 00:29:41.920 --> 00:29:48.640 I think about the older brother standing at the side, and I wonder, like, did part of him want to be invited in? 00:29:48.720 --> 00:29:48.960 Right? 00:29:49.039 --> 00:29:50.559 Did part of him like want to be wanted? 00:29:50.640 --> 00:29:53.200 Or like, God, Dad, do you care if I come in too? 00:29:53.359 --> 00:29:55.839 And like, gosh, as I was praying, I was like, someone here needs to know that. 00:29:55.920 --> 00:29:56.960 Like, you are wanted. 00:29:57.119 --> 00:29:58.400 You are wanted by your father. 00:29:58.559 --> 00:29:59.839 You are loved by your father. 00:30:00.000 --> 00:30:02.960 You are not less loved for anything that you've done or haven't done. 00:30:03.279 --> 00:30:05.519 He wants to embrace both sons, both daughters. 00:30:05.680 --> 00:30:06.319 Amen. 00:30:06.480 --> 00:30:07.519 That's who he is. 00:30:07.680 --> 00:30:15.039 And friends, we have to come to a place of trusting that God wants us, trusting that God loves us. 00:30:15.839 --> 00:30:17.920 He says, Let me embrace you. 00:30:18.319 --> 00:30:22.799 And the more that we trust his love, I think about all the ways we white knuckle, right? 00:30:22.960 --> 00:30:30.480 All the things that we're holding so tightly, the more that we trust God, the more that our grip slowly opens up, right? 00:30:30.799 --> 00:30:36.240 Our lack of control, our entitlement, our doubts of how things are gonna turn out. 00:30:36.640 --> 00:30:42.160 And I say that, and I say that as like a nugget to give you, but I want to just make sure I say this. 00:30:42.400 --> 00:30:43.680 That takes effort. 00:30:43.920 --> 00:30:44.960 It's a discipline. 00:30:45.119 --> 00:30:48.079 It takes daily resolve, sometimes hourly, right? 00:30:48.240 --> 00:30:50.160 Literally, I feel like it's sometimes hourly. 00:30:50.400 --> 00:30:52.400 Daily resolve, hourly resolve of God. 00:30:52.480 --> 00:30:53.440 I want to trust you. 00:30:53.599 --> 00:30:54.960 I want to lean into you. 00:30:55.119 --> 00:30:58.160 It reminds me of Psalm 32, 1. 00:30:59.279 --> 00:31:03.759 Steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord. 00:31:04.000 --> 00:31:08.480 You know, I mentioned my own story earlier, and I want to circle back to it. 00:31:08.640 --> 00:31:16.720 My story is still being written, obviously, but as I look back on my 20s, there's so many layers, and I mentioned that part of my story to you. 00:31:16.960 --> 00:31:32.079 And it's so interesting that now, like 10 years later, I look back and I just smile in retrospect at the story that God was writing, and I see that despite my limited vantage point of like finding identity and worth in like what am I doing? 00:31:32.319 --> 00:31:41.359 Write this overachieving, find identity in this, God was writing such a different, deeper story of like that led to like finding a new church home here, right? 00:31:41.519 --> 00:31:45.359 Finding a job, finding a career path, a calling. 00:31:45.440 --> 00:31:47.440 Of God, like, oh no, no, you're called to be a pastor. 00:31:47.519 --> 00:31:48.160 You're a shepherd. 00:31:48.240 --> 00:31:49.279 This is your calling, right? 00:31:49.359 --> 00:31:53.279 This is your ministry that dramatically has changed my entire life. 00:31:53.440 --> 00:32:01.440 And so whether you're sitting here today in any sort of doubt or uncertainty, I just want to tell you, you can trust that in the uncertainty, God is working it out for your good. 00:32:01.599 --> 00:32:02.079 Amen. 00:32:02.319 --> 00:32:08.160 Gosh, he's working so much deeper into the intricacies of the threads of our lives than we even have any idea. 00:32:08.640 --> 00:32:09.759 So trust him. 00:32:11.119 --> 00:32:16.480 And the final thing the father tells the son, he says, All I have is yours. 00:32:16.960 --> 00:32:18.799 All I have is yours. 00:32:18.960 --> 00:32:21.200 It's like, hey, you had me the whole time. 00:32:21.519 --> 00:32:22.799 Was I not enough? 00:32:23.039 --> 00:32:24.480 You had me the whole time. 00:32:24.799 --> 00:32:32.160 And friends, I think that that's something we need to lean into is we trust God, just thinking him that he is our source of life, right? 00:32:32.319 --> 00:32:37.119 Gosh, life, the older I get, I feel like the more I'm just like, why is life so hard? 00:32:37.359 --> 00:32:37.680 Right? 00:32:37.839 --> 00:32:41.359 Like there's people going through there's so much hardship we walk in. 00:32:41.519 --> 00:32:47.440 And so I know it sounds kind of cliche, but the more I'm just basking in like every single moment is a gift. 00:32:47.759 --> 00:32:53.920 Every single moment with him, it is a gift to lean into, to just bask in, to trust him. 00:32:54.400 --> 00:32:58.799 You know, I mentioned that psalm, steadfast love surrounds those who trust him. 00:32:59.039 --> 00:33:04.079 Another version of your Bible, a translation, might say unfailing love or faithful love. 00:33:04.559 --> 00:33:05.920 He's faithful to you. 00:33:06.240 --> 00:33:13.039 That's something I felt so convicted about this last week is like, gosh, we think we're so committed to God, he's way more committed to you than you are to him. 00:33:13.440 --> 00:33:15.920 He's way more committed to us than we are to him. 00:33:16.720 --> 00:33:19.279 He wants you, he wants to embrace you. 00:33:20.480 --> 00:33:25.680 And so, friends, as we practice delight and we practice trust, that begins to free us. 00:33:25.920 --> 00:33:28.319 It begins to step into the love of the Father. 00:33:28.559 --> 00:33:33.200 Even in the moments where our lostness creeps in, we're human, it's gonna happen, it still happens for me. 00:33:33.359 --> 00:33:39.039 When that legalism or the judginess or the bitterness, whatever that will creep in, we begin to be freed, right? 00:33:39.200 --> 00:33:41.839 Because creating these spaces becomes part of our discipleship. 00:33:41.920 --> 00:33:43.599 It's part of my journey walking with him. 00:33:43.920 --> 00:33:44.559 Amen. 00:33:45.920 --> 00:33:56.319 And so the good news, friends, is thanks to Jesus Christ, thanks to his death and his resurrection, we have a father that longs for us to be found and wants to embrace you and I. 00:33:56.720 --> 00:33:59.519 You know, the interesting thing is the story ends on a cliffhanger. 00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:02.400 We don't know if the brother walks into the party. 00:34:03.359 --> 00:34:12.159 And I love that it ends that way because in a way Jesus is telling this to the Pharisees, the Jewish religious leaders, in a way of inviting them in, right? 00:34:12.320 --> 00:34:13.599 Remember how legalistic they were? 00:34:13.760 --> 00:34:16.239 It's like, will you step into the feast of the father? 00:34:16.480 --> 00:34:19.119 The same way that I think that's an invitation for you and I today. 00:34:19.280 --> 00:34:20.880 Will we step into his love? 00:34:21.119 --> 00:34:26.320 I've read this passage so many times growing up, and verse 28 popped out at me as I was preparing. 00:34:26.480 --> 00:34:28.079 Oh my God, I never realized this. 00:34:28.320 --> 00:34:34.639 It says, the father came out of the party and pleads or begs his son to come in. 00:34:34.960 --> 00:34:36.159 Isn't that interesting? 00:34:36.400 --> 00:34:51.039 The same way that the father rushes to the younger son to run after him, he runs out of the party and begs the son to come in after all the insults, after all the distance, after all the disrespect, it's like this tender, compassionate love. 00:34:51.199 --> 00:34:52.400 It's like, no, I want you here. 00:34:52.480 --> 00:34:53.760 You belong with me. 00:34:54.719 --> 00:34:56.559 So will you step into that love? 00:34:57.840 --> 00:34:59.519 Will you believe that that's enough? 00:35:00.480 --> 00:35:08.159 And so as we step into this time of worship, I want to end this sermon today with a challenge to our church. 00:35:08.400 --> 00:35:11.280 It's a bold one, and I want to invite you into this. 00:35:11.440 --> 00:35:15.119 See, church, you might be sitting here today and you totally relate to my story, maybe. 00:35:15.840 --> 00:35:18.719 You see that in yourself, maybe the younger. 00:35:19.519 --> 00:35:28.239 We cannot step into disciplines like delighting and adoring our Father and trusting him until we come from a place of confession, first and foremost. 00:35:28.559 --> 00:35:30.880 Confession is saying, I want to change ways. 00:35:31.039 --> 00:35:32.960 I don't want to be like I was before, right? 00:35:33.119 --> 00:35:36.480 I want to confess how I was and I want to make it kind of like a turn. 00:35:36.719 --> 00:35:37.840 I want to repent. 00:35:38.079 --> 00:35:42.159 And so I think that there's power, us doing that as a church together. 00:35:42.719 --> 00:35:44.800 And so I'm gonna lead by example. 00:35:44.880 --> 00:35:46.480 I want to just pray over us. 00:35:46.639 --> 00:35:49.920 Will you get up with me and get on your knees in a posture of surrender? 00:35:50.000 --> 00:35:55.840 If you feel convicted, will you just stand up and get on your knees if you're able and close your eyes? 00:36:01.199 --> 00:36:02.800 And if you can't, no worries. 00:36:02.880 --> 00:36:05.199 Maybe just open, open your hands. 00:36:07.440 --> 00:36:08.800 Take a breath. 00:36:10.400 --> 00:36:14.559 When we get on our knees, this is kind of like full surrender. 00:36:17.199 --> 00:36:20.800 We're saying, God, I'm yours. 00:36:20.960 --> 00:36:22.559 I'm your son, I'm your daughter. 00:36:22.719 --> 00:36:24.719 I'm here to just have a moment with you. 00:36:24.880 --> 00:36:26.719 Amidst the busy, amidst all the things. 00:36:26.800 --> 00:36:28.559 I'm here to just meet with you. 00:36:30.079 --> 00:36:32.159 So, God, we adore you. 00:36:34.880 --> 00:36:37.280 God, we delight in your presence. 00:36:38.480 --> 00:36:43.199 And God, as a church, as individuals, as your sons and daughters, we confess. 00:36:43.920 --> 00:36:48.800 And God, we ask that you would forgive us if we're loving you for wrong reasons. 00:36:50.880 --> 00:36:53.119 God, we confess our entitlement. 00:36:54.400 --> 00:36:58.480 Forgive us for thinking there's a formula to get things from you. 00:36:59.039 --> 00:37:04.639 Forgive us for being two-dimensional when you want us to have this 3D view of who you are as our good father. 00:37:06.719 --> 00:37:21.199 And God, we want to confess, Lord, if we've been an older brother who's hurt a younger brother, whether it's in the church or not in the church, I want you to think about maybe the last time that you said, look you, to someone either under your breath or actually audibly. 00:37:21.440 --> 00:37:25.840 Maybe the person you saw on social media and you're like, gosh, those people, right? 00:37:26.000 --> 00:37:27.280 We can be so judgy. 00:37:27.519 --> 00:37:34.639 We can be so stuck in our ways, and I feel like God is just like, let me, let me just leave that to me, you know? 00:37:35.039 --> 00:37:35.920 Just love. 00:37:37.360 --> 00:37:41.840 So, God, we confess if we've been too legalistic about who's in, who's out. 00:37:43.280 --> 00:37:47.119 Forgive us for being so limited in our vantage point of view. 00:37:48.559 --> 00:37:50.719 We're not here for blessings, Jesus. 00:37:50.880 --> 00:37:52.559 You don't owe us anything. 00:37:52.880 --> 00:37:57.599 Jesus, thanks to your death and resurrection, our salvation is the only thing we need. 00:37:57.760 --> 00:38:00.159 You've given us everything in Jesus. 00:38:00.400 --> 00:38:02.320 We just say thank you for that. 00:38:03.280 --> 00:38:07.039 And more than anything that you can do, God, we just want you. 00:38:09.599 --> 00:38:24.480 I pray, God, finally, as we're on our knees, as we worship right now, I just pray over all my brothers and sisters that they would experience simply and deeply the Father's love, your love over them, saying, I am with you always. 00:38:25.039 --> 00:38:27.199 Everything I have is yours. 00:38:28.000 --> 00:38:33.039 And I just pray that there would be such a delight and a trust in that truth as we worship. 00:38:34.559 --> 00:38:37.119 So, church, you can stay on your knees if you want. 00:38:37.199 --> 00:38:38.559 You can get up, you can sit down. 00:38:38.639 --> 00:38:44.159 We're just gonna continue and worship our Father as we've made space to encounter him. 00:38:46.400 --> 00:38:48.719 We hope you were blessed by this message. 00:38:48.880 --> 00:38:53.280 Please subscribe to our podcast for access to every episode as they're uploaded. 00:38:53.440 --> 00:38:55.599 And hey, we'd love to connect with you. 00:38:55.760 --> 00:39:01.679 Take a next step by filling out our virtual connection card at awakeningchurch.com slash card.