The Church – Grace Life Baptist Church

Repentance and the Fire of “Victim Mentality” (Mk.1:14-15)

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on February 14, 2022. Posted in The Church, The Gospel, Theology.

from THE CHURCH UNDER FIRE sermon series . . .

You’ve got to love some of the comical billboards out there. For example, we’ve got a bail bonding company here in town called “Devil Made Me Do It Bail Bonds” with their ads around town. It’s a play on a common saying that’s been around a while. Sadly, when it comes to taking personal responsibility for their actions, the human race is very adept at blaming others for their wrongdoing. It’s a trait we’ve inherited from our common ancestors, Adam and Eve—Eve blamed sin on the devil, and Adam blamed his wife, and we blame just about everyone and everything else but ourselves when we sin.

Grace and the Fire of “Inequality” (Dt.9:1-12)

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on February 8, 2022. Posted in The Church, The Gospel, Theology.

from The Church under Fire sermon series . . .

It’s a phrase we all struggle to hear coming from the others; yet, we generally have no problem using it when we believe we have been wronged. It’s used all the time in the mainstream culture—in the media, politics, and workplaces. It’s often used in an attempt to shut down disagreement and debate about various issues. The phrase is, “It’s not fair.”

Regeneration and the Fire of “Pragmatism”

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on February 8, 2022. Posted in The Church, The Gospel, Theology.

from The Church under Fire sermon series . . .

A few weeks back, Pastor Jody Anderson of Christ Church in Guntersville, AL, preached one of the topics in our Church under Fire series. His topic was pragmatism, which is rampant throughout local churches in our country and the world. And this article is a brief summary of the topic for those seeking more information or perhaps just coming to an awareness of the problems it poses.

Objective Truth and the Fire of “Deconstructionism” (Isa.5:20-30)

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on January 31, 2022. Posted in The Church.

from The Church under Fire sermon series . . .

In the last few weeks, we’ve had quite the variety of weather conditions in Tennessee. We went from a record high of seventy-eight degrees on one day to temperatures in the twenties just a few days later. One of those wintry nights dropped to around nine degrees. That’s cold! Or is it? Isn’t how we define what is “cold” relative to our own subjective experiences and preferences? If you asked Alaskans if nine degrees is cold, inevitably some would say, “Eh, not so much.”

When the Floor Falls In

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on April 24, 2019. Posted in My Family, The Church.

We were living in my uncle’s rental house that he was so graciously allowing us to use rent free for a time. Things at the church I had been pastoring hadn’t ended well, and my wife and I found ourselves in the most difficult spiritual and financial season of our marriage. In hope of sparing both the church and my family as much pain as possible, I chose to resign my position in June 2010 after the Deacon Board gave me the ultimatum, resign or be voted out by the church.

Two years later in September 2012 right before we moved out of the rental house, something seemingly symbolic happened. We were packing up boxes one evening when three-quarters of our bedroom floor fell in! It was an old farmhouse, and the termites finally got the best of the floor joists. I couldn’t help but think of how the “floors” of my ministry had “fallen in” just two years prior.

Resigning from a church you shepherd because of schism is one of the most painful experiences of ministry. I have known several pastor friends and read about many more who have gone through it, and now I had experienced myself. But I can say, God uses such pain for glorious things. Most of these come from my personal experience, but the principles apply to many circumstances.

1. Personal Sanctification: At that time, I feared man more than God to the point that I sometimes worried about getting “fired” or having to resign if I were to speak out on all my convictions. Now, I’m a bolder and better pastor, a better husband, and a better father because of God’s sanctifying grace. Now my theology of the Church (ecclesiology) is more sound and clear.

2. Repentance: A part of my personal sanctification is repentance. I don’t write this article out of bitterness but out of the realization that I could have been a more personable and loving pastor to that local church of God.

3. Wisdom for Others: I have a story to share that can be of encouragement and help to other pastors who are in calloused or otherwise difficult churches. For example, I learned that just because a small group of influential people says the majority of the church wants you gone, it’s not necessarily true. Since 2010, I have heard from other pastors that experienced this same thing.

Add to this, I have a story to share with churches as to how to go about addressing major differences they have with a pastor. I actually agree with the deacons of the church I was pastoring that it was probably best that I leave. That’s a big part of why I resigned. The issue was the way they went about the process. (To be clear, the schism was over particular theological points and not any unrepentant or disqualifying sin on my part).

Here are a few words of wisdom for a church having issues with her pastor:

1. Be sure to address disagreements, sins, or perceived sins privately. Jesus commands us in Matthew 18 to address one another privately before getting multiple people involved. Give the pastor the respect of a proper hearing in private. This will help clear up any misunderstandings that might be leading you toward the wrong conclusion. When you give that hearing, be clear about the perceived problem.

2. Be sure to involve all witnesses that are accusing a pastor of sin. Beware of entertaining “hearsay” or “secondhand” accusations. Don’t pass along accusations from others by saying things like, “There’s a family in the Church that said that you said. . . ” Instead, simply say something like, “There’s a family in the Church that believes you have said . . . I suggested that they talk to you about it. Perhaps you should go ahead and reach out to them.” This is approach is a much better way to guard against gossip, slander, and miscommunication.

3. Be sure there are no “secret” meetings of select leaders. Whether an Elder Board or a Deacon Board, there should never be secret meetings held for the purpose of amassing “evidence” against any leader in the Church.

4. Be sure to follow the guidelines outlined in your church’s by-laws. Some churches fail to realize that the by-laws are a legally binding document.

5. Don’t use threats to intimidate a pastor. Avoid threats like “resign or we’ll vote you out” or declarations like “everybody wants you to leave”.

6. Realize it usually takes many months for a pastor to move into a new pastorate. It took 18 months in my case. In the meantime, your pastor will likely loose his family’s health insurance, and because church’s don’t pay into the unemployment system, there are no unemployment benefits to lean on.

In the end, resigning or being fired from a church as a pastor because of schism is bitter-sweet. It’s bitter knowing I could have been a better pastor to that flock. It’s bitter knowing that the church could have done a better job of handling the situation. It’s bitter being separated from people with whom you had grown close.

But, it’s sweet to know God gave me an opportunity to repent and grow in spiritual maturity. It’s sweet knowing my intentions to preach the gospel, see people saved, and disciple men were true, though I fell way short of what I could have been. My intention in pastoring that flock was true. It’s also sweet to know that the church I pastored has the opportunity for repentance and growing in spiritual maturity too. And this is a cause of praising God for His patience and grace demonstrated in His glorious providence!

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jeremy Vanatta

Wisdom of a Church Covenant

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on January 18, 2019. Posted in Discipleship, The Church, The Gospel.

In a world often confused about personal accountability, some churches have seen fit to abolish what has been a historic mainstay, namely the Church Covenant. At Grace Life Baptist Church, we recently renewed our covenant commitment as a church family, and we discussed why having and holding onto such a covenant is wise. We defined a biblical covenant this way: A covenant is a God-initiated agreement between He and His people, established with mutual obligations for His glory and their joy

Before I offer you 4 reasons for having a church covenant, let me make one clarifying note. I must admit there’s no biblical command prescribing that a local church have a church covenant. Therefore, a church should never present a covenant as anything more than a descriptive document of what the Bible teaches about living the Christian life in relation to Christ and a local body of His disciples.

With that said, there are biblical principles in Scripture that make a church covenant wise.

1) A covenant summarizes what it means to be in fellowship with Christ and His Church. The Bible is our only authority in matters of doctrine and practice; but the Bible is a big book and a summary statement is helpful, especially for new believers. Our church covenant is a reasonable way to define God’s expectations of us in the New Covenant.

2) A covenant clarifies accountability. Without mutual accountability, you don’t have a church because you won’t have unity of faith and practice—everyone would just do whatever’s right in their own eyes. Without accountability, sheep and elders won’t get along—both will vie for control. Using our covenant, we can hold each other accountable while still allowing for lots of grace, patience, and understanding toward each other.

3) A covenant protects the Church from wolves. Our covenant is threatening to potential new members that are just church-hopping, trouble-makers because they’re less likely to join a church that tells them up front what is expected. It warns them of the consequences of not walking in humility before Christ and His people. Our covenant threatens to expose wolves for who they really are.

4) A covenant limits personal preference. You may prefer 1,001 things, but most of your preferences are irrelevant to the gospel. Perhaps you prefer dressing up for church or dressing down. Or you prefer 20-minute sermons instead of 40-minute ones. The list could go on. Your preferences are important, but important doesn’t equal biblical or helpful.

For example, the trending craze todayis having churches for specialty groups like hipsters, homeschoolers, cowboys, or bikers, etc. Are these preferences important? Yes, it’s a part of who these people are. But none of these is the defining mark of what it means to be a Christian committed to a local church.

The defining mark of the Church is the gospel. At Grace Life, we advertise our purpose as Proclaiming God’s Glory in Christ because that’s at the heart of the gospel. God’s glory is best magnified when the Church is like a prism refracting and reflecting all the colors of the spectrum—the hipsters, homeschoolers, cowboys, bikers, and on it could go. May the Lord continue to build His Church with a beautiful array of people.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jeremy Vanatta

The Gospel Call to Pharisees

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on August 22, 2018. Posted in The Church, The Gospel, Theology.

Our fourth sermon in our Prodigal Son series at Grace Life helps us to see Jesus’ warning, yet tender call, to the Pharisees who are the proverbial elder sons standing outside the father’s house refusing to come into the party.

The Gospel Call to Pharisees
Luke 15:1-2, 25-32

When we study the Bible as a church and as individual Christians, it’s essential that we examine a passage within its context. When we’ve completed our study of the Parable of the Prodigal Son, it’s my hope that we’ll know with full awareness how important the surrounding context is to interpreting God’s Word with precision. Luke’s introduction to the Prodigal Son parable gives us all the context we need to accomplish this.

Luke 15:1-2— Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

The Pharisees and scribes are furious that Jesus is receiving sinners and eating with them! Therefore, the purpose of the Prodigal Son Parable is to give a proper response to their griping. With this emphasis in mind, let’s look again at the fascinating main characters and images Jesus incorporates. These characters and images are illustrations and metaphors that symbolize deeper, spiritual meanings. We shouldn’t go to extremes and try to spiritualize every part of a parable but only the most important ones that push us toward the main point.

1) Father: The father represents God the Father. And Jesus, as the Son of God, came to represent the character and purpose of God the Father (so by extension, Jesus could be said to be the father figure in the story).

2) Younger Son: The younger son represents rebellious sinners like the tax collectors and sinners mentioned in verse 1. By extension, he represents all human sinners because we’ve all rebelled against God our Father.

3) Elder Son: The elder son represents the Pharisees and scribes mentioned in verse 2. They were the religious elite among the Jews that considered themselves moral and righteous. By extension, the elder son represents all human sinners because we’ve all pretended to love God the Father just to make ourselves appear righteous.

4) Robe, Ring, Shoes, and Fattened Calf (vv.22-23): The gifts the father gives to the younger son represent God’s salvation of lost sinners. They are pictures of restoration to a right relation-ship with God and reception into His family. We don’t want to go too far with this, but each gift likely symbolizes various facets of salvation. The robe is a picture of our filthy sin-rags being replaced with Christ’s righteousness. The ring symbolizes our new status as sons and daughters in God’s family. The shoes speak of our new relationship with God in which we now walk with Him. The fattened calf points to God the Father’s sacrifice for us as He slaughtered Jesus on the cross like a calf.

As we’ve concluded, the Pharisees are the self-righteous elder brothers that hate to see undeserving, riff-raff sinners repent and welcomed into God’s family. Therefore, this parable is especially for people like most of us here—we’ve been believers for a while, and it’s easy to slip into a coldhearted attitude toward unbelievers. Let’s put a label on the elder son’s self-righteous attitude. Legal-ism: the belief system that says we can become righteous and earn salvation through our good works.

1. Legalism is based on a slave-master relationship to God (v.29). We see this in the elder son’s three complaints to the father: “ ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I have never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends’ ” (v.29). That’s not how a son who loves his father talks to his father. That’s slave talk. God doesn’t need slaves to serve Him. He’s not “served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything” (Acts.17:25).

2. Legalism craves recognition (v.29). The elder son demanded his father acknowledge and appreciate him for his many years of service and obedience. This same craving for recognition is what motivated the Pharisees.

Matthew 23:5a—“They [the Pharisees] do all their deeds to be seen by others. . .”

Craving for attention is still around today. It’s present when you want others to see and hear about all you’re doing for the Lord in the Church, or when you complain that no one is paying you enough attention or is saying “thank you” for your “service”.

3. Legalism harbors disgust toward sinners rather than consistent compassion. You know you’re being an self-righteous jerk when you’re more concerned about the sin of others than your own sin. Our disgust over other people’s sins will manifest itself in bitter words, angry outbursts, gossip, slander, and blame shifting. The reason legalists do these things is they’re trying to earn salvation through good works. They’re trying to make their own sin look tiny by overacting to the sin of others.

Some examples of this that stand out in the Bible include: 1) Adam blaming Eve; 2) Jonah’s anger at God for showing mercy to the Ninevites; and 3) Esau’s frothing anger toward Jacob. The similarities between these Old Testament people and the two prodigal sons is no coincidence. Jesus knows that the Pharisees know the Old Testament inside-out. So, undoubtedly the Pharisees would make the connections, especially with Esau and Jacob.

4. Legalism turns personal convictions into God’s standard for others. The elder son was right to consider the younger son’s sin to be sin, but he was wrong to withhold forgiveness from his younger brother who repentantly and humbly came home to the father. The elder son’s personal conviction was that such sin and sinners were beyond forgiveness and restoration. He then took this personal conviction and called it God’s law.

Too often we too are prone to elevate a personal conviction to equivalent status with God’s Word, and then we feel justified in condemning others for disobedience to our personal conviction. This is where most of the muck hits the fan in the local church. Most disunity will not be directly over core Bible doctrine but how we apply to living it out together, which inevitably will affect core doctrine.

Here are 10 statements that will arise on occasion that can begin as a small ripple but end up a tsunami if we don’t stay grounded in Scripture. Each one usually begins with “I think” or “I believe”.

“I believe we should sing the old hymns from hymn books.”
“I believe we should sing new songs projected on a screen.”
“I believe we should use the King James Bible.”
“I believe we should boycott Disney movies.”
“I believe we shouldn’t have body piercings or tattoos.”
“I believe church members should stay away from alcohol.”
“I believe we should campaign for Republican candidates.”
“I believe people should participate in more church activities.”
“I believe we should have more things for the children.”

The problem with such statements is there is no scriptural basis for any of them. They’re all based on personal opinions, and once you draw a line on personal opinions, you’ll have to draw more lines to keep you farther and farther away from your line. Let me show you what I mean by using three of these same examples again:

1) What most people mean by “old hymns” are hymns written in the 1700-1900s? What about the hymns from 1400-1600s or the centuries before that? Your line can be moved.

2) You want to boycott Disney movies? What about the other major companies that Disney owns—Marvel Entertainment, Lucasfilm, Pixar, ABC, The History Channel, and ESPN? Your line can be moved.

3) You don’t believe in body piercings? Ladies, what about the 1 or 2 holes you have in your ear? Is there a real difference in righteousness between 1 or 2 piercings in the ear versus 1 or 2 in the lip or 5 or 10 scattered around? Your line can be moved.

We all have some personal convictions that we abide by in our walk with the Lord that are not equivalent with God’s Word. And we cannot use any of them as a measure of someone else’s right standing with God. Here is where the wisdom of organizing Christian belief and practice into three categories can be helpful for protecting us from self-righteousness toward other sinners. The three categories are primary, secondary, and tertiary doctrine.

Primary doctrine are those teachings of the Bible in which there is no room for disagreement without departing from Christianity altogether. Examples include: salvation by grace, through faith, in Christ alone apart from works of the law; Jesus is the eternal Son of God, without sin, He died in our place on the cross, and was raised from the dead; Heaven and Hell are for real—repentant believers go to Heaven for eternity and unrepentant unbelievers go to Hell for eternity. Primary doctrine is essential to being a Christian.

Secondary doctrine are those teachings of the Bible rooted in primary doctrine but leaving room for some disagreement among Christians without departing from Christianity. Examples of include: baptism of believers versus baptism of babies; pretribulation return of Jesus versus a posttribulation return; a plurality of pastors versus having a singular pastor. Secondary doctrine is non-essential to salvation.

Tertiary doctrine are those teachings of the Bible that may or may not be rooted in primary and secondary doctrine but are completely open for disagreement because they are non-essential to being a Christian. Examples include: men’s facial hair, length of skirts for women, partaking in secular entertainments, controlled use of alcohol, and eating pork and catfish. How we understand these issues is important, but they’re not essential to salvation itself. The only way these become a salvation issue is if your reason for believing what you believe comes from a prodigal heart: a heart of rebellion or a heart of legalism.

5. Legalism can twist freedom in Christ into a law. Here is where things get interesting. Did you know that being anti-legalistic can itself be a form of legalism? If you get angry at other people because you believe they’re acting like self-righteous hypocrites, then how are your behaviors and attitudes any better than the self-righteous elder brother? Beware of your reaction to sin and sinners being a default anger. God’s grace softens our hearts, and our new default reaction will be compassion.

There’s enough room in God’s family for rebellious younger sons and self-righteous elder sons. The Father runs to the rebels and brings them home; and the Father goes outside the house to the self-righteous and invites them inside! There’s enough gospel for us all. So, who are you begrudging in our church? Won’t you repent of your anger today?

The Other Prodigal Son

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on August 17, 2018. Posted in The Church, The Gospel, Theology.

Our third sermon in our Prodigal Son series at Grace Life focuses on the oft-overlooked elder son and the self-righteousness with which he reacts to the father’s compassion for the younger son. You can also download the audio version of this sermon at www.gracelifelebanon.com or find us on Sermon Audio.

The Other Prodigal Son
Luke 15:25-32

What happens when God pushes us out of our comfort zone as individual Christians and as a church family? A man dressed in rags, wreaking of sweat and alcohol walks in and sits down next to you during the service, or maybe a wealthy lady comes in that’s a known advocate for abortion. A person with different skin color come forward for baptism, or maybe a known criminal just released from prison shows up.

These may seem like farfetched or unreasonable situations, but are they really? Isn’t the story of the prodigal son meant to awaken our thoughts to the incredible reality that Christ died for every kind of sinner? The Pharisees and scribes are mad at Jesus for “eating with tax collectors and sinners” (vv.1-2). But really, they’re mad that reprobates are repenting of their sin. Jesus gives three parables as a witness. All three have the same outline: something is lost, then found, followed by a celebration.

We’ve followed the prodigal on his descent into sin as he left home and pursued a lifestyle of wastefulness resulting in devasta-tion and destruction. This is what it looks like to be lost. But then we get to see what it looks like to be found by God. God turns the prodigal around, demonstrated through the prodigal’s repentance. We learned two aspects of repentance: repentance is a gift of God’s mercy and grace; and repentance is more than admitting you’ve done wrong—it’s a change of mind that leads to a changed way of living.

The prodigal returns home, and the father’s waiting; his posture toward him is predetermined mercy and grace before the son was even able to finish his words of repentance, even before the son had returned “to himself”. And the father responds with joy! This is the picture of what God the Father is really like: He predestines our repentance according to His sovereign grace, and He rejoices “over one sinner who repents” (v.7, 10). Therefore, we ought to be happy too win sinners come home.

So, all is well again in the prodigal’s family. The sinning son has come home. And everyone is happy—or are they?

Luke 15:25-32—“Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’ ”

At the beginning of the parable, you’re thinking this is a classic case of good versus evil, the good brother and the bad brother. The bad brother despises his father by demanding the inheritance and abandoning his dad. The good brother stays home working for his dad, never demanding anything, and always “respecting” his authority.

Most often, preachers emphasize the sinfulness of the younger son—and reasonably so because his sins are blatant rebellion. And then they tack on a few superficial words about the elder son’s anger, often saying something like, “You can’t really blame him”. And if we’re honest, we can see how the elder son would appear to be more of a sinner than a saint. He has served his father faithfully many years. But, if we play off the elder son’s anger this way, we’ve missed the whole reason for Jesus telling this story.

In the context of the parable, it’s obvious that the elder brother is anything but good. In fact, Jesus uses the elder son to show us the malignant, black heart underneath the skin of sin. Sin is more than surface behavior like we see from the younger brother. Sin runs deep, and the elder brother’s sin is just as prevalent and malevolent.

Be assured, both sons are prodigals. The younger pursued happiness through open rebellion and self-discovery. The older pursued happiness through the appearance of outward moralism. But both sons love themselves more than the father. Therefore, both are self-righteousness. Today, we’ll be identifying the elder brother’s core characteristics of self-righteousness. This is important so that we can examine our own testimony as followers of Christ to be sure that our lives look more like the repentant prodigal and not his moralistic but unrepentant older brother.

1. Anger is the disposition of moralistic prodigals (vv.25-28). The older son had been working in his father’s field, and “he heard music and dancing” as “he drew near to the house” (v.25). He asks a hired servant about it ( v.26). The servant “said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound’ ” (v.27). A lost brother has come home alive, not in a body bag! This is reason to celebrate! Instead, “he was angry and refused to go in” (v.28a).

The elder brother’s refusal to go in to the party is every bit as offensive as the younger brother’s refusal to stay at home with the father. Both are an affront to the father’s goodness and authority. Both are a means of shaming the father. What is the elder brother so angry about?

2. God’s grace angers moralistic prodigals (vv.28-30). Listen to the oozing bitterness and seething anger from the lips of the elder son: “His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ ” (vv.28a-30).

The elder brother uses the word “never” to make himself look more mistreated. And especially important, he brings up the “fattened calf”. Jesus mentions the calf three times in the parable, so it must be important. It was rare for families to eat meat in that day. And the fattened calf was the most luxurious of all luxuries if you had one. You would slaughter one only for the most important reasons, perhaps weddings or the birth of a baby.

The elder brother is basically blubbering, “It’s not fair!” I agree. It’s not fair. But grace is never fair, at least not in the way most people use that word. Grace is grace, it’s unmerited, unearnable, and unattainable through our best efforts. Grace is God’s prerogative. Only God’s vote matters. The moralistic prodigal is angered by God’s grace.

Anger is a serious sin. It’s not always expressed in flyoff the handle fits of rage. Anger most often comes in the form of simple complaints that we disguise as hurt feelings or frustrations. Anger itself is sinful, but the root underneath is even deadlier. Little of our anger is righteous because most of it is centered on ourselves; and self-centeredness is by its very nature dissatisfaction with God and His grace. Have you noticed we love God’s grace when we’re the ones receiving it, but when it comes to others we deem unwor-thy of His grace, how quickly resentment emerges? Why does the elder brother hate God’s grace toward his younger brother?

3. Moralistic prodigals believe they have earned a right standing with God (vv.29-30). There’s plenty of evidence from the elder son’s tirade against his father that proves he believes he has earned his place with the father. Three phrases in particular stand out: (1) “Look, these many years I have served you” (v.29a); (2) “I have never disobeyed your command” (v.29b); (3) “You never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends” (v.29c).

Each argument is about quantity and quality, and moralistic prodigals still use these types of justifications in the Church today. Some trust in the quantity of years they’ve been a part of the Church or the quantity of hours they’ve served in the Church or (most frequent of all) the quantity of money they’ve invested in the Church. Be careful about declaring, “I support the Church with my offerings.” If someone thinks the offering money they give is theirs, then they have a serious misunderstanding of God’s grace.

Moralistic prodigals not only trust in the quantity of their service but also the quality of their service. Most don’t think they’re sinless, but they do think themselves sinless enough to be accepted by God. And they certainly think themselves less sinful than other Christians.

4. Moralistic prodigals see themselves as morally superior to other sinners (v.30). Notice how snootily the elder son talks about his brother. “But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!” (v.30). The elder son refuses even to acknowledge the younger son as his brother; and he refuses to acknowledge the property the younger son squandered was his to squander. All the while, the elder son fails to see the seriousness of his own sin, and in doing so, he fails to see the goodness of God, which is the gravest sin of all.

5. Moralistic prodigals see themselves as morally superior to God Himself (vv.31-32). “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours” (v.31). The father’s reminder that “you are always with me” stands in contrast to the elder son’s claims to being mistreated. The father is the greatest treasure both sons have; and when you have the father, you have everything the father has. Therefore, the elder son has experienced no loss at all; and by complaining to the father, he is accusing the father of sinning.

In the same way, beware of an angry, complaining spirit about God’s grace toward sinners you believe are unworthy of forgiveness. Your anger is ultimately an accusation that God has sinned against you. Rather, remember that when we have God the Father, we have it all. And when prodigal sinners get saved, we have nothing to feel threatened about. Instead, we must have the same attitude of the father toward his prodigal sons. “ ‘It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found’ ” (v.32). What self-righteousness do we need to repent of today?

Repentant Sinners and a Joyful Father

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on August 16, 2018. Posted in The Church, The Gospel, Theology.

Our second sermon in our Prodigal Son series at Grace Life zooms in on the nature of sin and the character of God the Father who loves to see sinners come home.

Repentant Sinners and a Joyful Father
Luke 15:13-24

We began the prodigal son parable by looking at the context and seeing that the Pharisees and scribes are offended that Jesus is eating with tax collectors and sinners. Jesus responds to their grip-ing by giving them three parables. All three have the same basic outline: something is lost, then found, followed by a celebration.

The prodigal son is the more detailed and intimate of the three parables. The prodigal’s sin is evident as he demands his inheri-tance, leaves home, and pursues a lifestyle of wastefulness resulting in devastation and destruction. This is what it looks like to be lost.

Luke 15:13-24—Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. 17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.” ’ 20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.

The prodigal has hit bottom. He’s penniless and abandoned. But it’s at the bottom that he realizes there’s something far worse than pigs and poverty—the prodigal has abandoned his father. “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger!’ ” (v.17).

“ ‘But when he came to himself’ ” (v.17a). That’s a colorful way of describing repentance. Repentance is one of the missing links for most people that think they’re a Christian but really aren’t. So, it’s important that we know what it is.

1. Repentance is returning to “yourself” (v.17). Sin is senseless, and sin mars the image of God in which we’ve been created. Repentance is a return to your senses, to yourself (not to selfishness).

2. Repentance is confessing the foolishness of your sin (v.17). “ ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger!’ ” (v.17b). The pro-digal was once elevated above his father’s servants, but he renounced his privileged position as son to pursue “independence”. The repentant person recognizes the stupidity of exchanging God as their greatest treasure for cheap reproductions.

3. Repentance is turning from sin to God (v.18). “ ‘I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you” ’ ” (v.18). It’s pivotal to your salvation that you understand that true repentance isn’t merely saying, “Dear Jesus, I am sinner. Come into my heart and save me.” The prodigal demonstrates that words of true repentance will be followed by actions of true repentance.

True repentance is turning away from living life your way and toward living life God’s way. True repentance includes a hatred for your sin and a love for the Father and a love for obeying Him. True repentance is a lifestyle. Martin Luther writes, “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, ‘Repent’ (Matt.4:17), he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.

4. Repentance is a sovereign gift of God’s mercy and grace (vv.19-23). “ ‘ “I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants” ’ ” (v.19). This is the consistent testimony of the true convert. Christians know they’re “unworthy to be called” sons and daughters of God. Therefore, they’re con-tent with serving in the humblest positions in the Church with or without recognition as long as they can be in good relations with God the Father.

Jesus says the prodigal “arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him” (v.20). Typically, father’s in that culture didn’t run like this. It was undignified. And fathers didn’t forgive such sins of a son in that culture. It was disgraceful. But this father is different. He runs to the son and slobbers him with kisses.

This is an illustration of what our Father God is really like. He isn’t the angry deity that unbelievers imagine. God is angry with sinners every day and there is an eternal judgment for persistent rebels, but God doesn’t need anger management classes. He’s slow to anger and quick to show mercy, otherwise you wouldn’t be sitting here right now.

This is why I can’t overstress the weight of the phrase “while he was still a long way off” (v.20a) because it highlights the supernatural reality of repentance. Jesus is making the point that the father already had a predetermined plan to extend mercy and grace to the son prior to his actual repentance. Mercy is receiving undeserved forgiveness from God. Grace is receiving undeserved life and righteousness from God through Jesus Christ. The idea that God the Father plans to forgive and save specific sinners even before they repent corresponds with what we read in Isaiah.

Isaiah 65:24—“Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear.”

Therefore, repentance is not self-induced regret but a miracle performed by God according to His sovereign mercy and grace. Two passages make this especially clear.

Acts 11:15-18—As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning. 16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” 18 When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

2 Timothy 2:24-25—And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

Because repentance ultimately depends on God, repentance is always relational in nature—meaning we relationally turn to God through faith in Jesus, and we live out our faith relationally with a local church family.

Repentance is seeing traces of God’s mercy and grace in everything, even the hard things. For example, who brought the famine to the far country? God. What would have happened had God not ordained that famine? The prodigal might have found a way to be prosperous again and die in his prosperity—or else he would have died of malnutrition. As John Calvin said, God’s ordained miseries are His “invitation” to repent and find life.

5. Repentance produces full restoration to God (vv.21-24). “And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son’ ” (v.21). Only people with this humble attitude can be fully restored because the idea of God’s grace either makes you mad or makes you glad because His grace gives undeserving sinners eternal blessing in place of eternal damnation.

Notice what full restoration looks like for the prodigal. “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate’ ” (vv.22-23). The robe, ring, and shoes are all precious pictures of how God’s salvation restores our status as sons and daughters. At the cross, Jesus exchanged our filthy rags, ring-less finger, and bare feet with His royal robe, ring, and shoes of sonship that sets us apart from the world.

If these images weren’t powerful enough, we get the strongest of all. “ ‘For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found’ ” (v.24a). Sin is so devastating and destructive that it leaves us spiritually dead. But God’s mercy and grace are so powerful that He raises us up to spiritual life. We were lost in our sin and couldn’t find our way out—worse yet, we didn’t want out. We loved our lives of sin every bit as much as the prodigal loved his. But God intervened, breathed eternal life into our souls, and gave us the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 2:4-5—But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.

6. Repentance is a cause of celebration (v.24). “And they began to celebrate” (v.24b). This is both our last point and basically the introduction for the next sermon. When lost sinners confess Christ as Lord, follow Him in baptism, and become a faithful member of His Church, we ought to be happy. Serving up the fattened calf back in verse 23 shows us just how overjoyed the father is.

Celebration over sinners come home will be different for each of us. For some it means clapping or shouting. For others it may be quiet tears or simple smiles. But nothing should excite or motivate us more than seeing a lost sinner found! Have you lost your joy over sinners coming home? Perhaps you’re the one still lost in your prodigal sinning? Won’t you repent and come home to God?