Two Ways to be Lost

It’s called the parable of the Prodigal Son. You’ve heard it once again this morning. It is definitely one of Jesus’ most famous stories. What you may not realize is that it was told in response to a complaint.

            You see, many of Jesus’ opponents were quote-unquote good people. Rule keepers. Law abiding citizens. People you would probably respect if you knew them. And they want to know, “Jesus, why are you hanging out with all these lost people?”

            Jesus replies by telling a story, the story you heard in the Gospel Reading today. But what you’re going to see in this well-known tale is that it’s really about two lost brothers and the Father who loves them both. Two lost brothers. Two ways to be lost. One is obvious. The other is shocking to quote-unquote good people.

            When you listen to Jesus’ story from beginning to end, what you discover is that both sons—the one who blew his father’s money in fast living AND the older brother who stayed home and did his duty—both are alienated from their father’s heart. The twist in the tale is that the bad kid is saved and the good kid is lost. At least that’s where we leave the older brother at the end of the story. He’s mad because his father is being graciou to his bad brother. He comes right out and says, “Because I’ve done good, because I’ve worked hard, because I’ve never disobeyed you, you should do things my way. You owe me.” Jesus created the character of the older brother to show that a person who brings that attitude into their relationship with God is just as lost as the person who goes out and commits every sin in the book.

            How can that be? Well, listen. Jesus is telling this story to a group of people who are offended that He would hang out lost people, and through the story he is saying, “If that offends you, then you are just as lost as they are. It might be worse, because you don’t even realize you’re lost!” It’s like this: A person who finds the grace of Jesus distasteful; the person who is offended by the idea that Jesus would want someone “like those sinners;” a person who is scandalized by the mercy of Jesus towards someone else doesn’t really believe that mercy is the foundation of their own standing with God. In other words, you either look to God to save you, or something else. You either look to Jesus to justify you, or something else. The older brother in the story was looking to something else, and it was his own work. He was saying, my hard work, my dedication, my loyalty justifies me to my Father—therefore he owes me. The older son doesn’t understand the grace being shown to the younger son because he doesn’t believe in grace for himself.

So right away I have to ask: do you look to Jesus to justify you, or are you looking to something else? There’s a scene in the movie “Chariots of Fire” that speaks to this. In “Chariots of Fire” the Olympic sprinter Harold Abrams is asked why he puts himself under such pressure in his training. And do you know what he says? He says, “When that gun goes off, I have 10 seconds to justify my existence.” The race for him is everything. It’s his reason for being. Running well and winning justifies his existence. That’s Harold Abrams. What about you?

            Some try to justify their existence by being a great husband or wife or a good parent. Some try to justify their existence by having a successful career. Some try to justify their existence by carrying out big philanthropic projects that change the world. Some try to justify their existence by intense religious practice, trying to prove it to God that they’re faithful and true and doing all the right things. But what happens in life? The athlete justifying their existence by the race, by the contest, gets to a point where the body breaks down, they’re not winning anymore—what happens then? The wife justifying her existence by trying to keep her husband happy only to be ignored and her efforts unvalued—what happens then? The worker justifying his existence by career achievement receives word that his services will no longer be needed—what happens then? The religious adherent justifying her existence by saying all the prayers, doing all the steps, giving big offerings, devoting herself to good deeds and she still doesn’t get her prayers answered the way she wanted—what happens then? This always, always happens when we try to justify ourselves. It’s never enough. It’s never satisfying. We become older brothers, truly believing that we’ve worked hard, kept our noses clean, done things the right way, so doggone it, the Father owes me something. And Jesus says that’s what it looks like to be lost.

            There are two ways to be lost according to Jesus, two ways to be alienated from the Father’s heart. Way Number One is to be like the younger brother and be very bad. Go against conscience, break God’s Law, live it up. Way Number Two is to be like the older brother and be very good, so good that you justify yourself. So good that you say, look, I’ve done all the right things, Father. The deal is, I do for you, so you do for me. The least you can do is give me a goat.

            What’s the solution? If we’re lost, what’s the key to being found? The younger brother discovered it there among the pigs. It’s simple. Admit your lost-ness. If you can admit that by yourself you are lost, then you are ready for the Gospel. And the Gospel is that Jesus justifies your existence. You don’t have to justify your existence to God because He has already justified your existence in Jesus. The mission Jesus accomplished means that you are loved already! You don’t have to earn it, nor could you. God thought you were so valuable that he sent his Son to the cross to purchase you. You don’t have to make yourself more attractive to him, nor could you. This is the undeserved kindness of God. When you return to him sincerely admitting your lost-ness, out come the gifts. The fattened calf. The ring, the robe, the party in your honor. That’s what it means to have a new life. The Father runs to lost children who return to him.

            The biggest hurdle that “older brother” types have to overcome is they don’t think of themselves as lost. They’ve followed the rules, so they don’t see themselves as guilty, at least not  in an obvious, irresponsible younger brother way. So how do you know? How do you know if you fit the older brother profile? Let me suggest a few things. You might be an “older brother” if there is an undercurrent of resentment to your personality. It’s that spirit of the older brother saying, “I’ve never disobeyed you, and yet I’m getting the short end of the stick.” That’s one.

You might be an “older brother” if your life with God could be described as duty without beauty. Notice what the older brother says to the Father as he’s complaining outside the party tent. He says, “All these years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command.” The word that is rendered here as “served” really means the actions of a slave. The older brother is saying I’ve been slaving away for you, Father, and this is the thanks I get? Do you see that? There’s no talk of love here. There’s no talk of relationship between Father to son. The older brother says staying here and working for you has been a grind!

 If your relationship with God seems like a grind, like you are slaving away with nothing to show, chances are you tend toward older brother-ness; older brother syndrome. If your life with God is all duty and no beauty, watch out. Here’s the deal: Older brothers find their Father useful for things. People who admit their lost-ness find their Father not useful, but beautiful. If Jesus is your reason for being, you will find yourself thinking about Him and talking to Him and praising Him just because. Grace does that to a person.

If you’re sitting there thinking that maybe there’s more “older brother” in you than you’d like, there is hope. Look at the Father in the story. He doesn’t yell at the older brother, he pleads with him. He tries to lead his son to an understanding of grace. “Everything I have is yours,” he says. That’s the Father’s choice, and it’s not based on the hard work of the older brother.

            It’s as if the Father is saying, “My son, I know you’ve tried hard. But don’t you understand? We’re all lost.” Through this story Jesus is saying to you, look at me. Look at my cross. Look at the torment and suffering I experience there. You are so lost that nothing less than this can save you. And I willingly do it. I do it so that you can have peace and share grace. This gospel is the only force that can blast you out of older brother-ness. There are two ways to be lost. This is the way to be found.

When Disaster Strikes

Lately it seems that the news has been bringing us stories of one large-scale disaster after another. From Sandy Hook Elementary to severe weather wiping out communities on the East Coast to ongoing bloodshed in the Middle East, we can’t escape the avalanche of bad news.

A little closer to home, each new day brings word of personal disaster that people are experiencing. The unexpected death of a spouse or a parent. The implosion of a marriage or the loss of a job.

When disaster strikes, there is a predictable human reaction. We begin to ask questions. We want to know why something terrible happened. We can take that a step further and ask, “What did they do to deserve such a horrible experience?” And some people are more than willing to try to explain.

 In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, a prominent televangelist was quick to say that New Orleans deserved it because of their high degree of sinfulness. (“Where does that leave Las Vegas?” I wondered at the time.)

 In the case of Haiti, there have been similar conclusions drawn. “Voodoo is prominent in Haiti, therefore God zeroed in on them,” and so forth. The underlying message is “they had it coming” because “they” are way more sinful than “we” are.

That’s a nice, tidy theory. But is it true, according to Holy Scripture? Is that how we are supposed to interpret disaster when it strikes? Let’s take a look at the beginning of Luke chapter thirteen for answers.

Some people came to Jesus, reporting an ugly incident that had taken place in which Pontius Pilate apparently had some Galileans put to death. This was just an awful situation and extremely provocative politically. But see how Jesus gets to the heart of the matter? He discerned that this story was being reported to him so that he could affirm that ““those Galileans” had it coming” because “they” are way more sinful than “we” are, and then everyone could go on their way feeling better about themselves. Jesus meets that expectation head-on and says: “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” To reinforce his point, Jesus brings up His own disaster story; a quick account of a tower falling on eighteen people and killing them. Then he asks: “do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

Jesus first refutes the theory that “they had it coming,” and then turns the entire discussion around so that it’s directed at you and me. He’s not interested in getting into a discussion of “why do bad things happen.” He’s interested in where you are at spiritually. He knows that we get hung up on the wrong questions, so he cuts through all that and asks the right ones. The ones that matters most. Are you ready to have a change of mind and heart? Are you ready to turn around? Are you ready to go in God’s direction, confessing your deep need for forgiveness? What is it’s you that the tower falls on? What if it’s you that’s crushed in the earthquake? What is it’s you who has a massive heart attack and dies before they hit the ground? Are you ready for what comes next?

The person who is ready and well prepared is the person who knows that their sin ought to exclude them from heaven. The person who is ready has realized that there is only one hope; one path; one key that opens heaven’s door; and that is the Son of God, Jesus Christ, put to death for the price of our sin and raised to life to lift us into heaven. Our Lord Jesus knows that we procrastinate and put it off and would do just about anything to avoid thinking about our own mortality. Yet it is absolutely necessary. So he sidesteps the perplexing theological questions about the existence of evil and “why does God permit such things to happen” and says, straight up, what really matters is whether or not YOU truly know your need for God. What really matters is whether or not YOU believe in His Son’s sacrifice and risen life. If you reject God’s mercy, you will inevitably die, but that’s just the beginning. What comes next is a living nightmare, an existence where access to a loving God is no longer possible, and things like forgiveness and kindness are forgotten.

But that’s not what God wants for his creation. That’s why He placed the punishment for sin on His Son. It had to fall on someone, so God had it fall on Jesus instead of you and me. With that awful price paid for, God invites you leave sinful ways behind and to receive the gift of forgiveness. He invites you to change your mind about your old ways and to live in a whole new way. His Holy Spirit is at work at this very moment to guide you to Jesus, that you would trust Him and Him alone for a never-ending life with God. A person who is gifted with this faith is a person who can withstand disaster when it comes. Because of Jesus they can live with urgency, yet without fear.

There is a Japanese movie that I love called “Ikiru.” The story is simple; a man who has a desk job in the local government goes through the same lifeless routine day after day until he learns he has stomach cancer. After absorbing the shock of this news, and after trying the “eat, drink, and be merry” approach to life and finding it empty, he latches onto a purpose that gives the rest of his days meaning. He decides to push a project through the system—the building of a children’s playground—and he goes after this project with great urgency because time is obviously running out. He also goes after it without fear. He realizes this when the local Japanese mobsters try to prevent him from building the playground. They threaten him with death, and you see this look of awareness cross the man’s face—their greatest weapon means nothing. Threatening to kill someone’s who is terminally ill is not going to scare them very much. Incidentally, the title, “Ikiru,” is a Japanese word meaning “to live.”

If you return to God and believe the good news about His Son Jesus, then you know what it really means to live. You will live with urgency, picking up the mission God has given you to complete, because no tomorrow is guaranteed. You will live without fear, because you trust that Jesus—who defeated death and came out of the grave—will be with you in this life and the next. And you will live through times of both delight and disaster with confidence that every heartbeat brings you that much closer to the endless, joyous Day of Heaven, thanks to Jesus Christ our Lord.

Rejected

God’s Word comes to us from the 13th chapter of Luke, where Jesus says: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!”

Most of us are so familiar with the image of Jesus as the Lamb of God that we don’t give it a second thought. But “Hen of God”? That’s another story. In the words you just heard, Jesus compares his love for the people of Jerusalem to the nurturing, protecting love of a mother hen, draping her wings over her chicks. It is a tender, comforting image. And yet there is tragedy in these words. There is heartbreak. Jesus has tried to gather His children together, but they have rejected him.

Chances are, you have known the pain of rejection. Whether it’s rejection in a relationship; rejection at your job; or the rejection of wanting something so much only to be passed by; we know how it feels. So just imagine, if you can, how the Son of God feels as he journeys toward Jerusalem—His holy city—the location of His Father’s house, the Temple—and the reception he receives is rejection. He has come so that people—his people—can truly know God. He has come to bring forgiveness and a new direction. He has come to offer never-ending life to his people and all people. And the response is: No thanks, Jesus of Nazareth. We don’t want you. We don’t want what you’re selling. Keep this up, Jesus, and things might get ugly.

Now, Jesus was not surprised by this rejection. He even said, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!” Perhaps He was thinking of Jeremiah, who in today’s Old Testament lesson is threatened with death for speaking the Word of the Lord. Human beings can have strange, extreme reactions to God’s Word of repentance and mercy, as Paul writes in today’s Epistle: “For many…walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.” Enemies of the cross of Christ. Enemies of forgiveness and love. Enemies of all that is good. Rejection of Jesus is all around us. Pop stars try to recast Jesus in their own image in interviews. Fathers and mothers try to lead families apart from the wisdom and will of God. People crave power and control, despising those who promote the peace and forgiveness of Christ, who still desires to gather a people unto himself. He is not surprised by all this rejection. But it still breaks His heart. The worst of it is, this is not just a message about how “those people” reject Jesus—it’s also about how you reject Him, and how I reject Him, people who really ought to know better.

How, you may ask, do I reject Jesus? Well, let me ask you: Is Jesus, the Son of God, the most important person in your life? Would you drop everything that you’ve worked for to follow his calling? Do you share your faith in Him with other people? Do you care for those who are worse off than you and look for ways to serve them? Do you try to live a life of purity and obedience to the Lord on a daily basis? Do you hunger and thirst for Jesus’ words, not to mention His body and blood given in Holy Communion, or are there other places you would rather be than a boring old church service? If you wrote down all the things you do in a given week, would they reveal that Jesus is your number one priority? Would He make the top five? I am willing to admit that I fall under the condemnation of these questions and that I have rejected my Savior in ways to numerous to mention. Are you willing to admit the same?

If not, I will pray that you wake up before it’s too late, because you are choosing a road that leads to personal destruction. If you are willing to confess and own your rejection of Jesus, I want you to listen to this. It’s going to sound too good to be true, but it is the Truth. Jesus is not surprised by rejection. And even though it broke his heart, he pressed on to Jerusalem to the hill outside the city wall where criminals were put to death. Jesus does not handle rejection like we do. When we’re rejected, we either lash out in anger, or more often than not we shut down, we curl up into a ball so that we don’t get hurt again. But not Jesus. He kept putting one foot in front of the other all the way to Calvary, in the face of the most bitter rejection imaginable. Where we help only our friends or those who can reward us for our efforts, Jesus helped those who hated him and prayed for their forgiveness. Where we would turn our backs to those who reject us, Jesus offered his back to the whip, absorbing the punishment for sin. Where we shut down and put self-preservation first, Jesus thought more highly of you than his own life. Rejection did not stop Jesus from proving his love for you. His wish came true. He gathers his children with outstretched arms—on the cross. He gathers his children with the wings of forgiveness and reconciliation. Though his arms are nailed fast to the wood, His love embraces the world. That love embraces you and me—people who have resisted and rejected Him—and what He wants most is for you to turn around and return the embrace. His arms are still open wide.

The Jesus Pattern

There is a certain brand of Christianity that says that if you only put enough trust in Jesus Christ, then you will have your best life today. You’ll own the home of your dreams. You’ll experience success in all that you do. This brand of Christianity sells. It fills stadiums. People naturally gravitate to this message. We want it to be true. We want God to give us glorious lives today—and it’s easy to assume that if things aren’t good and glorious, then something’s wrong with either me or God. But is it right to assume that?

                   
When you’re disappointed or even heartbroken about the way things are going in your life, you need to go back and look at the life of Jesus. Let God’s Word speak to you about Jesus and the pattern of His life. In the pattern of Jesus’ life you will find the pattern of your life, too. The pattern of Jesus’ life will change your expectations about life with God. And that’s key; because sometimes our faith in God is shaken because we have expectations of God that are rooted in our own wishful thinking, and not in His promises.

The Transfiguration of Jesus is a perfect place to examine the pattern of Jesus’ life. During the teaching phase of his ministry, Jesus takes Peter, James and John up on a mountain to pray. During this prayer time, Jesus’ appearance was transfigured. He changed. He started to shine. Moses and Elijah, who ordinarily would be in heaven, come to have a conversation with Jesus about the actions he would take in Jerusalem. The voice of God the Father Himself rings out: “This is my Son my Chosen One; listen to Him.” And Peter responds to all this by wanting to prolong the experience. He wants to build tents so that the visitors from heaven can stay. Peter doesn’t want this glory to end.

But it does. It has to. Jesus was not born into the world to transform and sit on a mountaintop in a little tent. That’s not the pattern. He has work to do. That’s what He was talking about with Moses and Elijah. It says “they spoke of [Jesus’] departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.” In the original language, the word “departure” is literally the word “exodus.” I’m assuming that it was Moses who talked about Jesus’ work this way. Soon Jesus was going to suffer terribly and go through crucifixion. Then He would rise from the dead. By doing those things, he would free us from slavery and lead us on to the promised land of life in heaven. This “exodus conversation” is extremely important. First, it is the Word that gives life to those who believe. In other words, it is the saving Gospel. Second, it reveals the pattern of Jesus’ life. And the pattern is not “Only Glory In This Life With More Glory To Come.” Instead, the pattern of Jesus’ life is: “Glimpses of Glory Mixed With Significant Suffering In This Life With Great Glory To Come.” The pattern of Jesus’ life is: pain and heartache mixed with love now; and then an entrance into full glory. Or to really bottom-line it: The pattern of Jesus’ life is: suffering; then glory. That’s the pattern of Jesus’ life, and that’s the pattern of life for those who believe in Him.

Jesus was very up-front about this. To those who wished to follow Him He said “Take up your cross daily and follow me.” He guaranteed: “In this life you will have trouble, but take heart. I have overcome the world.” If we walk in the way of Jesus Christ, we will still experience trouble, loss, grief, sadness, pain and suffering. Despite what some claim, Christianity is not a vaccine against such things, nor can you will them away by having “more faith” or “believing harder.” What Jesus offers you is peace in the midst of problems. When He died on that cross, He paid for all of your sins in full. That means when bad things happen to you, you never have to wonder, “Is God punishing me?” The full punishment for your sins was handled by Jesus on the cross.

 Because the Son of God died under the weight of that punishment, God counts no sin against you. We face turmoil in our lives because sin has infected everything and because evil is real. It’s no joke. We must pass through the valley of the shadow of death. You could argue that we do that every day. But we do not go alone. Your Good Shepherd goes with you. He knows how to use that rod and staff to protect you. Most importantly, He’s been this way before. He’s already taken this path. He knows where it comes out.

It comes out in true glory—the glory of heaven. The glory of perfect joy in the Lord who is with His people forever. The glory of endless light and love. The glory of worship alongside angels and archangels and all the company of heaven, sending perfect praise to Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Obviously, we’re not there yet. But you will be, as certainly as Jesus endured his time of suffering and then entered the glory of resurrection. Jesus offers you not only peace in the midst of problems, but also a future home in heaven. Remember, as a believer, the pattern of Jesus’ life is yours. Heaven is your Promised Land. Jesus is leading your life right now. It may seem like wandering in the wilderness at times, but think about what you’ve left behind. Nothing less than slavery to sin! You’ve left behind two kinds of death: the living death of a self-centered, Godless life, and the second death—the death of the soul in eternal self-imposed exile from God. Jesus has brought you out of that. You need never go back. Yes, there will still be suffering and sadness, but it is temporary, and it will pass away. You will not. Your life continues with Christ, because that’s the pattern. Suffering, then glory.

And to encourage you and me, we see glimpses of that glory along the way. We glimpse our Lord Jesus Christ in the pages of Holy Scripture. We catch a glimpse of Him as we are given His body and blood in the sacrament. We get a glimpse of the activity of heaven when everyone is singing to the Lord from their hearts. We glimpse His compassion when someone performs even the smallest act of grace for us, and we are touched by their kindness. God lets us catch these glimpses because He loves us. He knows we need His strength, because we are so easily discouraged. He knows we cannot stay on the mountaintop, because that’s not the pattern. There is still work to do and much to endure. But thanks to Jesus, you can endure. Thanks to Him, the pattern will hold, and one day you will enter into the full glory of God. And you will enter to stay. May the Holy Spirit give you contentment and confidence as your life traces the pattern of Jesus’ suffering and glory.