Sermon #115 Luke Sermons
Title: “And
Kissed Him”
Text: Luke 15:20
Subject: The Boundless, Overflowing Love of God
for Sinners Who Come to Him for Mercy
Date: Sunday
Evening ―
Bob Poncer
& James Jordan
Tape # X-99b
Introduction:
Some of you are yet without
Christ. My message tonight is intended to tug at your hearts. I want especially
to speak to you who fear you may not be welcome at the throne of grace, that
you may not be admitted into the Father’s house. I am preaching this message especially to you. You will find my text in Luke
15:20.
Luke
But I haven’t forgotten you,
my brothers and sisters in Christ. This message is especially for you who have
come to the Father’s house. It is you who know best and shall rejoice the most
in the Father’s great mercy, love and grace.
Our text begins with a very
little word, a three letter conjunction – “And.” This is one of those
words that is often passed over lightly by readers and seldom commented upon by
expositors. But this little, three letter word is very important. This word, “And,” at the beginning of this verse
takes us back to all that has gone before. It is a connecting word, connecting
this with everything else in the story.
·
The Prodigal’s Rebellion
·
His Riotous Living.
·
His Time In The Hog Pin Of Religious Legalism.
·
His Turning Point (v. 17) ― "And
when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have
bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!"
·
His Resolution (vv. 18-19) ― "I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have
sinned against heaven, and before thee, (19) And am no
more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants."
Now, in verse 20, we see
this poor, destitute, penniless, dirty, hungry boy (A grown man, yes, but still
his father’s boy!) coming home. I can almost see him. I know what’s going
through his mind. I’ve been there. His steps are,
every one of them, heavy, heavy steps, hesitating. The nearer he comes to his
father’s house, the heavier and more hesitating his
steps become. He’s embarrassed. He’s ashamed. He’s fearful. But he has no
choice. He is coming home because he simply has to.
It
was hunger, not love, that brought the prodigal back to his father. There was
no high, noble disinterested motive in him. He stayed away as long as he could.
But now he is hungry. As long as he had any hope of helping himself, he would
not return. But now all self hope is gone.
It
was not the thought of his father’s honor or his father’s love that brought him
home, but the great wealth of his father’s house. It was utter desperation that
forced him to look homeward, that forced him out of the far country, and forced
him to seek his father’s mercy.
So
is with the sinner. It is need, desperate need, misery, desperate misery, danger,
desperate danger that forces him to the throne of grace. It is not love for the
Lord, it is not some noble desire for God’s glory,
that leads sinners to Christ, but desperate need. When we have nowhere else to
go, when we can do nothing else, then and only then, we come to Christ.
The poor prodigal has no
where else to go, no one else to turn to. He goes along the way in utter
humiliation. The nearer he gets home, the lower his head hangs. He dares not
lift his eyes. He dares not rush through the gate. He dares not run up and grab
his father around the neck, like a boy might who was returning from war. This
boy was returning from the bars and brothels of the world, where he had wasted
everything his father had given him. He is returning from the house of his
father’s most implacable enemy, whose dungeons of legality he chose in
preference to his father’s palace of mercy in his state of pride and rebellion.
That is what I see in the prodigal. But our text speaks of his father, too. There I see him, the prodigal’s father, our Father, the God of all grace, rushing from his great and glorious throne, to receive the poor sinner!
1.
“When he was yet a great way off…” ― There you are, you
who are yet without Christ. You are a great way off. No matter how near you
think you are, no matter how near others may think you are,
you are still a great way off. Your changes of life, your resolutions, your
determinations, your imaginary steps toward God, all leave you just as far off
from God as ever you were. Nothing you do, no step you make brings you one step
nearer God, until God steps out to you and brings you into his house. Oh, how I
want you to come to God! But I will not deceive you. I know, and I want you to
know, you will never come home until God himself, by an act of almighty, free,
sovereign, and irresistible grace, brings you home.
2.
“When he was yet a great way off, his
father saw him!” ― His father saw who he was ― Where
he had been. ― All that he had done. ― What he was. ― All the filth
that was upon him. ― All his great need. ―
And he saw something else. His Father saw all that his
cherished son would soon be! He saw all that he was about to do for him!
3.
“When he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion…” ― That word, “compassion,” is a tremendous expression
of God’s inexpressible love toward us in Christ. It means “co-passion”. Our God
is a God full of compassion! There was no anger, no resentment, no hostility,
only love in the father’s heart for his returning boy. That’s our God!
Psalm 78:38 But he, being full of
compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time
turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.
Psalm 86:15 But thou, O Lord, art a God
full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and
truth.
Psalm 111:4 He hath made his wonderful
works to be remembered: the LORD is gracious and full of compassion.
Psalm 112:4 Unto the upright there ariseth
light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
Psalm 145:8 The LORD is gracious, and full
of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.
4.
“When he was yet a great
way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran…” ―
What? God almighty in a hurry? God running to a
sinner? That’s the picture. Oh, blessed be God, that’s the picture! This is the
only place in all the Bible where we have a picture of
God getting in a hurry to do anything. Here we see the Lord God of heaven, the
God against whom we have sinned, rushing, running out to meet a sinner in
mercy, a sinner who deserves nothing but his wrath!
5.
“When he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had
compassion, and ran, and fell on his
neck…”
― This is another expression of the greatness of
his affection to him (Gen. 45:14 46:29; Acts
6.
“When he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had
compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and
kissed him!" ― He kissed him earnestly. He kissed him eagerly. He kissed him
ardently. He kissed him much. He kissed him continually.
I want to spend the rest of
my time talking to you about those kisses. In this parable, the father’s
actions toward his prodigal son beautifully display the boundless, overflowing
love of God revealed to sinners who come to him by faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ. What do these many kisses
mean? What do they teach us?
Proposition: These kisses tell us that
when a sinner comes home to God by faith in Christ, God welcomes the sinner
with all the fulness of his infinite love!
Let me show you seven
things revealed in Holy Scripture which I believe these kisses upon the
prodigal’s cheeks must signify!
I. The Father’s kisses mean Much
Love Deeply Felt and Demonstrably Expressed.
Ephesians 3:17-19 "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by
faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, (18) May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth,
and height; (19) And to know the love
of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the
fulness of God."
A.
These kisses express the
great love of our heavenly Father, that eternal, everlasting love that is deeply felt
in the very heart of God.
B.
These kisses speak of
the great manifestations of God’s love to the hearts of believing
sinners.
True love cannot be dormant.
Like fire, it must be active. Like water, it must break out. It must show
itself in words, actions, deeds, and expressions. Behold the love of God for
us…
1 John
1 John 4:9-10 "In this was manifested the
love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the
world, that we might live through him.
(10) Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent
his Son to be the propitiation for
our sins."
1.
Our blessed Savior did not
have to die.
2.
We had no claims upon him.
3.
There was no appeal on our
part for him to die.
4.
When he died for us, the
Lord Jesus knew that if he laid down his life for such sinners as we are he
would get no love in return from those for whom he died, except he create it.
5.
The Son of God died by the
hands of men, as well as for the sake of men.
6.
He died for men who wished
that he should be made to die, for men who counted him worthy of death.
7.
In dying for us, the Lord
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, voluntarily took upon himself the awful mass of
shame and dishonor which we deserve because of sin, and took unto himself an infinite, indescribable, ignominious relation to
sin!
2 Corinthians
1 John
C.
These kisses of grace are
the means by which we perceive God’s personal love for us.
II. The Father’s kisses mean Full
Forgiveness, Freely Bestowed.
1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, he
is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Psalms 103:12 "As far as the east is from
the west, so far hath he removed our
transgressions from us."
Isaiah 43:25 "I, even I, am he that
blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy
sins."
A.
God promised to forgive sin.
Isaiah 55:6-7 "Seek ye the LORD while he
may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: (7) Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his
thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him;
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon."
B.
The Lord Jesus Christ
purchased forgiveness for us.
Ephesians 1:3-7 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us
with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ: (4) According as he
hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be
holy and without blame before him in love:
(5) Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ
to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, (6) To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made
us accepted in the beloved. (7) In
whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according
to the riches of his grace!"
C.
Now, by his warm embrace and
tender kiss, our heavenly Father makes us to know that our many sins are all
forgiven forever.
1.
His kiss tells me that all
my sins are gone.
2.
He gives another kiss, and
tells me that he will never remember my transgressions.
3.
With another kiss, he
assures me that he sees no fault in me.
4.
With another kiss, he tells
me that he will never treat me any the less graciously because of my sin.
III. The Father’s repeated kisses
mean Complete Restoration.
Ephesians 2:11-13 "Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the
flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision
in the flesh made by hands; (12) That
at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel,
and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in
the world: (13) But now in Christ
Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ."
A.
With a kiss, God owns me as
his son again.
1 John 3:1-3 "Behold, what manner of love
the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God:
therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. (2) Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we
know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as
he is. (3) And every man that hath
this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure."
Galatians 4:4-6 "But when the fulness of the time was
come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, (5) To redeem them that were under the
law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. (6) And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his
Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father."
B.
With the kiss of his grace,
God answers all my prayers.
C.
With the kiss of God upon my
cheeks. I am assured that all my lost, forfeited privileges are completely
restored.
IV. The Father’s kisses are Tokens Of Great, Abundant Joy.
Luke 15:22-24 "But the father said to his
servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: (23) And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: (24) For this my son was dead, and is
alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry."
A.
The angels of God rejoice,
because the prodigal over whom they watched, whom they
constantly protected, has now come home.
B.
The saints of God rejoice,
because a lost brother has now come home.
C.
The triune God rejoices,
because the object of his eternal love has returned to his bosom. ― He
has been returned by the grace of God. Yet he gladly returns of his own accord!
Psalms 65:4 "Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy
courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple."
D.
The prodigal himself
rejoices.
1.
In His Father’s
Indestructible Love!
2.
In The Fatted Calf, Slain
For His Soul ― Christ Crucified!
3.
In The Gospel Of Peace ― The Shoes!
4.
In The Seal Of Covenant Grace ― The Ring!
5.
In The Robe Of Perfect
Righteousness Imputed To Him ― The Best Robe!
6.
The Gospel Feast Spread Before Him!
V. Surely, these kisses from
the lips of our Father mean Overflowing Comfort For The Hearts Of Redeemed
Sinners. ― They mean…
A.
The past is all forgotten.
B.
The present is all peace.
― We are “accepted in the Beloved!”
C.
The future is all secure.
― Here, in the Father’s house, there is no possibility of
expulsion, or of us ever leaving on our own. ― And
there is no possibility of the son ever leaving again.
Jeremiah 32:38-40 "And they shall be my people, and I will
be their God: (39) And I will give
them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of
them, and of their children after them:
(40) And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not
turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts,
that they shall not depart from me."
Once in Christ, in Christ
forever!
None from Him my soul can sever.
__________________
He will never, never leave
me,
Nor will let me quite leave
Him!
VI. The Father’s kisses, if they
mean anything, mean Strong Assurance Of Grace Most Free.
A.
His kisses assure us that
his mercy, love, and grace are all real.
B.
His incessant kisses assure
us that his love is immutable, unfailing, and everlasting.
C.
His kisses assure our hearts
that we are, indeed, his!
VII. The Father’s kisses mean Intimate
Communion And Complete Reconciliation Established By Grace.
A.
Before the prodigal is
brought into the fellowship of the family, he must be brought into fellowship
with God.
B.
Before a sinner comes to the
family’s table, he must have the Father’s kiss upon his cheeks.
C.
Before there could be any
public rejoicing, there had to be some private kissing.
D.
Only after he had received
the father’s kiss could the prodigal son endure the elder brother’s scorn.
Application:
1.
Who is it that God almighty,
himself will kiss? ― Every sinner who comes to
him by faith in Christ.
2.
How can the Lord God so
tenderly and graciously receive sinners? ― Substitution!
3.
Where does the Lord God meet
returning prodigals with his kisses reconciliation? ― In
Christ!
4.
Do you have the Father’s
kisses upon your cheeks? ― Let me tell you how
you may have them. Are you interested? ― Come on home! Come, and welcome!
Luke
Hebrews
AMEN.