Sermon #18 Luke
Sermons
Title: The Other Son
Text: Luke
15:25-32
Subject: Calling
the Self-righteous to Repentance
Date: Sunday
Evening—
Tape # X-100b
Introduction:
The title of my message
tonight is ― The Other Son.
Our text will be Luke 15:25-32.
At the beginning of this
chapter, the Pharisees and Scribes, the self-righteous legalists who professed
to be the children of God, the heirs of his kingdom, and the objects of his
love, when they saw the Lord Jesus
receiving publicans and sinners, hurled what they thought was a
scurrilous accusation against him. Murmuring at the sight, they said, “This
man receiveth sinners and eateth with them.” (v. 2).
Everything that follows was addressed specifically to these caviling, griping,
self-righteous religious legalists.
The Master gave them the
parable recorded in verses 3-32, saying in effect, "You see me receiving
these publicans and sinners and eating with them; and you think that to be an
evil thing. But when I receive these publicans sinners
and eat with them, it is like a shepherd seeking and finding a lost sheep and
rejoicing. It is like a woman seeking and finding a lost coin and rejoicing. It
is like a Father running out to welcome home a lost, rebel son with open arms
and smothering him with heartfelt kisses of complete, unconditional restoration
and reconciliation.
In verse 25 the parable takes a turn. Instead of answering the question
why he receives and eats with publicans and sinners, the Lord Jesus shows them
and us why self-righteous Pharisees, religious legalists, refuse to take their
place in the dust as sinners before the throne of grace and refuse to come to
him and eat with him.
Proposition: A self-righteous person, a
Pharisee, a lost religious legalists is one who is
righteous in his own eyes and thinks himself too holy, too spiritual, to good
to be saved by grace alone, entirely by the merits of a crucified, sin-atoning
Substitute. This is the doctrine of Luke 15:25-32: ― The
Pharisee will not give up his own righteousness for the righteousness of
Christ.
I hope that you and I find
our place in this parable with the one lost sheep, the one lost coin, and the
poor, lost prodigal, not with those ninety and nine just persons who need no
repentance, not with the elder brother who refused to come into the house of
grace. Am I a sinner, or am I a Pharisee? Let’s look at the last part of this
parable together and find the answer to that question (Luke
Ignorant of Grace
I. First, this elder brother shows us
that self-righteous, religious legalist,
religious hypocrites do not know what grace is (vv. 25-27).
Their understanding is so darkened that they
can see nothing of God in God, nothing of holiness in holiness, nothing of good
in good, nothing of evil in evil, and nothing of sin in sin. Rather, they see good in evil and evil in good, righteousness in sin, and
misery in holiness. And, with regard to Christ and grace and salvation, they
are totally without knowledge and understanding.
They are religious; but their religion only
makes them more blind and ignorant. They are outwardly moral; but their
morality only makes them more wicked. Let’s see if
that is not what our Lord shows us in this other son.
(Luke
15:25-27) "Now his elder son was in
the field: and as he came and drew nigh 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 unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy
father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and
sound."
A. This elder son was in the
field.
Our Lord tells us plainly
that “the field is the world” (Matt.
The church and
·
The Field is the place of providence.
·
The house is the place of benefit and blessing.
This elder brother, the
Scribe and Pharisee, the religious legalist, is in the world, walking after the
course of the world, after the lusts of his own flesh, and ruled by Satan, the
god of the world; and was taken up with the things of the world (Eph. 2:2-3).
Yes, such people are outwardly religious and moral, but inwardly they are
ravening wolves.
What do men do in the field? They work. This elder son
was in the field at work, working for life, working for righteousness, working
for his father’s approval, working for salvation.
That shows his ignorance, if he never opens his mouth. To work for
righteousness, life, and salvation is to display your ignorance of all things
spiritual, your ignorance of God and of grace. Such works-righteousness is not
only an a display of ignorance ― It is a display
of a proud, wicked, rebel heart. It is a denial of Christ as God’s salvation.
In a word, self-righteousness, works religion is the worst form of evil men and
women can practice. It is the most abominably wicked thing in this world.
Illustration:
While the younger son, the
poor prodigal, the publicans and sinners, are in the house of grace resting,
rejoicing and partying, the elder son, self-righteous, religious legalists are
out yonder in the field working for salvation!
“Nothing,
either great or small; Nothing, sinner, no;
Jesus
did it, did it all, Long, long ago!
When
He, from His lofty throne, Stooped to do and die,
Everything
was fully done; Hearken to His cry -
‘It
is finished!’ Yes indeed, Finished every jot.
Sinner,
this is all you need. Tell me, Is it not?
Weary, working, plodding one, Why toil you so?
Cease
your doing, all was done, Long, long ago!
Till
to Jesus’ work you cling By a simple faith,
Doing
is a deadly thing. Doing ends in death!
Cast
your deadly ‘doing’ down, Down at Jesus’ feet.
Stand
in Him, in Him alone, Gloriously complete!”
James Procter
B. Next, we read that this
good, hard working elder son came near the house, or approached the house.
I can almost see him. There he comes, sweaty, dirty,
boots caked with mud and manure, and his hands and face black with dirt. He’s a
miserable wretch. He’s been working a hard twelve-hour day; and he’s tired. But
he is approaching the house to collect his “well-earned reward,” full of
anticipation. As he comes near the house, he hears people inside partying. How
galling that must have been to him! He called one of the servants (gospel
preachers) out, and said, “What’s going on in there? What do these things
mean?” He didn’t have a clue. He only knew that everything inside was strange
to him. What was it that he heard? ― “Music and
dancing!”
·
Perhaps
he was like righteous over much of our day, and would not dare step into a
place where people were playing music and dancing.
·
He came
to hear himself praised and rewarded for his good work. Instead, he heard the “Music
and dancing” of people praising God for his good grace. As David leaped and
danced before the ark, they were dancing before God’s slain sacrifice, rejoice
in blood atonement.
John Gill says that what he heard was
“the preaching of the Gospel by (gospel preacher) the servants setting forth
the love of God, the righteousness of Christ…Like music, it is delightful and
charming; it is a sound of love in all the three persons, Father, Son, and
Spirit; of free grace, and rich mercy; of liberty, reconciliation, forgiveness,
righteousness, and eternal life”
· When he heard the sweet sound of free grace
and imputed righteousness in Christ, he “asked what these things meant.”
As I said, self-righteous, religious
legalists do not understand the things of God. They are baffled by…
Ø Eternal, Distinguishing Love and Grace
Ø Free, Sovereign Election
Ø Special, Effectual Atonement
Ø Omnipotent, Irresistible Grace
Ø Free, Unconditional Pardon
Ø Complete, Absolute, and Irrevocable, Imputed
Righteousness
The joyful gospel sound, the sound of the
jubilee trumpet is a strange sound to the ears of self-righteous folk. The only
rejoicing they know is in themselves and in their own works. Just listen to
them. You will hear it clearly ― “I.”
C.
If you
question whether this is the meaning of verses 25 and 26, look at verse 27.
― The Lord’s servant, the preacher who spoke to this elder son,
told him plainly the meaning of the “music and dancing” in the house.
(Luke
15:27) "And he said unto him, Thy
brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath
received him safe and sound."
·
The
prodigal has come home.
·
Thy
Father, the one you call Father, has killed the fatted calf. ― Christ has
been crucified, and Christ crucified is preached.
·
The
house is full of joy because the crucified Christ has received your fallen
brother, and the Father, because of Christ, has received him too.
·
He who
was lost and ruined is now both “safe and sound.” ― Complete and
Secure!
Do you understand and rejoice in the gospel?
The self-righteous legalists just can’t. Try as he may, he just can’t. He can
only understand and rejoice in irritating sound of “free will and good works.”
He is totally ignorant of grace.
Angry
II.
Verse 28
tells us something else about the legalist. ― He is angry.
― “And he was angry.”
He may pretend to be happy and loving; but he
is angry at God, angry at the gospel, angry at himself, and angry at those who
enjoy the blessed liberty of grace. I’ve got a lot of these elder brothers
scattered around the world.
· They are angry that the fatted calf was
killed (Gal.
· They are angry that the crucified Christ is
preached.
· They are angry that salvation is in Christ
alone.
· They are angry that salvation in Christ is
full, free, and complete. Some are angry because redemption is altogether in
him, without our aid. Others are angry that justification is in him alone and
without our works. Some are angry because our safety in him is absolute and
unconditional. And others are angry that our soundness (sanctification) is
altogether in Christ and altogether by grace.
· Nothing angers self-righteous legalists like
God’s free and sovereign grace in Christ. ― I’ve seen people get boiling
mad just at the reading or quoting of Ephesians 1 and Romans 9.
Illustration: Betty Burge After God Saved Her
Are you angry
with God and his grace, Christ and his salvation? I’m not asking, “Do you show
your anger?” I’m asking, “Are you angry?” ― Saved sinners rejoice in
saving grace.
Refuses Grace
III.
Look at
verse 28 again. The self-righteous legalist refuses to be saved by grace alone.
He will not go into the house of salvation if he has to enter in at the
Strait Gate of Substitution, by the Door Christ Jesus. ― “He
was angry and would not go in.”
Men and women
will accept any other method of salvation. Any other door of acceptance will
do. They will show tolerance for any other doctrine and any other religion. But
they hate free grace, refused to be saved by free grace, and do everything they
can to keep others from entering into the house of grace.
Yet, there
is hope, even for the
self-righteous. Until a sinner is in hell he is not beyond hope, not even the
most notoriously wicked self-righteous Pharisee. I
know that because the next line of our text says, “Therefore,” because
he was angry and would not come in, “his father came out, and entreated him!”
What mercy! What
goodness! Though you have long withstood his face and despised his grace, the
Lord God himself comes to you still by the preaching of the gospel and entreats
you to enter in by Christ and be saved (2 Cor. 5:20-6:2)
(2
Cor
(2
Cor 6:1-2) "We then, as workers
together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace
of God in vain. (2) (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted,
and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the
accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)"
The man who wrote those words was himself, at
one time, a proud, prating, God hating, Christ hating, angry self-righteous
legalist, a Pharisee; but he obtained mercy. He says, “I did it ignorantly.”
Too Good
IV.
If you
will read verse 29, you will see why this other son was so angry, and why he
refused to be saved by grace. ― He was too good to be saved
entirely by grace, entirely by Christ’s merit.
(Luke
15:29) "And he answering said to his
father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any
time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make
merry with my friends:"
A.
His
religion was galling, hated slavery.
“Lo, these many years (these many
years of denial and drudgery) do I serve (slave, or work as a slave
under the whip for) thee.” ― Now we see
the heart of the matter. Now we see why lost religious people are so confounded
mean. They are angry because, though they may zealously perform good works,
attend church, give their money, read their Bibles, and say their prayers, they
flat hate the religion that holds them in bondage as slaves.
B.
He
was fully confident that he deserved God’s approval and salvation, because he
was not like that prodigal, a sinner. ― “Neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment.”
The proud, egotistical legalist really thinks
nothing is too good for him, that he really deserves God’s favor. He would
never say come right out and say that, but he really thinks it. I know he does
because “from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh,” and if you
listen to him he will tell you, in almost every conversation, that he is never
treated as well as he deserves by others. If you think men don’t treat you as
well as you deserve, the fact is, you really think that God doesn’t treat you
as you deserve. You really think you are good and that you should enter into
and possess heaven because you’re good. To hear otherwise grates against your
pride and makes you angry
·
The legalist prides himself in his service. ― "these many
years do I serve thee." ― “Look at what I have done! Look at how
faithful I have been! Compared to me, my brother is washed up and washed out!”
Some see God as a Master in need of help. They think the Lord Jesus came to
hang out a help-wanted sign. That is not the case. He came and hung out
a help-available sign. He is interested in sons, not slaves.
·
The legalist exaggerates everything he does. ― “not once have I
transgressed.” Whereas a son continually speaks of the goodness of his
father because he's born into the family and has earned nothing, a slave has to
point to his years of service, because in his mind he receives a reward based
upon how good a slave he is.
· What does God have to sa about these perfect slaves?
(Isa
65:1-5) "I am sought of them
that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not:
I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was
not called by my name. (2) I have spread out my hands all the day unto a
rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their
own thoughts; (3) A people that provoketh me to anger continually to my
face; that sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick;
(4) Which remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat
swine's flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;
(5) Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than
thou. These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the
day."
· What do saved sinners have
to say about themselves?
(Isa
64:6) "But we are all as an unclean
thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all
do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."
·
The elder brother is a picture of a person who gets angry with God and
with others. ― He's angry with people because the sinner gets off so easy.
Whereas grace demands a celebration, legalism demands accountability.
The legalist will always feel that the prodigal is "not sincere" or
"too flippant." He's angry with God because he thinks "God is
not fair." The elder brother says, "You have never given me
a fatted calf!" In other words, I deserve more than my brother gets,
and you haven't given it to me. Anytime a legalist has things go opposite of
his desire, he blames God for the problems.
C.
He
refused to be saved by Christ; yet he complained that he had no God given
sacrifice. ― “Thou
never gavest me a kid.”
(Rom
9:31-33) "But
(Rom
10:1-4) "Brethren, my heart's
desire and prayer to God for
D.
There
was no joy, but only misery in his religious activity. ― “Thou never gavest me a kid,
that I might make merry with my friends.”
“His meaning seems to be, that he had never
received any favour in proportion to the services he had done; and so charges
his father with ingratitude.” (John Gill)
Slanderous
V.
Look at
verse 30, and I will show you something else about all self-righteous Pharisees
and hypocritical religious legalists. ― They
all love to hear and spread slanderous things about God’s saints.
(Luke
15:30) "But as soon as this thy son
was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him
the fatted calf."
It may have been and probably was true that
the prodigal had wasted his father’s substance in riotous living with harlots,
but there no record of those harlots in the story. Even if he had done so, the
mention of it is still slander.
A.
The
father, against whom the prodigal had sinned, had forgiven him, but this other
son refused to forgive him.
B.
The
father would not charge the prodigal’s sins against him, but this other son did.
C.
The
father received the prodigal as his son, but this other son refused to receive
him as his brother. ―
“This thy son.”
D.
Perhaps
more than anything else, he was enraged by the fact that free forgiveness was
fully proclaimed to the prodigal, but not to him. ― “Thou hast killed for him the
fatted calf.” “You have proclaimed free salvation and full reconciliation
to him in Christ.”― No mention was even made of his remarkable goodness!
E. The elder brother is a
picture of a person who abandons both God and his people. He is confident that the
prodigal will never be like him, good, upright, righteous, and faithful. The
legalist will eventually have to isolate himself from us sinners. He always
stays outside the camp, outside the house where sinners are welcome and find
joy, because he is just too good to mingle with such people.
F. The legalist, in his own opinion, can never be fully rewarded by God, neither in this world nor in the world to come. If God rewarded men by degrees, according to the merit of their works, legalists would rejoice; but when they hear that sinners receive all the fulness of grace and glory in Christ freely, they are enraged.
Without Excuse
VI.
Sixth, verse 31 tells us that the
self-righteous legalist is without excuse before God.
(Luke
15:31) "And he said unto him, Son,
thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine."
He was the father’s son by creation and by
profession. He wore the father’s name proudly, though he despised the father
and his house.
He had “the portion of worldly goods which
came to him by lot, as it is said before, that when the younger soon went away,
(The Father) divided unto them his living. Hence, all that he had of this
world’s portion, like another Esau, was his, the fatness of the earth
and his dwelling therein, for these things he chiefly desired (Gen. 27:39).”
― Robert Hawker
He enjoyed every opportunity and benefit of
providence. The gospel had been freely proclaimed to him. The fatted calf, the
crucified Christ, full atonement and bountiful grace was clearly set before
him. All the bounty of the Father’s house was his for the taking. But he refused
everything. He would not give up his religion, he
would not give up his righteousness for Christ. Like some of you, he lived all
his live near the Father’s house, but would not enter in because he preferred
his field of self-righteous slavery.
The only hope for proud,
self-righteous legalists, the only hope for a Pharisee is that God almighty
step in his path, throw him off his high horse into the dust, expose his sin
and blind him with the glorious revelation of Christ, graciously forcing him to
bow to the Christ he hates as his Lord.
A Reason For Joy
VII.
In verse 32 our Lord tells us that the salvation of sinners is a
reason for joy and celebration.
(Luke
15:32) "It was meet that we should
make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and
was lost, and is found."
Old Brother Burk’s Testimony
“Preacher, I love you better than anybody I ever saw. Thank you for
telling me about my Savior. It was a starlit night. The birds were still
singing. You know, they never sang so sweet. Every last one of them had their
voices changed since the night before. Every bird in the trees said, ‘Glad
you’re saved, Bro. Burk, glad you’re saved.’ I looked up at the stars, and
every one of them was winking at me saying, ‘Hallelujah! Bro. Burk, glad you’re
saved.’ I began to run, I was so glad. I wanted to tell my wife, Mary, about
it. I bounced up the steps and on the porch, and when I said, ‘Mary,’ she said,
‘You don’t need to say anything about it. The Lord saved you.’ ― My
brethren, I have been walking with my Lord for 52 years.,
and I can’t tell you how glad I am that he saved me.”