CHRIST THE ROCK CONGREGATION
SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 4TH 2022
Sermon by Pastor Marc Simeon
PRODIGAL CHILDREN OF GOD: EAT YOUR PRIDE AND HEAD BACK TO THE LORD’S HOUSE
ENFANTS PROGIGUES DE L’ETERNEL : AVALEZ VOTRE ORGUEIL ET RETOURNEZ A LA MAISON DU SEIGNEUR
LECTURE LUKE 15 : 11-19
Lu 15:11 ¶ Il dit encore: Un homme avait deux fils.
12 Le plus jeune dit à son père: Mon père, donne-moi la part de bien qui doit me revenir. Et le père leur partagea son bien.
13 Peu de jours après, le plus jeune fils, ayant tout ramassé, partit pour un pays éloigné, où il dissipa son bien en vivant dans la débauche.
14 Lorsqu’il eut tout dépensé, une grande famine survint dans ce pays, et il commença à se trouver dans le besoin.
15 Il alla se mettre au service d’un des habitants du pays, qui l’envoya dans ses champs garder les pourceaux.
16 Il aurait bien voulu se rassasier des carouges que mangeaient les pourceaux, mais personne ne lui en donnait.
17 Étant rentré en lui-même, il se dit: Combien de mercenaires chez mon père ont du pain en abondance, et moi, ici, je meurs de faim.
18 Je me lèverai, j’irai vers mon père, et je lui dirai: Mon père, j’ai péché contre le ciel et contre toi,
19 je ne suis plus digne d’être appelé ton fils; traite-moi comme l’un de tes mercenaires.
Lu 15:11 ¶ Then He said: “A certain man had two sons.
12 “And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood.
13 “And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.
14 “But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want.
15 “Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.
16 “And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine 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 bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
18 ‘I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you,
19 “and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”‘
INTRODUCTION
- We all know that Jesus was the greatest teacher that ever lived.
- One of Jesus’ specialties was his sharp teaching through parables.
- A parable enables the listener to use his intelligence in the highest degree.
- While decoding a parable one can find not just one key message but many secondary lessons at the same time.
- In the parable of the prodigal son, many key lessons can be drawn.
- The never-ending love of God can be highlighted.
- The forgiving nature of God can be highlighted.
- The devastating pathway of a backslider can be highlighted.
- The power of true repentance can be highlighted.
- The proper reactions and course of actions of a repentant sinner are highlighted.
- The disengagement of the mature Christians toward the struggling ones is highlighted.
- That’s what makes this parable one of the most exceptional teachings of Jesus.
THE PATHWAY OF A PRODIGAL
- Life is a theatre where we make all sorts of decisions.
- Some of the decisions we make in this life can make us or break us.
- The good decisions save us from calamities.
- The poor decisions can cause us to experience a nightmarish life.
- Good or bad, we all have to own up to the decisions we make in our lives.
- Mankind is created with the free will to choose good or evil.
- Even the Creator God respects the free will of man in certain aspects.
- Re 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
- God has an open relationship with all His children. No one is forced to stay in covenant with God.
- A prodigal is one who is tired with the restricted life he’s experiencing at his parent’s house.
- A prodigal is one who is already lured by the pleasures of this world.
- A prodigal is one who places no value in the legacy and comfort of his/her home.
- A prodigal is one who is short sighted by present impulses without taking account of the future.
- A prodigal is one who refuses to be reasoned.
- A prodigal is a selfish person who only thinks of him or herself alone.
- A prodigal is one who says my way or the highway.
- A prodigal is an immature person who thinks that he or she can handle life alone.
- A prodigal is one who trashes family ties in exchange for pleasure.
- A prodigal is one who is ungrateful for the provisions of his or her home.
THE DOWN SPIRAL OF THE PRODIGALS
13 Peu de jours après, le plus jeune fils, ayant tout ramassé, partit pour un pays éloigné, où il dissipa son bien en vivant dans la débauche.
14 Lorsqu’il eut tout dépensé, une grande famine survint dans ce pays, et il commença à se trouver dans le besoin.
15 Il alla se mettre au service d’un des habitants du pays, qui l’envoya dans ses champs garder les pourceaux.
16 Il aurait bien voulu se rassasier des carouges que mangeaient les pourceaux, mais personne ne lui en donnait.
- The prodigal son left his house to a far away country.
- Out of sight, out of mind, unrestricted freedom.
- Venturing far away from home is dangerous.
- Being out of sight from family members, friends, neighbors, role models, teachers, church family and pastors, is a sure ticket for disaster.
- The prodigal son left home with prestige and honor.
- The prodigal son left home with a good family name and wondered far away where that name has no value.
- Like in all deceptions, it was all good at first.
- The friends were many at first.
- The thrills and excitements were plenty at first.
- And then, one day the gage of his pocket reached empty.
- Surprisingly, the friends disappear when the money was gone.
- No money, no food.
- No money, no shelter.
- No more money, no more honey from the prostitutes.
THE OPTIONS OF THE PRODIGALS WHEN THEY REACH BOTTOM
- Stealing is not a valuable option.
- Begging is to no avail.
- Work is a valuable option, but with no skill it’s just as good as nothing.
- If the small wage from his lowly work provided him lodging, there was nothing left for food.
- The rich boy found himself doing the dirtiest job in the land to feed swine.
- The rich boy lured after the food of the swine but wasn’t allowed to take a bite.
- The prodigal then reached bottom.
- There’s no lower floor than this. He can just die there or come forth with a plan to climb back up.
- There is a point where you can no longer lie to yourself.
- There is a point where one has to take account for his mistake.
- Some audacious prodigals blame their parents for being too strict as the reason why they are eating in the pig’s pan.
- Some foolish prodigals become mad at others and never at themselves.
- “It’s the system; it’s racism; it’s America; it’s France; it’s Canada; it’s Haiti.”
- Some turn to crime to elevate themselves out of the bottom.
- Some turn to hate to vent their frustrations.
- Until the prodigals point the fingers at themselves as the subjects of their predicaments, there cannot be any change.
- Assuming responsibility is the first stage of repentance.
- It’s me, it’s me, it’s me oh Lord!
- There are times when one has to borrow the word of this Negro spiritual song.
- It’s Me, It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer;
It’s Me, It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer. - Not My Brother, Not My Sister,
But It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer;
Not My Brother, Not My Sister,
But It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer. - Not The Preacher, Not The Deacon,
But It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer;
Not The Preacher, Not The Deacon,
But It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer. - Not My Father, Not My Mother,
But It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer;
Not My Father, Not My Mother,
But It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer. - It’s Me, It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer;
It’s Me, It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer. - Not The Stranger, Not My Neighbor,
But It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer;
Not The Stranger, Not My Neighbor,
But It’s Me, O Lord,
Standing In The Need Of Prayer - When one reaches bottom, he or she has to befriend God.
- Your mom and dad are far and out of reach by your own choice.
- God is the only recourse when one is in a desolate land.
- You better have a little talk with Jesus and tell him about all your trouble.
- Cry all that you may, but you will still be in your mess when you are done crying.
- Curse all you may, but that won’t change your situation.
- Sometime you have to find God by yourself.
- Sometime you have to learn how to formulate your own prayer.
THERE IS STILL HOPE FOR ALL PRODICALS
- You can choose to die there, or you can breathe some hope in your soul.
- Hope is like oxygen to a soul in anguish.
- Wait a minute; my name is so and so.
- Wait a minute, my father owns the world.
- Wait a minute, even the servants in my father’s house are treated better than this.
- Wait a minute; I don’t have to die here.
- Wait a minute; my father still loves me regardless of my mistakes.
PRODIGALS: BE AWARE OF THE DEMON OF PRIDE
- The demon of pride will whisper in your ears saying.
- “You’re going to make a fool out of yourself.”
- “You’re going to be the laughingstock in town.”
- “How do you plan on facing your brother?
- “You will be reduced to a mere servant in your father’s house.”
- “Die here with your dignity.”
- You need to rebuke the devil and say “if I die here, I will die like a vagabond.
- If I die here, no one will cry for me.
- If I die here I make no point.
- If I must die, let it me at my father’s house.
- If I must die, I must first make peace with the people I hurt so deeply.
GET YOUR SPEECH READY BEFORE HEADING BACK HOME.
- Too much false repentance is going on these days.
- Too much premature welcoming is going on these days.
- Too many nice letters of repentance are coming from the prison cells in order to steer the hearts of people on the outside to bail them out.
- Don’t even come near your father’s house without a sincere speech of repentance.
- Don’t even venture in the direction of your father’s house without a changed heart.
Lu 15:18 ‘I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you,
18 Je me lèverai, j’irai vers mon père, et je lui dirai: Mon père, j’ai péché contre le ciel et contre toi,
19 “and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”‘
19 je ne suis plus digne d’être appelé ton fils; traite-moi comme l’un de tes mercenaires.
- Parents have been found to be too weak these days.
- Some parents are the ones re-writing the rules of the house to accommodate their prodigal children’s return.
- “You can smoke whatever you want in the house now.”
- “You can cohabit with your boyfriend or your girl friend, or your significant other in the house now.”
- Parents are now promising their children that from now on they will stay out of their ways.
- Parents, God will judge you if you do that.
- By so doing, you will usher your beloved children to hell.
- You can love your children without condoning their sinful life style.
- You can love your children while keeping them away from your house.
- The prodigal son in the parable was a repentant sinner.
- He had a contrite heart.
- He was sincere
- He did not come with any right what so ever.
- He came suing his father for mercy and forgiveness.
- He came expecting no welcome and no favor from his father.
- He came to take a lowest seat in the house.
- He came for the job of a servant.
CONCLUSION
This message was specifically aimed a backslider in particular.
God woke me up in the middle of the night on August 27th 2022 at 12:42 AM and deposited this message in my spirit.
I already had a series of messages that I wanted to begin in the month of September.
Because of the sense of urgency that I felt in my soul, that’s why this message is delivered today.
You could be a prodigal son on the point of departure from God’s house,
You could be at any point toward the dead-end bottom.
You could well be at the very bottom as we speak.
You will need to eat your pride and head back home immediately.
You know that you are better than this.
You know that you are a promised child.
You know that you are in covenant with God.
This parable was given by the Lord with you in mind.
Don’t mind me the big brother.
Walk back home,
If you cannot walk straight with the same dignity you left the house with, then limp back home to God.
Better to die at your heavenly Father’s house than anywhere else.
I promise you that God will surprise you by His welcome.
I promise you that God will not even let read your speech.
Get ready for a tight squeeze embrace by God.
Get ready to see the joy that will be sparked by your return to fellowship with God.
Get ready to see what true forgiveness feels like.
May God add Hiss blessings upon His Word.
Amen!
Lyrics
Just as I am, without one plea
But that Thy blood was shed for me
And that Thou bid’st me come to Thee
Oh, Lamb of God, I come, I come
2
Just as I am, though tossed about
With many a conflict, many a doubt
Fighting and fears within without
Oh, Lamb of God, I come, I come
3
Just as I am, Thou wilt receive
Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve
Because Thy promise I believe
Oh, Lamb of God, I come, I come
Pasteur Marc Simeon 