The story of the three prodigals 00:00:01.36\00:00:02.70 tells us that God's grace is greater than all our sins. 00:00:02.73\00:00:06.23 You may feel that God doesn't care, 00:00:06.27\00:00:08.30 and you are a long way from home. 00:00:08.34\00:00:10.47 But the Father is looking down the road 00:00:10.51\00:00:12.37 waiting for you. 00:00:12.41\00:00:13.98 Today's topic, 00:00:14.01\00:00:15.34 "Grace abounding, and the three prodigals" 00:00:15.38\00:00:17.21 will warm your heart and put a smile on your face. 00:00:17.25\00:00:20.32 I am so glad to see you today 00:00:28.89\00:00:30.43 because this is a terrific topic. 00:00:30.46\00:00:33.40 I am going to talk today about grace abounding 00:00:33.43\00:00:38.87 and the three prodigals. 00:00:38.90\00:00:41.34 Now, we all know about prodigal son, 00:00:41.37\00:00:44.14 but today we're going to talk about the three prodigals 00:00:44.17\00:00:48.14 when we talk about grace abounding. 00:00:48.18\00:00:51.11 Would you come in your Bible to Romans 5:20, please? 00:00:51.15\00:00:55.65 In the Word of God, the Romans Chapter 5, 00:00:55.68\00:00:59.22 and I want the audience... 00:00:59.25\00:01:01.62 We have a great TV audience here 00:01:01.66\00:01:04.63 in the TV studio. 00:01:04.66\00:01:06.29 I want you to look up all the text please. 00:01:06.33\00:01:08.60 Romans 5:20, Bible says, 00:01:08.63\00:01:15.57 "Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. 00:01:15.60\00:01:20.78 But where sin abounded," what does it say? 00:01:20.81\00:01:23.45 "Grace abounded much more." 00:01:23.48\00:01:27.62 In the King James Version it said, 00:01:27.65\00:01:29.45 "Where sin did abound grace did much more abound." 00:01:29.48\00:01:35.12 And that to me seemed to be even a bit better. 00:01:35.16\00:01:40.40 Grace is contrary to our natural instincts. 00:01:40.43\00:01:46.03 And the Bible tells us 00:01:46.07\00:01:47.40 this is why the gospel is good news. 00:01:47.44\00:01:50.17 The Bible tells us, wait for this, 00:01:50.21\00:01:54.71 "Grace is greater than all of our sins." 00:01:54.74\00:01:59.35 That's sort of amazing, isn't it? 00:01:59.38\00:02:01.45 Grace is greater than all of our sins. 00:02:01.48\00:02:04.45 I want to start with a definition of terms. 00:02:04.49\00:02:07.66 Grace, the dictionary says, 00:02:07.69\00:02:11.16 "The freely given unmerited favor 00:02:11.19\00:02:15.16 and love of God." 00:02:15.20\00:02:18.20 You can't earn it and you don't deserve it. 00:02:18.23\00:02:21.94 And since I've come to use an iPad 00:02:21.97\00:02:25.54 because I am quite illiterate in these areas. 00:02:25.57\00:02:28.98 I can now go online 00:02:29.01\00:02:30.35 and look at things like Wikipedia. 00:02:30.38\00:02:34.45 And Wikipedia says about grace, 00:02:34.48\00:02:37.35 "The love and mercy given to us by God 00:02:37.39\00:02:40.16 because God desires us to have it. 00:02:40.19\00:02:43.86 Oh, goodness, doesn't seem right 00:02:43.89\00:02:46.13 because God desires us to have it, 00:02:46.16\00:02:48.16 not necessarily 00:02:48.20\00:02:49.83 because of anything we've done to earn it. 00:02:49.86\00:02:54.30 So the Bible teaches that grace is something 00:02:54.34\00:02:57.81 that God gives us because we don't deserve it. 00:02:57.84\00:03:04.11 It is simply as the old saying says, 00:03:04.15\00:03:06.68 "It's totally unmerited." 00:03:06.72\00:03:10.39 Now the word "prodigal", here is the next term. 00:03:10.42\00:03:12.55 Now we've got grace worked out, 00:03:12.59\00:03:15.32 now the prodigal. 00:03:15.36\00:03:17.43 Prodigal means wastefully or recklessly extravagant. 00:03:17.46\00:03:22.86 Prodigious giving is a prodigal, wasteful, 00:03:22.90\00:03:26.80 reckless, 00:03:26.84\00:03:28.17 giving or yielding profusely lavish 00:03:28.20\00:03:33.21 have the very opposite of scrooge. 00:03:33.24\00:03:36.18 You've all seen Christmas carol by the British author Dickens, 00:03:36.21\00:03:40.75 very opposite of scrooge. 00:03:40.78\00:03:43.59 Lavishly abundant, wastefully extravagant, 00:03:43.62\00:03:50.53 it's quite extraordinary 00:03:50.56\00:03:52.03 because, it goes against everything 00:03:52.06\00:03:54.66 we've been taught. 00:03:54.70\00:03:58.03 I want to give you an illustration of grace, 00:03:58.07\00:04:00.04 it's found in Matthew 26:6-8, 00:04:00.07\00:04:04.34 Matthew 26:6-8 00:04:04.37\00:04:09.98 it says, 00:04:10.01\00:04:11.75 "And when Jesus was in Bethany 00:04:11.78\00:04:13.82 at the house of Simon the leper, 00:04:13.85\00:04:17.49 a woman came to him having an alabaster flask, 00:04:17.52\00:04:21.79 very costly fragrant oil, 00:04:21.82\00:04:25.29 she poured it on His head as He sat at the table. 00:04:25.33\00:04:29.76 But when his disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, 00:04:29.80\00:04:35.77 'Why this waste? Why this waste?'" 00:04:35.80\00:04:38.14 Now this woman we believe was Mary, 00:04:41.21\00:04:44.05 and she brought to Jesus about a pound of spikenard. 00:04:44.08\00:04:48.95 It's worth about a year's wages, 00:04:52.29\00:04:53.76 the Bible says. 00:04:53.79\00:04:56.06 So if you don't live in California, 00:04:56.09\00:04:57.89 but if you live somewhere else, 00:04:57.93\00:05:00.30 it's about 50,000, but in California it's 100,000. 00:05:00.33\00:05:07.24 It's true, isn't it? Try buying a house here. 00:05:07.27\00:05:12.07 And so she's got this stuff, it's called spikenard. 00:05:12.11\00:05:15.38 You know where it comes from? 00:05:15.41\00:05:17.38 It comes from India, 00:05:17.41\00:05:21.68 from the foothills of the Himalayas. 00:05:21.72\00:05:25.95 And she's got less than a pound of this stuff, 00:05:25.99\00:05:28.42 and it is so extravagant. 00:05:28.46\00:05:30.83 What a gift a woman gives to the Lord some perfume, 00:05:30.86\00:05:36.33 and it's worth more than a year's wages. 00:05:36.36\00:05:39.13 And she has to break the alabaster vase. 00:05:39.17\00:05:44.57 You know what the alabaster vase 00:05:44.61\00:05:46.17 really represents? 00:05:46.21\00:05:49.14 She never saw it completely, she saw a bit of it. 00:05:49.18\00:05:54.58 The alabaster vase represents the broken body of Christ. 00:05:54.62\00:06:00.29 When the body of Christ is broken, 00:06:00.32\00:06:02.42 the perfume of the gospel goes around the world. 00:06:02.46\00:06:05.89 Yeah, it's too much of it. 00:06:05.93\00:06:08.30 The disciples said, "Why this waste?" 00:06:08.33\00:06:11.37 Only a few people are going to accept this gift. 00:06:11.40\00:06:14.10 And so they say, 00:06:14.14\00:06:15.90 "It's too much, why this waste?" 00:06:15.94\00:06:18.41 This woman was a prodigious giver, 00:06:18.44\00:06:24.95 as she was a prodigal. 00:06:24.98\00:06:27.48 But she's not one of the prodigals 00:06:27.52\00:06:30.12 in today's talk. 00:06:30.15\00:06:33.32 Jesus loved her very much, 00:06:33.36\00:06:35.82 not any loved her but He liked her 00:06:35.86\00:06:39.49 because she was so generous. 00:06:39.53\00:06:41.96 Judas and the disciples didn't get it, 00:06:42.00\00:06:44.73 because they did not understand the grace of God. 00:06:44.77\00:06:50.71 Now they were very, very frugal in their giving. 00:06:50.74\00:06:53.78 And grace, you know, 00:06:53.81\00:06:55.14 must be supernaturally revealed. 00:06:55.18\00:06:59.65 So, I know this is hard to get into one's mind, 00:06:59.68\00:07:03.18 but let me say this to the television audience 00:07:03.22\00:07:06.62 around the world, 00:07:06.65\00:07:08.59 especially across North America, 00:07:08.62\00:07:11.46 the television studio here in Moorpark, 00:07:11.49\00:07:14.30 Southern California. 00:07:14.33\00:07:17.50 All this business about grace, 00:07:17.53\00:07:22.44 it's a little difficult, it really is. 00:07:22.47\00:07:27.51 Because you can hear about the gospel 00:07:27.54\00:07:29.44 a million times and be a leader of the church, 00:07:29.48\00:07:32.51 you can sit in church every week. 00:07:32.55\00:07:34.25 You can be a pastor. 00:07:34.28\00:07:35.85 You can be the president of the church 00:07:35.88\00:07:40.29 and not get it. 00:07:40.32\00:07:41.66 Apostle Paul never got it, 00:07:44.59\00:07:46.59 until he had a supernatural revelation 00:07:46.63\00:07:51.43 from the throne of God. 00:07:51.47\00:07:54.00 You hear what I'm saying? 00:07:54.04\00:07:55.37 So this grace is so special that God has to reveal it to us 00:07:55.40\00:08:02.34 by a miraculous act of intervention. 00:08:02.38\00:08:07.48 It's an intervention. 00:08:07.52\00:08:09.68 And all of a sudden, 00:08:09.72\00:08:12.99 for the first time in our lives, 00:08:13.02\00:08:15.79 we religious people wake up and we discover grace. 00:08:15.82\00:08:21.70 Now we come to the heart of the message. 00:08:21.73\00:08:24.10 Grace abounding, that was the first part, 00:08:24.13\00:08:27.10 just the introduction. 00:08:27.14\00:08:28.47 Now we come to grace abounding and the three prodigals. 00:08:28.50\00:08:32.77 I want you to come over here to Luke Chapter 15:1-2. 00:08:32.81\00:08:37.91 Luke Chapter 15, which is a magnificent 00:08:37.95\00:08:41.82 and wonderful chapter in the Bible. 00:08:41.85\00:08:43.82 Luke Chapter 15:1-2, "Then all the tax collectors," 00:08:43.85\00:08:47.82 these all are bad people, 00:08:47.86\00:08:50.43 "And the sinners drew near to Him to hear him. 00:08:50.46\00:08:53.70 And the Pharisees..." 00:08:53.73\00:08:55.06 They are the religious people. 00:08:55.10\00:08:56.67 "The Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, 00:08:56.70\00:08:59.50 'This Man receives sinners and eats with them.'" 00:08:59.53\00:09:06.11 I want to talk about this a little bit, 00:09:06.14\00:09:08.21 because here you've got two classes of sinners. 00:09:08.24\00:09:11.95 One group knew they were sinners, 00:09:11.98\00:09:13.42 the other group thought they were great people. 00:09:13.45\00:09:16.02 Two classes of sinners. 00:09:16.05\00:09:19.25 The tax collectors, they are open sinners, 00:09:19.29\00:09:22.49 everybody knows who they are. 00:09:22.52\00:09:25.23 Their sin is apparent to the world, 00:09:25.26\00:09:27.86 they are conspicuous sinners. 00:09:27.90\00:09:32.60 People like Mary Magdalene, 00:09:32.63\00:09:36.71 people on Hollywood Boulevard, 00:09:36.74\00:09:41.01 working in the streets, the sinners. 00:09:41.04\00:09:46.78 Then they were the Pharisees. The Pharisees who came to Him. 00:09:46.82\00:09:49.92 Now, who are the Pharisees? 00:09:49.95\00:09:52.15 Get ready for a revelation. 00:09:52.19\00:09:54.56 The Pharisees were the most pious people 00:09:54.59\00:09:57.06 in the world. 00:09:57.09\00:09:58.43 If we were looking for people to turn into ministers 00:09:58.46\00:10:01.83 and invite into our churches, we would look to the Pharisees. 00:10:01.86\00:10:07.34 Because the Pharisees were not just ordinary people, 00:10:07.37\00:10:11.07 the Pharisees were the elite of the elite. 00:10:11.11\00:10:15.31 They were the very, very best. 00:10:15.34\00:10:19.55 The Pharisees, pious looking good people, 00:10:19.58\00:10:25.69 outwardly righteous, 00:10:25.72\00:10:28.19 inwardly rotten, 00:10:28.22\00:10:33.33 but didn't know it. 00:10:33.36\00:10:36.03 So you've got two classes here that Jesus is introduced to, 00:10:36.06\00:10:40.54 Pharisees and the sinners. 00:10:40.57\00:10:42.74 The churched and the non-churched, 00:10:42.77\00:10:46.44 the washed and the great unwashed, 00:10:46.47\00:10:51.11 respectable sinners and disrespectful sinners. 00:10:51.15\00:10:57.59 Now most of us are aware of disrespectable sinners. 00:10:57.62\00:11:04.09 But these Pharisees, 00:11:04.13\00:11:06.59 the best of the best were respectable sinners. 00:11:06.63\00:11:10.90 Someone would have called them the conservatives 00:11:10.93\00:11:14.90 and the liberals, 00:11:14.94\00:11:18.51 the frozen chosen. 00:11:18.54\00:11:22.11 Many are cold and few are frozen. 00:11:22.14\00:11:26.85 Frozen chosen, and the Hollywood elites, 00:11:26.88\00:11:33.46 the reckless rebels. 00:11:33.49\00:11:34.82 Now who were the Pharisees? They were the best of the best. 00:11:37.86\00:11:42.63 They were God's defenders, the keepers of the holy law. 00:11:42.66\00:11:47.24 They were strict Sabbath keepers. 00:11:47.27\00:11:51.84 And they were looking forward to the coming of Christ. 00:11:51.87\00:11:55.34 They believe in the coming of Messiah. 00:11:55.38\00:11:58.61 We're not talking about modern day people. 00:11:58.65\00:12:00.05 We're talking about people back here 00:12:00.08\00:12:01.78 that were Sabbath keepers. 00:12:01.82\00:12:03.49 You say no, no, no, no. 00:12:03.52\00:12:04.85 I'm sorry. 00:12:04.89\00:12:06.72 They had over a thousand laws about keeping the Sabbath. 00:12:06.76\00:12:11.19 You could do this, then you could do this, 00:12:11.23\00:12:13.16 but you couldn't do this or else you were damned, 00:12:13.19\00:12:15.66 over a thousand laws. 00:12:15.70\00:12:18.73 They paid tithes even on herbs. 00:12:18.77\00:12:23.47 I'm a believer in tithe pain. 00:12:23.51\00:12:28.11 I've been a tithe payer for 50 or 60 years. 00:12:28.14\00:12:33.52 I believe in tithing, it is taught in the Bible. 00:12:33.55\00:12:36.22 These people were punctilious in their religious duties, 00:12:36.25\00:12:41.42 and they paid tithe even on herbs. 00:12:41.46\00:12:45.73 That took a bit of doing. 00:12:45.76\00:12:48.36 They were eaters of clean foods. 00:12:48.40\00:12:52.57 They looked down their noses on people who were not eating 00:12:52.60\00:12:56.47 the right stuff. 00:12:56.50\00:12:58.51 They had lots of washing ceremonies. 00:12:58.54\00:13:01.48 They were the orthodox of the orthodox. 00:13:01.51\00:13:06.21 They were perfectionists. 00:13:06.25\00:13:08.68 They believed in human perfection 00:13:08.72\00:13:11.22 that a person by keeping the law of God 00:13:11.25\00:13:14.59 with the help of God 00:13:14.62\00:13:15.96 would eventually become perfect. 00:13:15.99\00:13:19.46 And they tied in their perfection. 00:13:19.49\00:13:21.56 Do know you this? Let me tell it to you. 00:13:21.60\00:13:23.90 They tied in their perfectionism 00:13:23.93\00:13:26.74 with the coming of the Messiah. 00:13:26.77\00:13:30.31 You didn't know this? 00:13:30.34\00:13:32.24 They believed that if all Israel would keep 00:13:32.27\00:13:35.04 the law of God for one day 00:13:35.08\00:13:38.58 and they were a perfect community, 00:13:38.61\00:13:41.68 Messiah would come. 00:13:41.72\00:13:43.05 Nobody today would hold 00:13:47.02\00:13:50.43 such an outrageous idea. 00:13:50.46\00:13:54.30 They were Bible readers. 00:13:54.33\00:13:56.90 Jesus said, "You search the scriptures." 00:13:56.93\00:14:00.80 They've been called moral icebergs. 00:14:00.84\00:14:04.67 They said long prayers. 00:14:04.71\00:14:08.04 They said long prayers in the synagogue. 00:14:08.08\00:14:10.68 or in the church 00:14:10.71\00:14:12.15 You know why? 00:14:12.18\00:14:14.18 So people would say, "Boy, what a pious person." 00:14:14.22\00:14:20.82 So everything they did, they did for a show. 00:14:20.86\00:14:24.16 Jesus said, "You do it to be seen by men." 00:14:24.19\00:14:27.46 And some would say, "They're not dead." 00:14:30.50\00:14:35.14 They were defenders of their nation 00:14:35.17\00:14:37.57 and their religion. 00:14:37.61\00:14:40.71 They were ultra nationalists. 00:14:40.74\00:14:45.98 They were upholders of tradition. 00:14:46.01\00:14:50.39 So they're the best of the best, 00:14:50.42\00:14:52.29 the leaders of the church. 00:14:52.32\00:14:56.19 The elite of the spiritual elite. 00:14:56.22\00:14:59.43 Six thousand in number, 00:14:59.46\00:15:02.53 and they were harsh, cold, critical, confident 00:15:02.56\00:15:06.17 and aggressive. 00:15:06.20\00:15:08.74 And always out to see what you are doing 00:15:08.77\00:15:13.27 and to point the finger at you and to accuse you, 00:15:13.31\00:15:18.25 but no sense at all of their own inner corruption 00:15:18.28\00:15:24.45 and their own moral filth. 00:15:24.49\00:15:28.86 But they went around from place to place 00:15:28.89\00:15:31.49 with their notebook, 00:15:31.53\00:15:32.86 taking notes on the performance 00:15:32.89\00:15:34.76 of their brothers and their sisters. 00:15:34.80\00:15:37.30 And then, they would hurl that into their faces 00:15:37.33\00:15:42.50 for the glory of God. 00:15:42.54\00:15:44.74 And they believed that above all other people, 00:15:44.77\00:15:49.04 they were the holy remnant. 00:15:49.08\00:15:50.85 The word remnant is a good word. 00:15:50.88\00:15:53.31 It means that which is remaining. 00:15:53.35\00:15:57.42 It is used in Holy Scripture 00:15:57.45\00:15:59.82 to describe God's true people, 00:15:59.85\00:16:04.49 especially in the last days. 00:16:04.53\00:16:08.13 And the Pharisees believed with the Essenes, of course, 00:16:08.16\00:16:13.07 that they were living in the last days. 00:16:13.10\00:16:14.70 They were an apocalyptic society. 00:16:14.74\00:16:19.37 And they believed that the Messiah would come 00:16:19.41\00:16:22.44 when all Israel kept the law of God perfectly, 00:16:22.48\00:16:25.65 don't condemn them. 00:16:25.68\00:16:28.28 They were the best of the best. 00:16:28.32\00:16:29.65 And they ended up nailing God to the cross. 00:16:33.15\00:16:35.79 Would you come over here to John 11:45 and onwards? 00:16:41.36\00:16:46.74 And remember, this must be revealed to us 00:16:46.77\00:16:50.24 by the Holy Spirit, or else we will be Pharisees. 00:16:50.27\00:16:55.48 John 11:45-48. 00:16:55.51\00:17:00.72 "Then many of the Jews who'd come to Mary 00:17:02.68\00:17:05.12 had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him." 00:17:05.15\00:17:08.16 Jesus had just raised a man from the grave. 00:17:08.19\00:17:12.99 Can you believe this? 00:17:13.03\00:17:15.33 Jesus had raised a man from the grave. 00:17:15.36\00:17:20.40 Did this send them to their knees? 00:17:20.44\00:17:22.20 No. 00:17:22.24\00:17:26.04 It sent them into a holy huddle 00:17:26.07\00:17:30.68 to crucify Him, get rid of Him. 00:17:30.71\00:17:34.08 Can you believe this? 00:17:34.12\00:17:36.12 This is pharisaism at its worst. 00:17:36.15\00:17:40.29 Verse 46, "But some of them went away to the Pharisees." 00:17:40.32\00:17:43.69 These were the people who were the informers. 00:17:43.73\00:17:48.00 They were always informers. 00:17:48.03\00:17:51.03 "And told them the things Jesus did..." 00:17:51.07\00:17:52.70 Hey He's raised the man from the dead. 00:17:52.73\00:17:55.00 "Then the chief priests and the Pharisees 00:17:55.04\00:17:56.71 gathered a council and said, 'What shall we do? 00:17:56.74\00:17:59.51 For this Man works many signs. 00:17:59.54\00:18:01.68 If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, 00:18:01.71\00:18:06.85 and the Romans will come and take away both our place 00:18:06.88\00:18:10.25 and our nation.'" 00:18:10.29\00:18:11.62 Goodness me. 00:18:11.65\00:18:13.72 Here Jesus has raised a man from the dead and they say, 00:18:13.76\00:18:17.53 "If we let this Man go on, 00:18:17.56\00:18:23.47 the Romans are going to come 00:18:23.50\00:18:24.97 and they're going to destroy the remnant." 00:18:25.00\00:18:28.97 Their motives were wonderful, 00:18:32.51\00:18:38.58 not corrupted, their motives were magnificent. 00:18:38.61\00:18:41.92 But they had it all mixed up. 00:18:45.95\00:18:47.29 They were the devil's henchmen. 00:18:50.69\00:18:54.40 The Pharisees thought they were contaminated 00:18:54.43\00:18:56.36 by mixing with sinners. 00:18:56.40\00:18:59.73 Now, they were great fornicators. 00:18:59.77\00:19:01.47 They didn't like mixing with Mary, 00:19:05.31\00:19:07.98 unless they were trying to sleep with her. 00:19:08.01\00:19:09.58 And notice... 00:19:12.81\00:19:14.15 And these were the people 00:19:14.18\00:19:15.52 who became Christ's greatest enemies. 00:19:15.55\00:19:17.89 Can you understand this, the people 00:19:17.92\00:19:19.82 who were the upholders of the law, 00:19:19.85\00:19:21.89 became the greatest enemies of God? 00:19:21.92\00:19:26.70 You see, they didn't have this revelation. 00:19:26.73\00:19:30.07 One of the most dangerous things 00:19:30.10\00:19:31.43 that can happen to you 00:19:31.47\00:19:32.80 is to sit in church under a powerful preacher 00:19:32.83\00:19:35.94 week after week, 00:19:35.97\00:19:37.31 either you will come to know God and be saved, 00:19:37.34\00:19:40.34 or else you'll commit the unpardonable sin. 00:19:40.38\00:19:43.68 And that's what these people were doing. 00:19:43.71\00:19:46.21 Who were the people who loved Him? 00:19:46.25\00:19:48.95 The worldly crowd came to hear Jesus 00:19:48.98\00:19:50.69 because He was refreshingly different. 00:19:50.72\00:19:52.95 He was warm and welcoming, not cold and austere. 00:19:52.99\00:19:57.86 Think of His inner circle who made up His church. 00:19:57.89\00:20:01.36 No clergymen, no theologians, 00:20:01.40\00:20:06.60 but Mary Magdalene, an ex-prostitute, 00:20:06.63\00:20:09.80 a tax collector that nobody liked, 00:20:09.84\00:20:12.27 then or now, fishermen, 00:20:12.31\00:20:15.01 one politician who was called a zealot, 00:20:15.04\00:20:17.45 a motley crew, not your typical crowd, 00:20:17.48\00:20:21.85 who make up a religious hierarchy. 00:20:21.88\00:20:26.96 But these were the people who loved Him, 00:20:26.99\00:20:31.09 and they made up His church. 00:20:31.13\00:20:33.56 Jesus was not religious 00:20:33.60\00:20:36.20 as we think of the word religious. 00:20:36.23\00:20:40.40 He was not contaminated by sinners. 00:20:44.37\00:20:46.98 He mixed with sinners to save them. 00:20:47.01\00:20:49.91 He didn't like what they did, but He liked who they were, 00:20:49.94\00:20:55.45 because they were souls made in the image of God. 00:20:55.48\00:20:59.12 Never put down anybody. 00:20:59.15\00:21:00.66 The worldly crowd, the un-churched 00:21:04.09\00:21:05.99 came to hear Jesus, because they felt the warmth. 00:21:06.03\00:21:11.10 The San Francisco folks. 00:21:11.13\00:21:14.90 Oh, they're terrible liberals, we say. 00:21:14.94\00:21:17.07 They were the ones who came. 00:21:17.11\00:21:18.94 Jesus never said one word of condemnation. 00:21:18.97\00:21:20.91 Hey, why didn't He? He was out to save them. 00:21:20.94\00:21:25.38 People from Las Vegas and Pasadena, 00:21:25.41\00:21:31.22 they loved Him because He wasn't churchy, 00:21:31.25\00:21:34.32 and He wasn't cold, and He wasn't austere, 00:21:34.36\00:21:40.30 and He wasn't religious. 00:21:40.33\00:21:44.07 Luke 15:2. Luke 15:2. 00:21:44.10\00:21:48.40 "And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, 00:21:48.44\00:21:53.11 'This man receives sinners and eats with them.'" 00:21:53.14\00:21:58.45 On every other occasion 00:21:58.48\00:22:00.28 when the Pharisees attacked Him, 00:22:00.32\00:22:02.62 Jesus proves they were wrong. 00:22:02.65\00:22:04.52 Except on this occasion when Jesus said, 00:22:07.52\00:22:11.49 "You're absolutely correct. 00:22:11.53\00:22:14.73 I plead guilty." 00:22:14.76\00:22:16.97 This man does receive sinners. 00:22:17.00\00:22:22.10 And that's grace. 00:22:22.14\00:22:23.47 And you and I better be glad about that 00:22:23.51\00:22:25.01 because we're sinners. 00:22:25.04\00:22:26.94 And now He gives three stories. 00:22:26.98\00:22:29.81 The first one is the lost sheep. 00:22:29.84\00:22:32.61 Luke 15:3-7. Luke 15:3-7. 00:22:32.65\00:22:38.29 "So he spoke this parable unto them, saying: 00:22:38.32\00:22:40.86 'What man of you, having a hundred sheep, 00:22:40.89\00:22:43.06 if he leaves one of them, 00:22:43.09\00:22:44.43 does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, 00:22:44.46\00:22:47.53 and go after the one which is lost 00:22:47.56\00:22:50.57 until he finds it? 00:22:50.60\00:22:51.93 When he has found it, 00:22:51.97\00:22:53.30 he lays it on his shoulders rejoicing. 00:22:53.34\00:22:55.10 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends 00:22:55.14\00:22:57.74 and neighbors, saying to them, 00:22:57.77\00:22:59.27 'Rejoice with me, 00:22:59.31\00:23:01.08 for I have found my sheep which was lost!' 00:23:01.11\00:23:03.45 I say to you that likewise 00:23:03.48\00:23:05.21 there will be more joy in heaven 00:23:05.25\00:23:07.78 over one sinner who repents 00:23:07.82\00:23:11.52 than over ninety-nine just persons 00:23:11.55\00:23:14.02 who need no repentance.'" 00:23:14.06\00:23:16.46 Now, what is Jesus talking about here in the context 00:23:16.49\00:23:22.90 of this man receiving sinners. 00:23:22.93\00:23:25.70 Here is a lost sheep. 00:23:25.73\00:23:29.27 And is lost because of its own fault. 00:23:29.30\00:23:34.81 Can't blame anybody else, it wanders away, it's to blame. 00:23:34.84\00:23:39.01 And so the shepherd who was Christ, 00:23:42.02\00:23:46.82 leaves the security of home, 00:23:46.86\00:23:51.33 and searches up down, 00:23:51.36\00:23:55.40 up down in down dale, 00:23:55.43\00:23:58.67 in the cold and in the blazing sun, 00:23:58.70\00:24:01.20 and in the end he finds the literal lost sheep. 00:24:01.24\00:24:04.77 And when he finds it, 00:24:04.81\00:24:08.74 he doesn't kick it, he kisses it. 00:24:08.78\00:24:12.81 That's how God feels about lost souls. 00:24:16.99\00:24:22.72 And then he picks up the little lost sheep, 00:24:22.76\00:24:26.96 and he holds it close to his heart, 00:24:27.00\00:24:29.56 he carries it home. 00:24:29.60\00:24:31.23 And Jesus says this, 00:24:31.27\00:24:33.67 "As he's carrying it home, a party breaks out in heaven." 00:24:33.70\00:24:40.61 Does anybody hear this? 00:24:40.64\00:24:42.51 The Pharisees didn't like parties, 00:24:42.54\00:24:44.21 because they didn't understand the gospel. 00:24:44.25\00:24:45.81 But party, a party starts in heaven, 00:24:45.85\00:24:48.58 and the father is singing. 00:24:48.62\00:24:49.98 Jesus said, "There's more joy there 00:24:52.95\00:24:57.49 than these other people, 00:24:57.53\00:24:58.86 the 99, who don't need to repent." 00:24:58.89\00:25:02.90 What on earth is He talking about? 00:25:02.93\00:25:05.77 He's talking about the Pharisees, 00:25:05.80\00:25:08.47 they had a need to repent, but they didn't think they did. 00:25:08.50\00:25:12.97 The 99 dispersed, they are the Pharisees, 00:25:16.31\00:25:19.61 the frozen chosen. 00:25:19.65\00:25:22.72 But our Lord goes after the lost sheep. 00:25:22.75\00:25:28.69 When I was in Russia, 00:25:28.72\00:25:30.33 I would talk to the people about this. 00:25:30.36\00:25:31.99 I said, "Who are these people? 00:25:32.03\00:25:35.56 These vast crowds of atheists cried out to me, 00:25:35.60\00:25:38.93 "We are, we are." 00:25:38.97\00:25:42.80 I want you to know today this that God really loves you. 00:25:42.84\00:25:49.61 And if you're a lost sheep today, 00:25:49.64\00:25:53.28 He's looking for you. 00:25:53.31\00:25:56.79 And in a moment I'll be back with the talk, 00:25:56.82\00:26:00.79 the three prodigals. 00:26:00.82\00:26:03.39 Stay with us, we'll be back soon. 00:26:03.43\00:26:05.39 In this series, 00:26:18.74\00:26:20.08 John Carter will provide the answers 00:26:20.11\00:26:21.58 to life's most interesting questions. 00:26:21.61\00:26:23.65 Seven great signs of the apocalypse. 00:26:23.68\00:26:27.45 If the dead are unconscious, 00:26:27.48\00:26:29.62 who are the beings that pretend to be the dead? 00:26:29.65\00:26:34.46 Is there such a person as the devil? 00:26:34.49\00:26:37.46 What is the essence of antichrist? 00:26:40.80\00:26:42.66 What is the root cause of this deadly malaise? 00:26:48.07\00:26:53.48 America was founded by people who were opposed 00:26:53.51\00:26:57.68 to the union of church and state. 00:26:57.71\00:27:01.25 But if there's a God who loves us, 00:27:01.28\00:27:03.28 then the future is bright was promised. 00:27:03.32\00:27:07.32 For a gift of $100 US or $140 Australian, 00:27:07.36\00:27:11.23 this 13-DVD series, Prophecy Speaks will be yours. 00:27:11.26\00:27:15.63 Call the number or visit our website. 00:27:15.66\00:27:17.73 Time, it takes only a minute to have eternal life. 00:27:20.90\00:27:24.87 How can you get saved in a minute? 00:27:24.91\00:27:26.61 It's simple. 00:27:26.64\00:27:27.98 First, believe that Jesus was the Son of God. 00:27:28.01\00:27:30.65 Second, accept His free gift of eternal life 00:27:30.68\00:27:33.65 and then you're saved. 00:27:33.68\00:27:35.58 It's not hard. It doesn't take any time. 00:27:35.62\00:27:38.35 You can be saved in a minute right now. 00:27:38.39\00:27:41.42 Pray with me, "Lord God, I realize that I am a sinner. 00:27:41.46\00:27:45.63 My sin has separated me from You. 00:27:45.66\00:27:47.96 I accept that Your Son Jesus Christ died for me. 00:27:48.00\00:27:50.93 I ask Jesus into my heart." 00:27:50.97\00:27:53.10 If you prayed this prayer, you are saved. 00:27:53.13\00:27:55.97 The next thing to do is, tell someone. 00:27:56.00\00:27:58.61 Fellowship with other followers of Jesus, 00:27:58.64\00:28:01.34 get baptized, read your Bible, and pray. 00:28:01.38\00:28:04.91 Choices, we make them every day, 00:28:04.95\00:28:07.52 all day. 00:28:07.55\00:28:08.88 The most important choice you'll make in your life 00:28:08.92\00:28:11.45 is whether to choose eternal life 00:28:11.49\00:28:13.46 or let it pass you by. 00:28:13.49\00:28:15.29 If you would like more information 00:28:15.32\00:28:16.66 about your new life, 00:28:16.69\00:28:18.03 call the number and visit our website. 00:28:18.06\00:28:19.63 For a copy of today's program, 00:28:23.33\00:28:25.30 please contact us at P.O. Box 1900, 00:28:25.33\00:28:28.90 Thousand Oaks, California 91358. 00:28:28.94\00:28:33.04 Or in Australia, contact us at P.O. Box 861, 00:28:33.07\00:28:38.11 Terrigal, New South Wales 2260. 00:28:38.15\00:28:42.38 This program is made possible through the generous support 00:28:42.42\00:28:45.59 of viewers like you. 00:28:45.62\00:28:47.19 We thank you for your continued support. 00:28:47.22\00:28:50.23 May God richly bless you. 00:28:50.26\00:28:51.93