IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:00.73\00:00:05.07
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:05.37\00:00:10.84
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:11.17\00:00:16.98
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:17.31\00:00:22.48
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:22.92\00:00:27.76
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:28.12\00:00:33.43
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:33.73\00:00:37.33
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:37.73\00:00:40.87
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:41.20\00:00:46.04
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:46.37\00:00:50.65
IIW-2016-31 --- THE PRODIGAL SON
00:00:51.05\00:00:57.15
>>Announcer: It has
stood the test of time.
00:01:31.32\00:01:34.39
God's book, The Bible
00:01:35.16\00:01:38.09
Still relevant in
today's complex world
00:01:38.59\00:01:42.23
It Is Written
00:01:44.57\00:01:45.53
Sharing messages of
hope around the world!
00:01:46.17\00:01:50.14
I'll not forget the day, January
8, 1989. I was a teenager and a
fan of the Chicago Bears. That
00:01:58.95\00:02:07.96
day, my dad took me to the
National Football Conference
Championship game between the
00:02:08.06\00:02:13.50
Chicago Bears and the San
Francisco 49ers. It was a very
cold winter day and with the
00:02:13.60\00:02:22.20
wind chill, the temperature was
dropping. But my excitement was
high because the winner of this
00:02:22.30\00:02:30.11
game would go to the Super Bowl.
Having lived for most of my
life, up until that point, in
00:02:30.21\00:02:38.42
the Chicago area, this was a
very exciting moment. The Bears
could go all the way! After a
00:02:38.52\00:02:46.70
few hours of enduring negative
temperatures, my excitement
dwindled to disappointment as
00:02:46.80\00:02:53.74
the Bears lost that game.in fact
they were blown out. I didn't
realize that that was just the
00:02:53.84\00:03:03.28
beginning of my disappointing
day. After the game, my dad took
me to dinner and told me
00:03:03.38\00:03:08.75
something that would drastically
change our family. After 15
years of marriage.he and my mom
00:03:08.85\00:03:14.89
were getting a divorce. I didn't
understand.I knew things were
tough.but I didn't think it was
00:03:14.99\00:03:22.00
that bad. As my parents went
through the divorce process.I
became angry about many things.
00:03:22.10\00:03:29.20
I began to get angry especially
with my mom. At the age of 18,
having just graduated from high
00:03:29.30\00:03:38.28
school, I packed up my stuff and
left home. My mom had gone to
work that morning, as she had
00:03:38.38\00:03:45.05
almost every day to support me
and my three younger brothers
since the process of the divorce
00:03:45.15\00:03:51.56
had begun. And I packed up my
stuff and left without speaking
to my mom or letting her know
00:03:51.66\00:03:58.87
where I was going. I made no
contact with her. She tried
contacting me. Phone calls,
00:03:58.97\00:04:07.54
cards, gifts.never missing a
holiday.finding whatever excuse
she could to make to send stuff
00:04:07.64\00:04:16.38
to me, but I didn't respond to
her at all. For two years this
went on. I was an angry, lost
00:04:16.48\00:04:28.10
and confused young man. One
weekend I attended a conference
that, looking back on it, taught
00:04:28.20\00:04:36.87
many principles that were not
biblical. However, something
good thing came out of it.
00:04:36.97\00:04:45.41
During a time of reflection.I
came to realize how selfish I
had been. And so I made a
00:04:45.51\00:04:50.65
decision.to call my mom.But what
do you say? How do you say it?
What would she say? As soon as
00:04:50.75\00:05:04.83
my mom answered the phone and
heard my voice, I could hear her
crying. I said the only thing
00:05:04.93\00:05:10.97
that I could think of saying.I'm
sorry. My mom accepted me back
with no conditions. No
00:05:11.07\00:05:19.11
questions, no pressure.she just
accepted me back. I had been
lost and confused, but now I was
00:05:19.21\00:05:31.53
found.
00:05:31.63\00:05:33.93
I share this story to help
illustrate the point that God
pursues us in a similar way. No
00:05:37.33\00:05:42.70
matter where you are in life, He
wants to be reunited with you
For the last 2 weeks we have
00:05:42.80\00:05:48.28
studied the parables in Luke 15
and have seen that Jesus is
relentless in His pursuit after
00:05:48.38\00:05:55.78
us. Today, we look at the last
of those parables. Luke 15
beginning with verse 11 reads,
00:05:55.88\00:06:13.40
What an incredibly powerful and
moving story. And as we
understand it's context, we will
00:09:44.08\00:09:58.86
appreciate it even more. It was
not unusual for a father at that
time, to divide the inheritance
00:09:58.96\00:10:09.57
up to his sons before his death,
but the fact that his son asked
for it sent a very clear
00:10:09.67\00:10:17.28
message. Not only was his
request poor taste, it was a
denial of the authority and even
00:10:17.38\00:10:26.09
existence of the father. While
the father could have refused
the sons request.he did not. He
00:10:26.19\00:10:35.70
seemed content to allow for the
son's free will choice. Now
according to the law of Moses,
00:10:35.80\00:10:42.77
the oldest son receiveda double
portion of the inheritance, and
any younger sons received a
00:10:42.87\00:10:49.98
single portion. So in this case,
as the man had two sons, the
oldest would receive 2/3 while
00:10:50.08\00:10:57.65
the youngest would receive 1/3.
00:10:57.75\00:11:00.69
The regular order of things was
that when any division of the
inheritance was made while the
00:11:02.02\00:11:08.70
father was still alive, that
property would remain until the
father's death. The son's demand
00:11:08.80\00:11:18.47
of both division and possession
of the property was an
undoubtedly offensive to the
00:11:18.57\00:11:28.25
father.yet the
father did not object.
00:11:28.35\00:11:34.22
Sometime after he received his
portion, the younger son cut off
his ties to home and went to a
00:11:36.42\00:11:46.70
far off place. The Bible says
that in this far off place, he
wasted his possessions and lived
00:11:46.80\00:11:52.97
like a prodigal That word waste
can be literally translated to
scatter, or to squander. He was
00:11:53.07\00:12:02.38
living large, he had all he
needed and lots of friends, so
he thought. To live as a
00:12:02.48\00:12:12.66
prodigal meant that he lived
without any moral restraint in
any matter. He was far from
00:12:12.76\00:12:19.30
home, spending like there was no
end and forgetting the values he
was brought up with. He wanted
00:12:19.40\00:12:26.54
to squeeze everything he could
out of life and take it all in.
Doesn't that sound like what
00:12:26.64\00:12:35.68
many are aiming to do today?
Does any of that sound like
you.where are you today in your
00:12:35.78\00:12:44.79
life? For the prodigal.the large
life came to a screeching halt.
Everything was gone. The money
00:12:44.89\00:12:57.71
was gone.all the inheritance had
been squandered away. Where were
his friends now? Where were the
00:12:57.81\00:13:04.21
beneficiaries of his frivolous
spending? Certainly someone
would take him in and help him,
00:13:04.31\00:13:12.92
right? No. they were all gone.
As his financial resources dried
up, his friendships dried up
00:13:13.02\00:13:25.47
too. On top of it all the land
experienced a feminine, so not
only was he without any means,
00:13:25.57\00:13:34.41
there was no way to earn more.
And no more money, no more
friends. There wasno one to help
00:13:34.51\00:13:44.79
him. So the Bible says that he
joined himself to a citizen of
that country. For all practical
00:13:44.89\00:13:51.96
purposes, he sold himself into
slavery. He was assigned to feed
pigs. For this young Jewish man,
00:13:52.06\00:14:02.47
nothing could have been more
humiliating than to have to feed
unclean pigs. He fell so low, he
00:14:02.57\00:14:12.51
was so hungry, that having
enough money to for food, he
actually craved the pigs' food.
00:14:12.61\00:14:22.69
Most likely, the pigs'food would
have been the husks of the carob
or locust bean tree. The beans
00:14:22.79\00:14:31.17
themselves had been removed for
human consumption and the left
over pods given to the animals
00:14:31.27\00:14:37.91
for feed.
00:14:38.01\00:14:41.01
At some point, this young man
came to the realization that he
could return to his father and
00:14:43.31\00:14:52.45
work as a hired hand and be
treated better. He figured out a
plan on what to say to earn the
00:14:52.55\00:15:01.50
father's favor. Somehow he
believed that if he said just
the right words, his father
00:15:01.60\00:15:09.07
might accept him back. So this
prodigal started his journey
home. I'm sure he thought about
00:15:09.17\00:15:18.81
how excited he had been to leave
and home. He may have thought
about how far he went, the money
00:15:18.91\00:15:26.79
he spent, and the people he met.
And now, an embarrassment to
himself, and probably, in his
00:15:26.89\00:15:33.50
mind, he is an embarrassment to
the family, he makes his way
home. And while this prodigal
00:15:33.60\00:15:44.34
son may not have known why he
had this desire to go home,
Philippians 2:13 offers this
00:15:44.44\00:15:54.62
insightful hint,
00:15:54.72\00:15:56.69
God has planted a seed deep in
every heart to desire to do
right. The prodigal acted on
00:16:06.70\00:16:14.84
this sense and began his trip
home. It may not be easy to do
what is right, just like it may
00:16:14.94\00:16:23.24
not have been easy for this
prodigal son to decide to go
home. But when we take that
00:16:23.35\00:16:30.32
first step in faith, God is
there to walk the rest of the
way with us. We don't have to do
00:16:30.42\00:16:38.36
it alone. As the son nears home,
the Bible paints a touching
picture. The son was
00:16:38.46\00:16:47.60
probably still rehearsing his
speech, maybe not even paying
attention to what would have
00:16:47.70\00:16:54.41
been the familiar sights of
home. But there was someone who
was paying attention, someone
00:16:54.51\00:17:01.22
who didn't need to rehearse his
speech. Even while the son was
still in the distance, his
00:17:01.32\00:17:07.79
father saw him. He must have
been watching and praying for
his son to return home. The
00:17:07.89\00:17:15.16
father did not wait to hear what
his son had to say for himself.
He did not require the boy to
00:17:15.26\00:17:20.50
come on bowed knee. He did not
make some random requirement for
his acceptance of him. He was
00:17:20.60\00:17:27.04
full of love and compassion
toward his son, he ran to his
son, he embraced his son. He
00:17:27.14\00:17:34.48
didn't take the time to ask he
smelled so bad or what had he
been doing all this time. and
00:17:34.58\00:17:44.19
was so joyous that he threw a
celebration at his return. The
son confessed his sin and tried
00:17:44.29\00:17:53.97
to give his rehearsed speech
about not being worthy to be a
son and being willing to just be
00:17:54.07\00:17:59.27
a servant. But the father was so
thrilled by the arrival of his
son, that rehearsed speech never
00:17:59.37\00:18:09.45
made it out of the son's mouth.
His father placed a robe around
him.to cover the tattered and
00:18:09.55\00:18:17.59
worn clothes that he most
assuredly had on. And upon that
hand that not that long ago had
00:18:17.69\00:18:27.07
been involved in eating and
drinking and living in ways that
were contrary to the ways of his
00:18:27.17\00:18:32.81
father, the family signet ring
was placed. The father clothed
the son to look like his son and
00:18:32.91\00:18:42.82
now the signet ring on his hand
indicated that he fully accepted
and restored as son. The father
00:18:42.92\00:18:51.69
was so happy and overjoyed
that they had a welcome home
00:18:51.79\00:18:58.13
celebration. Friend, have you
been wandering.in this story is
a plain and simple reminder that
00:19:01.40\00:19:07.61
God wants to bring you back to
him. I don't know what's
happened in your life. I don't
00:19:07.71\00:19:13.95
know where circumstances have
led you, but what I do know is
that just as this father
00:19:14.05\00:19:19.05
unreservedly accepted the son
back.he will take you back
You've not gone too far from
00:19:19.15\00:19:26.16
Him. He's been looking for you.
Will you return? There may be
some who try to stand in your
00:19:26.26\00:19:32.77
way and may not be happy about
your return. The older brother
in this parable had undoubtedly
00:19:32.87\00:19:41.18
been faithful to his duty. He
worked the fields and felt like
he was basically a servant to
00:19:41.28\00:19:49.88
his father. He criticized his
father's judgement when it came
to his younger brother and now a
00:19:49.98\00:19:55.46
party? Why? Hearing the music
and happy activities only made
him more angry, and he refuses
00:19:55.56\00:20:04.23
to go in and welcome home his
lost brother. The father pled
with his older son to join them.
00:20:04.33\00:20:10.67
Instead of sharing in his
father's joy, he recounts his
hard years of labour and
00:20:10.77\00:20:18.55
complains that he has never been
given any reward or recognition
for staying the course. The
00:20:18.65\00:20:27.19
story closes with
the father's words,
00:20:27.29\00:20:30.43
Do you recognize that you are
lost and a far off from God
today? This story teaches that
00:20:45.01\00:20:53.28
you can return. While some may
question the sincerity of your
decision and others may question
00:20:53.38\00:21:01.16
motives.God does not. Not matter
what decisions you've made.no
matter how far you've gone.God
00:21:01.26\00:21:13.40
wants you back. To the person
who has some of the tendencies
of the older brother in this
00:21:13.50\00:21:20.94
story.Jesus is calling you to a
life of compassion for others.
To love like Jesus loves, to act
00:21:21.04\00:21:32.59
like Jesus acts and to accept as
Jesus accepts. Friend, today is
the day to come to, your senses,
00:21:32.69\00:21:41.43
as the prodigal son did and
respond to God's call. Isaiah
00:21:41.53\00:21:53.88
55:6-7 says, Today, I want to
close with a beautiful quotation
from a book about the parables
00:22:16.06\00:22:21.74
of Jesus called,
"Christ Object Lessons"
00:22:21.84\00:22:24.44
Do you want to experience that
today? My dear friend, God is
waiting and watching for you.
00:23:42.22\00:23:50.59
Dear heavenly Father, each of us
is a prodigal in our right.
We've wandered away, and we want
00:23:52.83\00:23:59.93
to come home. Please give us the
courage, the strength, to take
that first step, that then You
00:24:00.10\00:24:07.61
would walk with us all the way
home. We pray in Jesus' name,
00:24:07.71\00:24:13.52
amen. Hi, everyone! Today, let's
talk about easy weight loss.
That doesn't sound right, does
00:24:35.14\00:24:40.88
it? For most people, losing
weight is not an easy thing.
But, I've got two things that
00:24:40.98\00:24:45.98
are going to make it if not
easy, at least, hopefully, fun.
What are these two things? A
00:24:46.08\00:24:53.96
fork, and your walking shoes! It
doesn't get any easier than
that! The trick with the fork is
00:24:54.06\00:24:59.83
to make sure you put it into
something plant-based. If you're
really serious about losing
00:24:59.93\00:25:04.93
weight, the best and easiest way
to do it is to leave out
animal-based foods from your
00:25:05.03\00:25:11.27
every-day eating. And, you know
what? It's also the healthiest
way! Let me challenge you to a
00:25:11.37\00:25:17.48
challenge. The Veggie Challenge.
For one week. Instead of using
animal-based foods, stock up on
00:25:17.58\00:25:24.55
life-enhancing,
weight-loss-inducing foods such
as chick peas, lentils, kidney
00:25:24.65\00:25:31.26
beans, sweet potato, beets,
carrots, spinach, whole wheat
pasta, brown rice, oats, whole
00:25:31.36\00:25:37.23
grain breads, apples, oranges,
bananas. All of these are packed
with the nutrition your body
00:25:37.33\00:25:42.24
needs, including the
carbohydrates, proteins, fats,
vitamins, and minerals. And,
00:25:42.34\00:25:48.84
they've all got something else,
too. Can you guess what it is?
Fibre! The fibre in these foods
00:25:48.94\00:25:55.45
is going to fill you up, so that
you actually eat less. And,
remember, plant foods typically
00:25:55.55\00:26:02.02
have half the calories that
animal foods tend to have
because there's so much less fat
00:26:02.12\00:26:07.23
and no cholesterol. That's
what's so great about plant
foods. Full of all the good
00:26:07.36\00:26:12.90
stuff your body needs and none
of the bad. With plant foods you
can eat more and weigh less!
00:26:13.00\00:26:19.81
And, here's something else to
think about when it comes to
your fork. Studies show that an
00:26:19.91\00:26:24.95
effective way to lose weight is
to have your biggest meal in the
morning. It makes sense when you
00:26:25.05\00:26:30.82
think about it, because if you
eat most of your calories early
in the day, you then can spend
00:26:30.92\00:26:37.19
all day burning them off. But,
if you eat most of your calories
in the evening, usually we don't
00:26:37.29\00:26:43.33
engage in a lot of activity
after that evening meal. So,
it's easy to pack on the pounds
00:26:43.43\00:26:49.67
The old saying, "Breakfast like
a king, lunch like a prince, and
supper like a pauper" really is
00:26:49.77\00:26:56.85
a good idea. So, that takes care
of the fork part. For the part
with the walking shoes, I
00:26:56.95\00:27:02.85
challenge you to walk one hour
every day. You can do it in two
half hour segments, or three
00:27:02.95\00:27:08.46
20-minute segments, whatever you
like. If you're not used to
walking so much, be sure to work
00:27:08.56\00:27:13.63
your way up to it, so that
perhaps in about two months
you're walking a full hour.
00:27:13.73\00:27:19.20
Seriously, losing weight doesn't
have to be hard! You don't have
to count your calories, weigh
00:27:19.30\00:27:24.84
your food, or purchase expensive
pills or powders. Simply use
your fork to dig in to some
00:27:24.94\00:27:31.08
wholesome plant foods. And, lace
up those walking shoes and get
moving. If you do these two
00:27:31.18\00:27:37.45
things, you are, essentially,
changing your lifestyle. And,
that's the key! Once, you've
00:27:37.55\00:27:43.39
started, don't go back to your
old ways; keep it up for a
lifetime of optimal health. And,
00:27:43.49\00:27:50.37
if you accept my challenge for a
Veggie Challenge, write down
this website: www.veg.ca. Once
00:27:50.47\00:27:58.81
you're there, click on the
Veggie Challenge tab and sign up
to receive wonderfully helpful
00:27:58.91\00:28:04.15
emails every day that will make
it so easy for you to get
healthy and lose weight, all at
00:28:04.25\00:28:09.98
the same time! Enjoy the Veggie
Challenge! I'll see you next
00:28:10.09\00:28:12.92
time. My dear friend, like the
father of the parable of the
prodigal son that stood
00:28:20.76\00:28:28.70
anxiously waiting for that son
to return, God wants you to
return. He wants you to take
00:28:28.80\00:28:36.18
that first step. To help you in
taking those first steps, I want
to offer you the book Three
00:28:36.28\00:28:40.62
Steps to Heaven. Here's the
information you need to receive
00:28:40.72\00:28:44.29
today's offer. My dear
friend, I pray that you
00:29:40.78\00:29:42.84
have found hope that the Father
wants you to return home. Please
join us again next week. Until
00:29:42.94\00:29:48.85
then, remember, it is written:
"Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that
00:29:48.95\00:29:55.89
proceeds from the mouth of God."
00:29:55.99\00:29:59.36