Passage: Luke 15

The Big Idea

“Christianity isn’t a religion, it’s a relationship.” Luke 15 shows why. Grace is the opposite of religion. Grace is all about what Jesus has done and what He gives; religion is all about self. Religion’s keyword is “try”; grace’s keyword is “finished.” When the religious leaders grumbled that Jesus welcomed sinners and ate with them, He told three stories, each ending with a party: “Rejoice with me!” The younger son came home expecting to work his way back, and the father ran to him and threw a feast. The older son had worked in the fields for years, and was angry and outside the party. God has made you a son. Why live like a servant?

Grace or Religion?

Grace is all about what Jesus did and what He gives us. It’s the good news that Jesus has done all that needs to be done to give me all I need, when I need it.

It’s always a free gift. Pop quiz: how much do you pay for the Christmas presents you receive?
It’s always sufficient for every human need.
We’re saved by grace alone and transformed by grace alone.

Jesus came full of grace and truth, and of His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace (John 1:14, 16).

How does grace work? We need it, and God gives it through His Son, who is full of it, by the Spirit of His Son in us.

God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6).
We have access by faith into this grace in which we stand (Romans 5:2).

Humility and faith are our side. God does everything else. He saves us, forgives us, transforms us and invites us into the intimate relationship of an adopted child. Our sins aren’t counted against us. God is near to you. You have it all, and not from yourself. That’s grace.

Religion is about self. It demands that we be righteous and holy and live a life worthy of redemption: “Be perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). Its keyword is “try.”

Grace declares that Jesus has already become our righteousness, holiness and redemption. “It is finished!” (John 19:30). Its keyword is “finished.”

Grace is a joyful life we’ve been invited to, like a heavenly party. You’re invited:

Who: You
Where: Your Father’s house
When: Today
Why: You are His beloved

We may have lost the joy of our salvation, but heaven hasn’t. And no one gave us permission to leave the party of grace to make our lives about what we do instead of what God has done. But many of us have left, and gone out to work hard in the fields of religion. Let’s see where that leads.

Who Was Listening (Luke 15:1-3)

All the tax collectors and sinners drew near to hear Him. And the Pharisees and scribes complained, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.”

Tax collectors and sinners: the worst of the worst, in everyone’s eyes. Never deserving a reward.
Pharisees and scribes: the religious people, the watchdogs, the sin-sniffers.
Why complain about Jesus’ grace? Because He receives sinners (accepts and forgives them) and eats with them (He values them and wants relationship). That’s grace!

So Jesus told a story to show them the Father’s true heart.

The Lost Sheep (vv. 4-7)

A shepherd leaves the ninety-nine to find the one lost sheep, carries it home on his shoulders rejoicing, and calls his friends: “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!” There’s more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine who think they need no repentance.

The Lost Coin (vv. 8-10)

A woman lights a lamp, sweeps the house and searches until she finds her lost coin, then calls her friends: “Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin I lost!” There’s joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.

Each time, the refrain is the same:

The lost is found. Rejoice with me!
I’ve done what needed to be done. Rejoice with me!
My beloved is home. Rejoice with me!

The Younger Son (vv. 11-24)

A man had two sons. The younger said, “Father, give me my share of the estate.” In effect: “Dad, I wish you were dead so I could have my inheritance.”

So he divided his livelihood between them.

Look at the father’s heart. This is what Jesus wants us to see. No anger. Just grace: undeserved kindness in response to a death wish.

Not many days later, the younger son gathered everything, traveled to a far country and wasted it on wild living.

This probably reminds you of you. Most of us ran from God.
Some are still running, with no interest in the Father’s house. Maybe you’re thinking right now, “Get me out of here.” But I see you, and God loves you.

When he had spent everything, a severe famine came, and he began to be in need. He took a job feeding pigs and longed to eat their food, and no one gave him anything. But when he came to himself, he said, “My father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, and I’m starving!”

We have to come to the end of ourselves, don’t we? We have to be broken of self-will and self-confidence before we can be free. Humility is step one.
At his lowest point, he remembers his father’s love and life, the grace he once mocked as weakness.

“I will get up and go to my father and say, ‘Father, I’ve sinned against heaven and before you. I’m no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.'”

His plan is to work his way out of trouble. He doesn’t know any other way yet.

So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion, ran to him, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

Jesus isn’t just making up a story. He’s seen this. The Father has made that sprint a million times.
He’s poured this compassion and love on every one of us.
Wait, is that me? What’s keeping you from coming home? It’s not His anger, His disappointment or His justice. He’s waiting with open arms.
If your heart is stirred and your spirit longs to believe, just turn to Him, even right now. His arms will be around you, whispering, “Welcome home, My beloved child.”

The son began, “Father, I have sinned…” But the father said to his servants, “Bring the best robe and put it on him, a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let’s eat and celebrate! For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”

The son starts his rehearsed, religious speech, and the father won’t even let him finish.
The father forgives everything and restores more than he had before.
“Rejoice with me for the grace I’ve given to the one I love!”
Why didn’t the father want a son who would work religiously for his love? He already had one of those out in the field.

The Older Son (vv. 25-32)

The older son was in the field. As he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. When he learned why, he was angry and wouldn’t go in. So his father came out and pleaded with him. He said, “All these years I’ve been serving you, and I never disobeyed your command. Yet you never gave me even a young goat to celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!” The father said, “Son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. It was right to celebrate, because your brother was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”

This older brother is religious.

He follows the rules.
He goes to church.
He tithes.
He listens to the right music.

But he isn’t happy. He’s angry.

Angry at God: “Why don’t You reward my effort, my devotion, my good works?”
Angry at his brother: “How can God lavish grace on him? It’s an embarrassment to the family!”
He can’t imagine a world where his efforts don’t earn anything, because his whole existence is built on what he does and doesn’t do.

Wait, is that me? The older brother describes a lot of us. How did we spend so many years laboring in the fields of religion, just outside the party of grace? I’ve heard of this abundant life. I’ve even been jealous of people who’ve clearly found it. I’ve tried my best to deserve it, to earn it.

The religious life isn’t the grace life. It’s a life where I’m clothed in my own righteousness: a long list of good deeds and an even longer list of good intentions.

Grace strips me of all that, then clothes me in a robe of Christ’s righteousness and a ring of His commitment. He provides everything for me, undeserved and unearned. He is the hero.

Sons, Not Servants

God has made you a son. Why are you living as a servant?

He has never withheld anything from you. All He has is yours in Christ.
You’re already forgiven. You’re a new creation. Old things have passed away; all things have become new (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Sinners: rejoice and dance, because you’re sinners no more. You’re sons and daughters!

Older brothers: you’re invited to the party too. “Rejoice with Me!” Renounce religion, self and works, and throw yourself completely on the grace of Jesus. Come in and rest.

“My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:30).
“Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden” (Matthew 11:28).

The fields of religion are hard work. So turn around. Hear the Savior say, “It is finished,” and rest in His finished work. Take off the robes of the self-life and receive the free life of Christ. In the Father’s house we live as free men and women, not shackled by the need to prove ourselves or make up for our sin with good deeds.

One last objection older brothers often raise: “Who’s going to do all the farming and good works if everyone’s celebrating with the Father all day?”

God’s Spirit knows how to produce fruit far better than you do. Abide in Him, as Jesus taught in John 15, and watch what fruit grace alone produces in your life.

Grace Takeaway

Are you a younger son, done with the self-life and running to the Father for grace? Or an older brother, working in the fields of religion and waiting for God to reward your effort? Either way, the Father is coming out to meet you. The party is already going. Come in.

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Luke 15: Wait, Is This About Me?