Recognize the grace of God related to sin. All the Father wanted from His wayward son was for the son to return to Him. The minute he got back, he was restored to all the blessings of the relationship with his father. But realize, even when he was in a far country, he was still the Father’s son!

One other principle to notice about the rest of this story:

When you commit sins (notice I didn’t say if), there will always be people who want you to have to pay for what you have done.

Luke 15:

25 "Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.

He was out in the field, working hard for God! Isn’t it funny that nobody invited the older son! People who are legalistic and judgmental are not much fun to be around!

26 "And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be.

Why didn’t he just go in and ask his father? Maybe he was just sneaky. Maybe he was too busy working hard to enjoy the blessings of the grace of his Father. Don’t be so caught up in doing good things that you forget to celebrate all that God has done for you!

27 "And he said to him, "Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.'

28 "But he became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him.

He should have been happy! But, this arrogant, self-righteous believer, who works hard for God, wants his brother to get what he deserves. People who think they are righteous hate to see the grace of God in action, but a humble believer is delighted to see others forgiven and restored.

The principle is this; that we have no right to be mad at how the Father treats another believer!

The Father wants the older son to come in and enjoy the party. Believe me, when you recognize the grace of our Father, and that no matter what we do, we can always simply return to Him, you will be ready to celebrate. But when you think that you DESERVE to have your own party, you get left out in the cold!

29 "But he answered and said to his father, "Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;

This son is looking to be rewarded for all the good things he has done. The grace of God is never a matter of getting what we deserve, but getting what we don’t deserve!

One other thing to notice in this response of the son is the number of times he says “I” or “me”!

Who is he focused on? For him, it’s all about earning or deserving the grace of his Father. And since he is focused on himself and not on the blessings from the Father, he misses out on the party!

30 but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.'

This sounds a little like my house. When one of the boys do something wrong, he’s not my child, he’s my wife’s. The older son doesn’t say, “my brother” but “your son!”

Remember yesterday, back in verse 13, there were never any details about how the younger son wasted the money.

Luke 15:13

13 "And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living.

The word “prostitutes” is not in the passage! The word for loose living is ASOTOS, and it simply means without being saved. All the passage says is that the younger son was simply acting like an unbeliever! Maybe the older son was accusing others of what he wanted to do.

Remember, the older brother had twice as much!! It’s none of his business how the younger brother spent his.

31 "And he said to him, "Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.

32 "But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.'"

Two major lessons to remember about the story of the prodigal son. The first is that no matter how far away we go from the plan of God, He is always ready and excited to welcome us back to a relationship with Him, completely forgetting about the sins we commit while we are away.

The second is that you don’t want to be like the older brother! Be very careful about being proud of the work you do for God. You don’t want to be the brother who is left out of the party!