About this episode
Have you ever stopped to ask yourself this question? When you fall short, when you blow it, when you do the very thing you swore you would never do again, how do you actually think God views you in that moment? That one question, maybe more than any other, will shape how you walk with God for the rest of your life.In this week's sermon, Pastor Brandon opens up Luke 15 and uncovers something that almost sounds too good to be true. Jesus tells three back to back parables, the parable of the lost sheep, the parable of the lost coin, and the parable of the prodigal son. Each one is aimed straight at the lie so many of us believe in our bones, the lie that we need to clean ourselves up first before we can come back to God.We continue our series on fighting temptation by zooming in on what happens after the fall. Because if we are honest with ourselves, most of us intellectually believe in a grace based gospel but emotionally live by a works based gospel. We pull back from prayer. We close the Bible. We avoid the people of God. We tell ourselves we will turn back to him once we feel a little less ashamed. But the God of Luke 15 will not stand for that.The shepherd does not begrudgingly throw the sheep on his shoulders. He joyfully carries it home. The woman does not roll her eyes at the missing coin. She turns her whole house upside down and throws a party when she finds it. And the father does not wait for the prodigal son to crawl back. He runs. In a moment that is often missed, he also walks out to his angry older brother and reminds him that everything he has is his too.This sermon is a reminder that there really is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents. God's joy over sinners is not reluctant or measured out. It is full. It is warm. It is the face of a Father turning toward you the very moment you turn toward him. Returning to God after sin is not a long climb back into his good graces. It is a single step in his direction.If you have ever wondered how God sees you in your worst moments, this message is for you. Our prayer is that it stirs your heart toward repentance, toward growing in Christ, and toward the kind of deep joy that only comes from being found by him.
Transcript preview
The conversation opens with the core question behind the episode and builds toward practical next steps.
Have you ever stopped to ask yourself this question? When you fall short, when you blow it, when you do the very thing you swore you would never do again, how do you actually think God views...