The story of the prodigal son is the most popular, because the road of the prodigal is a picture of what every one of us does in self-will. We say to God, “Give me your gifts. Give me your grace, provide me with your plenty, and then I’ll go and live life my way.” And you know the amazing thing? The father had every right in the story of the prodigal to slap him down and refuse him. He could have taken his entire inheritance away. That was the most violent abuse of the inheritance law that you could have done. Ask your father, while he’s still alive, to give you the portion that’s coming to you now. That’s what the younger son did. He spit in his father’s face and he took the riches that his father gave him, and he set off down that path of self-will. And the path of self-will always ends up in the pigpen. And then it says he came to himself.
Have you ever had a come to yourself moment? We need to kill the giant of self-will. You ask yourself the question, why did I ever leave? And though we call the parable the parable of the Prodigal Son, it’s really the parable of the loving and gracious father.
The Parable of the Prodigal Son is really “The Parable of the Loving and Gracious Father.” That’s the real point. And as the father goes out of the house for the older son who stands there in his aloofness, and he feels rejected, and he feels like he’s been ill treated, and he refuses to enter in.
And remember that the lesson that Jesus is teaching in The Lost Sheep and The Lost Coin and The Lost Son is the love of the father to bring back that which is His. And he says, there’s great rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents. But who is He talking to? He’s talking to the Pharisees. And as He tells the story of how the father goes out to plead with his older son, “Please come in and join the festivities! It’s right that we should do this. Your brother was lost and he’s found he was dead. He’s alive.” You know what he’s really doing? The father pleading with the older son is Jesus pleading with those self-righteous Pharisees, pleading with them to see the rightness of the fact that He’s a friend of sinners, the rightness of the fact that He feasts with tax collectors and the sinners and the harlots.
And some of them got it.
These video vignettes were derived from the original lessons below. Check them out!
Gene Cunningham - January 28, 2003
Hebrews 01
Challenge of Hebrews: to consider Jesus, to look to Him (Heb 3:18-19, Heb 4:1-2) Heb 1:1-3 Where is Jesus Christ right now? He Lives, He is seated at the right hand of the Father, but what is He doing there? His High Priest role is something we need every day. Theme of Hebrews: High Priestly ministry of Jesus Christ. The context and theme of a book is essential to understanding the Word accurately. Each book has a purpose, and it's important to know the implications and applications of theology and doctrine within the book. Knowing the theme and purpose of a book is essential to understanding the contents of that book. We need to know more than just what He did at the cross. We need to know what He’s doing now. Psa 110:1 Heb 10:5-17 The Church’s objective is to expand the kingdom of God on the earth, and to spread the light of the Gospel. While the Church advances on earth, Jesus, our High Priest, is waging war for us in Heaven. Heb 13:20-21 He is the Great Shepherd and provides and protects the Church. Our obedience leads to stronger protection. Three designations for Jesus and His work: creator, redeemer, and mediator Theme verse for Hebrews: Heb 8:1-2 Some passages that talk about Christ's mediating role in 1Ti 2:5, and Heb 9:15. He also has the role of Prophet, Priest, and King. Superiority of Jesus Christ outline: 1. Superior to the prophets Heb 1:1-3 Jesus Christ is the ultimate divine revelation to the human race 2. Superior to angels Heb 1:4-14 and Heb 2:1-18. There are seven ways He’s superior to angels. Hebrews teaches us what Jesus Christ is as a man. He is in a glorified human form by His Father. 3. Superior to Moses Heb 3:3-6 He is before Moses, the author of what Moses wrote, and the subject matter of what Moses wrote Lawgiver 4. Superior to Joshua the Leader-General Heb 4:1-16 Jesus leads us into the spiritual Cannan, He leads us into a spiritual rest that is eternal 5. Superior to Aaron and the entire Levitical priesthood Heb 5:1, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28 6. Superior to the old covenant in every way Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-39 7. Superior in His body (spiritual body) what God is doing in the Church is greater than what He did through Israel. Heb 11:1-40, Heb 12:1-29, Heb 13:1-25 2 great applications: Col 1:18 Christ has preeminence in everything and 1 CO 10:11 everything written in Old Testament was written for us Trouble passages, can’t lose your salvation, but there are warning sections. The author had concern for the recipients of the book. Written around 66 AD. Jewish people began a revolt against the romans. Jesus’ prophesy came true and Jerusalem was devastated. Book written to warn the Jews what was coming. Last warning to a rebellious warning of the wrath to come. God judges His own first. This is why we need to know the warning Five Warnings: 1. Heb 2:1-4 How shall we escape? Believers who are apathetic before their High Priest in Heaven. Not if we reject, but if we neglect. Apathetic to the study of His word, to His grace, to His work on our behalf. We have greater resources, so we have greater accountability 2. Heb 4:1-3 let us therefore fear 2TI 1:7 Fear of failing to fulfill His plan and purpose for our lives, the faith-rest life. Rest, to utilize to the full the provision of His Word. 3. Heb 6:4-8 thorny ground is near cursing. As believers not bearing good fruit, and thorny ground is burned and purified. He will purify you but it will be a painful method 4. Heb 10:26-41 Terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Warning to believers. The corrective hand of God is a terrifying thing. 5. Heb 12:25-29 He reminds us our God is a consuming fire. That fire can be a wonderful thing, but it can also be a terrible thing. An element of judgment and discipline on His children. It is an invitation to better things. Better is a keyword of the book of Hebrews: • Better name of Jesus Christ in Heb 1:4, • Better spiritual fruit Heb 6:9, • Better hope that brings us further along in our spiritual life Heb 7:19, • Better covenant Heb 7:22, • Better ministry of Jesus Heb 8:6, • Better sacrifice of the cross Heb 9:15, • Better possessions Church-Age believers have Heb 10:34, • Better country not of this world Heb 11:16, • Better provisions for us Heb 11:40, • Better testimony, blood of Christ Heb 12:24 Why did He inherit that name? Because the author is talking about Christ as a Man. Jesus is the final revelation of God. Heb 1:1-3: seven superiorities of Jesus: first being He is superior to the prophets, the superiority of final revelation. Principles of divine interpretation: Jesus is the interpretation of God’s word. Written word and living Word, we will always go astray unless we keep this in mind as we read. Let your relationship with Him help you understand His Word. Can’t just be academic, must be met on a spiritual level. God works through pure vessels. We are in the last days, but we need to keep in mind if we are raptured or not, it is coming quickly or our death is coming quickly. Our life is a vapor. Rom 11:11-24 We need to be wary of a pride that can blind us the way Israel was blinded by their arrogance, and received the destruction of their country and the temple. The rapture will be a judgment on the church in a large part for our failure. He is the heir of all things. Everything exists for Him. He is the Designer of the ages of human history. He is the Visible image of the Invisible God. The radiance, the exact representation of His nature. How can we know what God is like? Look a Jesus, if anything contradicts Him, then it is inaccurate. Rom 1:19-20 (invisible things of God are clearly seen) He is the Sustainer of the universe. We are in a universe at war, and He is keeping everything from falling apart. By the word of His mouth, He sustains all things. He is the Redeemer. There is no purgatory, Christ completely eliminated sins for us on the cross. Joh 19:30 the work of the cross is a finished work. There is no room for us to complete it. He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on High, the exaltation of His humanity. He sat down because His work is done. Even His high priestly ministry is based on a finished work. Only we can accomplish anything because of His finished work.
Scripture References: Hebrews 13:1-25, John 19:30, Hebrews 1:1-3, Hebrews 12:25-29, Hebrews 6:1-20, Hebrews 9:15, Hebrews 12:1-29, Romans 1:19-20, Hebrews 9:15, Hebrews 10:26-41, Hebrews 5:1, Hebrews 8:6, Hebrews 11:1-40, Romans 11:11-24, Psalms 110:1, Hebrews 6:4-8, Hebrews 4:1-16, Hebrews 7:22, Hebrews 10:1-39, Hebrews 1:1-3, Hebrews 4:1-2, Hebrews 4:1-3, Hebrews 3:3-6, Hebrews 7:19, Hebrews 9:1-28, Hebrews 11:40, Hebrews 3:18-19, Hebrews 2:1-4, Hebrews 2:1-18, Hebrews 6:9, Hebrews 8:1-13, Hebrews 11:16, Colossians 1:18, Hebrews 1:4-14, Hebrews 1:4, Hebrews 7:1-28, Hebrews 10:34
From Series: "Hebrews (1998)"
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January 28, 2003
Hebrews 07
Gene Cunningham
Hebrews 2:1-4, Hebrews 2:1-4, Hebrews 1:14, Hebrews 2:5, Hebrews 2:5, 2Kings 7:1-20, Hebrews 2:1-4, Hebrews 12:1, 2Peter 1:20, Matthew 24:13, Luke 21:19, Romans 5:3-4, James 1:2-3, Psalms 23:1, Romans 8:28