Welcome Home: Return to the Father

Lk 15
1. Pride always pulls us away from the Father. "Pride is the complete anti-God state of mind." C.S. Lewis
- when our view of God gets distorted, consequently, so does what is important in our life. Pride is the root of every sin.
2. Pride always keeps us away from the Father. Due to his pride, the son did not return to his father right away when he realized he messed up. Sin always over promises and under delivers.
3. Humility always draws us into the Father. Awakening>honesty>action=lasting transformation.
-Awakening: How many alarms do I snooze through and ignore?
- Honesty: be honest about my mistakes and my sin. Lk 15:18-19 Take full responsibility.
- Action: take action. Lk 15:20. The depth of our relationship with God is largely dependent on the depth of our humility before God. Rom 10:9

Where are you right now with God??

Chasing Carrots: Chasing Religion

Religion: an organized system of beliefs, ceremonies and rules used to worship a god or a group of gods.
Empty religion: following the beliefs, ceremonies and rules without knowing God.
Hypocrite: person who pretends to have morals or beliefs that they don't actually possess.

Mt 21:23-32, “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’   “ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. “Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. v 28‭-‬30

1. Empty religion does not impress God. The second son gave the right answer, but didn't follow through, he represents empty religion. Isa 1:11-15 They took what should've been a beautiful thing and made it into a ritual. Mt 15:7-8
2. Empty religion is a dangerous substitute for a relationship with God. The first son represents relationship, he changed his heart and mind and followed his father's instructions. 
3. God wants a relationship with us, not empty religion from us. Empty religion trusts in our work, not in God's work. Chase a relationship with Jesus. Jn 14:6; Eph 2:8-9.

How do you know God? Mt 21:32 Repent from your sin and believe in Jesus Christ.
Repent: turn from your sin. Jesus hung out with sinners, and most often it changed them forever.
Believe: understand that there is a God who loved us and sent his son to live a perfect life, take our sin and die on the cross, and rise again and ascend into heaven.

Chasing Carrots: Chasing Pleasure

Eccl 2:1-11 v1 "I said to my heart..."  v11 "Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun."

Why do we chase after pleasure?
1. It's fun for a while.
2. It temporarily numbs us from reality, responsibilities and pain.
3. Instant gratification. Chasing a meaningful relationship with Jesus and those around you is hard because it takes a lifetime.

The problem is that chasing pleasure makes it all about us.

Eccl 3:10-11 Our hearts were made for a relationship with God and for eternity. Ps 16:11

Chasing Carrots: Chasing Success

Success: the accomplishment of an aim or purpose.
What is your overall aim in life? The will to succeed often drives our lives. 4 areas that people think will make them successful: wealth, appearance, achievement, authority (power). Where it goes wrong is when success is the end all be all. Eccl 1:14
1. You can be successful, and yet have no real, lasting significance.
2. You can be successful, and still be unfulfilled.
3. You can be successful, and still be miserable.

True success:
1. True success starts with a relationship with Jesus. Rom 3:23, 6:23, 10:9; Isa 28:16
2. True success continues to flow from remaining in Jesus. The Holy Spirit is our helper, and we can do things through Him. Jn 15:5; Eph 2:10. What does it mean to remain in Jesus? To depend on Him in every area of your life.
3. True success ultimately points others to Jesus. Jn 15:1-5, 8. Ex 33:15; Ps 127:1. "I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete."Jn 15:11

Chasing Carrots: Chasing Comfort

Comfort: the pleasant and satisfying feeling of being physically and mentally free from pain and suffering, or something that provides that feeling.
We've convinced ourselves that if we can carve out a comfortable life, that we'll be fulfilled, satisfied, happy and content. Comfort is a false narrative that says I, based upon what I do, can be happy. Chasing comfort is man's attempt to be fulfilled without God. We've developed a false version of the Jesus story: come to Jesus and you'll be comfortable.

Mk 8:27-30 Peter answered, "You are the Messiah." The crowds are chasing hard after being where Jesus is for their own comfort. Jesus didn't want the disciples to tell people that he was the Messiah because they had an incomplete understanding of who he was. Peter was thinking about comfort, that Jesus would be king. Mk 8:30-38

Our problem is we're not thinking God stuff, we're thinking about ourselves.
1. We chase comfort when we should be chasing the cross. The cross means opposition, shame, suffering, and death. Taking up our cross means to be willing to be opposed, to be shamed, to suffer and to die. We must cherish Jesus more than life itself!
2. Growing involves being uncomfortable. If you are comfortable all the time, you will never grow. Jas 1:2-4, 1 Pet 1:6-8. Jesus needs to be more precious than anything in this world.
3. Be unashamed and uncomfortable. Mk 8:35-38. At worst, the pursuit of comfort can cost you your soul. At best, the pursuit of comfort can leave you on the sidelines being used by God. Step out in faith and sacrifice. Make ourselves uncomfortable for the Kingdom.
Jesus has set the example for us. Heb 12:1-3: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

One Another: Encourage One Another

Take Your Pills: Follow the Prescription (the one another verses)

Mt 22:37-39 Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
1 Thess 5:7 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

1. Focus on the good. Find opportunities to speak life into every situation or person you encounter. Phil 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Mt 16:18 And I tell you that you are Peter,  and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.
2. To encourage others well, you have to encourage yourself well first. Start with myself. Lk 6:45. Tell myself who God says I am.
3. Share your testimony. Rev 12:11 A testimony is us lending our faith to someone else.

One Another: Carry One Another's Burdens

Gal 6:1-2 - caught in sin, overtaken by sin
How do we carry each other's burdens in a way that it fulfills the law of Christ? Mt 22:37-39.
1. By first recognizing that all Christians sin. 1 Cor 10:13a; 1 Jn 1:8. Every one of us is vulnerable.
2. By allowing the Spirit to direct our steps. Gal 6:1 "you who live by the Spirit." Gal 5:16, 19-23a
3. By aiming to restore, not reprove. We don't have to restore others, but point them back to the ultimate restorer. 1 Pet 5:10
4. By not forgetting the grace of God we've each been and continue to be shown. Gal 6:1 "watch yourself, or you also may be tempted." Jn 8:7-11