Embracing God's Love: The Journey of the Elder Brother
Devotional
Day 1: Silent Reunion with the Father
The story of the elder brother in the parable of the prodigal son reveals a profound truth about our relationship with God. Unlike the younger brother, the elder brother's struggle is not with rebellion but with understanding his place in the family and the unconditional love of his father. He represents those of us who feel the need to earn love through performance and duty. Yet, the father's love is not contingent on our actions or achievements. It is freely given and can be fully experienced in a silent reunion with Him. This silent reunion invites us to lay down our agendas and embrace His love, even when we don't fully understand His ways. [17:56]
Luke 15:31-32 (ESV): "And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’"
Reflection: In what ways have you been trying to earn God's love through your actions? How can you embrace His love today without feeling the need to perform?
Day 2: Humility as a Response to Grace
Humility is often misunderstood as a virtue we must strive to achieve. However, true humility is a natural response to the grace and love of God. It is the realization that we are justified by faith, not by our deeds, which excludes pride and invites us into a restful relationship with God. This understanding allows us to sit at the foot of the cross, absorbing the love of God and finding rest in His presence. By recognizing that our worth is not tied to our performance, we can experience the freedom and peace that come from being fully accepted by God. [22:33]
James 4:6 (ESV): "But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.'"
Reflection: How does understanding humility as a response to God's grace change your perspective on your relationship with Him? What steps can you take to rest in His grace today?
Day 3: The Power of Confession
Confession is a powerful tool for experiencing the fullness of salvation. Romans 10:10 highlights the importance of speaking out our faith, aligning our words with our beliefs to unlock the transformative power of God's truth. This act of confession is not just about admitting our wrongs but also about declaring our faith and trust in God's promises. By speaking words of life and faith, even when evidence is lacking, we align ourselves with God's truth and open ourselves to His transformative power. This practice of confession can lead to profound changes in our lives, bringing us closer to the heart of God. [28:16]
Proverbs 18:21 (ESV): "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits."
Reflection: What is one area of your life where you need to speak God's truth and promises? How can you begin to practice confession in this area today?
Day 4: Breaking New Ground in Faith
The process of breaking is not meant to destroy us but to break new ground, establishing us more firmly in faith. This journey of salvation involves God reviving us and bringing new life through the breaking. It is in these moments of brokenness that we can experience God's nearness and His saving power. By embracing the breaking, we allow God to work in us, transforming us and leading us to a deeper understanding of His love and purpose for our lives. This process is a vital part of our spiritual growth and development. [35:20]
Psalm 34:18 (ESV): "The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit."
Reflection: How have you experienced God's presence in times of brokenness? What new ground is God breaking in your life right now, and how can you embrace this process?
Day 5: Speaking Faith into Existence
Embracing the law of faith and confessing God's truth leads to a life of victory. By speaking words of faith, even without evidence, we align ourselves with God's promises and experience His salvation. This act of speaking faith into existence is a powerful declaration of trust in God's unchanging love and faithfulness. It requires us to look beyond our circumstances and focus on the truth of God's Word. As we speak faith into existence, we invite God's transformative power into our lives, leading us to a life of overwhelming conquest and victory. [30:33]
2 Corinthians 4:13 (ESV): "Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, 'I believed, and so I spoke,' we also believe, and so we also speak."
Reflection: What promise of God do you need to speak into existence in your life today? How can you actively declare this promise and trust in His faithfulness?
Sermon Summary
In reflecting on the story of the prodigal son, we often focus on the younger son who returns home after a life of rebellion. However, the elder brother's journey is equally significant. The elder brother, much like many of us, struggles with understanding his place and worth in the family. He is broken, not by rebellion, but by a lack of understanding of his father's love and his own identity. This sermon invites us to see ourselves in the elder brother, to recognize that God is calling us to lay down our agendas and embrace His love without needing to perform or prove ourselves. The elder brother needed to be revived, not through words or tears, but through a simple, silent reunion with the father.
Humility, as discussed, is not an action but a reaction to the grace and love of God. It is a response to the realization that we are justified by faith, not by our deeds. This understanding should lead us to a place of rest, where we can sit at the foot of the cross and absorb the love of God. The breaking we experience is not meant to destroy us but to break new ground, to establish us more firmly in faith.
Furthermore, the sermon emphasizes the power of confession. Romans 10:10 teaches that salvation comes not only from believing in our hearts but also from confessing with our mouths. This act of speaking out our faith, even when evidence is lacking, is crucial for experiencing the fullness of salvation. It is through this confession that we align ourselves with God's truth and begin to see transformation in our lives.
Finally, the message encourages us to embrace the breaking as a process of salvation. God is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are contrite. By confessing our faith and speaking words of life, we open ourselves to the transformative power of God's love, leading us to a life of victory and overwhelming conquest.
Key Takeaways
1. The elder brother's story teaches us that God's love is not earned through performance but received through silent reunion. We must lay down our agendas and embrace His love, even when we don't understand His ways. [17:56]
2. Humility is a reaction to God's grace, not an action we perform. It is the response to the realization that we are justified by faith, which excludes pride and invites us into a restful relationship with God. [22:33]
3. Confession is a powerful tool for experiencing salvation. Romans 10:10 highlights the importance of speaking out our faith, aligning our words with our beliefs to unlock the transformative power of God's truth. [28:16]
4. God's breaking is not meant to destroy us but to break new ground, establishing us more firmly in faith. This process is a journey of salvation, where God revives us and brings new life. [35:20]
5. Embracing the law of faith and confessing God's truth leads to a life of victory. By speaking words of faith, even without evidence, we align ourselves with God's promises and experience His salvation. [30:33] ** [30:33]
Luke 15:25-32 (The Parable of the Prodigal Son - Focus on the Elder Brother)
Romans 10:10 (Confession and Salvation)
Micah 7:18-19 (God's Unchanging Love and Forgiveness)
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Observation Questions:
In the parable of the prodigal son, what are the key differences between the reactions of the younger and elder brothers upon the younger brother's return? How does the elder brother's reaction reflect his understanding of his father's love? [16:46]
According to Romans 10:10, what are the two components necessary for salvation, and how do they work together?
How does the sermon describe the process of "breaking" in a believer's life, and what is its intended purpose? [20:08]
What does Micah 7:18-19 reveal about God's character, and how does this relate to the elder brother's need for revival?
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Interpretation Questions:
How does the elder brother's struggle with understanding his place in the family mirror our own struggles with identity and worth in God's family? [17:56]
What does it mean to "lay down our agendas" and embrace God's love without needing to perform or prove ourselves? How can this be practically applied in our daily lives? [18:12]
In what ways does the act of confession, as described in Romans 10:10, align us with God's truth and lead to transformation? [28:16]
How can the concept of humility as a reaction to God's grace change our perspective on pride and self-worth? [22:33]
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Application Questions:
Reflect on a time when you felt like the elder brother, struggling with feelings of inadequacy or jealousy. How can you seek a silent reunion with God to find peace and understanding? [17:40]
What personal agendas or expectations might you need to lay down to fully embrace God's love? How can you start this process today? [17:56]
Consider the role of confession in your spiritual life. How can you incorporate regular confession of faith into your routine to experience deeper salvation? [28:16]
How can you cultivate a reaction of humility in response to God's grace in your life? Identify one area where pride might be hindering your relationship with God and others. [22:33]
Think about a situation where you feel "broken." How can you view this breaking as an opportunity for God to establish new ground in your faith? [20:08]
Identify a specific promise of God that you struggle to believe fully. How can you begin to speak this truth into existence, even without evidence, to align with God's promises? [30:33]
How can you use the truths from Micah 7:18-19 to remind yourself of God's unchanging love and forgiveness in moments of doubt or failure? [32:24]
Sermon Clips
I want to be with you and to me this was the miracle of the older brother I'd like to hope that this boy probably was too big to be held by that mother eight nine ten years old but this was what he needed there's the hug that the younger brother needed but the elder brother also needed to Res resect. [00:18:12]
And dear brothers and sisters when you are being broken and when God is breaking you, you don't have to do some big Act, no words, even if there are no tears, we have to come back to drawing on the love of God and saying God, I'm opening up my arms to receive your embrace. [00:18:57]
I want to show you another couple of thoughts, a lot of us we read a lot of commands in scripture about humility, God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, is that what you have to do how do you humble yourself does anybody have some tips and tricks how do we humble ourselves. [00:20:18]
Humility is a reaction, we used to think we can often read the verses in the commands and saying that humility is an action humility is a reaction Hebrews chapter three sorry not Hebrews Romans chapter three this is the very introduction to the gospel we'll we'll see here that humility is a reaction. [00:21:14]
We know Romans chapter 3 which is the conclusion of Paul's introduction which is all have sinned verse 23. all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God being justified as a gift by his grace being counted as totally righteous being given 100 on the quiz even though my track record and the way it looks at is saying I got point two percent. [00:21:38]
All have sinned but we are Justified and considered totally righteous as a gift by his grace through the Redemption which is in Christ Jesus and we can read that passage but verse 27 is where I build this truth that humility is a reaction not an action because then he says where then is boasting where then is pride. [00:22:03]
It is excluded by the law of faith, it is the reaction to the faith that gives us justification, so when God tells me I need to humble myself when I hear a command in scripture when I read the command in scripture when I know that I need to humble myself and these breakings are a way for me to humble myself. [00:22:29]
My humility is a reaction, it's a response to me embracing the law of Faith the law of Faith who says that God calls you totally righteous because of Jesus and what he did, yes you're a sinner but humility is kicked out it's excluded humility sorry pride pride is excluded pride is kicked out at the very outset of our Christian faith. [00:22:56]
The way to get rid of pride is to embrace the law of Faith which is to say God you accept me because of Jesus no matter how horrible I am, the only entrance into God's presence is by the law of faith that is what kicks Pride out, that is the master secret to all humility. [00:23:27]
So yes we are commands that go humble yourself but how do I humble myself Embrace justification by faith Embrace what Jesus did for me on the cross that is always my secret and God's gonna show me how much he loved me by increasing how big that sacrifice was, how much it took for him to come down to the search. [00:23:51]
How much it took for him to remain faithful on this Earth how much it took for him to be separated from the father and on and on these are the things that God will expand our heart for and as we see the greater sacrifice of Jesus will grow in a confidence in the law of faith and as a result of that Pride we get kicked out or excluded. [00:24:20]
I'm absolutely convinced of Matthew 11 28 come to me you who are weary and heavy labeled with all these rules of religion and I will give you rest, take my yoke upon me because my yoke is easy and my burden is light dear brothers and sisters that verse spoke hit me like a thunderbolt over a decade ago. [00:24:43]