True Humility

Luke 15: 11-32

The Prodigal Son

 

11 And He said, "A man had two sons.

 12 "The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.' So he divided his wealth between them.

 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.

 14 "Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished.

 15 "So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.

 16 "And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him.

 17 "But when he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!

 18 ~'I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight;

 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men."'

 20 "So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.

 21 "And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'

 22 "But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;

 23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate;

 24 for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.' And they began to celebrate.

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

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

 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.

 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;

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

 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.'"

   In church on Sunday the guest speaker preached on the three parables in Luke 15. It had been a while since I had actually read the parable of the prodigal son, so I went back and re-read it. I have been wanting to do a post about humility since I think it is a vital part of the Christian lifestyle and an essential part of becoming a Christian to begin with.
   Verses 17-19 jumped out at me when I re-read the parable and screamed of perfect humility. In the preceding verses you read of the son who had essentially demanded his inheritance early so he could strike out on his own to have fun. He lived a "loose life" and spent all of his money until he had nothing and no one to turn to. Not to say that this is the general case for someone who is homeless, but I liken this to someone who set out with pride, spent all of their money on a sinful lifestyle and lost it all. He is on the streets begging for the smallest scraps to eat and people just walk on by like he is not even there. Coming back to the verses, the prodigal son has hit rock bottom and his options are limited. He could turn to a life of crime in order to get what he needs or he can swallow his pride and try to go back home. He realizes the wrongs he has done and that he is suffering the consequences of those actions. He realizes that he has lost the right to be called his fathers son and in an attempt to regain a fraction of his father's acceptance, he decides that he will go back and ask to become one of his workers instead.
   The verses that follow tell the rest of the story of how the father rushes out to receive him back. He doesn't even give him the chance to ask about becoming a hired man! He is immediately re-established as his son as if nothing had even happened to sever the bond.
   Although this is not part of the lesson of this parable, God does call on us. He wants us to turn from our sinful ways and humble ourselves before him. We are all born into sin and our lives, whether or not we want to admit it, are filled with our selfish desires to carry out and fulfill all of the sinful pleasures that entice us. We desire to live that "loose life" and sometimes we have to reach rock bottom before we realize how lost we are.
   When you hear God's call, will you ignore it or will you humble yourself before Him and seek His forgiveness? He is looking for you and he has pretty good vision and can spot you from miles away. He will rush out to you and receive you back into a righteous relationship with Him, no questions asked.