The Prodigal's Surrender

Text: Luke 15:11-13

11  And he said, A certain man had two sons:

12  And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living.

13  And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.

1.  We call this son the prodigal because of the way he wasted his substance. He was a squander, which is what the word prodigal means.

a.   The prodigal son turned all of his assets into gold and cash. Do you know how easy it is to love the gift more than the giver?

b.   Some begin to love what God does more than the person who gave it to them.

c.   We don't know what caused this young man to walk away from his father, or how long he was dealing with these thoughts before he decided to walk away.

             i.        Whatever the reason, he decided he wanted to live his life and do his own thing.

d.   When does it happen that the passion for the work of God leaves?

             i.        The passion for the work leaves before you ever do. You could sit in church and not have passion for the things of God, still knowing that something is missing.

e.   Earlier in the 15th Chapter of Luke, we hear about the women that lost the coin. The Bible says in Verse 8, what women, having ten pieces of silver, and lose one piece, does not light a candle and search the house for the missing piece.

             i.        Many of us who came into the house of God, with ten pieces of silver, i.e. passion of the word of God, and sooner or later we realize that one of those pieces is missing.

f.    Stop playing games with God. If you know that you have lost something, seek it. Don't just act like everything is still there.

2.   The prodigal son took his journey away from the people of God. If the enemy can get you away from the presence of God, and then you start getting away from the people of God.

a.   If the enemy can draw you away from the presence of God, then he can draw you away from the people of God, and eventually can make you leave your place.

b.   If you're not bound socially to the people of God, then you end up being bound socially to people who you aren't supposed to be bound to.

c.   2 Corinthians 6:14-18

14  Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

15  And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?

16  And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

             i.   When you are saved you ARE the temple of God, not just this building.

            ii.   Notice the word unrighteousness in Verse 14. That word means lawlessness. Where there is not vision the people perish or become "lawless."

d.        Vision determines who you run with, who you listen to, what you are going to allow to influence you.

             i.        Vision puts boundaries in your life, and when you don't have vision, then you knock the boundaries out.

            ii.        Vision says you don't want to go there, because if you do you can destroy your vision, and if you destroy your vision, you could destroy your testimony. Keep your vision pure.

          iii.        Those with vision understand the importance of God's Word, and they understand that in order to have vision they have to understand God's word.

e.        The Bible says where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The word treasure means deposit.

             i.        Where are you depositing your treasure?

            ii.        Whenever you start bringing your treasure to the church house, now.

          iii.        When your treasure is where the place of God is, your mind will be there, and when your mind is there, you won't have no problems with service.

          iv.        This is important because your thoughts are the origins of your behaviors. If you have a negative thought process you will be a very negative individual. Out of the abundance of the mind the mouth speaks.

f.        Colossians 3:1-2

1  If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.

2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.

             i.   Affection means mind. It is something how much the Bible talks about the mind. In fact, the real rendering of this verse is set your mind on things above.

            ii.   We can set our minds on things that aren't necessarily wrong, but when they take priority over God, then they become wrong. Nothing should take priority over Christ.

g.        Luke 15:14  And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.

             i.        There comes a time when you are outside of the will of God, where you will spend all. You will be spent out, and have nowhere else to turn. Your own resources WILL run out, and THEN the real trials will take place.

            ii.        The Bible says there came a famine, AFTER he ran out of resources. He was away from the people of vision, and became attached to a people he shouldn't have even been attached to.

h.        Vs. 15  And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.

             i.        Because his need, he joined himself to another person. That's just like the devil too. He draws you out, and makes you feel like he loves you and will treat you better than the people of God can, and you end up with a hole in your heart that none of the people around you can fill.

            ii.        The prodigal's real need was going unmet, because he wasn't where he was supposed to be. When you get out of your place, you will find yourself in this kind of condition, working in the devil's field, living like his citizens, with an emptiness inside that nobody can fill.

 i.        Verse 16  And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.

             i.        He was ready to eat pig's food, because he was so hungry. And no man gave unto him.

            ii.        It's in this place that true worship is born. It's in this place that you learn the reality of the Christian life, realizing that it's real.

3.   When you feel destitute, forsaken, forgotten, that's when you start feeling like you've given to others, but no one is there for you. The fact that you find yourself there is a tell-tale sign that you have journeyed away from God.

a.        The reason you keep finding yourself there is because you begin to get distracted by stuff that you shouldn't be distracted about.

             i.        There is a saying - "where God guides, He will provide." If you allow Him to guide your steps, He will provide for what He guides you to do.

b.        When you find yourself outside of the will of God, and dwelling in fear.

             i.        You start changing stuff that you shouldn't be changing, and then the stuff that you SHOULD be changing goes unchecked.

c.        2 Corinthians 12:10, 15

10  Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

15  And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.

             i.   God taught Paul this lesson. Paul said "I am aware that the more I love you the less I will be loved and I'm okay with it, because it's not about you anyway."

            ii.   The Lord had to focus Paul back on himself, and not on his weaknesses. God said my grace is sufficient for you, whether the people treat you right or not, whether you have all you need or not, no matter what's going on in your life, God's grace is sufficient.

          iii.   Very gladly means I will be ecstatic, jumping up and down, to spend and be spent for you. I will spend it all, if I have to, for you.

d.        What is it going to take for God to surrender you? When you totally surrender it won't matter what the people do.

4.   When you get sick and tired of suffering, when you get tired of suffering, you get to a place where you go wait a minute. You have an aha moment. You realize that you must surrender.

a.        Luke 15:17  And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!

b.        When you still battle between your own feelings and the will of God, you haven't totally surrendered yet, and if you think you have surrendered, you are deceiving your own self.

             i.        When you totally surrender, you will not move under any circumstances, because it won't matter what people do. They will be taken out of the equation, but so also will your feelings.

            ii.        An un-surrendered person doesn't want to hear the words "You're wrong."

c.        The prodigal son was truly humbled, and this is where true worship blossoms.

d.        Don't ever take the ministries of God for granted. You need to do it with everything inside of you, as unto the Lord and not unto people.

e.        People won't understand you. You will be misquoted and misunderstood most of the time. If you've gotten to a place of surrendering, then you will keep going.

f.        The Bible says when the prodigal son came to himself, meaning he came to his senses. When you are serious, God will occupy your mind. It will not be about anything but God.

             i.        When you totally surrender, it doesn't mean you won't have problems, it just means you have realized that God will take care of you.

            ii.        When you get to a place where you finally surrender, you will be able to say God took my mess and turn it into a message.

g.        If people can still distract you and get in the way, you are not totally surrendered.

h.        We're all prodigals, but God still calls us home. Thank God for looking through our faults, and seeing our need. There is a need inside every person in this room that only God can supply. Only God can supply ALL my need.