Luke 15:17-22 (NLT) 17 “When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, 19 and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.” ’ 20 “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. 21 His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.’ 22 “But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet.
Sandals for his feet: 1. Sandals are a basic necessity for a journey.
2. Sandals were used in covenants.
3. Sandals indicate the restoration of sonship.
“Servants have responsibilities but not rights.”
John 8:31-36 (NIV) 31 To the Jews who that believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." 33 They answered him, "We are Abraham's des”endants and have never “een slaAbraham’syone. How can you say that we shall be set free?" 34 Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a“slave to sin.35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. Three areas of bondage 1. Sin John 8:34(NIV) "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
“Anything you can’t say no to is bondage.”
Romans 8:12–14 (NLT) You have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. 13 For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.
2. Fear
Romans 8:15–16 (NLT) 15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.
“Fear is failure to trust.” Things that won’t help our fears:
Hardness of heart
Masquerading fear as faith
Worrying
Whining
Control
3. Performance “If you are obeying Jesus out of a burden, you are operating as a slave, not a son, a hireling, not an heir, and a laborer, not a lover.”
3 Breakers 1. Encountering, Knowing & Following Jesus. John 8:31-42 (NIV) 31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
2. Trusting that Abba is good, perfect, and loving.
“ A child-like faith is not something we must not grow out of but that we continue to grow into.”
Mark 10:15 (NLT) I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”
1 John 4:18 (NIV)There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear.
3. Simple, joyful obedience.
Hebrews 11:8 (NLT) It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.
Luke 15:22-24 (NLT) 20 “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. 21 His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.’ 22 “But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. 23 And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, 24 for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began.
“The ring speaks of the identity & rights in the family.”
I. Beloved Identity
1. We believe John 1:12 (NIV) To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
2. We belong 2 Corinthians 1:22 (NIV) (He) Set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
3. We behold 2 Corinthians 3:16–18 (NIV) 16 Whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
4. We become "You become like who you behold."
5. We behave
It’s in your Nature It’s your Nurture
II. Our Authority. "Because we belong to God, what belongs to God belongs to us!"
Luke 15:31 (NLT) ‘Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours.
Luke 12:32 (NKJV) It is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Galatians 4:3-5 (NIV) 3 When we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. 4 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, 5 to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.
Matthew 28:18-19 (NIV) 18 “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” 19 Therefore go…
"Our assignment is authority." Matthew 10:7–8 (NLT) 7 Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near. 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received!
Authority Over 1. Sin and bondage 2. Sickness and disease 3. Poverty and Lack 4. Orphan and Enslaved Mindsets
Philippians 4:19(NIV) My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Luke 15:20-23 (NLT) 20 “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. 21 His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.’
Luke 15:22-24 (NLT) 22 “But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. 23 And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, 24 for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began.
The Finest Robe 1. Righteousness
Matthew 5:48 (NIV) Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
“The righteousness that is required is not earned. It is provided!”
A. Right standing. 2 Corinthians 5:17–21 (NIV) 17 If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Ephesians 2:8–10 (NIV) 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
B. Right-living
"Right standing produces right living."
Philippians 1:11 (NLT) May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ—for this will bring much glory and praise to God.
2. Regeneration John 3:3 (NLT) Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”
Luke 15:22-24 (NLT) For this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life.
Galatians 3:26–27 (NIV) 26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
3. Removal of shame
1 John 1:8-9 (NIV) 8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
4. Preparation for a celebration.
Ephesians 1:3-5 (NLT) 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.
1. You are worthy. 2. You are approved. 3. You are wanted.
Meet with the Pastors. If you started coming to Overflow in the last month we'd love for you to join us directly after service in the Parlor so you can get to know our staff and a little more about Overflow.
Next Sunday, Deeper, our membership class, starts back up @ 9:45am. Sign up by scanning the code beloe.
September 8th, Two Services begin! Service times will be 9 and 11am.
Luke 15:17–19 (NLT) 17 “When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, 19 and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.” ’
Luke 15:20-21 (NLT) 20 “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. 21 His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.’
“He went seeking Mercy and found Grace.”
The Fathers Pusuit 1. The Father Sees Proverbs 15:3 (NIV) The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.
Job 36:5 (NIV) “God is mighty, but does not despise men; he is mighty, and firm in his purpose.
2. The Father Cares
Psalm 145:8 (NLT) The LORD is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
3. The Father Runs “The Son was reluctant in his return; the father was relentless as he ran out to meet him.”
“The Father chose desire over dignity.”
4. The Father Embraces Romans 5:8 (NIV) But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
5. The Father Lavishes love
Jeremiah 31:3 (NIV) The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.
1 John 3:1 (NIV) How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
___ John 1:16-18 (NIV) 16 From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.
Hebrews 1:3 (NIV) The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.
Luke 15:11–19 (NLT) 11 “A man had two sons. 12 The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die.’ So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. 13 “A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. 14 About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. 15 He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. 16 The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything. 17 “When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, 19 and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.” ’ 20 “So he returned home to his father...
1. The Prodigal’s Pursuit: independence & freedom “He chose independence over access.”
2. The Prodigal’s proximity: a distant land. “The prodigal’s demise was the distance.”
3. The Prodigal’s Predicament: Hell on earth Luke 15:13–16 (NLT) 13 he wasted all his money in wild living. 14 About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. 15 He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. 16 The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything.
“What he thought would be freedom ended up in bondage to a cruel master.”
Romans 6:23 (NLT) For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
John 8:24 (NLT) “Unless you believe that I Am who I claim to be, you will die in your sins.”
He remembered home. Luke 15:17–19 (NLT) 17 “When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, 19 and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.” ’ 20 “So he returned home to his father...
John 6:44 (NLT) No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them.
From Hell to Home. 1. Come to your senses 2 Corinthians 7:10 (NLT) For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death.
2. Humbly head home Luke 15:20 (NLT) “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him.”
“He went seeking Mercy and found grace.”
“Jesus is the road back home.”
John 14:6 (NLT) Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.
Colossians 2:13 (NLT) You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive withChrist, for he forgave all our sins.
Genesis 50:16–20 (NLT) 16 So they sent this message to Joseph: “Before your father died, he instructed us 17 to say to you: ‘Please forgive your brothers for the great wrong they did to you—for their sin in treating you so cruelly.’ So we, the servants of the God of your father, beg you to forgive our sin.” When Joseph received the message, he broke down and wept. 18 Then his brothers came and threw themselves down before Joseph. “Look, we are your slaves!” they said. 19 But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.
Proverbs 13:12 (NLT) Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.
Hope is not the problem. 1 Thessalonians 1:3 (NIV) We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Delay was a constant companion in Joseph’s journey to the dream.
Proverbs 13:12 (NLT) ...BUT a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.
Isaiah 61:3 (NIV) They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.
Ezekiel 47:12 (NIV) Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”
The Process: The space between Longing and fulfillment. 22 years for the dream to be fulfilled. 13 of which Joseph spent as a slave or in prison.
1. Timing
Timing can have more to do with us than it does God.
Trusting God’s timing means He is working, and so am I.
God is good for it, He can be trusted.
2. Testing: Proverbs 13:19 (NLT) It is pleasant to see dreams come true, but fools refuse to turn from evil to attain them.
“A faith that is tested is a faith that can be trusted.”
Romans 1:21-32 (NLT) 21 Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. 22 Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. 23 And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles. 24 So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. 25 They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. 26 That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have relations and instead indulged in relations with each other. 27 And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved. 28 Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. 29 Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. 30 They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. 31 They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. 32 They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.
Satan knows if we don’t know who we are, we will never be able to defeat him.
Our society and culture keep trying to redefine things that God has already given definitions to.
Genesis 1:27 (NLT) So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
Comparison is an identity killer.
You are not a sinner saved by grace.
We live out what we believe to be true about ourselves whether it’s true or not.
Three free gifts as a Child of God
Romans 8:9-16 (NLT) Vs9 - But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)
1. Freedom from Sin
2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV) Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, all things have become new. (He makes all things new.)
Isaiah 54:17 (NKJV) - No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the Lord.
Vs10 - And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. 11 The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. 12 Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. 13 For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.
2. Resurrection Power
You’ve got resurrection power running through your veins.
We can come boldly to the throne – Sun stand still kind of prayers.
“God has privileged us in Christ Jesus to live above the ordinary human plane of life. Those who want to be ordinary and live on a lower plane can do so, but as for me, I will not.” ― Smith Wigglesworth (British Evangelist)
Vs 12 - You have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do.
The answer to temptation is not to try harder but to rely on the resurrection power you have inside of you.
Vs14 - For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. 15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. 17 And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.
3. Sonship
When you make Christ the Lord of your life, He adopts you as His child and calls you His own. That means He chose you! You are not a mistake, you are not an afterthought, He sought you out to be His.
The law of adoption is actually stronger than the law of biology.
John 1:12 (NLT) - But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God
John 4:13–14 (NLT)13 Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. 14 But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
“When we drink of Jesus, the river takes over.”
John 7:37–38 (NIV) 37 ...“Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”
John 4:28–30 (NLT) 28 The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, 29 “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?” 30 So the people came streaming from the village to see him.
Adjusting our Sails.
1. Embrace the purpose “Overflow Church exists to bring people to an Encounter with the reality of Jesus.”
2. Get in on the Vision Proverbs 29:18 (NIV) Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint.
“Without the people, the vision perishes.”
Habakkuk 2:2 (NIV): “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.
3. Cultivate the culture
PRESENCE: Every time we gather, everywhere we go. FAMILY: We follow Jesus together. HONOR: Up, down, all around. POWER: God is moving today GENEROSITY: Blessed to be a blessing.
Generosity advances the Vision. Time. Talent. Treasure.
“Move from a consumer to a contributor.” Matthew 9:37–38 (NIV) 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
