To view the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/7XesonV5LxY
SHOW NOTES
On today's episode of the Hope Rescue Podcast, Tim and Kimberly continue their series on God’s heart for the messy, the wounded, and the broken. They start by explaining again that the three parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son are Jesus’s response to the accusation by the Pharisees that He “...receives sinners and eats with them” (Luke 15:1-2). They go on to explain further the story of the prodigal son, which can be found in Luke 15:11-32. Tim explains that after the prodigal son had wasted his inheritance, he prepares a speech that he intends to give to his father when he gets home. The speech can be found in Luke 15:18-19 in which the sons says, “I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ In his words, you can hear the shame, the fear, the humility, and the genuine brokenness that the son was feeling about what he had done. When the son makes it home to his father, he starts his speech by saying in verse 21, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son," but as he is talking, the father says to his servant in the next three verses, "Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.” This is significant because the father cuts his son's speech short and instead of letting him finish, he tells his servant to prepare a celebration for his returned son.
Kimberly continues by reading from Matthew 18:15-20 which says, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” There are three crucial behaviors of a rescuer displayed in these verses. The first behavior is what Tim refers to as "the maintenance of privacy" which is important because it tells us that when a person messes up, we are to go to them in private and not publicly shame them and call them out. Proverbs 10:12 says, “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.” When we are covering a multitude of sins, we deal with that person in private and give them the opportunity to keep the sin private and repent. The second crucial behavior of a rescuer is that they establish facts. The scripture says “But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.” Tim recommends if it gets to this point to bring one of your trusted friends and one trusted friend of the offender to establish the facts in a safe environment with witnesses. The third crucial behavior of a rescuer is that they seek restoration. The whole goal is restoration throughout the entire process. Tim references Galatians 6:1 which reads, “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.” If you are a spiritual person and you see someone who has been caught in a transgression, you may feel tempted to fall into confirmation bias. Confirmation bias is defined as "the tendency to interpret new evidence as confirmation of one's existing beliefs or theories." This would cause one to lose sight of the goal in Galatians 6:1 which is to restore. Tim states, “If your goal in confronting anyone in any circumstance is not full restoration, you are not being gentle and you are not following basic tenets of scripture.” Kimberly follows by saying, “As individuals in the church, our end game always has to involve the heart of the father which is to bring restoration.”
Join us next week to wrap up our series and learn about how God never gives up on us! We love you guys!
QUOTES
“Regardless of whatever brokenness you have experienced in a father, that is not the heart of God the Father. The father always celebrates your return.” -Kimberly
"If your goal in confronting anyone in any circumstance is not full restoration, you are not being gentle and you are not following basic tenets of scripture.” -Tim
“As individuals in the church, our end game always has to involve the heart of the father which is to bring restoration.” -Kimberly
REFERENCED SCRIPTURE
Luke 15:1-2: “Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
Luke 15:11-32: “And he said, “There was a man who had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate. “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 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.’ But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 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.’”
Matthew 18:15-20: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
Proverbs 10:12: “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.”
Galatians 6:1: “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”
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