We return to the last two sermons on Keller’s Prodigal God series. But if you haven’t finished Paige, go ahead and do that and just jump in asap. Leave your comments on Paige here.
This famous parable of the two lost sons taps into the “eternity” God set in our hearts, the longing that earth cannot satisfy, the longing for our heavenly home.
Recently, a new Christian said to me, “I just found out there is no marriage — no sex — in heaven! How sad! How can that be good?”
Keller noted that movies tend to portray sex between true young lovers as the ultimate. But it is just a foreshadowing, as Lewis says, of something SO MUCH BETTER!
C. S. Lewis puts it like this in The Weight of Glory:
These things — the beauty, the memory of our own past — are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself, they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have not visited. If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.
Click here to download the sermon:
https://gospelinlife.com/sermon/we-had-to-celebrate/
Sunday:
- Think of one of your best experiences on earth — and then realize that is only a hint of what is to come. Share it here — or anything else you want to share about God’s goodness this week.
Monday: Texts and Introduction
2. Exile and Homecoming are a repeating theme in Scripture. How did each of the following lose their home & family? How do you see sorrow or pain?
- Luke 15:14-16
- Luke 15:28-30
- Genesis. 3:24 (Adam and Eve)
- Genesis 27:41-45 and Genesis 42:35-38 (Jacob)
- Exodus 2:23-25 (Israelites)
- Psalm 137
3. In the following, describe the joy of “coming home.”
- Genesis 33:1-4
- Genesis 45:1-5
- Exodus 15:20-21
- Isaiah 25:6-9
Keller’s Introduction
We’re looking for a number of weeks at this famous parable of the prodigal son. We’re looking not just at how the grace of God changes our individual lives but also how it changes our relationships with each other, how it forms a new kind of human community, a unique human society. Today we’re going to look at how Jesus so brilliantly ties this story in with one of the main themes (or maybe the main theme) of the entire Bible, which is exile and homecoming. You know, here’s an unlikely supporter reference, but this twentieth century philosopher Martin Heidegger believed all human beings were characterized by unheimlichkeit, which means homesickness. It means to be alienated, to feel that we’re not really home in this world, to feel that we are in exile, that we’re in a world that’s profoundly at variance with our deepest desires. Why would that be? What are we going to do about that? Those profound questions are all addressed and actually answered by this wonderful parable. Let’s take a look at how it does that under three headings. We’re going to learn here about the human condition, the divine solution for it, and the new Communion that is the result. Human condition, divine solution, new Communion.
4. What is unheimlichkeit? Have you experienced it? Give an example, if possible.
Tuesday: 1 The Human Condition (A)
We said the main theme of the Bible, perhaps, is the theme of exile and homecoming. The book of Genesis tells us about our beginnings. We were made for the garden of God. That was home. Home is a place that fits and suits you. It fits and suits your deepest desires and your needs. It’s a place where you can be your true self. In the garden of God, there was God’s infinite beauty that satisfied the beauty sensors of the soul. There was work cultivating the garden that satisfied the deepest creative capacities of the heart. There was his counsel, the counsel of God from his own lips, satisfied the farthest reachings of our mind. Of course, the love of God, his face, his arms satisfied what is really an infinite need for love and affirmation. We need to be delighted in. All of these things were there.
5. Describe what man had before the fall.
We were home, but according to the Bible, the very same thing happened to the human race collectively that happened to the younger son. We chafed under the Father’s authority. We wanted to live our lives the way we wanted to live our lives. By the way, we make that same choice every single day. As a result, we’re alienated from the Father, and we’ve lost our home. We’re in exile, and we’re in want, and we’re in hunger, like the younger son. Isn’t that interesting? That’s the reason why there’s a sense in which (a very, very powerful sense in which) Jesus is saying, “Everybody in the human race, this is about you.” We’re all the Prodigal Son. We’re all wandering in a world that actually does not any longer fit our deepest longings and needs.
6. How were Adam and Eve like the younger son? How are we?
Eva Hoffman, a Polish Jewish intellectual whose parents had to flee Europe during the Holocaust, has written about exile. In her essay “Wanderers by Choice,” she says, “Since Adam and Eve left the garden of Eden, is there anyone who does not, in some way, feel like an exile? We feel ejected from our first homes and landscapes, from our first romance, from our authentic self. An ideal sense of belonging, of attuning with others and ourselves, eludes us.” You read somebody who actually literally was an exile. When she says, “You know, since Adam and Eve, we’re all exiles. Nobody is happy in this world. We all are alienated from our first homes, our landscapes, our first romance, our authentic self.” “Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration. Maybe she is just projecting her experience on all the rest of us.”
7. Do you think you are homesick for Eden, for heaven? Explain.
Wednesday: 1 The Human Condition (B)
I don’t think so. Do you remember that great animated movie The Lion King? Early on in the movie, there’s this lovely, wonderful song called “The Circle of Life.” We’re all part of the circle of life. Everybody is happy about it. Everybody is saying, “Ah! The circle of life.” At first, you don’t know what the circle of life is. A little later on, the father lion is talking to his son lion, the younger lion. He says something about the fact that we’re all part of the circle of life. The younger lion says, “But, Dad, don’t we eat the antelopes?” In other words, he says, “I see it as sort of a food chain pyramid, and we’re at the top. What do you mean the circle? It’s sort of a pyramid, isn’t it? Don’t we eat the antelopes?” The father lion says, “Ah, no. You don’t understand. Yes, we eat the antelopes, but then we die. Then we fertilize the grass. Because we fertilize the grass and the grass grows up, then the antelopes eat the grass. First we eat the antelopes, and then the antelopes eat us. We’re all part of that wonderful circle of life.” Isn’t that wonderful? Don’t you just want to sing about it? No! Dylan Thomas is a lot closer to the Bible when he looked at death and said you should rage against the dying of the light. A world in which everyone you love becomes fertilizer and then you become fertilizer is not a world that our hearts can rest in at all. We are homeless here. See? This is not a place that we’re built for. Camus and the other existentialists were always at this. Camus was always saying … There’s one place in The Fall where one of Camus’s characters is speaking to another one. He says something like, “The weight of days is dreadful. For most people the approach of dinner, the arrival of a letter from home, or the smile from a passing girl is enough to help people get around the sense of homelessness. But the person who likes to dig into ideas and think about them, for him, life is impossible.” See, if you’re willing to think about it, you’ll know we are profoundly alienated, absolutely alienated! That’s not an exaggeration, but it does raise a question, doesn’t it, for Dylan Thomas and for Camus and for all these people.
8. What is unsatisfying about the philosophy of Lion King?
9. Some Christians feel we should rejoice at the death of a Christian, others feel it is right to grieve, much as Dylan Thomas feels. What are your thoughts?
10. How did Camus believe we “get around the sense of homelessness?” True for you?
Why do we feel alienated? Why would we feel alienated? I mean, for example, does a fish complain about being wet? No, because that’s natural. A fish is for the water. It doesn’t complain. See, if we are just the product of a material universe, why do we feel not at home here? Why did that happen? Of course, C.S. Lewis has a great, great discussion of this in his great sermon The Weight of Glory, which, by the way, you can get online. It’s there. In there, he deals with something, a very interesting phenomenon. Almost all of us deal to some degree with this sense that this isn’t the world we’re made for, this feeling of unheimlichkeit. We deal with it to some degree by consoling ourselves with memories of wonderful places or times or literally homes that we were in where everything felt wonderful. Do you remember the great movie The Trip to Bountiful? The main movie role was played by Geraldine Page. It’s a great movie. It’s about an older woman who is so unhappy in her life, but she remembers Bountiful, Texas, this little community near the coast. She just wishes, “If I could only get back there, everything would be all right.” Eventually she kind of goes AWOL and leaves her adult son and his wife and goes and finds it’s all a ruin. Everybody she knows is dead. Kathy and I have an experience of that because Kathy’s family went for 39 summers in a row to a ramshackle cottage at Lake Erie. I went there for 18 or 19 of those summers. When we think about that, you have this sense of, “Everything was great then. Everything was fine.” This ache is a little bit consoled by the memory of it, but if you actually go back there and see what a dilapidated condition it is in, it just creates this horrible grief and loss.
11. Why do we feel alienated on this earth?
12. Have you had the experience of going back to a cherished spot and finding it isn’t the same? Why, do you think?
C.S. Lewis says if you went back there and fixed it up so it was exactly the way it was, or even if you had a time machine and went back to that spot, it would cheat you. Because the feeling you remember isn’t really a satisfaction you had at the moment. He says in The Weight of Glory, “Wordsworth’s expedient was to identify it with certain moments in his own past. But all this is a cheat. If Wordsworth had gone back to those moments in the past, he would not have found the thing itself, but only the reminder of it; what he remembered would turn out to be itself a remembering. […] These things—the beauty, the memory of our own past—are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself, they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshipers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited. […] [We have a] sense of exile in earth as it is.” Do you know what he is saying? Whenever you have a moment, a temporary moment in which you don’t feel quite as homeless in the world, it’s actually a memory trace of the collective unconsciousness of the human race, because we remember the garden. We remember what life was like at the feet of God. We remember the beauty. We remember the love. We remember the creative opportunities. We remember the knowledge and the wisdom that alone can create home. We remember a time in which there was no death, no suffering. We remember it, and yet we don’t remember it. We really weren’t there. We’ve just been alive for so many years, and yet we know. Unheimlichkeit. See, Karl Marx says, “We’re alienated economically.” Freud said, “No, we’re alienated psychologically.” Emile Durkheim says, “We’re alienated sociologically.” Martin Heidegger says, “We’re alienated existentially.” The Bible says, “Yeah! Of course!” Yet none of those go deep enough because we are so profoundly alienated from our environment as it is now. All those things are true and more so. We’re not home. That’s the human condition. Jesus evokes it with his story.
13. Lewis says we have a tendency to turn the sweet things of earth into dumb idols. How have you done that with any of these things: food, sex, pets, friendship, career, ministry, sports…?
Thursday: 2 The Divine Solution
Then secondly, what do we do about it? Amazingly, Jesus explains what can be done about it. One of the main controversies that has arisen over this parable over the years is the fact that the father representing God apparently brings the young man back, representing a returning sinner without any atonement, without any sacrifice. You see, historically, Christianity has always said, “Oh, Jesus had to die on the cross for our sins. Look at the evil in the world. Look at what we’ve done to each other. Look at what we’ve done to God. Look at how we’ve rebelled. Therefore, God cannot embrace us. He cannot accept us unless atonement for sin is made, unless sacrifice, unless payment has been made. So Jesus had to die on the cross.” Some people have read this passage, and they’ve said, “Now wait a minute. That doesn’t seem to be at all what’s going on here. Look. Here’s the father representing God. Here’s the younger son representing a returning sinner. He tries to make payment. He says, “I want to be just like one of your hired men,” but the father will have none of it. He freely gives him the robe, freely gives him a ring, freely brings him back into the family. People say, “This idea about God and his wrath needing to be propitiated and such, oh my goodness. No. God just accepts people. He just loves us. He doesn’t need atonement. He doesn’t need sacrifice.” If you read the text like that, you’re completely wrong. You’re completely missing one of the most wonderful things you’re going to find anywhere in the Bible. If you go back to the beginning of Luke 15, which we did weeks ago, we see the tax collectors and the sinners and the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were gathering around Jesus. You have these younger brother sinner types. You have these elder brother religious, good, obedient types. The Pharisees are saying to Jesus, “What in the world are you doing fraternizing with people like that?” In response, Jesus tells three parables. In the first parable, there’s a lost sheep. In that story, someone goes out to find and bring the sheep back. In the second parable, there’s a lost coin. Someone goes out into the house to search it and to turn the house upside down and bring it back. Then the third parable, there’s also a lost object. Lost sheep, lost coin, a lost son. Yet no one goes out. No one goes out to bring him home. No one goes out searching for him. It’s very striking. I mean, it might not be striking to us because we’ve been working through this for weeks, but if you actually read it through all at once, if you would have listened to the three together or read it through all together, it’s striking. Why isn’t there anyone who goes out? Jesus, I believe, deliberately does that to force us to ask a question. Well, who should have gone out? In this story of the father and the younger brother and the elder brother, who should have gone out? Anyone in that culture would have answered that question, “It’s the older brother’s job.” Remember the law of primogeniture? We’ve talked about it over the last few weeks. In ancient cultures, it was the oldest son whose job it was to keep the estate together, to keep the family together. That’s why he got the majority of the inheritance. It was his job to keep the family a family. Therefore, he should have gone.
14. How is the third parable different than the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin?
Edmund Clowney, in his wonderful sermon on this text, which is also, by the way, free online … It’s called Sharing the Father’s Welcome. In that sermon, he tells a true story about a young soldier who was missing in action during the Vietnam War. He was out, he was fighting, and then he was missing in action. Nobody knew what had happened to him. His family was, of course, grieved and bereft of hope. They did everything through official channels possible to find out what had happened to their son and weren’t able to find anything. Finally the older son, his older brother, flew from the United States right into Vietnam and went out into the jungles to look for him. He went into the most extreme danger. He went into the jungles, into the battlefields, searching for his younger brother. It said he survived. He was never touched. Do you know why? Because both sides were in awe and filled with respect for his quest. Many people simply called him just “the brother.” That’s what a true elder brother would have done. That’s what a true elder brother should have done. A true elder brother would have said, “Father, my younger brother has played the fool, and his life is in ruins, but I will go. I will go find him. If I find him, I’ll bring him back. If I get him back, I will bring him back into the family at my expense.” Did you hear that? That’s the key to it all. Do you know why? When the father here at the very end of the parable goes out to the elder brother and says, “My son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours,” he was telling him the literal truth, you know? Why? Because he had divided up his property, remember? The younger son had taken out his part of the property. It was gone. What that means now is every single thing the father owns, the elder brother owns. It’s all his. He is the only heir left. Every robe, every ring, every fatted calf belongs to the elder brother. Therefore, there is no way for the father to bring the younger brother back into the family except at the elder brother’s expense. Do you hear that? Of course the restoration of the younger son was free to him. Of course it was grace to him. Of course it was free to him, but it wasn’t free to the elder brother. It came at enormous expense to the elder brother. There’s no way for the father to bring the younger brother back in to the family except at the expense of the elder brother. In order to show the Pharisees what they look like, in order to lift up a mirror to the Pharisees who were there, in this story, the poor, younger brother gets a Pharisee for an elder brother. In our story, we don’t. Do you see yet? If we are the Prodigal Son, if we (the collective human race) are the Prodigal Son, we need a true Elder Brother. There is no way for the father to bring us back into the family, to readopt us, to bring us back in, to accept us, to clothe us, except at the expense of a true Elder Brother. What kind of true Elder Brother would we need? We would need not one that just comes from this country to that country, from America to Vietnam. We would need someone who would come all the way from heaven to earth. We wouldn’t just simply need a brother who pays a certain amount, a finite amount, of money, but someone who was willing to take upon himself our infinite, cosmic debt. We have him. Jesus Christ was stripped naked on the cross so we could be clothed in the robe and the dignity of an office that we don’t deserve. Jesus Christ drank the cup of eternal justice. Remember in the garden of Gethsemane? “Let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not my will but thine be done.” He drank the cup of eternal justice so we could receive the cup of festival joy in the Father’s feast. Do you see?
15. Who should have paid the cost of forgiving the younger brother and why?
We have a perfect Elder Brother. We have a true Elder Brother. It’s Jesus Christ. The Father could not bring us back in. He couldn’t bring any of us back in except at the expense of the true Elder Brother. He became, therefore, an exile for us. See, this true Elder Brother has to do one thing that elder brother in here wouldn’t have had to do in this story, because we are in exile as a punishment. What do we see when Jesus Christ comes back? He says, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” He was a wanderer. He wandered in the wilderness, and he was crucified outside the gate, like this sacrificial scapegoat. When he died, he said, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” He experienced the ultimate exile. Why? So he could bring us, his prodigal brothers and sisters, home. Home! What difference does it make to the way in which we live? See, there it is. That’s the solution. What difference does it make to how we live? Here’s what difference it makes. Not only in ancient times but today, what is the main way in which you have a homecoming? What is the main way in which you have a family reunion? You eat. There is no homecoming without food. You eat! In ancient times, the evening meal was the very center of family and community life. It was the very center. It lasted all evening. Once it got dark, you sat down to eat, and you ate until you went to bed. It was a long, protracted thing. Do you know why? Because the family meal was not only the ultimate symbol of, but it was the main way to practice an intimate flourishing, healthy family and human community. Why? Because it’s in the meal that you really feel home. There your body is getting what it needs: great food. There your soul, your heart, is getting laughter and information and support and relationship. See? It’s a place of physical and emotional and spiritual and relational flourishing. Boy, the great homecoming feast and the great reunion feast just give us … It’s at those moments that no matter what else is going wrong in our hearts, even for a second, we kind of feel almost home. Right? Then they pass away. We have to get up. Then there’s the dishwasher. Yet the Bible says because of the work of our true Elder Brother, someday Jesus Christ is going to make this world home again. He is going to wipe away death. He is going to wipe away suffering. He is going to wipe away tears. He is going to give us bodies that run and are never weary. He is going to give us a love without parting. It’s going to be the ultimate feast. That’s what we have in the future: the ultimate homecoming feast. Isaiah 25: “On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine—the best of meats and the finest of wines. On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples … he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth.” In Matthew 19 Jesus says, “I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things …” At the paliggenesia. “… at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones …” Matthew 8:11: “I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.” That’s your future. The greatest feast, the greatest time of fellowship, the greatest sense of well-being you have ever had spiritually, emotionally, and physically, which virtually always happens at communal gatherings of dear friends over great food, is just the dimmest hint of what your entire eternal future is going to be, the day Jesus Christ comes back. The Father falls on our neck, and our true Elder Brother opens the door and carries us in to that ultimate feast. What kind of people would you and I be if we could almost taste that? See, it’s in the future, but what if it was such a reality to our hearts and our minds that we could almost feel the Father’s kiss on our neck, we could almost taste that incredible food which will satiate all desire? What would we be like if that was real to us? The answer is we’d always have quiet confidence. We wouldn’t freak out over anything really. We would not lose hope when we lost some of our personal wealth. We wouldn’t lose hope when we got criticism or some relationship broke up, because we know about that ultimate homecoming feast. How can we keep it that real to us? Well, guess what? Jesus has given us a way. It’s called the Lord’s Supper. Have you ever thought about this? The main thing Jesus Christ gave … The only thing Jesus ever said is, “Do this in remembrance of me. Do this because it represents everything I have ever done and ever will do for you. Do this as a way of reuniting yourself and reenergizing your understanding of my salvation, what I have done. Do this as a way of reconnecting to the wonderful life-changing effects of the Father’s welcome and your homecoming.” It’s a meal (the Lord’s Supper). That’s the way Jesus gave us most vividly and most centrally to have the life-changing experience and effects of the Father’s welcome and homecoming and the work of our true Elder Brother come into our lives and shape them now. It works in two ways. First, the Lord’s Supper is a time of intimacy with Christ. Do you see what the father says at the end? “We have to celebrate.” Why? “Because my son who was dead is alive. Oh, I want to have fellowship with my son who was dead and who is alive.” Guess what? We have the ultimate Son who was dead and who is now alive. Jesus says, “If you want to have fellowship with me, if you want to remember me …” Remember is a stronger word than it seems like in English. “If you want to connect to me, if you want to make me real, eat in faith.” So Jesus is present. When we eat and drink in faith, you can’t see him with your eyes, but he is present. He is there for union and intimacy in a way he is not there or available in any other venue or way. Secondly, now think. If that’s true, then secondly, the very form of the Lord’s Supper is forcing you to admit the greatest moment of intimacy with Jesus Christ is a communal experience. The Lord’s Supper, a homecoming feast, is communal. You don’t go off into a corner and do it. Otherwise it’s not a feast. You can’t have a feast by yourself. Jesus, by the way in which he leaves this, is basically forcing on us really … He is forcing us to see that if you want to have union with him, if you want to have the life-changing effects of the Father’s welcome and the homecoming into your life now, you receive it communally. You have to do it together. You know, in the vast majority of you, who is actually going to hand you the bread and cup? It’s going to be a brother or a sister. See? Not me. Not a minister. Basically you’re going to give it to each other. In the strongest way, Jesus is saying, “If you want to really be shaped by my salvation, you have to share life together. You have to eat together. You have to talk together. You have to confess your sins together. You have to hold each other accountable together. You have to make decisions and consult with one another together. You have to learn together. You have to study together.” This is the reason why I say … I’m not trying to be mean. Listen. If you, for example, love a church so much that you travel to it because you love the teaching and you love the music and you take your notes, but if either you’re too busy or you’re too distant to actually be immersed, completely plunged, into the communal life, if that’s all you do (you show up for the big meeting), then when you take the Lord’s Supper, you’re contradicting the very way in which you live. In other words, the Lord’s Supper says you cannot get changed except by sharing life. You have to find a Christian community in which you immerse yourself, where you get accountable. That’s what the Lord’s Supper is all about. That’s the reason why we admit people to the Lord’s Supper through baptism, through vows. You cannot show the world who Jesus is except as a community. You cannot really experience freedom of forgiveness and conscience except through community. You can’t really deal with your idols, all the things we’ve been talking about for six or seven weeks. It’s not something between you and God. The salvation, Jesus says, by leaving us the Lord’s Supper is something you receive together through the sharing of life. That’s why community is so absolutely important.
16. What stands out to you from the above and why?
17. What does “palengensia” mean?
FRIDAY: 3 The New Communion
The new Communion This is the new way in which Jesus Christ provides for us to tap in to his saving work now. It’s possible to have a wonderful, dramatic, emotional experience about Jesus Christ and never really change in your life because you refuse to give yourself to Christian community. When you take the Lord’s Supper, you’re giving yourself to it. Make sure the way in which you live reflects what you’re about to do in this sacrament. Listen. When I got here 20 years ago, there were a lot of homeless people living in the parks. Even though the parks are wonderful places, parks were not built to be homes. You know, parks are wonderful places for people to go into for an hour or two or a few hours, but they’re not places where people can live 24 hours a day. You know, sleep, sort of wash, defecate. No. What happened was, when people tried to have the parks support the full weight of their entire lives, the parks became foul. They’re wonderful places, but they’re not home. Okay? What are you really finding your significance and security in? What are you looking to to really satisfy the deep needs of your heart for love and for meaning and for significance? Is it your family? Is that the most important thing? Is it your career? Is that the most important thing? I don’t know. Whatever it is, if it’s not God, it’s like a park. It may be a wonderful thing, but it’s not home. It can’t bear the full weight of your soul. If you try to make it do that, like Cain, you’ll always be wandering, always traveling, and never home. It will always be winter and never Christmas. Say to the Father, “Father, accept me because of the work of my true Elder Brother. Help me to begin even now to taste this incredible future salvation that you have made for me. Turn me into someone like your Son.” Let us pray. Our Father, we thank you we have this sacrament, we have a place where we can get a foretaste of that final feast. We ask you would help us by immersing ourselves in the church, in the Christian community, that we would begin to get the life-changing effects of your welcome, your salvation, and your love shaping our lives in every respect. Thank you for the gospel, and thank you for your Son. In his name we pray, amen.
18. What stands out to you from the above and why?
SATURDAY:
19. What is your take-a-way and why?
118 comments
Sunday:
Think of one of your best experiences on earth — and then realize that is only a hint of what is to come. Share it here — or anything else you want to share about God’s goodness this week.
So very many, but I do not want to overthink this, the first one that popped into my mind was visiting Walt Disney World with my grandchildren, aged 7 and 4 at the time. I know, I know, many other spectacular things have happened, but that popped up first. The joy and wonder on their little faces was this grandmother’s delight. I’m not sure how this is a hint except that seeing Jesus’ face will be the ultimate delight for me.
Love this Cheryl…“seeing Jesus’ face will be the ultimate delight for me.”
Me too!!!
Love this, too, Cheryl! ” seeing Jesus’ face will be the ultimate delight for me.” And we will know Him!
Cheryl, I think you capsulized what makes an experience so deeply meaningful when you said “the joy and wonder on their little faces”.
I believe joy and wonder are the two ingredients that make our best experiences so special.
Their little faces….yes.
What a great analogy, Cheryl! I love the joy and wonder on the faces of your sweet grandchildren. It will be the ultimate awe filled joy to see the face of Jesus. I am not sure my earthly mind can comprehend that joy! But I look forward to that day!
Sunday:
1. Think of one of your best experiences on earth — and then realize that is only a hint of what is to come. Share it here — or anything else you want to share about God’s goodness this week.
One of the best experiences for me was going to Africa…seeing animals in the wild, climbing volcanoes, meeting the amazing people there and all the beautiful landscapes. This is definitely only a hint of what heaven will be like…I can only imagine!
Sharon, yes! We can only imagine! And heaven will be much more.
I can only imagine…like the movie and song. Love it.
It does sound heavenly, Sharon!
We indeed have to celebrate!!!
I finished listening to Paige this afternoon, and as often, she just makes me smile and happy in the Lord. She reminds me of Tim Keller, who always made it a point to end his messages with Jesus. Jesus is written in all the books of the Bible, and one day we shall see Him as He is. He will be the same Jesus that these disciples saw, heard, and touched two thousand years ago.
He is not here…He is risen…He is risen, indeed! Amazing how words just properly placed together bring joy and hope to my heart. I have been challenged to:
“Walk the road from Emmaus”-tell others about the greatest news ever-He is risen, indeed!
Hold in my heart the knowledge that Jesus left His throne in glory so He can save me and take me back to the Father and share in their glory
Take to heart the commission He has entrusted to me, not because I am smart or talented, but because I am a witness to the truth of His life, His calling, and his triumphant victory over death. And He has sent the Spirit to be my Comforter, Guide, and Counselor.
He is risen, indeed!
We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. I John 1:3
I finished up with the study and she didn’t disappoint. I thought she did a nice job. She made me laugh, cry, and wonder. I especially liked this part, where she spoke of Jesus being in every part of the Bible:
“He is in every book. He is the seed in Genesis, the I Am in Exodus, the mercy seat in Leviticus, the rising star in Numbers, the rock in Deuteronomy, the commander in Joshua, the redeemer in Job, the shepherd, fortress and hiding place in the Psalms, h
He is the man of sorrows in Isaiah, the husband in Hosea, and the desire of all nations in Haggai.”
It was a thought provoking study!
That we may have fellowship-yes. This will be the best.
Sunday:
Think of one of your best experiences on earth — and then realize that is only a hint of what is to come. Share it here — or anything else you want to share about God’s goodness this week.
Although the first thing that came to mind as one of my best experiences here on earth was our wedding, the experience I have had with the kids at the elementary school this past week was beautiful, too. I also saw the goodness of the Lord to me.
I taught the third graders a Filipino song and the ukulele chords that went with it. I had about 45 minutes with them, so I included an impromptu dance lesson, which led to some giggles. They, and their teacher, were all game for it and did a great job pronouncing the Filipino words (Tagalog). I was so happy and encouraged by how their little faces, bodies, and voices took on the song. And I thought what a gift the Lord has allowed me to see. I know a few of the kids have had a hard life at such a young age, but at that time, they were happy.
I look forward to singing and dancing in heaven, where joy is eternal for children and adults alike.
Bing,
What a delight to hear about your teaching experience with the children.
Bing, what fun you must of had with the kids. So you play the ukulele too…so talented!!
I look forward to singing and dancing in heaven…eternal joy!!!
Me too!
Makes me wish I could sit in on your music class. 🙂
I can picture this and love it!
Thank you, all! It was, indeed, a beautiful experience. And come to think of it, I must have been homesick. (smile) Nothing like music to ease the soul. Add children…
What a beautiful gift you gave these sweet children, Bing! I love all of your amazing talents and your legacy. You are making wonderful memories for you and the kids!
We Had To Celebrate
Sunday:
Think of one of your best experiences on earth — and then realize that is only a hint of what is to come. Share it here — or anything else you want to share about God’s goodness this week.
—I have been fortunate to have experienced a number of wonderful things in my life. So just to pick just one I will say it was a musical experience. I was able to sit in a concert hall (Patti, 😊 in Seattle) and experience and enjoy the incredible sounds of a symphony orchestra playing “Rhapsody in Blue” with an amazing accomplished pianist. The richness of the sounds and the perfection of the performance was an incredible experience. It was a gift from my youngest daughter and my very first time of hearing a symphony live. And to think that is just a taste or as you said a hint of what is to come. I have read where individuals who had near death experiences heard music that was incredibly exquisite and unexplainable.
—I experienced the goodness of God this past week in that it was my birthday and I was richly blessed to have my brother and his wife from Missouri come down and spend a few days with us. They are sweet Christians and it was an especially refreshing time.
Happy Birthday Bev!
How wonderful you got to experience a symphony…just a taste of what we have to look forward to!
Happy birthday, Bev! The beautiful sounds of a symphony orchestra are indeed a precursor to the music that will be in heaven. Orchestra music touches our emotions and can lift us up. Just think what it will be like when we join the eternal song in praise of our Lord!
Sharon — I lit up to see you back!
❤️😊
Happy birthday!
Symphony orchestra is a wonderful experience! and Happy Birthday!
I love this hint of heaven! And I’m so glad God made you!
Oooh, Bev! A symphony! And yes, I am so looking forward to music in heaven! Belated happy birthday, and I’m glad to hear your brother and his wife came to celebrate with you.
Happy Birthday dear Bev! What a joy to celebrate you! I am so happy that your brother and wife were with you! “Rhapsody in Blue” live, sounds so heavenly!
1. Think of one of your best experiences on earth — and then realize that is only a hint of what is to come. Share it here — or anything else you want to share about God’s goodness this week.
Well, getting married, completing college, birthing babies…the usual things are the best experiences. I haven’t had too many exciting times in my life!
I can’t believe a woman said that to you, Dee. About sex and marriage no less! I have never thought about, much less heard anyone say anything like that about heaven, in my life. I could see a man lamenting about it, but a woman??? Or maybe I’m the one whose off…
Laura — you make me smile!
I know I was disappointed when I first learned that too — but probably esp about marriage.
Sunday:
Think of one of your best experiences on earth — and then realize that is only a hint of what is to come. Share it here — or anything else you want to share about God’s goodness this week.
We are studying Song of Solomon at my church, as I shared last week. How like the Lord to tie together our study here with the one at church and make me think. Some of you know this subject is very sensitive for me. As wives we know that intimacy with our husband is truly one of the “best experiences on earth” and does indeed hint at what is to come. Due to my health, I have lost this and it is a great grief in our marriage and has taken years to understand that it is gone and there is no “magic pill” to bring it back. I cannot really fully explain the loss. It is not the same as a lessened desire many experience in menopause. The best I can say is that I have lost my sexuality and to understand that it must happen to you. It brings a numbness to all relationships and if I ponder it too much, it brings depression. I must remember the bigger picture and the parts of life I do still have.
So…our pastor’s main points this week are so good from chapter 7 in Song of Solomon. The world’s way of love is fragile and self-centered. Jesus way produces secure and flourishing love. The world critiques, Jesus teaches us to delight. The world chases excitement, Jesus teaches us to cultivate desire. The world chases feeling, Jesus teaches devotion. In his final remarks the pastor says, Jesus didn’t come for the perfect bride, but for the broken one. He came for me 🥹. Song of Solomon 7:10 I am my beloved’s and his desire is for me.
I can understand your friend’s remarks, Dee. But you must tell her that there will be no need for marriage or sex in heaven, for there will be something even better.
Chris, your openness and vulnerability about your health touches my heart. To have such a loss and still be able to be such an encouragement to others (me) through your experiences, study, and wisdom is a shining example of the Lord can do through a life surrendered to Him. jesus didn’t come for a perfect bride, but a broken one. Thank you so much for your openess and honesty.
Chris, thank you for your vulnerable sharing here. “Jesus way produces secure and flourishing love. Jesus didn’t come for the perfect bride, but for the broken one.”
Thank you for sharing this perspective so openly, Chris. I am thankful that you can remember the bigger picture and what you do have. As a widow, I relate to Jesus coming for the broken bride. I love this: The world’s way of love is fragile and self-centered. Jesus way produces secure and flourishing love.
I did listen to your pastor and thought he was excellent.
Monday: Texts and Introduction
2. Exile and Homecoming are a repeating theme in Scripture. How did each of the following lose their home & family? How do you see sorrow or pain?
A. Luke 15:14-16
He lost his family and home by choice.
I see physical pain in him being hungry because he ran out of money about the time there was a famine in the land. Maybe emotional pain because no one gave him anything and a longing to be home where he wouldn’t be starving.
B. Luke 15:28-30
He also lost his home and family by choice because of his anger.
He felt pain and sorrow because he was a good son and never had a party thrown for him like his younger brother who left home and squandered all his money.
C. Genesis. 3:24 (Adam and Eve)
They lost their home because of disobedience.
They must of felt pain and sorrow after being sent out of the garden.
D. Genesis 27:41-45 (Jacob)
He lost his home and family because he deceived his father and his brother Esau was plotting to kill him over the stolen birthright.
I wonder if he felt sorrow over his deception and definitely being sent away from all that he knew.
E. Genesis 42:35-38 (Joseph)
Joseph lost his home and family because his brothers sold him into slavery.
I see sorrow and pain from being taken away from his mother, father and younger brother Benjamin and being rejected and hated by his half brothers.
F. Exodus 2:23-25 (Israelites)
They were slaves in Egypt.
Their groaning and cry for help expressed their sorrow and pain.
Psalm 137
They were exiled to Babylon because of their rejection and disobedience to God.
Their pain and sorrow really comes through in this Psalm…they sat and wept as they thought of Jerusalem, put away their harps and their captors and tormentors demanded and insisted they sing a joyful hymn but how could they sing while in a pagan land.
3. In the following, describe the joy of “coming home.”
A. Genesis 33:1-4
Jacob was hesitant about meeting Esau but he bowed to the ground 7 times before Esau , then Esau ran to meet him and embraced him, threw his arms around his neck, and kissed him. And they both wept.
B. Genesis 45:1-5
When Joseph was alone with his brothers he broke down and wept. He wept so loudly that the Egyptians could hear him. He told them he was Joseph and asked if his father was still alive. They just stood there stunned and he called them closer to him and told them again he was Joseph, their brother, the one they sold into slavery in Egypt, but told them not to be upset for it was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives.
C. Exodus 15:20-21
After God parted the Red Sea for the Israelites and the Egyptians were drowned , Miriam sang…”Sing to the LORD, for He has triumphed gloriously; He has hurled both horse and rider into the sea.”
D. Isaiah 25:6-9
In Jerusalem, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies will spread a wonderful feast for all the people of the world. A delicious banquet with wine and choice meat. God will remove the cloud of gloom and the shadow of death that hangs over the earth. He’ll swallow up death forever, wipe away all tears, and remove forever all insults and mockery against His land and people. In that day people will proclaim, “this is our God! We trusted in Him, and He saved us. Let us rejoice in the salvation He brings!”
4. What is unheimlichkeit?
Homesickness. A feeling that this world isn’t our home. We’re living in a place that’s at odds with our deepest desires.
Have you experienced it? Give an example, if possible.
I have experienced it a lot lately with all that is going on in our world. There is so much evil, lawlessness, ungodliness and hatred that it makes me long for my eternal home where all of God’s children around this world…Iran, Africa, China etc. will be together, standing in the glorious love and light of our Savior, singing a new song. O, what a day of rejoicing that will be!
Love seeing you back, Sharon! I have missed you! Love this answer to 4. Homesickness
I have experienced it a lot lately with all that is going on in our world. There is so much evil, lawlessness, ungodliness and hatred that it makes me long for my eternal home where all of God’s children around this world…Iran, Africa, China etc. will be together, standing in the glorious love and light of our Savior, singing a new song. O, what a day of rejoicing that will be!
Thank you Patty. Missed being here and especially all you wonderful ladies. It is good to be back.
🙏🥰
Our serious Bible student is back!
I loved this especially:There is so much evil, lawlessness, ungodliness and hatred that it makes me long for my eternal home where all of God’s children around this world…Iran, Africa, China etc. will be together, standing in the glorious love and light of our Savior, singing a new song. O, what a day of rejoicing that will be!
Monday: Texts and Introduction
2. Exile and Homecoming are a repeating theme in Scripture. How did each of the following lose their home & family? How do you see sorrow or pain?
Luke 15:14-16
The “prodigal son” left his family for the far country. Not only did he lose all of his inheritance, but so did the father lose some of his property, and consequently did the whole family. Sorrow and pain for the whole family. And additionally to the son was his pain of hunger, deprivation, and disconnection.
Luke 15:28-30
The oldest son was bitter toward his father and brother. Perhaps, long before this came to be, this older brother had already lost his connection with both. Bitterness in his heart may have festered long before his younger brother asked for his inheritance and physically left home.
Genesis. 3:24 (Adam and Eve)
Adam and Eve were banished and driven out of Eden. They no longer have the company of God and his abundant provision without having to toil the ground by the sweat of his brow.
Genesis 27:41-45 and Genesis 42:35-38 (Jacob)
Jacob left his family and fled to Laban because Esau talked about killing him because of what Jacob did. Simeon was left in Egypt. Jacob was bereft, thinking he had lost two sons at this time. This must have been a painful time for the 10 brothers, remembering what they had done to Joseph many years ago.
Exodus 2:23-25 (Israelites)
The Israelites were in slavery in Egypt. They groaned under the hardship of slavery.
Psalm 137
The people of God were in a foreign land and being tormented and taunted by their enemies to sing their songs. There was much weeping, especially as they remembered their homeland.
3. In the following, describe the joy of “coming home.”
Genesis 33:1-4
There was weeping between Esau and Jacob in their reunion. There was embracing and kissing, symbols of affection.
Genesis 45:1-5
There was weeping on Joseph’s part.
Exodus 15:20-21
There was singing and dancing.
Isaiah 25:6-9
There will be feasting, no more death, tears, and disgrace. A coming together of people from all nations and much rejoicing.
Keller’s Introduction
We’re looking for a number of weeks at this famous parable of the prodigal son. We’re looking not just at how the grace of God changes our individual lives but also how it changes our relationships with each other, how it forms a new kind of human community, a unique human society. Today we’re going to look at how Jesus so brilliantly ties this story in with one of the main themes (or maybe the main theme) of the entire Bible, which is exile and homecoming. You know, here’s an unlikely supporter reference, but this twentieth century philosopher Martin Heidegger believed all human beings were characterized by unheimlichkeit, which means homesickness. It means to be alienated, to feel that we’re not really home in this world, to feel that we are in exile, that we’re in a world that’s profoundly at variance with our deepest desires. Why would that be? What are we going to do about that? Those profound questions are all addressed and actually answered by this wonderful parable. Let’s take a look at how it does that under three headings. We’re going to learn here about the human condition, the divine solution for it, and the new Communion that is the result. Human condition, divine solution, new Communion.
4. What is unheimlichkeit? Have you experienced it? Give an example, if possible.
“Unheimlichkeit” means homesickness. Yes, I have experienced it. The first time was when Richard and I came to the US after we got married in the Philippines. My dad died 2 months before our wedding day, and we left the Philippines 2 months after it. Everything felt like a whirlwind. There I was in a foreign land, adjusting to many new things and feeling like I was just dreaming. One evening, Richard and I were talking, and without any warning, a sudden rush of homesickness came over me. I burst into tears, then realized I am fatherless, and I am thousands of miles away from my mom and my two siblings. Even as I think of that time right now, I can still recall the heaviness of that experience. I am thankful for a godly husband, supportive in-laws, and the grace of God that helped me weather that difficult time. I have seen Him bring comfort to me each time homesickness threatens to overwhelm me since then.
I can only imagine the homesickness when all 3 of thoose things dovetailed. New marriage, new land, and loss of father.
Monday: Texts and Introduction
2. Exile and Homecoming are a repeating theme in Scripture. How did each of the following lose their home & family? How do you see sorrow or pain?
Luke 15:14-16 The younger son chose to leave his home and family to chase excitement and fleshly desires. He had physical pain when all his money was spent and he experienced starvation. There was sorrow, too: lonliness and regret. Loss by choice
Luke 15:28-30 .the anger of the elder son caused him to criticize and reject his father. His self-righteous, prideful attitude brought sorrow to his father. Loss by choice
Genesis. 3:24 (Adam and Eve) Adam and Eve were forced out of the garden by God. There would be pain as they now had to fend for themselves. There would be sorrow as their relationship with God had now been broken. Forced loss as a consequence
Genesis 27:41-45 (Jacob) Jacob, on the advice of his mother Rebekah, left his home and family. His brother Esau had threatened to kill Jacob (once their father had died), because through deception (instigated by Rebekah) Jacob had gained Isaac’s final blessing (which should have gone to Esau as the eldest). Jacob obviously had little respect for his father and selfish desires. He left his home without even considering the consequences. I see the sorrow of Rebekah, who never saw her favorite son again. I see the sorrow of Isaac upon his discovery that Jacob had decieved him. Jacob has many years of toil ahead of him. Loss by choice, sorrow for others as consequence
Genesis 42:35-38 (Jacob) Jacob expeienced tremendous grief athe (supposed) death of his son Joseph. Joseph and Benjamin wee his sons from beloved Rachel. In this passage there is the possibility of losing Benjamin, also, due to a planned deception by Joseph. Jacob is frantic and says, Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me. Loss due to the actions of others
Exodus 2:23-25 (Israelites) Jacob ended up going to Egypt with his whole household and livestock after reconciliation with Joseph. The Hebrews prospered and multiplied, but instead of returning to the land of promise (and to their God). they stayed in Egypt. Eventually a pharoah arose that did not know or recognize the prior history of what Joseph had done for Egypt, and he enslaved the Hebrews. There was great suffering and sorrow as a result. AT this point I don’t think they knew what had been left behind, the true loss.
Psalm 137 The Israelites lost their home when taken into captivity to Babylon. There was sorrow, suffering, and a constant longing to go bak to their home. Loss was not by choice
Liked your description of Jacoob’s sorrow. I think it is KJV where Judah (I think) pleads with Joseph saying my father’s soul is knit with Benjamin’s — oh the pain of the loss of a child or spouse
4. What is unheimlichkeit? Have you experienced it? Give an example, if possible. It is “homesickness.” Yes, I have. Each winter, since I retired, we have traveled and spent the winter months in Soth Carolina. During the first two months or so, I am happy to see my friends here, experience the pleasant surroundings and friendly people. But there comes a time when I just want to be home. I ask myself, “What am I doing here? Why am I still here?” Of course there are very good answers for those questions, but the longing for home is always in the back of my mind.
Spiritually I don’t belong here on earth, and I long for the day when I see Jesus face to face. I feel like Lot some days, whose soul was vexed with the filthy conversation (lifestyle, speech, hatefulness, injustice, etc.) of the wicked. 2Peter 2:7
Interesting comparison to Lot, Cheryl. I agree, spiritually life here is hard.
I can see how winter months in the south would be lovely at first and then the homesickness would set in.
So many of my Door County friends who flee during the winter express the same thing
2. Exile and Homecoming are a repeating theme in Scripture. How did each of the following lose their home & family? How do you see sorrow or pain?
Luke 15:14-16
The prodigal was starving and had nothing because of his own choices. He wanted to eat with the pigs! How sad.
Luke 15:28-30
The older brother was mad and didn’t appreciate his father. He was jealous of the younger brother. That’s something he would have to live with if he didn’t get over it. He was near the burden.
Monday: Texts and Introduction
2. Exile and Homecoming are a repeating theme in Scripture. How did each of the following lose their home & family? How do you see sorrow or pain?
Luke 15:14-16-the prodigal son chose to leave his family to chase after his own desires. His sorrow came when he found he had lost everything and was now lower than one of his father’s servants.
Luke 15:28-30-the brother to the prodigal felt he deserved his father’s love over the prodigal because of his good works and refused to love his lost brother and father, but instead nurse his bitterness driving a wedge between them.
Genesis. 3:24 (Adam and Eve)-they chose to believe a lie and severed their relationship with God.
Genesis 27:41-45 and Genesis 42:35-38 (Jacob)-Jacob stole the birthright which incited anger in Esau so that Jacob had to flee for his life-his life was built on lies and his sons followed suit causing much pain when his son Joseph was sold to Egypt.
Exodus 2:23-25 (Israelites)-these Israelites remained in Egypt after having grown up there after Joseph’s time. Moses was brought up to help return them home. Their pain is a result of generations of turning away from the Lord’s ways and believing lies from the enemy rather than resting in God’s covenant love. God had mercy on their pain as slaves.
Psalm 137-God’s people were captives in Babylon and they longed to be home again as they were far from home and tormented by their captors to sing the Lord’s song among foreigners.
3. In the following, describe the joy of “coming home.”
Genesis 33:1-4-Jacob had been afraid he would be killed out of revenge, but instead his brother fell on him with kisses he did not deserve.
Genesis 45:1-5-this sweet moment when Joseph is overcome with love for his family after so many years of torment away from them, suffering in prison and worse. He is overcome with emotion and cries so that everyone can hear in the palace. His thoughts turn to his brothers and he has compassion on them, setting their minds at ease over their sin.
Exodus 15:20-21-what a dramatic moment in Israel’s history after crossing the Red Sea and finally being freed from Pharaoh. Their joy is sung loudly and expressed in dance.
Isaiah 25:6-9-death swallowed forever, all tears wiped away, the Lord praised as we rejoice in His salvation.
4. What is unheimlichkeit? Have you experienced it? Give an example, if possible. Homesickness-that feeling of I don’t belong here as all is not right. Yes, Yes. This feeling comes more and more in this world. When I feel and see suffering, the feeling comes. I remember when I first heard of divorce and feared that in my family as a little girl. What is wrong with our world? This should not be. Then experiencing it and certainly this should not be. Our true home in heaven will have no more tears and will be a place of perfect love. This is where we truly belong and will be home.
2. Exile and Homecoming are a repeating theme in Scripture. How did each of the following lose their home & family? How do you see sorrow or pain?
Genesis. 3:24 (Adam and Eve)
They were banished from the garden. There was a scary blockade put in place. No one could get to the tree of life. They were set apart from God now.
Genesis 27:41-45 and Genesis 42:35-38 (Jacob)
Jacob is sent away and Rebekah will not see him for a long time. She “loses” her son because she fears for his life. Esau wants to kill him.
Exodus 2:23-25 (Israelites)
They groaned to God about their bondage. They had been a slaves for too many years in Egypt. They were exhausted.
Psalm 137
The Israelites were captive in Babylon. They were not allowed to go home to Jerusalem. They were forced to sing and play their harps. They missed their homeland.
2. Exile and Homecoming are a repeating theme in Scripture. How did each of the following lose their home & family? How do you see sorrow or pain?
Luke 15:14-16 The son chose to leave. He was dissatisfied with his life and with his family. He took his inheritance and took control of his own life. Turning from his father and making his own choices was disastrous and he lost everything, his home and family. He did not want his father, he only wanted his father’s gifts.
Luke 15:28-30 The older son was obedient, self righteous, self centered and legalistic, like the Pharisees. He obeyed the laws of the family, but his heart was filled bitterness for his father. He had hatred, not forgiveness for his brother. but he did not the father, he only wanted the father’s gifts.
Genesis. 3:24 (Adam and Eve) Adam and Eve were driven out of the garden of Eden that God had given to them. Their disobedience to the Father changed their lives from glorious in the garden, to a life of toil, and it fractured their relationship with God.
Genesis 27:41-45 and Genesis 42:35-38 (Jacob) Because of Esau’s jealousy, Jacob feared for his life and was sent away by Rebekah. Later in life Jacob lost Joseph, when his brothers sold him into slavery. Jacob thought Joseph was dead due to the brothers story. Sorrow and separation due to deception, going back to Jacob taking the birthright of Esau.
Exodus 2:23-25 (Israelites) The Israelites were living in bondage in Egypt. They cried out to the Lord. He heard their groaning. So much sorrow, due to disobedience.
Psalm 137 ~ The descendants of Esau were full of animosity to the descendants of Jacob. Bitter memories of years in a foreign land, separation from Zion.
Tuesday: 1 The Human Condition (A)
We said the main theme of the Bible, perhaps, is the theme of exile and homecoming. The book of Genesis tells us about our beginnings. We were made for the garden of God. That was home. Home is a place that fits and suits you. It fits and suits your deepest desires and your needs. It’s a place where you can be your true self. In the garden of God, there was God’s infinite beauty that satisfied the beauty sensors of the soul. There was work cultivating the garden that satisfied the deepest creative capacities of the heart. There was his counsel, the counsel of God from his own lips, satisfied the farthest reachings of our mind. Of course, the love of God, his face, his arms satisfied what is really an infinite need for love and affirmation. We need to be delighted in. All of these things were there.
5. Describe what man had before the fall.
We were made for the garden that we call home. A place that suits and fits us. Our deepest desires and needs are met, where we can be our true selves, and there is infinite beauty (wow!-no achy backs and knees to plant flowers!), where God speaks to us and we are always closer than an arm’s length from the embrace of God. Always loved and delighted in!
We were home, but according to the Bible, the very same thing happened to the human race collectively that happened to the younger son. We chafed under the Father’s authority. We wanted to live our lives the way we wanted to live our lives. By the way, we make that same choice every single day. As a result, we’re alienated from the Father, and we’ve lost our home. We’re in exile, and we’re in want, and we’re in hunger, like the younger son. Isn’t that interesting? That’s the reason why there’s a sense in which (a very, very powerful sense in which) Jesus is saying, “Everybody in the human race, this is about you.” We’re all the Prodigal Son. We’re all wandering in a world that no longer fits our deepest longings and needs.
6. How were Adam and Eve like the younger son? How are we?
Adam and Eve were not satisfied with what God had given them. They wanted to live lives according to what they think they should and could in their own ways. So are we. Always looking for the next thing that could satisfy, but while we live in this world, there will not be any iota of satisfaction in its things.
Eva Hoffman, a Polish Jewish intellectual whose parents had to flee Europe during the Holocaust, has written about exile. In her essay “Wanderers by Choice,” she says, “Since Adam and Eve left the garden of Eden, is there anyone who does not, in some way, feel like an exile? We feel ejected from our first homes and landscapes, from our first romance, from our authentic self. An ideal sense of belonging, of attuning with others and ourselves, eludes us.” You read somebody who actually literally was an exile. When she says, “You know, since Adam and Eve, we’re all exiles. Nobody is happy in this world. We all are alienated from our first homes, our landscapes, our first romance, our authentic self.” “Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration. Maybe she is just projecting her experience on all the rest of us.”
7. Do you think you are homesick for Eden, for heaven? Explain.
Yes. I was talking to a friend earlier today, and she said she feels unsettled. Now that she has reached another “rung” in her career, she is grasping for “what’s next.” This could have been an opportunity for me to do a Becky Pippert way of questioning, but I just listened. And upon reflection, I realized I am often tempted to feel unsettled, too. And if it were not for the grace of God and the work of the Spirit in my life, these feelings of being unsettled could drag me down. But praise God that He gives us hope for another world, one where satisfaction is eternal.
Can you describe the Becky Pippert way of questioning for me?
Dee, I remember how Becky would say to ask things to connect with words of the other person. To cultivate curiosity by listening and asking questions. I did ask her what she meant by “ unsettled”. She then went on to say how she thought she would be happier where she is right now but that happiness isn’t there as she expected. Due to time constraints, we had to stop talking. Which made think what Becky said about follow up questions.
Although I felt like I wasn’t “successful in sharing my faith, I have been ruminating about what to say to her next time I see her. So I have been listening to Becky lately. She emphasized praying for the person, not seeing the person as another “ project”, and truly loving the person.
thanks for asking! This has prompted me to ponder my relationship with this person.
3. In the following, describe the joy of “coming home.”
Genesis 33:1-4 So much joy at reconciliation, love and forgiveness! God had been working on Esau’s heart and had blessed him. He no longer held anger for Jacob.
Genesis 45:1-5 The brothers were in fear, at first, when Joseph told them who he was. God did a work through the brothers’ cruel treatment of Joseph. Joseph was sent by God to preserve them and deliver them from the famine!
Exodus 15:20-21 A wonderful moment of celebration after the Israelites crossed the Red Sea.
Isaiah 25:6-9 Thanking God for forgiveness of past sins and His remembering them with His never ending mercy, love and goodness.
I wrote the reference in my Bible ~Revelation 19:7. The Marriage of the Lamb.💕
Tuesday: 1 The Human Condition (A)
5. Describe what man had before the fall. Adam and Eve had GOD before the fall: the beauty of God’s garden and all the creatures within, God’s companionship/fellowship, God’s direct verbal counsel, God’s provison for all needs, and God’s love. They had the security, comfort, and love of God in abundance.
6. How were Adam and Eve like the younger son? How are we? They also thought thy knew better than their Father what was best for them. They rebelled against the Father’s rules. They desired MORE, thinking that would give them satisfaction. Before the Lord opened my eyes to truth, I also believed I knew what was best for me (I was a good girl, after all). I didn’t wnat/need God’s authority over my life.
I can still be rebellious when I ignore the Holy Spirit’s prompting by making excuses. I’m too tired..too busy…too old…too whatever….
7. Do you think you are homesick for Eden, for heaven? Explain. The older I get the more homesick I am for heaven. Being a mom to four children, going back to college, teaching/working with children, abeing very active in church left little time to really think/long for heaven. Without all that activity I spend more time in the Word, and the yearning to be “home” with my Lord grows stronger. When my mother was diagnosed with brain cancer and given two or three weeks to live, she was content and happy. The Lord still has a purpose here for me, but I am not afraid for it all to end. I know where I’m going and WHO will be there to greet me, Jesus.
Wow, Cheryl, your mom was diagnosed and died within 2 weeks? That must have been difficult for you. I can’t imagine getting that news for myself or for a family member. She must have been solid in the Word.
She had a fall and her speech became slurred. My sister (mom was living with her at the time) thought she’d had a stroke. An MRI showed a large lesion in her brain. The doctor said it had been there a long time, but up until that point there had been no symptoms. Diagnosis shortly after New Year’s Day, don’t remember which day exactly, and she died on January 17. We were on our way to SC, and my sister told us while we were in the car traveling. It was a shock, and I sobbed. I was able to spend a week with her before she passed. The first few days she was very talkative, and she just kept smiling and witnessing, it was amazing. It was a precious time that I will cherish until my final breath.
How wonderful to have that precious time at the end, with your mother. I love these words from her. “The Lord still has a purpose here for me, but I am not afraid for it all to end. I know where I’m going and WHO will be there to greet me, Jesus.”
Your mother sounds like an amazing woman.
What a beautiful story of your mother 💕
3. In the following, describe the joy of “coming home.”
Genesis 33:1-4
Jacob and Esau hugged and wept!
Genesis 45:1-5
The brothers of Joseph were “stunned and speechless.”
Exodus 15:20-21
Miriam and others sang, danced and played music.
Isaiah 25:6-9
There will be a great feast with fine wine. The Lord will remove the cloud of negativity that shrouds the people. The people will rejoice!
Tuesday: 1 The Human Condition (A)
5. Describe what man had before the fall.
Perfection, innocence, communion with God, peace and home.
6. How were Adam and Eve like the younger son? How are we?
I think Keller puts it well…”the very same thing happened to the human race collectively that happened to the younger son. We chafed under the Father’s authority. We wanted to live our lives the way we wanted to live our lives. ‘
7. Do you think you are homesick for Eden, for heaven? Explain.
Definitely. See my answer #4 on Monday.
4. What is unheimlichkeit? Have you experienced it? Give an example, if possible.
It is homesickness. I guess each time I leave on vacation, spend some time somewhere, then come home, I feel very glad I am home. So, maybe this is being homesick?
5. Describe what man had before the fall.
There was peace and joy and love and all the things that make us happy. Man had it all.
6. How were Adam and Eve like the younger son? How are we?
They were alienated from the Father just like the younger son. They hungered like him. They longed for their old home.
We also are alienated and hungry for something better than here. We long for more, that’s why we chase our idols.
7. Do you think you are homesick for Eden, for heaven? Explain.
I know that I would give anything to be away from the pain of this world. I suppose that must mean heaven (?).
Yes, that is homesickness!
5. Describe what man had before the fall.
A beautiful garden and a loving Father who met every need.
7. Do you think you are homesick for Eden, for heaven? Explain.
I do. We all feel the injustice of this world. The choices made that hurt God and fellow man. We all yearn for relationships and bodies to be whole and for no more tears. I have a friend who has grown children. She raised them the best she could in what she felt was a Christian home. Of course not perfect, but the best she could do as a fallen person along with her husband. Currently, they are in family counseling and relationships are a mess. It’s all sin in our lives that does this. In heaven, relationships will be whole with the Father and with each other.
It will be wonderful to have perfect relationship when we are sitting at the feet of Jesus. So true, Chris. This world is broken.
I understand this completely (about your friend). My husband and I did everything we knew to raise good kids. I often ask myself how and what we did wrong. The world takes control and sometimes there is nothing we can do but pray. My husband and I are at a marriage retreat this weekend. We need to work on us. The presenters put up a picture of their entire family. It made me cry. I have a picture of most of our family from 4 years ago. We are missing the oldest who doesn’t speak to us anymore. I may never have another picture of my entire family, as we are all scattered across the world and some of us are hurting and estranged. So sad.
Prayer for strength and healing.
I’m so sorry. Makes me think of Jacob losing Joseph.
I hear such sorrow in your voice here, Laura. I’m so sorry for all the heartache you’ve had. Dear Lord, As Laura and her husband have this time alone, just meet them where they are. Strengthen them, Lord and cover them with Your gracious Hand.
5. Describe what man had before the fall.
Man was given a Home, a beautiful and perfect garden, but they wanted the one thing they were told they could not have. They had already been given rule over the earth.(Genesis 1:26) All that God made was good.
6. How were Adam and Eve like the younger son? How are we?
Adam and Eve listened to the voice of the serpent, and really to the voice of “self”. They must be missing something grand, for they felt they would be like God if they ate from that one tree. They were dissatisfied. They wanted to be on charge. We are so like them. We constantly desire more. We are easily tempted by the fruits of the world, even knowing that it will end poorly.
7. Do you think you are homesick for Eden, for heaven? Explain.
Yes, I am homesick for heaven. I think Sharon stated it well. It will be wonderful to be with all of God’s children from all over the world, in our perfect home, at the feet of Jesus. No pain, no sorrow, no loneliness, just endless Praising God, as we bask in His glorious light.
Yes, to #7!
8. What is unsatisfying about the philosophy of Lion King?
It does not give a deep and lasting purpose to life, knowing that one is going to be fertilizer for the grass. It devalues God’s purpose for us.
9. Some Christians feel we should rejoice at the death of a Christian, others feel it is right to grieve, much as Dylan Thomas feels. What are your thoughts?
I cannot rejoice at the loss, yet I can rejoice knowing I will see my loved one in heaven one day. I can rejoice in knowing that my loved one knew Jesus, but the loss of the light in your life, is a pain that is not easy to control.
10. How did Camus believe we “get around the sense of homelessness?” True for you?
Clinging to small things to look forward to can help you get around the sense of homelessness. Since I moved from one coast to the other, I have a huge sense of homelessness, but I was beginning to feel that even in Washington, because of the extreme change in the culture. I am so grateful for the Lord, God’s Word, my church, Christian friends, you dear blog friends, and all that keeps me grounded in Truth.
11. Why do we feel alienated on this earth?
The presence of God is not prominent unless we work at finding it. This is not our true home. Our home is in the presence of Jesus. I love John 18:36 “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, then my servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this world.”
12. Have you had the experience of going back to a cherished spot and finding it isn’t the same? Why, do you think?
Yes. When I have returned to my childhood home, neighborhood or even the city of Minneapolis, there are somewhat familiar spots, but it all has changed. My memories there are for the places that are no longer there or have changed dramatically. I still have the sweet memories…” time only sweetens the memories of those that we love.”
13. Lewis says we have a tendency to turn the sweet things of earth into dumb idols. How have you done that with any of these things: food, sex, pets, friendship, career, ministry, sports…?
Absolutely… I am learning to let go of things, the older I get. There is nothing I brought to this world and I don’t plan on taking anything when I leave. I pray that I am a good steward of all the Lord has given to me.
I am working really hard at not making my sweet young dog a dumb idol. My husband got her for me, because he knew that I would be alone, when he died. I have her older “auntie” too. They are my family, who I spend most of my time with. The young one is the one with seizures, so I give her to God daily. She belongs to Him, on loan to me.
Patti – -my thoughts on this comment of yours:
I cannot rejoice at the loss, yet I can rejoice knowing I will see my loved one in heaven one day. I can rejoice in knowing that my loved one knew Jesus, but the loss of the light in your life, is a pain that is not easy to control.
We are told to grieve, but not as those who have no hope. I truly think the tears of grief are healing tears if we also hold onto that hope. I think you model “good” grief. You are pressing into Him, into making new friends, into finding purpose, but you are not stuffing your tears.
It is a process, yet God is always faithful.
Awww, Patti….your young dog 🙂. That was sweet of your husband. They must be good companions.
8. What is unsatisfying about the philosophy of Lion King?
That’s it, the end. No hope.
9. Some Christians feel we should rejoice at the death of a Christian, others feel it is right to grieve, much as Dylan Thomas feels. What are your thoughts?
I think it’s a bit of both, for we are human. I know my mom is in heaven, which is good, but I still miss her and sometimes I’m sad.
10. How did Camus believe we “get around the sense of homelessness?” True for you?
He describes everyday events that make us feel at home. Dinner, a smile from a friend, a letter in the mail, etc. make us feel like we belong, But alas! It isn’t enough truly. Our lives are messed up here on Earth. I’m not sure I have this feeling of not belonging, maybe just one of constant underlying “bad stuff.” It’s like a rumble in the background of my life. It’s to pounce. The joy is difficult to find. When the occasional good news comes, I think, “yes!” Finally! But life (sadly). is more of a day to day grind.
11. Why do we feel alienated on this earth?
According to Lewis, we were meant for more.
12. Have you had the experience of going back to a cherished spot and finding it isn’t the same?
Yes, but just in that it seemed smaller to me, as an adult. Times change. People are damaged by the world. Plus you don’t have the family around you anymore. It’s just you. No relationships of the time.
Why, do you think?
As children, everything is bigger! It is the big world in my small pee brain. When we grow and see the big world for what it really is, it doesn’t seem to big anymore. It’s relative. I wonder why my own children don’t seem to have much of a desire to go back to their foundation. I guess one does. How do you foster that in a child? We recently visited the neighborhood in Texas where we raised our kids. It was fun to see the place and try to remember what it was like. The trees were much bigger. The house seemed small. So funny. Those really were the best of times for us. Makes me sad. I just wanted the best for my kids and then the world takes over. I guess as someone (? Lewis?) said, we aren’t meant to be here. God didn’t want us to want to stay when He has more for us.
13. Lewis says we have a tendency to turn the sweet things of earth into dumb idols. How have you done that with any of these things: food, sex, pets, friendship, career, ministry, sports…?
Of course I have! Those are things that make me feel good. They make me want to be here, not leave. When I am upset I run to food or busyness. Distractions to keep me from thinking too hard.
I think it is a common experience for the huge house of your childhood to seem small!
Wednesday: 1 The Human Condition (B)
8. What is unsatisfying about the philosophy of Lion King?
We cannot rest in a world in which everyone you love becomes fertilizer, and you become a fertilizer, too! Then what is life all about if we are not made for something more than what we mean or perceive here on earth? Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:19, “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.”
9. Some Christians feel we should rejoice at the death of a Christian, others feel it is right to grieve, much as Dylan Thomas feels. What are your thoughts?
I don’t think one should rejoice at the death of a Christian. The Bible says, precious in the eyes of God is the death of his faithful servants. NIV The Good News Translation says, “How painful it is to the LORD when one of his people dies!” God grieves over the consequences of sin, including physical death that does not spare the Christian.
I believe we should grieve at the death of the Christian, but to grieve with hope.
And I think we can be grieving and rejoicing at the same time. Grieving because of the temporary separation, but rejoicing with the knowledge that the person is with Jesus, the best place to be. Rejoicing that we will see each other again in our heavenly home.
10. How did Camus believe we “get around the sense of homelessness?” True for you?
To look at the material world and have its things helps us get around our sense of homelessness. A temporary filling of what is a need for the eternal.
11. Why do we feel alienated on this earth?
Because we are not meant for this world of decay, loss, and grief.
12. Have you had the experience of going back to a cherished spot and finding it isn’t the same? Why, do you think?
Yes, making trips back to the Philippines. The cherished spot was my mom’s house. It wasn’t the same as the house was much weathered, needed repairs, and was not how I envisioned it to be when it was first built. I remember many good things from that time, and they are not there anymore.
13. Lewis says we have a tendency to turn the sweet things of earth into dumb idols. How have you done that with any of these things: food, sex, pets, friendship, career, ministry, sports…?
I think of the “if onlys” of life, and for a long time, relationships/friendships were my idols. As long as I feel like I am meeting the expectations of somebody I care for, I am okay. If I “lose” them, I would tell myself, “if only I had done this…”, I may not have lost that friendship/relationship.
I love that Good News translation: How painful it is…what verse is that?
Psalm 116:15. I don’t think I have ever seen it translated that way before! I was asking myself, why would it be painful to God? And I thought maybe because death should never have been in the picture. His pain must be brought about by His empathy with us. He grieves with us at the moment but knows that our pain and mourning will turn to joy because of what the Son has done for us.
Wednesday: 1 The Human Condition (B)
8. What is unsatisfying about the philosophy of Lion King? The circle of life is the natural order of earth (designed by God). As people who can reason (designed by God), we are never truly satisied with being in the circle of life. There’s got to be something more. Every man, woman, and child has that hunger for something more.
9. Some Christians feel we should rejoice at the death of a Christian, others feel it is right to grieve, much as Dylan Thomas feels. What are your thoughts? Our sorrow is not the sorrow of unregenerate people, because of our Living Hope, Jesus. There is sorrow and grief because our relationship here on earth has been broken, but at some point joy enters in because physical death is not the end. Each person’s journey (grief to joy) is unique, and no one should judge another person’smprocess.
10. How did Camus believe we “get around the sense of homelessness?” True for you? If I understand correctly, Camus is talking about momentary happiness found in events or circumstnaces (someone’s smile, getting mail, etc) as a way to “get around homelessness.” Although such things cause me to smile (who doesn’t like getting actual mail?), the only thing that truly satifies me is my relationship with the Lord.
11. Why do we feel alienated on this earth? Because we are eternal beings spiritually, we all have a sense that there is something more after physical death.
12. Have you had the experience of going back to a cherished spot and finding it isn’t the same? Why, do you think? I don’t really have a cherished spot. Cherished people, but not a specific location.
13. Lewis says we have a tendency to turn the sweet things of earth into dumb idols. How have you done that with any of these things: food, sex, pets, friendship, career, ministry, sports…? My own selfish desires/comfort can be an idol when I choose them ahead of my relationship with the Lord (ie. .TV/books vs Bible).
Wednesday: 1 The Human Condition (B)
8. What is unsatisfying about the philosophy of Lion King?
All we really are is fertilizer and that’s it, that’s our purpose.
9. Some Christians feel we should rejoice at the death of a Christian, others feel it is right to grieve, much as Dylan Thomas feels. What are your thoughts?
Ecclesiastes 3:4b says, “A time to grieve and a time to dance.” I have experienced in my life that grieving is part of the process of healing but I also think we can celebrate the death of a Christian because we know where they will be spending eternity.
10. How did Camus believe we “get around the sense of homelessness?” True for you?
“For most people the approach of dinner, the arrival of a letter from home, or the smile from a passing girl is enough to help people get around the sense of homelessness. “
Not true for me because where’s the purpose in that? It’s temporary rather than eternal and therefore the longing of home still leaves a feeling of alienation.
11. Why do we feel alienated on this earth?
We weren’t made for this world.
12. Have you had the experience of going back to a cherished spot and finding it isn’t the same? Why, do you think?
I have, but knowing it wouldn’t be the same because for me the cherished spot was cherished because of the people.
13. Lewis says we have a tendency to turn the sweet things of earth into dumb idols. How have you done that with any of these things: food, sex, pets, friendship, career, ministry, sports…?
I have with food, pets and much of what God created…flowers, birds, sunsets etc.
Your last answer, Sharon, made me ponder. We should be grateful for food and pets, just not make them our life.
Thursday: 2 The Divine Solution
14. How is the third parable different than the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin? The first two parables included a search for something that was lost. The parable of the son did not include any searching. I had never thought about this before, but there seems to be a progeression in several ways. An inanimate object-coin, a living creature-sheep, a person-son; all had value. The coin could not return by itself, the sheep did not know how to get back, the son chose to leave and then returned.
I don’t see Keller’s point that the son should have been searched for, because he really wasn’t lost or gone missing was he? He chose to travel from his home/family with all the money from his inheritence, and they knew it. Why would they have gone searching?
15. Who should have paid the cost of forgiving the younger brother and why? Keller says the elder brother should have paid as he was the only heir now to the property. He said there is no way the father could bring the son back into the family (robe, ring, shoes, party) except at the elder brother’s expense.
16. What stands out to you from the above and why? “In other words, the Lord’s Supper says you cannot get changed except by sharing life. You have to find a Christian community in which you immerse yourself, where you get accountable. That’s what the Lord’s Supper is all about.” We had perviously talked about communtion as an intimate symbol of our relationship with Jesus, and here we see another layer. It also symbolizes our relationship with each other.
17. What does “palengensia” mean? The renewal of all things.
14. How is the third parable different than the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin?
No one went looking for him.
15. Who should have paid the cost of forgiving the younger brother and why?
The elder brother should have paid the price. In those days, the eldest received the inheritance and that meant he was responsible for everything, including his younger brother.
16. What stands out to you from the above and why?
You must integrate into a church and do “church” together. Be involved. Live together, love together, hurt together. Oh yes! That’s what we need. A community of togetherness. It’s important.
17. What does “palengensia” mean?
The renewal of all things.
From Laura: Oh yes! That’s what we need. A community of togetherness. It’s important.
Thursday: 2 The Divine Solution
14. How is the third parable different than the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin?
In the lost sheep and coin they went and looked for what was lost. In the third parable no one went and looked for the son. I never really considered the son to be lost as he left by choice…pondering this.
15. Who should have paid the cost of forgiving the younger brother and why?
The older brother because it was his responsibility to keep the family and estate together.
16. What stands out to you from the above and why?
What he said about the Lord’s Supper being a feast, a time of connecting to Christ but especially being about community, sharing life, being accountable and not “just showing up,” really hit me because we just made the decision to leave our church after much prayer. We are now looking for another church and it is very tempting at our age to just sneak in and sneak out each Sunday. Jim and I both know the importance of plugging in and I believe that is our desire…so appreciate prayer during this transition as we live in a small town and churches are limited that align with our beliefs.
17. What does “palengensia” mean?
The renewal of all things.
Dear Lord, Thank you for Your faithfulness to us in every situation. It’s so hard to leave one asembly for another, but I know that You direct our steps, Please give Sharon and her husband clear guidance as to where You want them to be now. Having prayed through this decision, grant them Your peace, In the name of Jesus, for His sake and your glory, amen
Cheryl Ann, thank you so much for this beautiful prayer❤️
Amen to Cheryl’s prayer. I will continue to pray for you and Jim as you look for a new church, Sharon . Community is so important.
Oh Lord, please guide Sharon and Jim to the church You would choose for them!
Because I love you and am a meddler I looked at churches — looks like a Community church and 4 different Baptist churches would be the best. I smiled to see the Free Will Baptist church, wondering what that meant, but probably not Reformed. Anyhow, I really do pray. Hard!
FRIDAY: 3 The New Communion
18. What stands out to you from the above and why?
“Our Father, we thank you we have this sacrament, we have a place where we can get a foretaste of that final feast. We ask you would help us by immersing ourselves in the church, in the Christian community, that we would begin to get the life-changing effects of your welcome, your salvation, and your love shaping our lives in every respect. Thank you for the gospel, and thank you for your Son. In his name we pray, amen.”
This is such a good prayer for this season of my life.
Dear Sharon, I love this prayer, too! Community is so important, especially as we get older.
Prayers for you Sharon as you seek community at your new church. Praying for good connections, perhaps in unexpected ways.
18. What stands out to you from the above and why?
“It can’t bear the full weight of your soul.”
Wow, what a great analogy…that of the parks full of the homeless. How a park can’t be a home. Our idols can’t be our meaning and significance.
Yes, indeed.
8. What is unsatisfying about the philosophy of Lion King? There is no value of one life over another-all creation is the same beginning to end. Without man made in God’s image, there is no significance to his being anything more than all the other creatures.
9. Some Christians feel we should rejoice at the death of a Christian, others feel it is right to grieve, much as Dylan Thomas feels. What are your thoughts? There is both a grief for the loss of their life here with us and joy at their life beginning in the eternal.
10. How did Camus believe we “get around the sense of homelessness?” True for you? Little joys like a smile or looking forward to some pleasurable routine are the way to avoid this sense of homelessness.
In some ways this is helpful when we are hurting, to have routine, but there are times when routine is painful because there is a great loss which is missing from your routine and I think then is the time when we need more. The more is Christ.
11. Why do we feel alienated on this earth? There is a sense that we were not meant for this earth but for heaven.
12. Have you had the experience of going back to a cherished spot and finding it isn’t the same? Why, do you think?
I have. I have visited my childhood home and when I was growing up it was this beautiful place, full of life and dreams. Now it is unkept and drab, with no life that I can see. It’s sad.
However, there is another cherished spot that I go to which though not the same, brings back all the sweet memories and the painful ones. My grandparents lived on a river and I spent many weekends there with family -oh so many sweet memories until the year I turned 10 and tragedy struck when my family was hit by a drunk driver. Anyway, I can go to the river at a park, and the smell and sound of the river has not changed. All the memories come flooding back. The sweet and the hard. I have one unique moment where, for Father’s Day, I arranged a pontoon ride down the river for my family. We all rode down the river and down the sweet memories of the past. My sweet grandmother whose eyes were beginning to fail by this point could see the banks so clearly that day. Oh the gift of that day, I will never forget. That time in life was so perfect in my mind. It seems tragedy struck and since then, life has never had the beauty that it once did. I am glad however, that the Lord spared us from a life without him, because that would have been a much worse tragedy. It is after the accident that many in our family turned to the Lord. Since that tragic day when a seemingly perfect life was changed forever, the Lord has held us up to bear all the very hard things that have come our way.
So tragic. Did anyone die or was permanently crippled? I am thankful they pressed in instead of getting bitter.
Yes, Dee, my dad nearly died and suffered a TBI which left him with struggles the rest of his life although he regained the ability to work for a while. He gained my wonderful stepmother and a gratefulness for the Lord. My mom chose bitterness and divorce but is coming around. My siblings all suffered concussions and broken bones but not permanent crippling.
Oh, Chris. You have mentioned this accident before. It is such a hard thing to heal from. I pray that God will covered this negative memories, with His Holy hand and give you His peace. I know this must be a lifetime struggle. I pray for healing. So thankful many turned to God.
What a lovely memory of the pontoon ride, and the grace God gave your grandmother that day to see clearly. How the Lord gave you that time to ease the pain a tiny bit of the painful memory of the accident. All the other things you’ve shared about your personal and family life is a true witness of what the Lord has done, and continues to provide, for you, Chris. May His loving hand continue to guide you as you trust Him.
Amen to Cheryl.
Thank you both for your prayers. I sometimes get down with the grief of the past and cry many tears over it but the beauty the Lord brought out of it all is not to be ignored and in fact is why we can survive such tragic circumstances.
13. Lewis says we have a tendency to turn the sweet things of earth into dumb idols. How have you done that with any of these things: food, sex, pets, friendship, career, ministry, sports…?
It’s interesting how we think we have our idols under control, until we are pushed a little farther than we ever expected to be in loosening our grip on them. We don’t think we really have idols. We think that all God’s gifts to us are these wonderful blessings and that we understand completely how they are not ours but are just loaned to us. We know all the Christian jargon.
This first hit me when my daughter was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder and was in the hospital with liver failure. My first gut reaction was, “No, Lord! Not my Madeline. Please don’t take her.” Truly, she is His. I am so grateful He has healed so much of her health and allowed her to have two beautiful boys and another due next month. Her health is still a concern for sure and there will likely be harder days to come with that, but she is here. I have had to put my love for family and relationships in its proper place. We are not in control of that as much as we would like to be. Our Good Shepherd can be trusted. He knows the path we are to walk and we must stay on it.
OOOhhhh I so understand those fears. So hard to hold our children loosely. I pray for protection all the time. And I do remember how Corrie ten Booms father said he doesn’t give us grace for our fears, only if it really happens.
Oh, what an interesting comment from Corrie’s father! I agree. We are commanded so many times in scripture to NOT fear.
You have been through so much, Chris! Love this and it is so true. He can be trusted!
I have had to put my love for family and relationships in its proper place. We are not in control of that as much as we would like to be. Our Good Shepherd can be trusted. He knows the path we are to walk and we must stay on it.
14. How is the third parable different than the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin?
No one goes to look for the lost son, to bring him back. He is allowed to follow his sinful desires but his elder brother should have been responsible for bringing him back. Because he was like a Pharisee, he would not give up more of his inheritance and could not see his own lack of love for his father.
15. Who should have paid the cost of forgiving the younger brother and why?
The elder brother was responsible for keeping the family together. The inheritance was not for him alone, but for helping the whole family.
16. What stands out to you from the above and why?
The communal aspect of communion-how it has to be a remembrance together of what the Lord has done for us. We must be accountable to one another and continue to grow in our faith. We can’t just do this in a corner.
17. What does “palengensia” mean? At the renewal of all things, when Christ is on the throne.
19. What is your take-a-way and why? This sermon took a turn that I wasn’t expecting. I have never heard of any link between the parable of the prodigal and church fellowship before this.
For the last 6 years or so, I have felt the most disconnect between myself and my church family. Most of the church activities take place during the week when I am still at work, the people have changed in the last couple of years and while my church is growing (praise God!) it’s mostly younger people.
I’ve always been a homebody and used to force myself to get involved in things for my kids’ sake. As I’ve gotten older, the desire to stay home is even stronger.
We have a lunch at our church every Sunday and I’ve been going so that my niece that I take to church with me can spend time with my grandkids (they’re the same age). When she isn’t there, I sometimes skip it.
Tim Keller has given me much to think and pray about. His ending prayer was powerful to me.
I’ve also downloaded the sermon by Edmund Clowney that he mentioned and I’m going to listen to it this evening.
I like your thoughts Dawn. I’m thinking that more and more we need to focus on the eternal. Our hearts love things in this world that reflect eternity but we can not find heaven here.
I also would like to look up the sermons he mentions. Maybe tomorrow.
Thursday: 2 The Divine Solution.
14. How is the third parable different than the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin?
With the lost sheep, somebody went out to look for it; with the lost coin, it was brought back. But for the lost son. Nobody went out to look for him.
15. Who should have paid the cost of forgiving the younger brother and why?
The elder brother should have paid the cost of forgiving the younger brother. Everything that the father owns is now the older brother’s property. It would have been at his expense alone that the younger brother could have been forgiven.
16. What stands out to you from the above and why?
We can look forward to the great homecoming feast, but can experience it here on earth through the Lord’s Supper. I was struck by what he said: “You cannot show the world who Jesus is except as a community.” It makes me think all the more of the importance of being a part of a church where love, repentance, and forgiveness abound.
17. What does “palengensia” mean?
The renewal of all things.
FRIDAY: 3 The New Communion
18. What stands out to you from the above and why?
His prayer: “Our Father, we thank you we have this sacrament, we have a place where we can get a foretaste of that final feast. We ask you would help us by immersing ourselves in the church, in the Christian community, that we would begin to get the life-changing effects of your welcome, your salvation, and your love shaping our lives in every respect. Thank you for the gospel, and thank you for your Son. In his name we pray, amen.
SATURDAY:
19. What is your take-a-way and why?
Jesus, as our true older brother, went out to seek us by coming to earth in the form of man (Philippians 2) so that through His death and resurrection, He can bring us back with Him to the Father.
Amen to your take away, Bing. Jesus, as our true older brother, went out to seek us by coming to earth in the form of man (Philippians 2) so that through His death and resurrection, He can bring us back with Him to the Father.