The Difficult Road of Returning | Associate Pastor Chad Erickson
by Chad Erickson
First Apostolic Church of Maryville (Maryville, TN)
Kind: teaching
Scripture: Luke 15:24, Luke 15:11-16, Galatians 5:16-21, Luke 15:17-19, Proverbs 28:13, 2 Chronicles 30:9, 2 Peter 3:9, Ezekiel 18:32, 1 Samuel 16:7, Luke 15:20

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/chad-erickson--the-difficult-road-of-returning
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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let's stand together turn with me in your Bibles to Luke chapter 15 and verse 24 so good to see everyone midweek service it never ceases to amaze me the people the families that come out for a midweek Bible study we just have faithful faithful people of God and I give you all honor give the Sanders honor I think I called brother Sanders brother Flannery the first time the first time he was here but I've got to know him a whole lot better since then it's definitely not brother Flannery so we fixed that and he's a pat he pastors in Illinois along with his brother-in-law of the shine dowdy and they are doing just a fantastic job in Mattoon Illinois good at he and Sir charity and their whole family here this week the pathway home I'm going to read this text this is our this is our series text if you will but just a case you have not been here the past couple of weeks let me give you just a quick just a quick summary of what you have missed we are having a series called the pathway home it's more than just a Bible study but it is a plan it is a system that we're putting in place for those who want to return back to the father's house and I'm gonna kind of talk about this this evening but this is not just for those that are physically not with us the Plata khals who have physically left but we also have those in the house that have spiritually left the father's house and you might be here physically you might be here in person but maybe you're not where you need to be maybe you've strayed maybe you have spiritually walked away and this series we have one more evening next Wednesday night we'll finish our series but we are gonna put this into a book there's gonna be a workbook that's gonna let go along with this book call the pathway home we just believe around here if you want to come home you ought to be given pathway to get here to be something clear something that's not dangerous something you don't don't worry about traveling on but it's gonna be a pathway it's not gonna be easy matter of fact tonight I'm in titling I'm entitling this session of this series the difficult road of returning the difficult road it's not going to be easy however we want to be here for you Luke 15:24 says for this my son was dead and is alive again he was lost and is found found found and they began to be merry I'm so glad we have a father that throws a party for the son who comes home come on somebody I'm so glad we have a father who throws a party for the son who returns home we're gonna we're gonna talk about this son we're gonna teach we might even preach a little bit about the son but I'm so thankful for a pathway home let's just pray father we love you we're so grateful for a God of mercy a God of kindness Lord your grace that you should upon us Lord it never runs out it's fresh and new every morning I think every time the Sun rises every morning of every day of the week every day of the month every day of the year we understand that you're giving us fresh and new mercies and we're so thankful for it you love your people you love your children you want to see an expected in for us O God you want to see in life and we're so thankful for that we bless you tonight and I pray if there's any particles that are here in person or that are watching by way of the internet let their heart be touched by your word tonight in Jesus name and everyone said amen you may be seated the difficult road of returning last week we began to study the lost son we study the lost son as he left the father's house it went into a far off country matter of fact why don't you just once again keep your Bibles open at Luke chapter 15 and I want to begin reading in verse 11 where Jesus begins to tell the parable of the lost son it says and he said a certain man had two sons and the younger of them said to his father father give me the portion of goods that falleth to me and the father divided unto them his living not many days after the younger son gathered all together and took his journey into a far country and there wasted his substance with riotous living and when he had spent all there arose a mighty famine in that land and he began to be in want and he went enjoyed himself to a citizen of the country and sent him the citizens sent him into his fields to feed swine and he would have fain he would have fainted filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat in no man gave to him last week we began to teach about the restless spirit the spirit of not only the young generation but also my generation and maybe even generations before me the restless spirit who always feels like somebody else has it going on more than they've got it going on somebody else has more opportunities than we have opportunities in the father's house and that restless spirit we learn it moves into a runaway spirit because you can only stay Restless so long you either get right or you're wrong you either realize that you've got the greatest thing going on right here or you begin to run I've often I've often heard it said that you ought to bloom where you're planted and what that simply means it's very dangerous to transplant a tree or a shrub matter of fact of the young men who work hard here at the church they've been putting him brother Dempsey has a whole crew of of young men who have been putting in shrubs all the way around the campus here and I believe we only transplanted I don't know we might have transplanted five or six shrub total moved him to a new place kind of grouped them with like shrubs or what-have-you and I believe at least two of the five didn't make it to the five were transplanted and the roots never took whether the roots were cut during the transplant I don't know what happened that's not that's not my field of labor I don't even understand what happened except that I know that one day we drove up and the shrubs were tried and dead and the runaway spirit causes people to leave where they're planted and uproot themselves in going to a far-off place and when you end up going into a four hour place bad things can happen then we went into the point that sin sin is fun for a flesh if sin wasn't fun for the flesh then Apostle Paul in Galatians look with me in Galatians chapter 5 verse 16 if sin wasn't fun we got to get out of our minds that people who are sinning are having fun if sin was not fun for the flesh then Paul would not have written these words in Galatians 5:16 where it says this I say then walk in the spirit and he shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh for the flesh lusteth against the spirit in the spirit against the flesh and these are contrary the one to the other so that she cannot do things that she would you can't you can't be the person you want to be because your spirit in your flesh our warring against one another but if you be led by the spirit you are not under the law which simply means this if you're led by the spirit you don't have to look over your shoulder to see if blue lights are following you you don't you don't have to wonder you don't have to wonder if you're doing right you don't have to have somebody coming down on you with the gavel but if you live by the spirit you're not under this law now the works of the flesh are manifest which are these adultery we're talking about a far-off country adultery fornication uncleanness lasciviousness fornication uncleanness lasciviousness fornication uncleanness lasciviousness idolatry witchcraft hatred variance emulations wrath strife seditions heresies envyings murders drunkenness revellings and such like you like our pulpit that they're in such like he's saying there's a whole lot more than this this is just we're just gonna kind of touch the of we're just gonna kind of touch the subject right here he said and suchlike of the which i tell you before is I've also told you in the times past that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God so Paul was simply saying this for those who walk after the flesh you enjoy all kinds of sinful acts however we the church the righteous the holy we understand those have been brought out of the world out of sin we understand that there's only pleasure of sin for just for a season just for a short period of time and then you must pay for what you've sown so we understand that a young man from that point probably all be above he committed all these sins that Paul laid out before us I'm sure this young man had his way he wasted the Bible says he wasted his substance and and we understand that wasn't just money alone he wasted character he wasted reputation he wasted his honor he wasted his good name and began to do stuff he thought he would never do stuff never do stuff never do stuff as a Jew stuff as a child of God as the people of God things that he was taught all his life not to do and he always told his friends I'll tell you what I see the Gentiles I see the pagans I've got pagan friends I go to high school with and I see what they do but I will never ever do that but then we find this young man in a pig sty feeding swine we see him losing everything he had all substance gone and he settles for a new normal and this is the sad thing right here I'm about to move into tonight's lesson but he settles for a new normal content with a new lifestyle a lifestyle of starving and a lifestyle of begging the Bible simply says that no man would give to him many times I've heard people make the statement that they're praying that their prodigal children will become so uncomfortable with their life that they'll change it but the sad thing is this unless a prodigal has a change of heart nothing will affect them it doesn't matter who dies in their life it doesn't matter what disease they get it doesn't matter they can run out of money make it they could have to go on to government support support support listen I've watched people backslide I've watched produções leave this church I've seen their lives take a nosedive you've seen it there's people's names going through your mind right now lives take a nosedive they had a good marriage they had rulli children they had they had a nice home they had a great life they they had everything perfect in their life and we see them take a nosedive and do they come back to church not always because they get used to a new normal and when you get used to a new normal everything your mind everything about you everything about you everything about you montaine 'td in a way that you can't even see through it to understand this since you become a prodigal you've wasted all in your substance is gone because tragedy passes health improves the government might send you a check but unless a person has a change of heart and here's where I want to begin because now this is the road back unless a person has a change of heart there cannot be an improvement to their lifestyle look with me at verse 17 Luke 15:17 and when he came to himself those four words are the most important four words of this parable when he came to himself he said how many hired servants of my father's have bread enough in to spare and I perish with hunger I will arise and go to my father he came to himself sing it with me he came to himself one more time he came to himself what that simply means is he changed his mind mind he changed his mind he was headed in one direction we call it repentance he was headed in one direction he had his mind made up headed in one direction he had squandered everything that he had and he finally realized he had to come to Jesus meeting he just woke up one day and said what am i doing well what am i doing here how did I end up in this state how did I get from my father's house from point A to point C how did I get here he had a look over and he had to make some hard decisions and when he came to himself he said how many homes service to him as my father has that they're not perishing with hunger they're eating at the father's table he said I will arise and go to my father listen to this right here if you underline in your Bible underline this he said and will say to him this is not just something he was thinking about he already had a spiel that he was ready to go home and say to his father he said father of seemed against heaven and before thee and AM no more worthy to be called thy son make me as one of the hired servants you see he started off watch this right here he started off this prodigal Jesus begins this parable if I start off and he says the son said father give me the portion of goods it's mine but then when he had a changed mind he says father make me he goes from gift he goes from my selfish my selfish my selfish kentley listen there's nothing that pulls us apart from all walk with God more than selfishness because when we get selfishness when we get pride of life when we get into that state of mind that pulls us farther and farther away from a God that wants to be our provider it pulls us farther farther for my God who wants to be our helper and so we we say give me the father never said no the father never said no I think I'm gonna restrict you in and I'm gonna ground you he said no okay I will give you if you think money is what's gonna make you I'll give it to you but when he had a change of mind when he repented he said father I want you to make me father I want you to make me anything you want to make me if you want to make me a survey in your house I'll be a servant in your house I used to sing a song all the time around here this simply said make me in your image wash me why there's snow purify this heart of mine Lord I'm giving you control let me be a vessel one that's worthy to be used make me in your image make me more like you that's the prayer of a changed heart make me the kidney spirit is a spirit that walks away the make me Spirit is the one who walks back but let me read to you how our God our Father how he feels about the repentant heart in proverbs 28:13 I'm going fast they're gonna put it on the screen in proverbs 28:13 it says he that covereth his sin shall not prosper but whosoever confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy mercy mercy it was his second chronicles 30 and 9 the second half the verse says for the Lord your God is gracious and merciful and will not turn away his face from you if he return unto Him 2nd Peter 3:9 the Lord is not slack concerning his promises as some men count slackness but is long-suffering to us-ward not willing that any should perish watch this but that all should come to repentance that all would have a mind change in the knees equal 18:32 I love this one before I have no pleasure the Lord says in the death of him that tithe saith the Lord God God God wherefore turn yourselves and live ye that's what God wants most of all for his children turn yourself if you're going the wrong direction if you're a prodigal in a far-off country turn around wake up come to yourself turn ye and come back to my house come back to the father's house and when we're in the father's house there's protection in the father's house there's goodness in love and kindness in the father's house if people are on the streets worried about protection it protection it protection it worry about where they need to go to be safe you want to come to the father's house because there's safety in the father's house there's peace in the father's house turn yourself and live so step one on this difficult road of returning is you must change your mind the prodigal came to himself and began to question his previous decisions he began to reason within himself he started asking himself hard questions and began to think back on how good life used to be you know that life that he thought was all restrictions and restraints the life he thought had no freedom freedom freedom all of a sudden began to look pretty good and pretty desirable he came to his senses in decided that this time I'm gonna have a change of mind it was time to head back in the direction of the Father and that's what we call repentance he made it an about-face with his lifestyle but I want to go a little deeper in this because the first step is you've got to realize that you've been wronged and you've got a desire desperately to get it right because if you're not truly convinced that you're wrong there's no pathway home for you in the addiction recovery program Alcoholics Anonymous there's twelve steps in the process in step one it states this we admit we are powerless over alcohol and our lives have become unmanageable here is how this at first lesson chapter one called step one of a a this is how this is how the whole first chapter ends because they found themselves in a mindset that they know they must find a way out of what they're in in so I quote under the lash of alcoholism alcoholism alcoholism we are driven to a a and there we discover the fatal nature of our situation then and only then do we become open-minded to conviction and are willing to listen as only the dying can we stand ready to do anything which will lift this merciless obsession from us so step one in this difficult road back to the father's house is we have got to do this very same step one that a a does the prodigal must realize he's in trouble he's got to realize that his ability we cannot pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps it's not gonna work we can't do it on our own we can go we can go into that we can go to the library and check out as many self-help books as we can find I'll promise you the shelf after shelf of self-help books you don't need a higher power you don't need a God need a God need a God all you got to do is read this book and you're gonna get out of this you're gonna get out of that there's all kinds of self-help books but I promise you none of that's gonna work unless we just say God I'm willing to surrender myself I'm willing to admit that I'm wrong I'm admitting that I can't do a thing about it and you are my only hope he realized he was in trouble and that I also want you to notice this a part of his step right here the greatest enemy of a repentant heart is blame the greatest enemy of a repent the reason why there's some people that try so hard to get their life back in control and they can't seem to get it together is because they end up playing the blame game but the prodigal if you look here the prodigal never played the blame game notice right here he didn't blame it on the citizen of the country he didn't blame it it wasn't his father's fault it wasn't the older brothers fault it wasn't it wasn't because he received an inheritance he he didn't say to himself if if dad wouldn't give me all this money dad should have known that that I was gonna be responsible with this wealth dad should have known never to give me any wealth brother Thompson dad should have known that it's his fault it's my dad's fault when I was my mom's not even mentioned where was maybe he didn't even make it even have a mother you know there's listen oh I just got to thinking about something we got students that are living for God all across this congregation that don't even have one parent living for God with them we've got students they have raised that have worked jobs and raised their own tuition to go to Christian school fought their way work the evenings could be on could even be on ball teams because they had to work in the evening so they could pay their way and go to school we've got a pastor who under a hardship rule of the government he tastes told the story he was allowed his father died when he was 16 years old he was allowed to go to work half the day he worked to pay his way through school listen there's no excuse we can't make excuses we can't blame other people around us it's oh it's not mom's fault it's not dad's fault listen if any one student can live for God living under horrible conditions at home that means that anybody else can do the same thing you just got to have a zeal inside of you you got to have a walk too inside of you there's gonna be something that's gonna be a backbone like a crowbar and says I don't care come what may I'm gonna live for God oh I'm so thankful Jesus told this panel because the prodigal you maybe see that the prodigal never blamed anybody in such a pastor's fault it's not your Christian school the seventh grade eighth grade ninth grade - it's other Christian school teachers fault it's not your student pastors thoughts don't if you want to live for God listen John Bevere I know all our small groups are going through it baby Satan you cannot allow offense to get inside of your mind we don't there's not enough time in life to have an attitude towards somebody for nine years because they didn't do something you thought they should have done if they said something you thought they should have said or or they didn't invite you to go somewhere then and have you sing that song didn't have you preached that way sign out when you thought you should have been able to preach that way say you go through life with a chip on your shoulder come on somebody Blaine is what pulls people away from repentance every time they get close to repent every time they get close to coming home every time they wake up in the pigsty they're saying what am I doing here when they start to blame other people they find themselves with an unrepentant heart because as long as you can place blame in other places you'll never truly turn your life around to repentance is I am the problem and even though others and maybe even society itself I get it may have failed me at times I refuse to allow them to keep me from fixing the problem step one change your mind change your paradigm take responsibility brings us this step to on your pathway home you must humble yourself this is gonna get a little tricky because the greatest temptation is to try to come back with a haughty spirit with a high-minded watch me walk through those back doors yeah yeah I dare I dare the pastor to welcome me back call me out in front of the whole church I I dare you to even mention I haven't been here in six months I dare you to and you will you see me you better just keep on walking and that's people that's people coming back who have fallen away spiritually right but that's just not for that I've seen people and ministries and that's we're kind of we're writing this book trying to help in our ministries we're trying to help whether it's a singer preacher sunday-school teacher sunday-school teacher sunday-school teacher uh sure whoever it is what when they fall into sin because good people make bad decisions and they fall into sin we're trying to help people get back to their ministry but we got to be careful because I've been to conferences before and we've had great men who are at very high places in positions of course you know the high you are before they're you fall right I mean if you're entry-level and you fall it's it's you know a baby falling doesn't hurt too bad but you get about six five it's a lot farther to fall and I've seen I've gone to beta ket conferences camp meetings and seeing people to fall in listen I'm not the judge I've already forgiven them because it's not really up to me that's between them and God but I see how some people can walk people who have fallen products can walk right back in to a conference or a camp meeting and they're ready they're looking where's the mic at come on I'm ready I'm ready I'm ready to walk my back in here and just pick up where I left off and there's a problem with that because justice must be served there has to be some time if God did not punish us if there wasn't a woodshed did we get taken to we would continue to do it time after time we'd never learn a lesson lesson lesson we would just continue to sin there has to be a time and so Jesus was giving oh my goodness Jesus was giving the perfect example of how we are to return after we failed we've wasted her substance we've lived righteously we've done things we know we should have done Didem had fun doing them regretted every minute of it and here we are coming back and I love how he says in his mind he says I'm gonna tell my father okay when I see my father I'm gonna walk into the house there he's gonna be sitting he's gonna be in his favorite recliner he's gonna be right there in the living room I can just see him as he's going through this in his mind I'm gonna I'm gonna knock on the door because servants don't walk in the door I'm gonna knock on the door I'm gonna hear him get out of his chair he's gonna come he's gonna open the door and I'm just gonna go down on my knees I'm just gonna say Father forgive me I've sinned against heaven and I've sinned against you if you will make me one of your hired servants and I can just see him as he's running through this in his mind over and over and over again because this is what this is what he was doing he said I'm gonna come back with humility I'm gonna come back to my father not trying to be a son I'm not gonna try to return in the same Authority that I left him I'm coming back with humility as a servant I'm coming back just to work in the fields I'm coming back because I just want a BT in my father's house once again and so I just got to believe in and I'm plugged gonna rush through this a little bit but we got to watch the spirit of entitlement because the spirit of entitlement listen I I heard a story actually I witnessed it online I witnessed a pastor I witnessed the pastor who had fallen into sin he stepped out on his wife committed adultery was caught kami for his church and explained all the details to his church then he informed his church that he would not be leaving his pulpit because all this was this was the devil coming against his life and he was gonna prove by the name he was gonna prove to the devil that he was gonna win this battle and so he wasn't going to devil try to get me out of this pulpit but I ain't leaving this pulpit speed of entitlement comes upon some people as they try to return you got to watch your motive right is it because you want a microphone back in the choir is because you want that Sunday School class back well I figure to get in my notes I have right here it's gonna get quiet if you come back with the spirit of entitlement the spirit of on the son the father has no choice but to make you a servant but if you come back in the spirit of the servant First Samuel 16 for the Lord see if not as men seeing for a man looketh on the outward appearance but the Lord looketh on the heart I just believe for the lawless it was not the custom for patriarchs of families of that time to ever run patriarchs did not run so when Jesus is telling this parable and Jesus starts to describe the father running when he sees his son coming up the pathway to all the religious leaders that I'm telling you it doesn't mean anything to us because we run all the time oh wait we jog on the road we run we exercise treadmill no big deal to us but to those religious leaders when Jesus said that that father ran that got their attention and I just believe a father father father ran to his son because he knew his sons heart because we know the father is God and God saw the heart of the Sun returning as a servant and that son brother amber and that son had his spiel already he saw his father running he wasn't sure is he running cuz he's mad is he running to strike me why is he running towards me I couldn't see him falling down to his knees and he began to go with his spiel and the father cut him off mid-stride he said hey service I need some service here right now honey I can see those service come running I feel this I feel the Holy Ghost because I believe that there's people in this room who want to come back so bad and you say how do I get back how do I get back into the presence of the Father let me tell you something if you'll come just part of the way our Father will come running if you'll just make a return if eunice mainland if you're just making about face and head back towards the father's house the father will come running we have a God who will break tradition we have a God who says I don't care what patriarchs do in this time period I choose to run and show mercy to my lost son somebody clap your hands up to the Lord and just give you a break and love him you may be seated I want to get off this one but I just want to say this the prodigal understood his position he said I lost my sonship when I wasted my inheritance I lost my son when I took what was rightfully mine and squandered it and wasted it with a riotous living that was what made me us son was my inheritance and when he came back with no inheritance he came back only as a servant can come back with nothing nothing nothing barefoot dirty that's why that's why whoa what was the first thing the father said father said he said go get him a robe we got we got to get some clothes leave we got to get some clothes on go get him a robe he he's dirty and my son's not gonna be dirty I want to restore his dignity back to him and I'm ready store his dignity in front of the whole community I want everybody to recognize he's still my son because he didn't just go get him a rope he waited got him be best robe he said I want you to go into my closet go through getting all that all that stuff that I use when I'm when I'm working and when I'm when I'm out tells service what to do when I'm out in the field checking on the search go by all those I want you to go find find the robe that I go to parties in finally the robe that I go to weddings in don't get that room because I want to show him I'm not just clothing you because you don't have enough adequate quote clothing I'm clothing you because I want everybody to see that you are my son who I love what do you say next he said get him a ring go get the family ring I know that he pawned every ring that he had I know that he pawned his personal family ring I know that he took it to the pawn shop when he started running out of money and got that thing pawn I know that I want you to go get another ring and bring him a ring because once again I want everybody to see that I'm giving authority back to him as my son he then said get some shoes for the boy because sons wear shoes service my walk around barefoot and do what they got to do barefoot oh but not my boy my boys wear shoes he said go get some sandals and put some sandals on his feet and then he said I want you to go bring the fatted calf we're gonna kill the thing and we're gonna have a celebration like we have never had a celebration somebody goes somebody go get the keyboard somebody go get the drums we're gonna set him up in the family room go get all the instruments we're listen we're about to have the party of all parties what even Jesus said in these parables he said what does heaven do when one sinner comes back all of heaven rejoices when one person we just one person gets emptied out of this chore in just one name one person all of heaven stays - attention Emmy Jesus celebrate with one comes home with one that is lost is filled all of heaven rejoices and the father was simply sent I know he did some stuff that we are proud of it was ashamed of I know it was his fault in all his fault and only his faults but we're gonna celebrate because he made a decision to come back home again somebody clap your hands if you're thankful you may be seated pastor I don't know how we're gonna do this I don't know how we can do this but we gotta find a way to get people out of this char I got a young lady I got a nice sit right over there that her name's in this jar still and I don't like it because she ain't in this jar no more I hope one day I hope one day we can throw this on the ground and keep breaking us memories in every soul this rate inside of this jar we can say they're in the house they're in the father's father's house they're in the father's house get him out of the jar my god shut up Oh put up a hell of a hook I feel the Holy Ghost so strong I don't know what to do to do to do I just wish listen I just wish there was about 5 or 10 people like brother Justin they can just start praising God like they haven't praise them all night thank God I'm no longer in the jar well Justin say we've got two more - oh my god we got two more they don't belong in the jar shut up Okinawa ha my God if you know that you're in this show if you're here in the past year and you know I see Aseema oh my god if you know that you're in this jar you ought to celebrate huh work it yeah we're gonna free you from the jar we're gonna free you from the prodigal jar prodigal jar prodigal jar Hannibal Cordoba Hashanah vocal I think we ordered this end this thing crazy my chest and you know feet if you're not standard and come on with us get a shot in the God with the voice of triumph we're gonna we're gonna celebrate we're gonna celebrate that the young boy the lost son has come home he's made a decision I refuse to stay in the state that I'm in I refuse to be bound by this world by the chains of the shackles of this world we gotta celebrate restoration restoration is not when the young man came home restoration began when he got home listen if you're here tonight it is not enough did you came back to the father's house you gotta allow yourself to be restored once you get back to the father's house oh there's gonna be some commitment that you're gonna have to make you're gonna have to be faithful to the house of God you're gonna have to be here every time the doors are open if you're a prodigal being restored you can't afford to sit anywhere but in these front sections you can't afford not to get involved in a ministry you can't afford not to get in the choir you can't afford not to get on the ocean staff you can't afford not to get on the trees if you're being restored a part of restoration is getting in the father's house and making something of yourself in being a help in the father's house here in about Mahabalipuram aha yes yes yes yes oh come on let the Holy Ghost use and minister to you I wish we can walk in the spirit for this a few minutes come on somebody Oh sy Rhonda you're in the jar honey jar honey jar honey Rhonda's in the jar my god shut up oh cool let's thank God for the particles in a voter return let's celebrate the fact of the particles who have already come home oh thank you Jesus you're still pulling your Holy Ghost stops you're still renewing people you're still giving people a second and a third and a fifth and against chance and we're so thankful for it for it for it yep oh ho karappa ha ha yes Lord yes Lord we think you know see a kindness goodness and grace huh oh we're so thankful Oh God thankful Oh God thankful Oh God oh you love us like nobody could love us the Father loves like nobody can love the father said the Father loves like nobody can love ha ha hee Arapaho karappa ha yes yes yes yes yes yes yes in Jesus name Lord I pray that somebody here tonight that struggling spiritually Lord I pray right now they're starting to repent of their sins I pray right now they'll begin to make a decision I'm coming out I'm coming out I'm coming home I'm coming home come on some of you've been here you never left but spiritually you're in a far-off country far-off country far-off country I pray come home come home come home oh shut up oh cool just keep on praying I gotta read this because it's too good not to me and I'll beat myself up if I don't read this Luke 15 and verse number 20 and he arose and came to his father but when he was yet a great way off his father saw him number one and had compassion number two and he ran number three and he fell on his neck number four and he kissed him number five listen I wish I had time to preach about the father's Fab five and I don't have time to do it it might be another message but I want you to know if you're in this place tonight and you have any question if you're truly loved by God oh my word wake up and read your Bible your father loves you unconditionally unconditionally unconditionally it's a God of love it's love that says I don't care how many times you mess up I'm still your father you're still my son I don't care how many times you fail I'm still your father you'll still my son he ran fell on his neck how compassion he kissed him listen I can't hardly wait for next Wednesday for next Wednesday for next Wednesday because next Wednesday I get to teach in a preach about how the church is gonna respond to the particles coming home I get to teach about the older brother and how we're not gonna respond how the older brother did because there's no room for jealousy in this house there's no room for an older brother it has a problem with a younger brother who comes home there's no room for an older brother who has an issue with the father's kissa on a younger brother surah Baqarah Baja my god we're creating a plan we're creating a system we're creating away if you truly want to get back into ministry please come on come see me come see pastor carpenter come see pastor handy pastor Nolan come see one of your pastoral staff and say please I got on a mystery I knew I shouldn't got on a ministry I've been faltering a little bit but I'm coming back home I'm coming back to the house and I want to be used by God I refuse just to take up space and a sex work where the anointing is being poured out I refuse to take up space in a place where miracles signs and wonders are taking place if you really want to be used by God get involved in ministry and let God use you let God changed people through you nothing holds you in to a church like winning souls nothing holds you in to a church like sharing your faith in this gospel wouldn't everybody that you can find Oh God let us get in the house and not just get in the house Lord make us what you wouldn't make us we're gonna end right here one last prayer every hand lifted to heaven I just want you to pray this prayer with me say father make me what she wouldn't make me father I come before you unbeliev father I'm not gonna bring my college degrees and throw them in your face I'm not gonna throw Lord God my reputation of where I've been and who I've done who who I've hung out with and my good friends yeah I'm the frame with the mayor the mayor the mayor I'm the frame with this person I'm not gonna bring anything before you God and try to convince you that I'm worthy to be your son I'm just gonna come unbelieva for you and say Lord I'm nothing but Lord I believe you can make me whatever you want to make me I believe that you can make me oh God hee-ha-ha I wish a spirit huh a spirit of David would rise up in this place as the hard tough yeah is the deer panteth after the water Brooks so does my soul Lord for you Oh God God God he added up a horse or a book oh come on let there be long in this house that they belong in in his house shut up a horrible horrible horrible horrible long Lord I long Lord I long I'm thirsty I'm thirsty for you Oh God my heart and flesh cry out to you the Living God your spirit is water to my soul hear about how I feel you in this place now we're so bad I was so bad that we can join hands right now but we can't but maybe you could join if you've got a family member next to you if you've got a husband or wife next to your a child makes you why don't you grab the hand I know we can't grab hands of anybody outside of our families but come on maybe we can just grab hands and come on let's just pray this prayer over our church family Lord God help us O God to wake up like we've never woken up before now Lord God help us Lord God to come to ourselves in our senses like we have never come to ourselves in our senses before Lord let us have a change mine like we have never had I wanna make up my out of a horse or a book or not I wanna made up wanna made up wanna made up I will I will I will I'll return with you millet here I'll be on boss Lord make me what you wanna make me how robots or shut up or karappa ha nor I come with the right motives huh I don't have the wrong motives it's not about position it's not about minutes are coming back cause I want to be back in your presence I want to sit at your table once again Abajo Toro loco he honorable Kaurava ha come on the Holy Ghost is moving in this place I believe them Holy Ghost I believe he can feel somebody come on this is nah this is the service and the Pentecost Sunday the Pentecostal spirit is still not here it's still changing lives it's still free of people from bondage all right now in this house