You realize you’ve gone off course in your spiritual walk, and you find yourself headed away from God. As such, you are experiencing the hardships that come from making bad decisions. Tony Evans explains that the first thing you need to do in such situations is to take the nearest exit, which the Bible calls repentance.

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well here we are friends at the

beginning

of a brand new year

and you know that reminds me of new

opportunities

you know as i stand in this chapel i’m

reminded about

beginnings in this chapel babies are

dedicated

marriages are established

it means they’re looking forward to the

future

you know the bible says to despise not

the day of small things

of humble beginnings because anything

that’s achieved

a lot started somewhere

you know i think of our own ministry the

urban alternative and how we started

with just a few cassette tapes 40 years

ago

packing them up and taking them to the

post office and sending them to people

who wanted to hear the messages of god’s

word being proclaimed

and now 40 years later

over 1400 radio stations in 130

countries around the world

a training institute impacting

individuals families churches and

communities

all over the nation and we started

so small as you look at this year

i want you to dream a little bit i want

you to dream

about what you can start doing now that

god can grab a hold of

and turn into something huge

for your good his glory

and blessing to others when those three

things

are packaged together no matter how

small you start

you’ve given god something to work with

amplify

and favor so

at the beginning of this new year i want

you to think

about what god can do through you

as you dream his dreams working through

you

for the advancement of his kingdom we

dreamt 40 years ago

and we praise god for what he has done

as we turn the clock to a new year

to do so much more

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god knows what you like he knows our

propensity

and he has compassion when we come home

come back home as quickly as possible

though your sins being scarlet

they shall be white as snow though they

be red like crimson they shall be his

will

so whatever inheritance whatever god

still wants to do for you

to you through you in you don’t lose

anymore

jesus christ broke the curse so don’t

ever talk about you being cursed again

if you know jesus christ the curse the

consequence of the law

is broken the greatest miracle of all

is when you dip yourself in the blood of

jesus christ

for the forgiveness of sins and the gift

of eternal life

god is inviting us to a family

reunion he wants to reconnect

with members of his family who have

drifted from him

he has a term for that reconnection

that term is repentance

repentance is that inner resolve and

determination

to turn from sin and return

to fellowship with god it is that inner

resolve and determination to turn from

sin

and return back to god that is

validated by what the bible calls fruits

of repentance or

visible demonstrable actions that are

taken

to prove you weren’t just talking noise

or having a momentary feeling because

you took

steps to return back to him

that could be authenticated fruits of

repentance

repentance is the word to bring you back

into fellowship

which opens up the door based on god’s

sovereign prerogative

to address the consequences that the

departure

created from him

we have established the fact that

departure from god

results in consequences in life

sin has repercussions

many most if not all can point to

regrets

in your life that if you could go back

turn back the hands of time and do it

all over again

you would have done it differently

because there is the ongoing consequence

of the sin

that you are ashamed of

in luke chapter 15. we are told

that the tax collectors and sinners were

coming

near to jesus to hear him teach

they were listening to his message

but the religious leaders according to

verse 2

the scribes and the pharisees grumbled

saying this man jesus received sinners

and he actually

eats with them they were ticked off

that jesus christ was interfacing

and even fellowshipping

with folks who in their minds ought to

have been avoided this leads jesus to

tell a couple of stories

he tells about a shepherd where one

sheep goes and gets lost and the

shepherd leaves the 99 and goes after

the one

and brings one back he then says there’s

a woman with ten coins

she loses one she turns on the light she

dusts she sweeps

in order to find the one coin and the

shepherd celebrates when he brings back

the shepherd the

wife’s or the woman celebrates when she

finds the coin

and then he makes the point that heaven

rejoices

when one sinner repents

then over righteous who do not need to

repent

heaven has a party

when a sinner comes home there is

actually

a party in glory when someone who is

lost returns to the fold

having stated his two illustrations

he comes with the zinger

you know it as the prodigal son

let’s revisit his story today

to see how it affects your fellowship

with god and

the possible reversals of consequences

you may be experiencing because of sin

or those you know and love

may be experiencing because of sin i

think you’ll find some very interesting

things in this story a man has two sons

verse 11 says

the younger of the son comes to the

father and says

give me the share of the estate that

falls to me

so he divided his wealth between them

the younger son comes to dad and he says

dad

i want my inheritance

because i want to leave now now that may

not seem like a big deal

to you and me but it was a big deal back

then

because in the jewish world you only

sought your inheritance when it was time

for your father

to die when he was on a death bed

like we do wills today when somebody

dies when you’re on your death bed

was the time inheritances were handed

out

and so it was

it was the time of death that provided

it

well this father is very much alive

and the son says i’d like my inheritance

now

translation i wish you were dead i want

to get out of here now so he gathers his

things together

and when he gathers his things together

after many days

he goes on a journey to a distant

country

where he squandered his estate with

loose living

spent everything he had there was a

severe famine

that occurred in the country and he

began to be impoverished

please notice the father lets him leave

father doesn’t make him stay because god

wants you

with him because that’s where you want

to be and so he goes to a far country

in the bible the far country is called

the world

he squandered his estate with loose

living

he spent what he had

he messed up now that was in his control

but it got worse

because in the far country something

happened that was out of his control

a famine verse 15 he hired himself

out to one of the citizens of that

country

and he sent him into the field to feed

swine

and he would have gladly filled his

stomach with the pods

that the swines were eating and no one

was giving him anything

it went from bad to worse okay he didn’t

run out of stuff

his greenbacks have gone back

so he becomes a day worker

feeding pigs now you have to understand

it’s a jewish boy feeding pigs

that’s as low as you go if you’re a

jewish guy

and you got to feed pork the only thing

he’s desiring to eat is the food that

pigs eat

because in the far country if you’re

there long enough

you wind up in the garbage

oh it got worse it says no friends gave

him anything

because when things go left your friends

disappear

verse 17 offers us a transition

but when it came to his senses

he did not come to his senses until

things got

rock bottom and he says you are crazy

you have lost your mind

so he said how many of my father’s hired

men have more than enough bread but i am

dying here with hunger

i will get up and go to my father and

i’ll say to him father i have sinned

against heaven and in your sight

i am no longer worthy to be called your

son

make me as one of your hired

men look at my watch this

my circumstances see it was his

consequences that woke him up

so god will allow us to have

consequences

until we get tired of pig life

and then he shows the fruits of

repentance verse 20

so he got up and came to his father

while he was still a long way off verse

20

his father saw him felt compassion for

him

ran and embraced and kissed him

guess what daddy at the window looking

for his boy

because the father is waiting for some

folk to come home

please don’t miss this don’t miss this

don’t miss this

he never went to the far country

stay with me here he he didn’t go to the

far country

see a lot of folk are in the far country

calling on god to deliver them

they are away from god begging god to

turn their

situation they’re waiting for that

change to come

into our country in other words they

want to keep their sin

and have the father

no no no the father did not run to him

until he saw him on the way back

there must be movement toward god

demonstrating there is sincerity

about repentance and the father

will meet you before you ever arrive

because he wants you to come home

looking for you to come home

desirous of you to come home but you got

to be coming home

a lot of folk want god to meet him in

the fall country

read me can’t do that the bible says is

because the world the far country is

enmity against god

james 4 4 says first john chapter 2

verses 15 to 17

don’t love the world or the things in

the world for if any man loves the world

the love of the father is not in him

you lose the love of god you’re at

enmity with god

so he’s not going to hang out with you

in the fall country

but he’ll meet you if you decide to live

the far country

and to help you want to leave the far

country he’ll wait till you hit rock

bottom

he comes back to his father’s father’s

kissing him loving on him

and the son said to the father verse 21

father

i have sinned against heaven and in your

sight

i am no longer worthy to be called your

son

because of what i did to your name

because of what i did to your resources

i don’t deserve to carry your name

but the father said to his slaves

quickly bring out

the best road put it on him put a ring

on his hand

and sandals on his feet and bring the

fatted calf

kill it and let us eat and celebrate

ooh my boy gets a party

by the father after he’s confessed that

he sinned

and returned home see a lot of folk want

to party without a confession

uh let me tell you what he lost

he lost his inheritance

because he spent it in a far country

so whatever inheritance whatever god

still wants to do from you for you

to you through you in you don’t lose

anymore

come back home as quickly as possible

because he lost all of his

now verse 25 the older son

was in the field and when he came

and approached the house he heard music

and dancing

so they haven’t damn they have a great

time man

they have a celebration going on and he

summoned one of the servants verse 26

and began inquiring

what these things could be what what’s

this party all about

he said to him your brother has come

and your father has killed a fatted calf

because he received him back

safe and sound

but he became angry watch this now

and was not willing to go in i ain’t

going to that party

and his father came out and began

pleading with him come on in come on in

come on in

but he answered and said to his father

look

for so many years

i have been serving you i never

neglected a command of yours

and yet you have never given me a young

goat you gave him the fatted calf never

even gave me a goat

you gave him the turkey didn’t give me

no chicken you you just

so that i might celebrate with my

friends you never did that for me

verse 30 when this son of yours not my

brother

this son of yours

who devoured your wealth he messed up

your inheritance

with prostitutes

and you killed a fatty cat for him

i’ve been with you for years years

and i don’t get a party and you’re gonna

go all hog

wild over this this evil loose living

money wasting son of yours

let’s see the father’s response to the

older son

and he said verse 31 son

because he’s a son too you have always

been with me

and all that is mine is yours

but we had to celebrate and rejoice for

this brother of yours was

dead and has become alive

was lost and is now found do you

remember what we just defined dead to be

he had he wasn’t physically dead he was

separated

so death in the bible means separation

this brother was dead dead to the family

separated from the family he’s alive

that is there has been

a reunion

you older son

have been with me always

all that i have is yours

i don’t know if you caught that you’ve

been with me you never left me you

you hung out with me you’ve been doing

it for years

all that i have is yours translation

you could have had a party anytime you

wanted one it was

always available to you so if you never

had a party

it’s cause you never decided to have one

cause the party was right in your

backyard

in other words brothers and sisters

there are two kinds of prodigals

there is a prodigal that’s a i’ll call

him a secular prodigal

this is the one that leeds church this

is the one that goes out into the world

this is the one that leaves god this is

the one that doesn’t want to have

anything to do with faith this is the

one that’s thrown

the bible away has no time for prayer

and

is out there just living it up and it’s

evident

the reputation is evident that this

is a sinning son

that’s a secular prodigal oh but you can

have a religious prodigal

the religious prodigal is staying in the

vicinity of the father

he’s hanging out in the father’s field

he still comes to church every sunday

she still sings in the choir he still

serves on the usher board

uh they’re still around they they give

the picture

of fellowship with the father never

taking advantage of the relationship

they are religious prodigals see we we

give a hard time to the secular

prodigals

because that’s like overt wickedness but

god has a lot of other children

he got a lot of other children a lot of

other

boys and girls who stay in the vicinity

of the father

who never take advantage of what the

father has to offer

they still in church

but they are disconnected from the

father

so they don’t get the benefit of what

they could have had

see the beauty of the second son is that

he could have had

what the young man had all the time

but he was satisfied with being in the

vicinity of

i love psalm 103

verse 10 to verse 14.

he has not dealt with us according to

our sins

nor rewarded us according to our

iniquities

for as high as the heavens are above the

earth so

great is his loving kindness toward

those who fear him

as far as the east is from the west so

far has he removed our transgressions

from us

just as the father has compassion on his

children

so the lord has compassion on those who

fear him

for he himself knows our frame

he is mindful that we are but dust

god god knows what you like what i’m

like what we like

he knows our propensity and he has

compassion

when we come home i love isaiah chapter

1 verses 18 to 20 though your sins be a

scarlet

they shall be white as snow though they

be red like crimson they shall be his

wool i love

isaiah 55 7 which says and he will

abundantly pardon pardoned

looking for opportunities to release

us from our sins which opens up the door

for him to address our consequences

so the question is what kind of prodigal

are you

am i am i a younger son prodigal

or i’m just loose living or maybe a

religious prodigal

well i go to church but there’s no

relationship with the father

because the father says i will deal with

the sinner who repents

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when we walk away from god when we walk

away from his word when we walk away

from fellowship with him

we enter into a spiritual zone

of problems the spiritual always

precedes the physical when things go

awry in our lives because we’ve walked

away from god they show up in our

circumstances

when we move from him then we see a

devolution of life we devolve

into pain and

aches and regrets and

stresses that god never

desired for us to have but what we’ve

done is we’ve created

spiritual distance the further we move

from god the closer we are to

the consequences of negatively

being impacted by life’s realities now

we know

just being alive even if you’re a great

person

doesn’t mean that you don’t have

challenges

but the difference is you can have

challenges with god

or without him you can have challenges

in close proximity

or challenges because you’ve wandered so

far from him

you’re out there on your own

the spiritual consequences of our

abandonment of intimacy with the father

will always lead to regrets in life

and you let those regrets go long enough

because we’ve stayed far enough

for far too long and you watch your life

and even those that you influence

unravel right before your eyes

so since the consequences are

spiritually founded

the solution is spiritual as well

when we get back into right relationship

with god then we

free him up to address our situations

our circumstances

our pain and our problems in a fresh way

so that we find healing from the

sores and scars that we brought on

because we wandered too far from home

come back home your father is waiting

for your return

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you