Welcome
We still in the season of lent, pilgrimaging together towards the cross, but today’s topic is celebration. Taking time to rejoice through the seasons of life, to mark significant moments or achievements. There is much talk about the queens Platinum Jubilee Celebrations marking seventy years on the throne. It is amazing an extra bank holiday announced on the 3 June 2022 which just happens to coincide with my wife’s birthday. Time to celebrate!

Call to Worship (Inspired by Psalm 32)

Trust in the Eternal One
We come in hope.
Rejoice in God’s unfailing love.
We come in faith.
Celebrate the forgiveness that is ours.
We come to sing with gladness.
Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O righteous
and shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

HYMN 154 O Lord my God!

Prayer

Let us pray
Lord God almighty, creator of the world, and Father to each one of us, we bless You and we praise You, we rejoice in our knowledge of Your goodness and grace. The king of kings knows every one of his subjects; the lord of lords loves every one of his people; the judge of all the earth extends forgiveness even to the most detestable of sinners. Your love is far beyond our understanding; but we recognize in it the fulfilment of our deepest hopes and longings.

We bless You for the gift of worship, for instruments and voices to raise in songs of celebration. We unite our offering of praise with the worship of the whole of creation, both in this world and in heaven. Holy, holy, holy is our God, the sovereign Lord of all, who was, and is, and is to come – the one, true, living God for ever and ever.

You have not kept you glory hidden from us. In Christ, we have been shown the right way to live and the true meaning of love; but we are slow to follow it. Father, we acknowledge our great shortcomings – our mistaken priorities, our disturbing lack of love and our failure to share Your grace. We are impatient with the people closest to us, and indifferent towards those who are conveniently far away. We are aware of many ways in which we have betrayed You – both by doing wrong, and by leaving good undone. Most of all our attitudes to others have been critical and condemning when You have given your all to us. You are aware of so much more that hinders your work through us.

Almighty God, forgive us, so far as we are ready to be forgiven, and bring us to new peace and wholeness, for the sake of him who died for our forgiveness, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

Scriptures:

Joshua 5:9-12
⁹ The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Today I have rolled away from you the disgrace of Egypt.’ And so that place is called Gilgal^[a] to this day.¹⁰ While the Israelites were encamped in Gilgal they kept the Passover in the evening on the fourteenth day of the month in the plains of Jericho. ¹¹ On the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. ¹² The manna ceased on the day they ate the produce of the land, and the Israelites no longer had manna; they ate the crops of the land of Canaan that year.

Luke 15:1-3,11b-32
Now all the tax-collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. ² And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.’³ So he told them this parable:

Then Jesus^[a] said, ‘There was a man who had two sons. ¹² The younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.” So, he divided his property between them. ¹³ A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and travelled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. ¹⁴ When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. ¹⁶ He would gladly have filled himself with^[b] the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. ¹⁷ But when he came to himself, he said, “How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! ¹⁸ I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.’” ²⁰ So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. ²¹ Then the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”^[c] 22 But the father said to his slaves, “Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. ²³ And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; ²⁴ for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!” And they began to celebrate.
²⁵ ‘Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶ He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. ²⁷ He replied, “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.” ²⁸ Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. ²⁹ But he answered his father, “Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. ³⁰ But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!” ³¹ Then the father^[d] said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. ³² But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.”’

HYMN 519 Love divine, all loves excelling

Reflection:

So I am going to start with a little confession, don’t hold it against me, but I love a good party. Good food, good music and obviously the vital ingredient is who is there. For my fiftieth birthday party, I went all out – rock ‘n roll, 80’s theme dress-up, live band. It was an epic celebration, the food was great, and speeches were unavoidable, and we danced the night away. Carol, my beautiful wife did an amazing job of all the arrangements. We were not only celebrating that I had made it to fifty but in reality, celebrating the journey and all who had impacted my life along the way. When last have you celebrated a milestone or an achievement. In the Batchelor family as I grew up, everything was celebrated, birthdays, anniversaries, a promotion, and Christmas and New Year were full-on. Did you grow up in a culture of celebrating, marking milestones and achievements?

Today’s gospel text is well known, but there is so much to explore in it. I am sure you know it well. The younger son asks for his inheritance. The father grants his request and he goes off and squanders it. Right from the start Jesus’s audience would have been shocked on three points. Firstly, that the younger son would be the one to speak first in the story; in that culture, this was unheard of. Secondly his request for his share was tantamount to saying he wanted the father dead. The most shocking part of all though would be the father’s response in granting his son’s request. Right from the start of this story we have a very unusual father in the culture of that day. Back to the story. There is a famine which compounds or highlights the younger son’s bad choices, forcing him to the lowest of places. In this difficult place he comes to his senses and realises that the men who work for his father are better off than he is. Luke 15:17 “But when he came to himself, he said, “How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger!” He returns and is welcomed extravagantly (that is what prodigal means). The father is so overjoyed to have his son back that he arranges an epic party and invites the neighbourhood. The father even organises the local band to preform that night. Luke 15:25 “Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.” Ultimately, this parable is about a celebration, a party with singing and dancing. If we look a little more broadly, we cannot separate this parable from the two before it: the parable of the lost sheep and the lost coin and they both end in a heavenly joyous celebration. “’Rejoice with me, for I have found my lost sheep” and “’Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost’” (Luke 15:6,9). They are in a sense a request to you and me to join in the celebration with all of heaven at one repentant sinner coming home. The Elder son wants nothing to do with the party and at the end of the story he is the one outside whom the father is begging to come into the party.

Before we continue with the story let’s remind ourselves who the audience is: “Now all the tax-collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. ² And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them’.” (Luke 15:1,2). This is a mixed audience, a diverse group of those who knew they were on the outside, but also those who thought they were secure in their position on the inside. Jesus addresses both those he is accused of eating with and the ones who think he should be eating with them. I am not sure where the fulcrum for you is, in this story. Is the turning point when the young man comes to his senses or is it the point where he is welcomed home extravagantly? We unfortunately know the ending but try to place yourself in the crowd. Both the Pharisees and the sinners I am sure are expecting the same negative outcome. Some even say there was a similar story told by the pharisees which had the father folding his arms, turning his back, cursing his son and walking away. The son returns with the full intention of trying to persuade his father to take him as a hired hand in other words, so he can earn his own way. The son does not expect to be welcomed back into the family. Luke 15: 18-19 “I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.’” The next major shock in the story is that the father is full of compassion, the audience was expecting criticism and condemnation. Surely the father would be angry, surely the father would make the son beg on his knees and explain in great detail what he had done. But no, the father runs to meet the son, running for an older person in that culture was undignified, humiliating and some indicate that the father saves the son from humiliation by meeting outside of the view of others, the community. The style of language used to explain the father’s response is one which conveys emotion. Fast rapid actions, one after the other. Luke 15:20b-22 “… he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. ²¹ Then the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”^[c] 22 But the father said to his slaves, “Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.”

Not sure if you have noticed this before but the son does not get to even finish his well-rehearsed request to be treated like a worker. It is as if grace interrupts the son’s desire to work for what he gets. Grace interrupts and fully restores the son to his original position as a son. Not a slave, not a hired hand but a son. The father does not ask for elaborate rituals of public penances or vows and promises of future behaviour. The father welcomes him home, embraces, kisses and gives him His Robe, His sandals and ring. They say actions speak louder than words. The robe, the best one would have been the father’s robe, can you picture this beautiful pristine robe placed over the filthy rags the son is wearing. The Robe could speak of the righteousness of God covering all our sin. The Ring, in that culture was symbolic of authority to act on behalf of the father and the sandals were symbolic of freedom, slaves did not wear sandals. This is a full and complete restoration. The father is overwhelmed with joy, just to have the son back. Could this be the real turning point in the story?

There are two sons in this story though, just as there are two responses in the crowd. The sinners I am sure were shocked in a positive way. They could never imagine that they could be welcomed home so graciously. The Pharisees would have been shocked, expecting the younger son to be punished and ostracised, not welcomed, embraced and restored. Luke 15:28,29 “Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. ²⁹ But he answered his father, “Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends.” This is a common reaction in elder sons, often feeling aggrieved because the younger son seems to get more and get away with more. It could be that you have had these feelings towards your father or mother and they have manifested negatively and caused damage to your family relations. Even if you have never verbalised them, feelings of disparity in treatment or having to continually work at being noticed will affect your relationships. The elder son still sees himself as an outsider trying to work and earn the good graces and favour of the father. Never getting what he thinks he deserves. The elder son sees himself as a slave with hardly any privileges and a whole lot of responsibilities. He is not really happy and therefore does not join the party. Note the father goes out to the older son, leaving the celebration to try and bring about reconciliation. The elder son is dishonouring the father by not joining in the celebration and yet the father goes out to bring him in.

Our repentance and reconciliation with God are most profoundly seen and expressed in the way we treat our brothers and sisters. Those we may continue to see as ill-deserving of all the blessings of the father. The saddest words for me in this whole story are when the older son refers to his brother as “your son” when speaking to the father even though a slave has just reminded him that it is “your brother”. It is sad that the older brother continues to seek to condemn and bring up his version of the past when the father has moved on. One profound way in which those outside will be attracted to come home is by the sights and sounds of the joyous celebrations we have weekly in corporate worship. Celebrating and honouring God for his grace and favour even in our times of rebellion. The world is in a tough place at this time. The war that is raging in Ukraine has and will continue to have negative ripple effects all around the globe. We the church have a story to tell though, of a God of grace and mercy who waits and longs with open arms for his children to return. You have seen the pictures on the news of family members reuniting and what do you see an embracing and a kissing. We have seen people of neighbouring countries reaching out and embracing those fleeing the war zone, disregarding the history. The most amazing scene I have seen though is Ukrainian people treating a captured Russian soldier with compassion and grace. May we continue to rejoice as a faith community in our current circumstances knowing that we are loved beyond measure. The world needs to see afresh the joy that comes from knowing that we are in right relationship with God, not because of our striving and working but because of His grace and mercy.

As I end, After the eldest son condemns and complains the Father responds with these words, “Then the father^[d] said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. ³² But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.”’ (Luke 15:31,32)
Is there room in your spirituality, your faith journey for celebration? Just maybe the spiritual discipline we need to foster this Lent is Joy because it is only from that place that we can truly be a light and Hope to those around us at this difficult time!
The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Today I have rolled away from you the disgrace of Egypt.’ And so that place is called Gilgal^[a] to this day. (Joshua 5:9)

HYMN 187 There’s a wideness in God’s mercy

Prayers:

O God our Father, in your Church
both stillness and vitality abound,
companion virtues in the life of faith.
May all your people be kept
in quietness and confidence of heart,
at this disturbing time in our history.
Help us your people not shrink back
But to serve the cause of right
with vigour and determination
when called by you.

Lord, your Son has come,
bringing divine change by the
visible signs of the arrival of your kingdom.
Establish your kingdom in our lives
And through the lives of your people.
Not through easy slogans
and good intentions
but through active and prayerful commitment
to your will and ways as displayed in Christ.

Remember Lord
all who live simply and speak plainly
amid the complexities of this age:
that, by their lifestyle, sacrifice and
the directness of their words,
they may set new standards
in a society weakened by indulgence
and confused by twisted speech:
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Remember Lord
all unjustly imprisoned
for political or religious beliefs,
and all victims of violence or fear.

Remember those on the front line of war
and the civilians, grandmothers and grandfathers,
children and parents caught in the despair
of the senseless destruction and agonising pain
that war always brings.
.
Give them and us the courage in their plight to hold
onto hope and continue to celebrate Your love
And truth seen in out stretched arms and warm
embraces.

Keep our eyes fixed as we patiently await
the dawning of a new age: When we will
celebrate in the fullness of your joy and peace:
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Lord Jesus Christ,
we have offered to you prayer and praise.
Receive from us also the earnest desire
to please you in worship and in work alike,
and more fully to understand and celebrate
the cost at which you have secured
our freedom as the sons and daughters of God.

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.

HYMN 692 Jesus puts this song into our hearts

Benediction:

Whatever wilderness the Spirit has brought you to:
walk in boldness, celebrating that you are a beloved child of God
walk in peace, knowing you are fully restored through Christ
walk in faith, guided by the ever-present Spirit of God. Amen.

Sung Amen

Acknowledgements:
Bible Quotations taken from: New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

English translations of The Lord’s Prayer, © 1998, English Language Liturgical Consultation (ELLC), and used by permission. www.englishtexts.org
Prayers and final blessing adapted from Church of Scotland Weekly Worship for 27^th March 2022.

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