Sermon: Sodom and Gomorrah by the Rev. Lee Woofenden



Luke 15:11-32

Jesus said, "A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of estate that falls to me.' And he divided his wealth between them. And not many days later the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living. Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country; and he began to be in need.

And he went and attached himself to one of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he was longing to fill his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him.

But when he came to his senses, 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 will 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.' And he got up, and came to his father.

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him, and felt compassion, for him and ran, and embraced him, and kissed him. And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight, I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'

But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly bring out the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and sandals on his feet; and bring the fattened calf, kill it; and let us eat, and be merry; for this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.' And they began to be merry.

Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things might be. And he said to him, 'Your brother has come; and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.'

But he became angry, and was not willing to go in: and his father came out, and began entreating him. And he answered said to his father, 'Look!, For so many years I have been serving you, and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends; but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with harlots, you killed the fattened calf for him.'

And he said to him, 'My child, you have always been with me, and all that I have is yours. But we had to be merry, and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead, and has begun to live, and was lost, and has been found.'"


REPENTANCE

 It may not be obvious at first, but the prime subject of the story of the prodigal son is repentance. The purpose of repentance is to allow our-selves to be awakened by the spirit of God.

Spiritual growth requires a time of introspection, self-examination and sifting through the many illusions of our lives to consider the true meaning of our loves and endeavors. It is a time and process of recognizing and acknowledging where we have been, spiritually speaking, during the recent period of our life.

Introspection is a process by which we look within our self and humbly and honestly see our faults. We seek to become aware of how much and in what ways we have strayed from the path and goals we have previously set for ourselves. In it we try to open ourselves up so that we might see our self as God sees us. Which is: imperfect and foolish, precious and vulnerable and valuable beyond price. Also, definitely in need of His help to mature and blossom into the fullness of our humanity and to enjoy the richness of a complete human life, which is a uniting of the natural and spiritual aspects of human life. The familiar story of the prodigal son gives us a perfect and portrayal of the regenerative process involved in repentance, and wonderfully describes the spiritual states in which we so often find our self.

A long time ago, just like the younger son, we to received our share of inheritance from our Heavenly Father. We took possession of the power to think and to love that was intended to be a gift, freely given. Having received this gift we decided to do things on our own. We became caught up in the external things of life and quickly became good at surviving, at competing, at making sure we received what we considered to be, our "fair share." Yet, just when it seems we have a handle on success, just when we get what we want, we become aware of our lack of inner wealth/success. We then begin to experience the famine or emptiness of a life lived solely for our selves. We read that as soon as the prodigal son had spent all that he had been given a famine arose in the land. This is not just a coincidence or a run of bad luck; it is a symbol of the principle that the illusion of worldly, self-defined values is dissipated as soon as we acquire them.

In the story, even these dire straits were not enough to cause a serious change of mind in our hero (the prodigal son in us). Unable to live exactly as he pleased, he joined with a citizen of that barren country, and looked after his swine. This "distant country" is indicative of a spiritual state of separation from the Lord. He digs in his heels, and settles for less, just so long as he can remain in control. But no one gives him anything. A life lived only for ones self will not allow us to be open to the gift of sharing and compassion that the Lord extends to us. We do not find them in ourselves or in our relations with our neighbors. It is at this point that he "comes to himself." He becomes aware that he is in fact lost, out of touch with those things that he not only needs, but that are rightfully his to have as they are part of his humanness. They are the blessing and gift of the Father. This is a critical part of the story. This is the moment of repentance, the moment of a clear acknowledgement of our spiritual state, which must be freely realized through our own volition. This is the sense in which we are "found." We notice that no one went looking for him. "I have sinned against heaven and before You" are his thoughts. Empowered by his realization , he arose and went home to his father. Once he could confront his own tendency to sin, to squander or abuse the powers of love and understanding that had been given to him, he was able to rise above the egotistical values that had kept him captive to himself.

"But while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him." What does the Lord require of us? Not a lot of complicated things. In fact, all that is really required is the sincere confession that we really need Him. It is just this openness and need that brings the Lord to us. The response is immediate, so in a sense He is always there and it is simply a matter of us opening ourselves to His presence and letting Him in.

A similar point is made when the son admits that he is not worthy to be called "son". Immediately he receives the best robe, a sign of being covered or protected by genuine truth. This is part of the paradox of repentance. Only when we acknowledge our own powerlessness, can we receive and understand the true power of life which the Lord longs to impart to us.

We must be careful in feeling sorry for the older son who is angered by his father's joyous reception of his errant brother. This fellow represents a false or spurious form of spirituality. He follows only the letter of the law, abiding only by the externals of religion and a pious appearance. He represents truths that have not yet been tested and purged of selfhood; truths that have not been used and made his own. He has thus far failed to enter into the process of true repentance because he has refused to examine his inner motives for living and behaving the way he has. He likely feels that as the older son or first born, he is automatically entitled to be in a spiritual condition superior to the younger son. Certainly he served for many years, and was never disobedient, and yet his attitude betrays his inner motives. He has not yet risen to a perspective based on love and forgiveness but remains judgmental and condemning . The older son is in a state that is clearly represented by the serpent in the Bible where it is referred to in the present tense. (Revelation 12:9. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceives the whole world.) The serpent is the part of us that believes in the external world, it hugs the ground and sensuously slides along it keeping intimate contact with it. It loves the elements of that world which cause our anger and frustration, and tries to convince us that all the negative appearances in our life are true. The snake has two fangs and they are the love of self and the love of the world. Beneath these two fangs are two other prominent teeth which are used to hold down or restrain its victims. They are called blame and criticism.

The Lord said we should love our neighbor as our self, but that is hard or impossible to do when we are busy blaming and criticizing others and our self. We need to yank the two bottom teeth out of the serpents mouth and all we need to do that is to stop blaming and criticizing. Just STOP IT! If you are in mid criticism and you realize it, even though you may feel foolish, stop it! Give it up. If you find yourself blaming someone or yourself, STOP IT! and find another way to deal with the situation, for as long as you continue on the route of blame and criticism your relationship with your neighbor, or your child or family, or your self will be a negative one and you will be stuck there , not being able to receive or even recognize, let alone enjoy, the blessings that the Father holds constantly in front of you.

Return to the Lord for He is gracious. Return with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, with mourning and rend your hearts and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

Amen and may God bless you.

Acknowledgement: Portions of this sermon were taken from a sermon by Reverend Robert McCluskey
 published in the October 1990 copy of Our Daily Bread.
A ministry of the Swedenborgian Church

Music:
God Grant Us Peace
© Bruce DeBoer

Painting: The ReturN of the Prodigal Son by 
Barbieri (called Il Guercino)
Italian, 1591 - 1666
Background design by Judy