Title
When Bad People Make Good News
Scripture
It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for this your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.
(Luke 15:32)
Devotional
Everyone appears to have a little of the jealous brother in them. We desire forgiveness for our wrongs, yet have a hard time forgiving those who wrong us. It is much more difficult for us to forgive than to be forgiven. We want the world to forgive and forget. Yet, we want to hold onto a wrong suffered. We oftentimes use forgiveness as a vengeful weapon or hangman’s noose against those we profess to have forgiven. Instead of being glad that the wayward have been restored, and the lost found, we are upset that now they have received favor. We should not only forgive, we should seek out those who need forgiveness. What could be more rewarding than to restore the destroyed, or find the lost? It will always be right to rejoice and be glad for the return of a prodigal. Someday the prodigal just might be you.
Thought For The Night
“Peace is not made with friends. Peace is made with enemies.” Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, quoted in Newsweek (Sept. 13, 1993).
Evening Text
Luke 15:32: “It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.”
Looking for Answers
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Have you considered the suffering of the prodigal’s father?
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Have you considered the suffering of the Father, while the Son suffered on Calvary?
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Of the three characters in the story, the prodigal, the father, and the brother, which most reflects your life?
Evening Study Guide
Defining: “Prodigal”: “Given to extravagant expenditures; expending money or other things without necessity; profuse, lavish; wasteful; not frugal or economical... A man may be prodigal of his strength, of his health, of his life or blood, as well as of his money,” Noah Webster's American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828.
Referencing: “You were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls,” 1 Peter 2:25.
Applying: Whether from the prodigal, the disgruntled brother, or the rejoicing father, there are a multitude of lessons to be learned in this often-repeated story. Learn to apply them.