Participants: John Bradshaw
Series Code: IIW
Program Code: IIW001378A
01:30 ♪[Music]♪
01:40 ♪[Music]♪ 01:49 >>John Bradshaw: This is It Is Written. 01:50 I'm john Bradshaw, thanks for joining me. 01:53 Life was hard for 5 year old Saroo. 01:55 He lived in a small village, 01:57 in poverty, 01:58 in India. 02:00 One of four children being raised by a single mother. 02:02 Dad had abandoned the family a couple of years earlier. 02:05 Saroo's older brother was the man of the family 02:08 at nine years of age, and he'd search trains 02:11 for money that passengers had dropped while traveling. 02:13 One day the older brother took Saroo 02:15 along looking for money on the trains. 02:17 The two boys became separated, 02:21 and the little boy fell asleep on a train, 02:22 he ended up a thousand miles from home 02:26 totally and utterly lost in Calcutta, 02:30 where ultimately he was adopted by a family from Australia. 02:35 They took him to start a new life in Hobart, Tasmania. 02:40 Have you ever been really, really lost? 02:44 A friend and I couldn't find a out way out 02:45 of the old city of Jerusalem. 02:47 So I said, "Follow me." 02:48 “Easy.” 02:49 And it was. 02:50 We went this way, we turned left, walked some more, 02:52 we turned left or maybe it was right 02:54 and we walked and we walked and we walked, 02:56 and eventually things started to look familiar. 02:59 Very familiar. 03:00 We ended up exactly where we'd started. 03:04 Still lost, with no idea how to get unlost! 03:07 The Bible tells us in Luke 19 and verse 10 03:10 that “the Son of man is come to seek and to save 03:13 that which was lost.” 03:15 Which is just as well. 03:17 Because when sin entered the world, 03:18 human beings were absolutely and totally and completely lost, 03:24 with nothing they could do get themselves found again. 03:27 Much like the little Indian boy who found himself 03:29 in a strange city, among people who didn't speak his language, 03:33 living in an orphanage, 03:34 wondering if he'd ever see his family again. 03:38 The Bible tells a story about a lost boy. 03:40 The story is known as 03:41 “The Prodigal Son” 03:43 and we'll look at the story as part of our series, 03:45 “Lessons for All Time”. 03:47 We find the story in Luke chapter 15, starting in verse 11 03:52 Then He said: “A certain man had two sons. 03:56 And the younger of them said to his father, 03:58 ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.' 04:02 So he divided to them his livelihood. 04:04 And not many days after, 04:06 the younger son gathered all together, 04:08 journeyed to a far country, 04:10 and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. 04:15 And when he had spent all, 04:16 there arose a severe famine in that land, 04:18 and he began to be in want. 04:20 Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, 04:23 and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 04:27 And he would gladly have filled his stomach 04:29 with the pods that the swine ate, 04:32 and no one gave him anything. 04:37 Now let's try to get inside this story a bit. 04:39 A young man approaches his father, he says, 04:41 “I want my portion of the inheritance.” 04:43 Now usually a son wouldn't get that 04:45 until after his father was dead, 04:46 so in effect the son is saying, 04:49 “I wish you were dead. 04:50 And I can't wait until you're gone 04:51 so I can get my hands on my share of your estate.” 04:55 Man, that's disrespectful. 04:57 So what did the father do? 04:59 He gave the son what he was asking for. 05:02 And it wasn't long before the boy was gone, 05:05 sounds a whole lot like he didn't even look back. 05:09 Not completely surprising. 05:11 Young people will want to leave home because they think 05:14 it's going to be more fun ‘out there' in the world. 05:17 This young man wasn't the first to think that way. 05:20 There've been a lot of young men, 05:21 young women too, for that matter 05:22 who've left home only to find out later 05:24 that life at home was really pretty good. 05:26 But home can seem so... restricting. 05:30 Parents have rules and they sometimes insist 05:33 that those rules be obeyed, 05:34 while there's so much out there in the world. 05:37 So much “fun” to have. 05:40 It doesn't always work out how you think its gonna work out. 05:43 It was a good life for a while for the young man. 05:44 And it was fun while the money lasted. 05:47 You can imagine can't you; lots of friends, fast cars, 05:50 fast chariots? I don't know. 05:51 An apartment in a fashionable part of town, 05:53 shopping for the, 05:55 for the hipster look, 05:56 nights spent out clubbing... 05:59 But his lifestyle caught up with the young man 06:01 and before long he was flat broke, 06:03 and so desperate for money 06:04 he has to take a job feeding pigs; 06:06 a tremendous fall for a boy from a Jewish family. 06:11 He had to eat pig food, because there wasn't a soul 06:14 who would give him anything to eat. 06:17 Now that's how it often is, spiritually. 06:20 You have someone who feels restricted in his 06:22 or her Heavenly Father's house, 06:25 and comes to the point where they say, “I am outta here.” 06:28 And off they go, leaving church behind, 06:30 leaving the Bible behind and trying to leave their conscience 06:34 behind in the pursuit of pleasure. 06:37 But that fun can wear off pretty quickly. 06:39 When the money runs out and the friends aren't anywhere 06:41 to be found and you get evicted from your apartment and 06:43 that nice car is repoed, 06:47 what then? 06:48 You can start to think about how good you had it, 06:51 back in your Father's house where you were accepted 06:54 and loved, at the very least by God. 06:59 What then? 07:00 The Bible tells us what happens next. 07:01 We start reading in verse 17. 07:05 “But when he came to himself, he said, 07:07 ‘How many of my father's hired servants 07:10 have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 07:15 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, 07:17 “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, 07:22 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. 07:25 Make me like one of your hired servants.”' 07:29 You can imagine him sitting, sitting in the pig pen 07:31 thinking this through. 07:32 “Look at me,” he said to himself. 07:34 “I had everything, and now I have nothing. 07:36 I'm miles from home without a friend in the world, 07:39 I've got nothing to eat and this stinks.” 07:44 But how can he go back to his Dad? 07:46 He's insulted his father terribly. 07:48 Word has got back to the family 07:49 about the boy's terrible lifestyle. 07:52 He's disgraced his home. 07:56 What would you do? 07:58 Would the Father accept you after all you've done? 08:02 We'll find out in just a moment. 08:04 ♪[Music]♪ 08:13 >>John: Today, our free book offer 08:15 is for one of my very favorite books, 08:17 “Steps to Christ” 08:19 Please call or write us, and “Steps to Christ” 08:22 will be on its way to you. 08:24 There's no cost and no obligation. 08:26 Just call 1-800-253-3000 08:30 and ask for the book “Steps to Christ.” 08:33 You may also request this free book by writing to 08:36 It Is Written, P O Box 6, Chattanooga, TN 37401. 08:42 And we'll mail a copy to your address in North America. 08:45 For immediate access, you can download a free 08:47 electronic version of the book “Steps to Christ” 08:50 from our website, ItIsWritten.com 08:54 Our toll free number is 1-800-253-3000 08:58 and our web address is ItIsWritten.com 09:06 Today I'd like to ask you to help It Is Written 09:08 open the eyes of the blind. 09:11 India has more blind people than any country on Earth, 09:14 but simple cataract surgery can make the difference between 09:17 seeing and not seeing. 09:19 Eyes for India is a project that's providing 09:21 cataract surgery for people in desperate need 09:24 of the gift of sight. 09:25 Please help today 09:26 Call 800-253-3000 09:30 Or visit ItIsWritten.com 09:32 ♪[Music]♪ 09:34 I'm John Bradshaw. 09:35 Thanks for joining me on It Is Written. 09:38 We continue our series on the parables of the Bible; 09:41 Lessons for all time. 09:43 looking at the parable of the Prodigal Son 09:44 a young man who asked his father for his inheritance, 09:48 left home with a pocketful of money 09:50 and then plunged into a life of debauchery. 09:53 And things turned sour for him. 09:56 He burned through his money, 09:58 he lost his friends, 09:58 and when a famine came he was so desperate 10:00 he took a job feeding pigs in order to survive. 10:04 Life hit rock bottom. 10:07 What would you be thinking if you were that boy? 10:10 Would you go home to Dad? 10:11 Well, what else could you do? 10:13 And that's what he figured. 10:15 “What else can I do?” 10:16 I can imagine him practicing his speech. 10:18 Can't you? 10:19 “Father, I've sinned against you. 10:20 No, no, no thats not it. 10:22 Father, I've sinned against heaven, and against you. 10:25 Yes, yes, that's better. 10:26 Against heaven, and against you. 10:28 Yup. 10:29 I'm no longer to be called your son. 10:30 Right, right, that's it that's what I'll say. 10:32 That's the right tone. 10:34 That's how I feel too. 10:35 I'll tell the old man to treat me like one of his servants. 10:37 That's it. 10:38 I'll be a hired servant. 10:40 No inheritance, no authority, 10:42 no say in anything, no nothing. 10:43 After all I've done, that's all I deserve. 10:46 No longer even part of the family.” 10:48 So let's read on. 10:50 He starts the walk of shame, that long journey home. 10:53 He looks different now. 10:55 People saw him heading out of town with a spring in his step. 10:58 He was off to conquer the world. 11:01 But now he's coming home with his tail between his legs, 11:03 a picture of despair. 11:05 He's lost money, 11:06 he's lost weight, 11:07 he's lost all respect anyone ever had for him. 11:11 And he was taking a big risk. 11:14 What if Dad didn't want him around? 11:16 Verse 20: 11:17 “And he arose and came to his father. 11:20 But when he was still a great way off, 11:22 his father saw him and had compassion, 11:26 and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 11:30 And the son said to him, 11:31 ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, 11:35 and am no longer worthy to be called your son.' 11:38 “But the father said to his servants, 11:40 ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, 11:42 and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 11:46 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, 11:49 and let us eat and be merry; 11:51 for this my son was dead and is alive again; 11:55 he was lost and is found.' 11:58 And they began to be merry. 12:01 There's a lot here, isn't there? 12:03 He's walking home when his father sees him 12:05 ‘a great way off'. 12:06 Which tells us that somewhere inside the dad 12:09 there was a longing to see his son. 12:11 He'd look up the road in the hope 12:13 that he'd see his son again. 12:14 And when he did? 12:16 Now put yourself in the shoes of the boy. 12:19 You're walking home. 12:20 It has taken every ounce of self-will you have to 12:22 drag yourself home to dad. 12:24 You know there's a good chance dad is going to reject you. 12:29 And what does the boy see? 12:30 He sees his father, running towards him! 12:34 Now I don't know for sure, but I'm wondering 12:35 if that boy is thinking, 12:36 “Oh no, dad's gonna run me off!” 12:40 But that's not what happens. 12:42 The father embraces the boy. 12:43 He kisses him. 12:45 He puts the signet ring on his son's finger, 12:47 showing that the boy has authority. 12:49 Dad ignores what his son says about being a hired hand. 12:53 After all the wickedness he's been involved in, 12:55 the father is restoring the boy, 12:58 giving him back his place in the family. 13:00 No one could have expected this. 13:02 “Slaughter the animal we've been fattening up 13:04 for a special occasion. 13:05 This is the special occasion we've been waiting for! 13:07 My son is back from the dead! 13:09 He was lost, 13:11 but now he's found!” 13:13 So the question is, how does God treat sinners? 13:17 How does God feel when people who have 13:18 completely failed God and disgraced themselves 13:23 turn around and come back to God? 13:25 This story tells us. 13:27 You know, that father in the story represents God, 13:30 our heavenly Father. 13:31 The Father runs toward his son. 13:34 Now this is the only time in the entire Bible 13:36 that God is portrayed as running. 13:39 And what is it that causes God to run? 13:41 He runs toward a repentant sinner! 13:44 That's how excited God is about welcoming a sinner home. 13:48 A Middle Eastern friend of mine told me once, that when 13:50 he was a boy being raised in Iraq, men very rarely ran. 13:55 He said it was considered to be beneath their dignity. 13:59 So for something to make a man run, 14:01 that's got to be extremely important. 14:03 Life and death, almost. 14:05 And this is life and death. 14:06 Spiritual life, in the place of spiritual death. 14:11 And think about this with me. 14:13 The father didn't even know why the son was back. 14:15 There was no e-mail telling him his son was coming home 14:17 with a changed heart. 14:19 For all the dad knew, the boy could have been coming back 14:21 looking for more money, or just passing through town 14:24 on his way to a party someplace. 14:27 The Father doesn't interrogate the boy. 14:28 He doesn't say, 14:29 “Are you going to smarten up your act?” 14:31 He doesn't ask for a good behavior pledge. 14:35 He's just glad to see the boy back, 14:37 and he restores him, 14:38 and he welcomes him, 14:40 and let's him know that he's accepted and loved. 14:44 And that's God! 14:46 You don't want to waste your time thinking God 14:48 has a score to settle with you. 14:51 You don't want to be thinking God isn't good, 14:53 or God won't accept you! 14:55 Think of the disasters God has welcomed back 14:59 after they fell from grace. 15:01 David; an adulterer and a murderer. 15:03 Moses, a murderer. 15:05 Manasseh. 15:06 Nebuchadnezzar. 15:06 King Solomon. 15:07 These guys had Ph.Ds in wickedness. 15:11 They had turned sin into an art form. 15:14 And yet when they turned to God, 15:16 God accepted them. 15:18 God's grace is amazing! 15:20 What He did for the prodigal son, 15:21 and for David and Moses and Solomon and Peter 15:24 and Saul; who became Paul, 15:25 and the woman taken in adultery and the woman at the well 15:28 and so many others, 15:30 He'll do for you, and for those you love and care about. 15:34 It's that simple. 15:36 Now you know what I've heard people say so many times? 15:38 They say, “Look at the Father in that story. 15:41 He waits! 15:42 He waits by the road hoping to see His boy return.” 15:47 Well, yes, I suppose. 15:49 But that's not the whole story. 15:51 Where was God while the boy was stewing in sin? 15:55 Its really an important question. 15:58 We'll find out in just a moment. 16:00 ♪[Music]♪ 16:11 >>Announcer: In Matthew 4:4, the Word of God says 16:14 "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, 16:16 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" 16:21 “Every Word” is a one-minute, 16:22 Bible-based daily devotional presented by 16:24 Pastor John Bradshaw, 16:25 and designed especially for busy people like you. 16:29 Look for Every Word on selected networks, 16:31 or watch it online every day on our website, 16:34 ItIsWritten.com 16:36 Receive a daily spiritual boost. 16:38 Watch “Every Word.” 16:40 You'll be glad you did. 16:41 Here's a sample. 16:45 ♪[Music]♪ 16:51 >>John: Parents want to make sure their children 16:52 do well in this world. 16:54 Get a good education, 16:55 enjoy good health, 16:56 learn life skills. 16:58 But the best thing a parent could do for a child 17:00 is to instruct that child in the ways of God. 17:03 God says in Deuteronomy 11:19: 17:05 “You shall teach them to your children, 17:07 speaking of them when you sit in your house, 17:09 when you walk by the way, 17:10 when you lie down, 17:11 and when you rise up.” 17:13 Children don't just catch faith in God like they catch a cold, 17:16 and you can't leave this to the bible class teacher 17:18 at church or school. 17:20 Parents have a responsibility to bring faith into the home 17:25 to make God's word real and relevant. 17:28 The greatest gift you can give your children 17:30 is an understanding and an appreciation of the word of God. 17:33 It's something that will benefit your children forever. 17:38 I'm John Bradshaw for It Is Written, 17:40 lets live today by every word. 17:42 ♪[Music]♪ 17:51 Thanks for joining me today on It Is Wrtitten. 17:53 In the parable of the prodigal son, 17:55 a young man's life hits rock bottom 17:57 after he left home and dived headfirst into a life of sin. 18:01 The story has the son returning home, 18:03 with the father waiting to meet him. 18:04 This story represents a sinner leaving the arms of God 18:07 and then and then returning to a very patient and loving Father. 18:11 The Father is pictured as waiting at home 18:13 when sinners wander away. 18:16 Is that what God does? 18:18 Does God simply wait at home for sinners to return? 18:21 Waiting at the gate hoping, hoping to see a wanderer return? 18:26 Well, yes, and really, really no. 18:33 Notice what the passage said in verse 17. 18:37 “But when he came to himself, he said, 18:40 ‘How many of my father's hired servants 18:42 have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!” 18:47 Now, there isn't a person on Earth who “comes to themselves” 18:50 when they're lost in sin. 18:52 We simply respond to the drawing of the Holy Spirit. 18:55 God pursues us. 18:57 The Spirit of God woos us. 19:00 God said in Hosea 2:14, 19:02 “I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, 19:05 and speak comfortably unto her.” 19:08 God draws sinners. 19:10 He pleads with sinners. 19:12 Which means, 19:13 God wasn't only in the front yard looking up the road. 19:18 He went after that boy. 19:19 He followed Him to a far country. 19:22 He followed him to the bars and the casinos. 19:24 He followed the boy to the pig pen. 19:26 The Bible is talking about the son's work with the pigs 19:28 when it says it was then that the boy came to Himself. 19:31 He was sitting in a pig sty, when God sat down beside him 19:37 in a pig sty, 19:38 and spoke to his heart. 19:41 God in the front yard? 19:43 That's sanitized, isn't it? 19:45 The God who pursues sinners 19:48 doesn't just wait in the front yard hoping they'll come home. 19:52 God pursues sinners. 19:54 Here, God is in a pig sty, with mud between his toes, 19:57 because God will go where ever He needs to go 20:00 and do whatever He needs to do 20:01 in order to draw a sinner to come home. 20:04 Paul wrote that where sin abounds, 20:05 grace does much more abound. 20:07 And even in that hopeless place so far from home, 20:11 that boy wasn't out of the reach of a loving God 20:14 who wanted Him back in the safety of His father's home. 20:18 God will pursue your children. 20:21 God is going after your unbelieving spouse right now. 20:24 God is tracking the steps of your parent who thought that 20:28 he or she could outrun God like Jonah tried to do. 20:31 God is speaking to the heart of your loved ones 20:33 and your friends, 20:34 and friend, if you're not where God wants you to be, 20:37 you can be sure he's pursuing you right now too, 20:39 speaking to your heart now, 20:42 pleading with you to surrender your life to Him. 20:45 It's better at home, 20:47 it's better at home in your Father's house. 20:49 The glitter of the world looks so good, 20:52 but it doesn't last. 20:54 When a Roman conqueror came back victorious from war, 20:57 there'd be parades and music and the spoils of war and prisoners, 21:01 while the conquerors rode in a beautiful chariot. 21:04 But a slave would stand behind the victor, 21:06 and hold a golden crown above the victor's head 21:10 and whisper in his ear, 21:12 “All glory is fleeting.” 21:16 And it is! 21:17 But salvation, that's eternal. 21:20 People will let you down. 21:21 But God won't - ever. 21:23 He's there for you, drawing you back to Himself, 21:27 and always ready to welcome you home. 21:30 But the story doesn't end with the return of the son. 21:33 This is the story of two brothers. 21:37 And the other brother was not amused. 21:40 Verse 29. 21:43 So he answered and said to his father, 21:45 "Lo, these many years I have been serving you; 21:49 I never transgressed your commandment at any time; 21:52 and yet you never gave me a young goat, 21:54 that I might make merry with my friends. 21:57 But as soon as this son of yours came, 21:59 who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, 22:02 you killed the fatted calf for him." 22:06 One son was gone from home, and was lost. 22:09 This son with the bad attitude, his hard heart, 22:13 he was still at home, he was lost too. 22:17 What ultimately became of him isn't addressed in the parable, 22:20 because that part of the story 22:21 is the story that's still waiting to be written, 22:25 in your experience. 22:27 How is it with you? 22:28 How is it with your heart? 22:30 If you're out there lost, God wants you back home. 22:33 He'll persue you to get you back. 22:35 But if you're home, are you really at home? 22:40 How is it with your heart? 22:42 This is how God deals with lost people. 22:45 1 John 1 verse 9. It says: 22:46 “If we confess our sins, 22:48 He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, 22:51 and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness.” 22:55 “God is not willing that any should perish, 22:57 but that all should come to repentance.” 22:59 That's 2 Peter 3 verse 9. 23:02 God wants His children home. 23:05 God wants you home. 23:08 Imagine how you'd feel if you were Saroo's mother. 23:11 Remember? 23:12 Saroo was the boy who went missing, 23:14 he got lost, 23:15 he wound up on a train that took him 1000 miles away from home 23:19 and then he was adopted and taken from India, to Australia. 23:24 Do you think his mother ever forgot him? 23:26 He never forgot about his home, his family. 23:29 And 20 or so years later, 23:31 he made a discovery, he discovered Google Earth, 23:36 and realized he could look at maps and pictures, 23:39 even satellite maps of India. 23:41 So he started looking online for landmarks 23:43 he recognized from his childhood. 23:45 He started in Calcutta, followed the train tracks, 23:47 and worked backwards. 23:49 He looked for hours and hours, 23:50 often staying up late into the night. 23:52 And this went on for months. 23:55 While searching late one night Saroo saw a bridge 23:58 next to a big industrial tank beside a train station. 24:02 He found the name of the town; “Burhanpur”, 24:06 the town where he got separated from his brother. 24:08 From there he followed the tracks to his hometown. 24:12 He found his home. 24:15 Not long after, following a 20-hour trip from Hobart, 24:18 Saroo was back on the platform of the train station in Khandwa, 24:23 the very place his odyssey had begun all those years before. 24:29 The boy who was lost 20 years earlier, 24:30 was now home. 24:32 Found. 24:34 Reunited with his family. 24:36 Back in the embrace of a mother who never gave up hope 24:41 that her boy would return. 24:45 If you're far from God, 24:47 God hasn't given up hope that you'll come back. 24:52 God wants you back to stay. 24:56 ♪[Music]♪ 25:06 ♪[Music]♪ 25:19 >>John: Here's today's bible question. 25:21 “I've often wondered how come there are four gospels?” 25:24 That's right. 25:25 The Word gospel means good news, 25:27 but when we're talking about the gospels, 25:29 we're talking about the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. 25:32 They're accounts of the life of Christ, 25:34 almost like a biography if you'd like. 25:36 If there was only one gospel, 25:38 just one account of Jesus' life and ministry, 25:40 that would probably be a pretty narrow look 25:43 at the life of the Son of God. 25:45 But four gospels gives us a more complete, 25:48 a more rounded view of who Jesus was 25:50 and what His life and ministry were all about. 25:53 And if Jesus really did come to the Earth 25:55 to show us the Father as He said He did, 25:57 then four gospels instead of just one two or three, 26:00 gives us a more complete picture of the Father. 26:04 The different gospels are written 26:05 to different audiences too. 26:06 Appealing more to Jews in one case 26:08 and more to gentiles in another. 26:10 You know God could have just created tulips and not roses, 26:14 but He knew I'm sure that not everybody would be too fired up 26:17 by simply tulips; hence, variety. 26:20 And a greater chance that more people would be blessed; 26:22 a similar principle with the gospels. 26:25 Four different historical perspectives 26:27 offer us a fuller understanding of Jesus. 26:30 Now, are there other gospels that we should 26:32 consider to be important for us today? 26:35 You know, I've Heard of the gospel of Judas 26:37 and the gospel of Thomas and every now and then 26:39 someone will make some noise 26:40 about how important these writings are. 26:43 But neither of them are trustworthy, 26:44 and they don't offer us really anything of value, 26:47 except evidence that they are not to be trusted. 26:50 We are blessed to have four slightly different perspectives 26:53 on the life and ministry of Jesus, 26:55 one from Matthew, 26:55 one from Mark, 26:57 one from Dr. Luke, 26:58 and one from the beloved disciple: John. 27:00 If you read them, and read them carefully, 27:03 you'll be hugely blessed. 27:05 >>John: Today, our free book offer 27:07 is for one of my very favorite books, 27:09 “Steps to Christ” 27:11 Please call or write us, and “Steps to Christ” 27:14 will be on its way to you. 27:16 There's no cost and no obligation. 27:18 Just call 1-800-253-3000 27:22 and ask for the book “Steps to Christ” 27:25 You may also request this free book by writing to 27:27 It Is Written, P O Box 6, Chattanooga, TN 37401. 27:33 And we'll mail a copy to your address in North America. 27:37 For immediate access, 27:38 you can download a free electronic version of the book 27:41 “Steps to Christ” 27:42 from our website, ItIsWritten.com 27:46 It Is Written is a faith-based ministry 27:48 and your support makes it possible for us to share 27:51 God's good news with the world. 27:53 your tax-deductible gift 27:55 can be sent to the address on your screen. 27:57 Or through our website at ItIsWritten.com. 28:00 Thank you for your continued prayful support. 28:03 Again our toll free number is 800-253-3000 28:07 And our web address is ItIsWritten.com 28:11 ♪[Music]♪ 28:18 So how is it with you today? 28:20 Have you wandered from God? 28:22 If you have, I want to pray for you. 28:25 If you haven't, then you know someone who has, 28:27 we'll pray for that person too. 28:29 Come on now, let's pray. 28:31 Our Father in heaven, 28:33 we see in the parable of the Prodigal Son 28:35 that you love sinners, that you're doing all you can 28:38 to draw them back to yourself, 28:40 and that you're always ready to welcome back into your arms 28:42 one who has wandered away. 28:45 I want to pray right now for that person who has left home, 28:47 left your heart, 28:49 now realizes that he or she should return. 28:53 Draw that person Lord, 28:54 and let that one know there is a place for him or her 28:57 in the arms of a loving God. 28:58 And then there are those we know 29:00 who have wandered away from your love. 29:02 Children. 29:03 Grandchildren. 29:04 Friends. 29:06 Parents. 29:06 Brothers and sisters. 29:07 People we once worshiped with 29:10 who've given up on faith in you. 29:12 Thank you for not giving up on them. 29:15 We pray they'd respond to the drawing of your Holy Spirit, 29:18 and return home to the Father's house. 29:22 And we pray in Jesus' name. 29:25 Amen. 29:27 Thanks so much for joining me. 29:28 I'm looking forward to seeing you again next time. 29:30 Until then, remember: 29:32 It Is Written. 29:33 Man shall not live by bread alone, 29:36 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. 29:41 ♪[Music]♪ |
Revised 2017-07-06