Scandalously Saving Sinners
Part 61 - Luke 15:11-32 (ESV) - Pastor Tim Kroeker
Titus 3:4-5a:
“But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy…”
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A scandal is a circumstance or action that offends propriety or established moral norms.
In 1919, members of the Chicago White Sox accepted money from professional gamblers to effectively throw the World Series. This was the infamous Black Sox scandal. In 1995, President Bill Clinton, began an illicit sexual relationship with a 22 year old intern inside the oval office. It was all so scandalous. One of the most well known financial scandals in history came to light during the financial crisis of 2008. Bernie Madoff duped thousands of wealthy, knowledgeable investors out of billions of dollars. It ended with associates committing suicide and Bernie Madoff being sentenced to 150 years in federal prison.
When we hear about these scandals, we’re outraged. They offend our sensibilities.
As we continue reading in our salvation story, Jesus responds to the complaints of the scribes and Pharisees by telling them one his most famous parables. His listeners would have found the entire situation scandalous. Of course they would have been outraged at the behavior of the younger son who is appropriately referred to as a prodigal. But when the rebellious son repents and returns home, the reception he receives from his father was entirely unexpected. The younger son did not have to crawl back one day at a time into his father’s good graces. Rather, he was instantly forgiven. The lavish, unmerited love of the father would have been scandalous to Jesus’ pious listeners. It was them who he had in mind as the parable ends with the older brother, standing outside the feast, refusing to enter despite the affectionate pleas of his father. Jesus masterfully invited his listeners and each one of us to forsake the biggest scandal of all, self-righteousness.
