Party Hardy time

Saturday March 24th, Luke 15: 28-30 "The older brother stalked off in an angry sulk and refused to join in. His father came out and tried to talk to him, but he wouldn't listen. The son said, 'Look how many years I've stayed here serving you, never giving you one moment of grief, but have you ever thrown a party for me and my friends? Then this son of yours who has thrown away your money on whores shows up and you go all out with a feast!' 31-32 "His father said, 'Son, you don't understand. You're with me all the time, and everything that is mine is yours—but this is a wonderful time, and we had to celebrate. This brother of yours was dead, and he's alive! He was lost, and he's found!'" We are the church, the body of our Lord, we are all God’s children and we have been restored. And we want everyone else to be restored just like us. The older brother in this story is the church. In all three stories about the lost being found in Luke 15, they all end in rejoicing. We are called to party hardy as the church. There is a reason for the words, “we had to celebrate.” There is no other option for God, and we are called to have no other option for us. Our tendency to focus on whether the other has repented enough has more to do with our sinfulness than on the prodigal’s. Remember, we are the church, the body of our Lord, we are all God’s children and we have been both restored ourselves, and called to party hardy at the restoration of others.