Central Lutheran Church - Elk River
Central Lutheran Church - Elk River
Finding Belonging {Reflections}
What happens when you feel lost, yet are assured of an unwavering sense of belonging? Join us as we explore the timeless parables of the lost son, the lost sheep, and the lost coin from the Gospel of Luke, with a special focus on my all-time favorite—the prodigal son. These stories vividly portray the relentless love and determination of a father, a shepherd, and a woman who seek to recover what is lost, reflecting the unchanging compassion and belonging that God offers us, no matter our missteps. We unravel the profound themes of these narratives, illustrating how belonging is never questioned, even during times of wandering and uncertainty.
The theme of belonging is a thread that runs from the story of Adam and Eve to our everyday lives. We reflect on how everything begins in a state of belonging and abundance, where our connection to God remains firm despite our deviations. Through these biblical parables, we are encouraged to embrace this inherent belonging and be reminded of God's persistent faithfulness. As you listen, feel a sense of peace wash over you, and consider this an open invitation to find community and solace at gatherings at Central in Elk River, where your belonging is celebrated and cherished.
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What is up everybody? Hey, my name is Ryan and welcome to our Reflections podcast and I'm here in our podcast studio, which is really Mike Lauer's office. So what's up, mike? Mike is right over here, he's running the soundboard, he's got his headphones on, he does all the editing too. So if you see Mike Lauer the infamous or the famous, whichever it is these days give him a high five. Hey, I want to tell you this.
Speaker 1:One of my favorite story I think, hands down, probably my favorite story in the Bible is the story of the lost son, or the prodigal son you could call it. But really it's the lost son and some folks don't know this. But this story is actually a story amongst three stories and when you interpret any one of the three, you have to read them all together. So there's three stories of three lost items and the third one being the son. So that's why they call it the lost son and the story of the lost son. You probably know this. It goes just quickly. It goes like this A young man wants his inheritance, which is equivalent to kind of telling his father he wishes he was dead. So he goes to the father hey, I want my inheritance. Again, the same as just saying I wish you were dead. And the inheritance which belonged to the whole community. The father gives it to him, son takes off, spends it all, wastes all it on wild living. It says in the text wild living, which is I don't know what that means, but I can imagine Wild living. It says in the text Wild living, which is I don't know what that means, but I can imagine. And then wakes up in the middle of this pig slop, pig pen Horrible place for a Jewish kid to wake up amongst the pigs and says man, even the slaves or the servants at my father's house are living better than this. Maybe I can beg my father and he'll welcome me back home. That's the story of the lost son, the prodigal son. It's one of three lost items, so when you read them you got to read them all together. So this is in Luke 15. The first story that Jesus tells is the parable, or the story of the lost sheep. Then there's a story of the lost coin.
Speaker 1:The lost sheep goes like this there was a shepherd who has a sheep. He's got a hundred of them and one of them wanders off, as sheep are, are prone to do. Sheep are dumb, like really they're dumb, which is funny because we get called sheep a lot in the Bible. So like, who are you talking to? Jesus Talking to me? Yes, dummy. I think he means that lovingly, but you know what I mean. So there's 99 sheep.
Speaker 1:One wanders off out of the hundred and the shepherd has to leave the 99 to go and find the one. And it says until he finds it. So he won't stop until he finds it. When he finds it he will joyfully put it on his shoulders. And I imagine that sheep is like kicking and like be like, let me down. I, I wandered off, I want to be out here. And the shepherd's like no, you don't know what you're doing. Cause that sheep. If a sheep ever is left alone like that, especially in the wilderness in Israel, it'll get eaten. It won't last very long. But even sheep here, I've been told by a woman who owns a bunch of sheep. So yeah, if a sheep ever wanders off and they're alone, they'll never live, they'll die quickly. So the shepherd knows better, drags the sheep back, calls all of his friends and neighbors like, hey, let's rejoice, I found my sheep. That was lost.
Speaker 1:Then there's a story of the lost coin. A woman, in this case, has a coin and she loses it. And so she lights a lamp, sweeps the whole house and searches carefully all day, or really until she finds it. And then when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors and like, rejoice, I found my coin that was lost. And, by the way, the God character in all of these, the lost son, it's the father. So if you want to know what God is like, read that story and look at the father. In the lost sheep it's the shepherd. So read that story as though God was the shepherd. And then, of course, in the lost coin, it's the woman. So the woman is the God character. So read about the woman and you'll see what God is like. But here's the cool thing about all these stories. I love this.
Speaker 1:The one thing never in question is the belonging of the items. Look, all the items get lost or wander off or are just misplaced, but their belonging is never in question. So the son never is not the son. The father even tells him. Hey, man, well, he tells the older brother, who gets mad. You know he's like why are you celebrating the younger brother when I've been here the whole time? Father, I did the right things. That idiot wandered off. And the father tells the son the older son he's like hey, man, everything I have is yours, you've always been with me. And it's like both sons kind of felt like they were lost or separated from the father. But they were never not the father's sons, they were always the sons of the father. And the father tells him both that he runs to one and welcomes him home and embraces him. And the other one he's like dude, everything I have is yours. What do you want, man? And the coin too. The coin never didn't belong to the woman. In fact, because it belonged, she looks even harder and more diligently for the coin. It's her coin. And the sheep was never like. That shepherd was like forget it, man, I'm done with you, you can belong to some other shepherd or just get eaten. He's like no, I'm going to go find that sheep, he's my sheep. And so he goes and finds him.
Speaker 1:I love that because it shows like look, most ancient religions, and actually many modern religions too, tell the story of something like well, it's the opposite of belonging, you don't belong. You're not good enough. Of belonging you don't belong, you're not good enough. You have a vacancy, you have a vacuum, you have, you know something's missing and you then need to figure it out, climb a ladder, do the right things, perform the right rituals, say the magic words, and then God will sort of welcome you back or fill the vacuum or do what or welcome you in and then you'll belong. It's like you have to kind of do all these things and then you'll belong. But that isn't how this story goes.
Speaker 1:These stories, these three stories of the lost ones, they begin with belonging. They all begin with belonging and the belonging is never in question. And so, like, what's the problem then? And the conflict in these stories is that the things that belonged and are always belonging, those things get lost. As it happens, like sometimes, sons get knuckleheaded and they wander off and they look for life and home, far away from home, and then they realize, oh gosh, he comes to his senses, the text says, and they come back home and the father is the one that welcomes him back home and so. But he never didn't belong, it's just that he wandered off and the coin, I don't know, fell off a table. I just got lost, like happens with coins sometimes. And the sheep, like sheep, are prone to doom man. Those sheep are just idiots. They just wander off and they get lost, and that happens to people. But the belonging, their identity of who they are and who's there, is never in question. I, their identity of who they are and who's there is never in question.
Speaker 1:I love the story of Adam and Eve in the Bible, the opening of the whole grand narrative. It begins with belonging. The Father, son and Spirit are there in the garden, the humans are there in the garden, the creation is flourishing and thriving. There's beautiful symbiosis in the story. There's everything, there's enough abundance, it's flourishing, and no one doesn't belong. It begins in belonging and then, along the way, things get askew and things wander off or try things on their own, but the belonging is never in question.
Speaker 1:So today, may you begin from a place of belonging, not of scarcity, not of out, like I'm out. I got to find my way back in Rather. You were in, you've always been in, and sometimes, though, we get lost along the way or misplaced, or we wander off or we search for life in the wrong places. But the problem is never on God's side. We're always the ones that belong, and God searches for us even more desperately because we belong to him, and so may you know today that you belong, and may you sense the ever-present faithfulness of God, who's coming to find you, searches all day until he finds you and then drags you back home. And, yeah, may you feel that today. Okay, I love you guys, peace.
Speaker 2:Hey, if you enjoy this show, I'd love to have you share it with some friends. And don't forget, you are always welcome to join us in person at Central in Elk River at 830, which is our liturgical gathering, or at 10 o'clock, our modern gathering, or you can check us out online at clcelkriverorg Peace.
