After the Prodigal's Party
Summary
In this powerful message from 1 John chapter 3, Pastor Kirk Graham addresses the critical importance of understanding our identity as children of God and the incompatibility of sin in a believer's life. Using the metaphor of the prodigal son's return, he explores what happens after the celebration—when the father sits down with his son to establish ground rules for living in the father's house. The message challenges believers to not treat sin casually just because they are covered by grace, but to actively pursue holiness and Christlikeness. Pastor Kirk draws a striking parallel between cancer and sin, emphasizing that just as no one would ignore a cancer diagnosis and say 'I'll be healed in heaven,' believers shouldn't ignore sin in their lives. The message is not about legalism or perfection, but about perspective, character, and integrity. It's about recognizing that what our lives produce reveals whose children we are. The core challenge is to purify ourselves as Jesus is pure, to eradicate sin from our lives with the same urgency we would fight a deadly disease, and to walk daily in the transforming power of the Holy Spirit toward becoming more like Christ.
Key Takeaways
- You cannot run with the world and walk with God - you have to choose.
- What our lives produce reveals whose children we are.
- The love of Jesus is foreign to this world - it's from a different place.
- Your identity should be as a son or daughter of the living God.
- Sin in a Christian's life is like cancer in your body - it's foreign, deadly, and must be eradicated.
- Jesus didn't die to manage your sin. He died to destroy it.
- Following Jesus isn't just about limping into heaven scarred by sin.
- Sin and sonship are incompatible.
- The root of sin must be pulled, not just the symptoms addressed.
Outline
Understanding Our Identity as Children of God
- The foreign love of God that sets believers apart from the world
- Legal adoption into the family of God through Christ
- Family identity and resemblance - living up to the family name
- The process of transformation and sanctification
The Nature and Seriousness of Sin
- Sin as lawlessness, not just imperfection
- The parallel between cancer and sin - both are deadly and must be fought
- Why treating sin casually is dangerous despite being covered by grace
- The incompatibility of sin with following Jesus
The Call to Purity and Holiness
- Purifying ourselves as Jesus is pure
- The heart of David: 'Create in me a clean heart, O God'
- Jesus came to take away sin, not just cover it
- Fighting sin with everything we've got, not making excuses
Seven Ground Rules for Living in the Father's House (After the Prodigal's Party)
- No more living lawless - sin is rebellion, not just imperfection
- Jesus came to take away your sin - it's forgiven, now live it out
- Choose to abide in Christ - embrace and hold onto Him
- Don't be deceived - stay alert and keep your mind ready
- You're in this family, so live like it - family resemblance matters
- The root of sin must be pulled - deal with the root, not just symptoms
- Remember you are children of God - identity in His love
Walking by the Spirit vs. Living by the Flesh
- The works of the flesh: sexual immorality, idolatry, anger, divisions, envy
- The fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control
- Cannot run with the world and walk with God - must choose daily
- Crucifying the flesh with its passions and desires
Scripture References
1 John 3:1-10
See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.
2 Corinthians 3:18
And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
James 4:8
Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Psalm 51:10
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
John 1:29
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, 'Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!'
Galatians 5:16-17
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.
Romans 6:2
By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
Galatians 5:19-24
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.