ESOCS Devotional 1 November 2024 – The Two Sons of God
MEMORY VERSE: ““And he said, a certain man had two sons.” Luke 15:11
TEXT: LUKE 15:11-32
Then He said: “A certain man had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood. 13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. 14 But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. 15 Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, 19 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.” ’
20 “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.
25 “Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’
28 “But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him. 29 So he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. 30 But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’
31 “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. 32 It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’ ”
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While the right to Kingdom sonship by Adoption is reserved, we must however state that our relationship with the father is based on our understanding and engagement of kingdom principles. Our text presents us with two categories of sons, the old and the young. But beyond age, we discover that both of them as sons perfectly qualify for the father’s inheritance.
The older son was satisfied with remaining with the father and committed himself to genuine service to the father but lacked kingdom inheritance mentality (Luke 15: 28-31). There are many sons of God today, given to dedicated service but have no understanding of what their inheritance and reward are in God: “My people are destroyed for the lack of knowledge …” (Hosea 4:6).We must make conscious effort to know our inheritance in God, even as we serve Him.
On the other hand, was the younger son who had a clear understanding of his inheritance and consistently and impatiently insisted on grabbing his portion (Luke 15:12, Matt 11:12). Unfortunately, he was a financial illiterate who had no understanding of the principles of money making, multiplication and management. Many kingdom sons exist in this category.
Here are a few things missing in the younger son: Firstly, this son had no saving culture (Luke 15: 13). How much do you save for the rainy day or are you wasteful in expenditures? No matter how meagre the income is, learn to save; even Jesus encouraged that the remnant be preserved in the basket. Secondly, the second son had no investment culture. There was no investment traceable to him despite all he gathered from the father. Beloved, where is your investment? Thirdly, he was hasty in spirit and had no spiritual responsibility. Of course, if you are hasty, you will be wasteful.
We can also confirm that the younger son had no friend, he was a lone ranger without any network. As kingdom citizens, we must maintain a healthy relationship with one another always; it surely pays.
- Study the word to understand your inheritance in God.
- Consciously study and understand kingdom’s financial principles.
- Build a good network as you grow in God’s kingdom.
- Father, thank you for the privilege of Sonship, forgive my days of ignorance in any form and grant me the grace to correctly engage the principles of accessing Kingdom inheritance, in Jesus name. Amen
Further Reading: Proverbs 8:22-end; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11
ESOCS Devotional 1 November 2024
