Few parables are as rich and impactful as our Lord's masterful story of the Prodigal Son found in Luke 15. This narrative masterpiece encapsulates the entirety of the Gospel in vivid storytelling form.

The preacher astutely divides the parable into three poignant phases that unveil the depths of human sin and rebellion, combined with the incomprehensible forgiveness, love and restoration offered by the heavenly Father.

Phase 1 - "Give Me" (vv. 11-13): We witness the brazen rejection of the younger son, who arrogantly demands his inheritance prematurely, essentially wishing his father dead. This depicts the height of man's selfish depravity, squandering God's blessings to indulge fleshly lusts in unrestrained "riotous living." The famine that ensues foreshadows the emptiness and want that inevitably results from pursuing sin.

Ph ...