— Building the home God freed you to have — Luke 15:28-31 (NLT) Parable of the Lost Son 28 “The older brother was angry and wouldn’t go in. His father came out and begged him, 29 but he replied, ‘All these years I’ve slaved for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to. And in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my friends. 30 Yet when this son of yours comes back after squandering your money on prostitutes, you celebrate by killing the fattened calf!’ 31 “His father said to him, ‘Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours. Big Idea The gospel transforms our home by rooting out legalism. “The Father’s love for his two boys is rooted in their Sonship, not their good behavior. So his affection & approval is never lost based on their bad behavior.” * * for our homes 1. Reinforcing legalism? a. If we’re not careful, our family learns that good behavior earns acceptance while bad behavior earns rejection. 2. Miscommunicating “grace”? a. If we’re not careful, our family avoids any discipline, accountability or any speaking the “truth in love” conversations The gospel transforms the way we & . What now? Root out . Don’t make them feel as if they’ve got to earn back your love. Root out . Always show acceptance to your child/family member when you’ve disciplined & disagreed w/them. Root out . Teach children to do the right thing because submitting to authority is the right thing to do— not because of any unrelated reward. Root out . Legalists look down on other people because it makes them feel better about themself. CONTINUING THE CONVERSATION Can you detect any tendencies towards legalism (AKA performance based acceptance) in your own life? If you focused on rooting out legalism in your family, where might you start? (Grudges, rejection, bribery, comparing) In Jesus’ story about the prodigal son, the Father’s love for his two boys was rooted in their Sonship, not their good behavior. How might this kind of “gospel love” love help transform your family during discipline or disagreements? Grow On Your Own “Gospel-Centered Family | Becoming the parents God wants you to be” © Tim Chester and Ed Moll/The Good Book Company, 2010. Excerpts From Gospel-Centered Family, Tim Chester