In this sermon, Brother KP Johannon discusses the parable of the prodigal son from Luke 15. He highlights the contrasting characters of the older son, who is righteous and obedient, and the younger son, who is rebellious and wasteful. Despite the younger son's failures and sins, the father welcomes him back with open arms and throws a grand celebration. The sermon emphasizes the importance of accepting God's forgiveness and seeking His approval above all else.

Welcome to the Road to Reality, the radio ministry of Gospel for Asia. Today Brother K.P. Yohannan asks, Do you know your purpose in life? With practical insights into our hearts and God's overarching plan, Brother K.P. reveals the direction and freedom we find in following the narrow road. We now join him as he shares the second part of this important message entitled, Seek Only God's Approval. When you read Luke 15, it is talking about the father, heavenly father, the older son and the younger son. Older son is the miltoned, outright, radical, righteous, pure in character, full time Christian worker in the field of the father. The younger one is a crazy guy, he is a nutcase and he lost it all, he is a miserable failure. As a matter of fact, when his older brother said, this rascal who wasted all your money, lived with the prostitutes, got drunk, look at him, look at him. The prodigal son didn't open his mouth and say, shut up. I didn't do any of those things. Yeah, I played the cards and drank and went to movies, but I didn't do that kind of stupid stuff you are talking about. No, no, no, no. He kept his mouth shut. Was he admitting he lived in all those circumstances and ways? I don't know. But I suppose he never said, I hit the bottom. To the extent, I am no more the son of God, I lost my salvation. I just don't have anything else to say. Any other list you want to add, it's okay, I am dead. But that son is in the house of the father enjoying a wonderful meal, Indian food, while the righteous Christian worker is outside. The loser recovered all. The full time Christian righteous man lost all. I believe he leads us through times of failure, he allows it. So that we can become an engagement to others. This week I went to visit a pastor in Dallas, he is from India, a godly man. When I was in India, I heard the news, he was in a car wreck and his wife died instantly. I knew the woman. One of the rare individual, I would say, that so sold out to love the Lord and serve Him and preach the gospel, Indian family, live so frugally, spend every penny they can to send to North India ministry, interesting family. And they were coming back from Oklahoma and he fell asleep, I think, within a split second, ran into something and she died instantly and he was in a coma and his neck broke. But in our conversation, he said to me a statement, he said, Brother KP, I buried so many people, I comforted a lot of people in their loss and tragedy and pain, but the first time in my life, now I understand the meaning of death. I was very curious now. He said, I realize death is something that removes someone of me that I love forever. She will never come back again. And he started to cry. He said, now when I go to houses to comfort people, the words I will say would be different. The areas in which you think you are very strong, may God give you grace to continue the journey. Usually, where you are strong, that is where we fail the most. He who thinks he is standing firm, take heed, be very careful, because a chance for you to fall is very good. He did his PhD for Oxford. Before he came to India, he learned Hindi like his first language, Latin, Hebrew, Greek like first language. Brilliant photographic memory. Young, energetic, enthusiastic, everything going for him. Two years he served with me on the mission field. I was the area coordinator, he was my assistant. Born and raised in England. Excellent Bible teacher. None of us ever attempted to argue with him on any doctrinal issue. We are young, little, inexperienced kids. He knew it all. No matter where we started, he won the case. He is so knowledgeable. Yesterday, when a friend came to visit me, I said, how is our dear friend doing in England? And I asked his name. He said, KP, I am very sad to report you again, because the second time I asked him, he still claims there is no God. He lost his faith. How did that happen? Well, it's not just intellectual problem I don't think that brother had, because I learned more about him now. It was a moral problem, spiritual problem. He was so arrogant, so strong. There is more to life than high standards and militancy and success and powerful preachings and writings. How we must respond to it? One, remember, no one is immune to it. If I think, now KP has traveled 40 years down the road, born again. Yesterday my wife figured it out that I am 40 years old in Jesus. You know, I feel good about it. But I am not immune to worst disaster and failure. 1 Corinthians 10 verse 12 In the 18th century, Robert Robinson, this wonderful man of God, lived and he was converted through the preaching of George Whitefield. He is the one who wrote the hymn, Come thou fount of every blessing, tune my heart to sing thy grace. Streams of mercy never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise. Remember that? Sadly, this Robinson who wrote this hymn, wandered away from those streams of life into the carnal land of worldliness and wickedness. Years later, one day, he was traveling in a stage coach and he was sitting beside a young woman who was engrossed reading this book. And as they were going along, all of a sudden, this young woman turned to Robinson and said, I am reading something so wonderful. What do you think about it? And she read the stanza what she was reading. Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. Those words from the same hymn, this man wrote and this young woman didn't even realize who was sitting beside her. He couldn't answer her. She broke out weeping. And with tears, he replied, Madam, I am the poor unhappy man who wrote that hymn many years ago and I would give a thousand worlds if I had them to enjoy the feelings I had then. And he recovered. The seven long years the kangaroo worm and the locust had eaten, God returned him manifold. Two, I think in our failures, whatever we go through, the past or now or the future, we must accept God's forgiveness. What did the father say to the prodigal? Alright, glad you came home, son. Where is the list? Did you keep a diary of all the sins you committed? Did you keep an account of all the money wasted and the ways in which you squandered my resources? Alright, what are you going to do to pay for it? I forgive, but you have to pay for it. You want to work next ten years and make up for what you have done? Alright, I will let you. Remember, Jesus talking about the father, God the father. There was no request of list of sins and failures. As a matter of fact, the father is not even answering him when he said, I am not worthy to be called your son. Only treat me like one of your slaves. The response father gave, he screams out. He was on the loudspeaker all of a sudden. He is broadcasting all over the world. Have the biggest dinner possibly you can have. Call the whole neighborhood. We are going to have a huge celebration. Five thousand people, all free meal. A banquet. How would you explain the father's heart like that? I don't understand it. I don't and I don't try to. Because now I see things only from human perspective. So limited, I can't fathom it. His perspective is different. But I can enjoy it. Righteousness is something you will never earn. Scientification, yes, we fail, repent, grow continually, every day, degree by degree and becoming like Jesus. But righteousness you will never earn. Righteousness is a gift of God. You are made righteous in Jesus through the father's grace. I am made righteous. He cannot get it. It is given. And I think it is important that we remember in the Old Testament sin was covered. A preacher explained this one time. I heard him do this. He took something and put it on the table and put a tablecloth and he covered it. He explained like that. Old Testament, it's covered. Sin, through the sacrifices and all the penance and everything. But when the cross was erected, when Jesus died on the cross, it's not covered. It is removed. Washed clean. Such a way it never happened. Can you imagine? Divorce never took place. Cheating never took place. You never lied. You never lusted. You never committed murder. You never fought with anyone. You never thought evil. You are pure as the day God made Adam and Eve. Can you understand it? You don't. Do I? I don't. Let's enjoy it. Thank you for listening to Gospel for Asia's broadcast of Seek Only God's Approval by Brother K.P. Yohannan, founder and president of Gospel for Asia. In a moment, we'll rejoin Brother K.P. We'd like to offer you a free copy of Brother K.P.'s most popular book. It's called Revolution in World Missions. Simply visit our website at gospelforasia.org and click on the free book banner or call us 1-866-WIN-ASIA. And now, back to Brother K.P. Question. What does it take for me to recover all to the extent that I never imagined sin. I'm pure. Totally pure. Peter, do you love me? Peter, are you repenting? How many sins you committed? How many people you led astray? How many disciples of mine you led astray? In the old business of fishing, backsliding, you are responsible, Peter. Peter, do you love me? That's all. Jesus, I love you. And he said, Lord, do I have to explain all this to you? I mean, why should I? Jesus, you know everything. That means you know all my failures of my life. But Jesus, you also know in the midst of all this misery and sadness and turmoil, there is a heart in me that want to serve you. I backslidden, I left you, I went for the net and the board simply because, Jesus, I could not make myself to believe you can use me again. I am a lost case. Jesus said, just you love me. That's all. And I believe the enemy, the devil's number one purpose in our sin and failure. Now, please listen and process this. It's not our failure and sin that he enjoys. Failure and sin is not the end in itself. Devil and all the billions of demons, they include incarnate sin and wickedness. The hell is for them. What is their enjoyment making you fall in all the stupidity? If you process it, my thinking is this. Devil's purpose in our failure and our sin is the same thing that he did with everybody in the Bible. That is, to discourage us to make us self-centered in introspection and slow down in receiving God's full grace and leap over the impossibilities of our failures and say, I can still be the best vessel nor the original. It is not the second best but better than the best. And that's what the enemy wants. Answer? Jesus. Not looking at yourself. George said one time, one look at self, ten look at Jesus. And when I look at him, he says not a word but in his eyes I can see, Peter, it's alright. No problem. No discount, nothing taken away. You are still with me. Then I believe the way we respond to this is resist the devil. Now I have done it a thousand times. The reason after all this use of preaching and teaching and leading people to the Lord, I am telling you I still live with tremendous amount of discouragement. Low self-esteem. When I fail I feel like I want to resign and leave. Feel like I am the worst husband there is or worst father. I wish secretly somebody else take the responsibility that I hold and I didn't want to do it. And often it is because I feel not qualified. Who is qualified for any of these things? None of us are. But then I say to myself it is not just coincident accident. It is the enemy that battling my mind. And the Bible says I overcome by the blood and by faith and by the word of my testimony. How we overcome? Three things. By the blood through which Satan's head was crushed and I plead the blood. Second by faith quenching all the fiery darts of the evil one. Third by the word of my testimony. Simply means I say in Jesus name I refuse to accept these thoughts of confusion accusation guilt condemnation low self-esteem self-rejection I reject this because I am accepted in the beloved. And Satan I ask you to take your hand off. You have no business in my life. And if you don't believe me please try it one time alone and see how it works. For God knows our breaking point. Psalm 103 verse 14 He will give you grace. Jesus said Peter I prayed for you. Failure and falling it don't have to be the way of life. How do we respond to it? You don't have to fall. God gives grace. Finally believe nothing is impossible. Jeremiah chapter 18 verse 1 to 6 the porter and the clay with God nothing is impossible. And believe that whatever you deal with. The overcomers are not the ones who have not failed but those who overcome by the blood of the lamb that was shed for sinners and failures. He who overcome he will sit with me. But those who overcome are not the perfect morally upright never committed one sin strong milton all doctrines correct they overcame by the blood of the lamb but the blood is only useful for people like me. Total miserable failures nobody wanted and that is always the way of victory. So when we have failed let us not live with the second best. Let us not live with the thoughts well yeah what can I do maybe God will do something second best with me I will just live along and crawl and somehow someday something will good will I will not get any crown nothing maybe I will just get there somehow you know as long as you are alive because you can breathe all it takes for him is one hour one minute one second for it is like thousand years in his life is one day so break it down and see how long you live and how many minutes are present that is the grace of God and may I be reminded by the Lord that I look upon my brothers and sisters that I work with not only here but everywhere not with standards that I read in the Bible nor the standards I made up but I look upon them with love and kindness and compassion and mercy while I challenge you to live a radical life give all fight the battle don't get out I always want to remember that I should be sustained by grace and mercy I want others to show compassion to me and mercy because I am a failure also if we can walk like this you see two metals two different metals become one when both end is melted you take two piece of iron you do all you can it don't mix it don't link but you put both end in the fire and it turns red and blue and then you it melts it joins where we are able to open our life as we are seek others prayer and counsel those weak melts and those weak areas and struggles God uses to bring us closer and show us how much we need others and how much we can be present to others let's pray Father I want to thank you for your marvelous grace your mercy that is new every morning your kindness and your grace and mercy never ceases it's fresh every day Lord thank you for that there is no one none of us can honestly say we have done all things well Lord even in the midst of such tremendous ministry or hard work and enthusiasm Lord deep down our hearts we know we are just fragile little human beings earthen vessels nothing attractive in us yet Lord you pick us up in your own beautiful hands and you you make beauty out of ashes Master how gracious you are I pray for my brothers and sisters if anyone Lord looking back with remorse and guilt and feelings of sorrow and saying if only a thousand times Jesus please continue to show your grace open their eyes and understanding and help them to know the slate is clean the page is clean you don't remember it no more they never did it it is all brand new please Jesus help us to accept that that we are perfect because you made us righteous not we let not the devil the demons discourage us anymore and pull us down Lord we are more than conquerors through him who loved us thank you for that promise Lord because you live we live also in you we live we move we have our being thank you continue to strengthen us Lord make a strong inner man that we will know you better and used by you effectively I pray for your peace your blessings and grace upon all my brothers and sisters and Lord finally we just want to say to you we love you more than life itself we got failures and struggles Lord but as Peter said please you know that we love you more than anything help us to understand the meaning of what I say in Jesus precious name Amen IF YOU SHARE, YOU WILL FIND TRUE PEACE AND JOY IN YOUR LIFE AS YOU SEEK ONLY GOD'S APPROVAL THANK YOU FOR LISTENING