Discussion Questions:

1. Can you think of a time when a person was celebrated who really didn’t deserve it? Maybe you felt you deserved the celebration. How did you respond? How did it make you feel?

2. Describe what it means to be a son or a daughter of God. How do you become worthy of such a high position in God’s family?

3. Both the older son and younger son were distant from the heart of the father; describe what kept the older son far away.

4. What made the older son so angry? Describe the fallacy of comparative righteousness (i.e. comparing ourselves to others, and expecting God to honor the comparison).

5. The parable ends again with this statement:

It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’” (Luke 15:32)

Pastor Chris described Firewheel as a church that celebrates sinners (not celebrating sin, but sinners). Discuss how that impacts the way we do ministry as a church. Do you agree/disagree?