Do Not Forget the Pigs

"Don't forget the pigs... the further they get away the better they start looking... Always remember where He found you, don't forget the pigs... Don't forget the party and Who threw it for you... Remember what He is like, He is not like they told you... Don't forget when the party's over, tomorrow you have to go back to the field... When you have dirt under your fingernails, when you think you can't do it anymore, when you're really really tired think about the party. Someday when we get home we are going to have the party of all parties." ~ Steve Brown, A Word To The Boys From The Old Guy

If you have never listened to Steve Brown preach you are missing out. He will shock you and possibly offend you, but he will also remind you in a beautiful way of sweetness of the grace of God because that is all he preaches and he does it well. He preached recently at Perimeter on the prodigal son and I loved the above quote.

All to often we are prone to forget the pigs. When things start going our way and life is good we forget where He found us and how He took us from the pigs to the party. We forget how horrible it felt to be empty even though we had everything that we thought we wanted. We forget Who was the only Person Who did not leave us when we hit rock bottom and that is dangerous. When we forget the pigs, as Steve says, they start to not look so bad.

We cannot forget the party either because not only did He save us from the pigs but He gave us a place of honor. We are co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). He killed the fattened calf for us and rejoiced when the lost sheep was found (Matthew 18:13). He could have made us a slave in His house, as the prodigal son thought would happen, for we did not even deserve that much, but He did not. He threw a party (incredible grace).

Finally, do not forget that the there is work to be done. We have to come down the mountain (Luke 9:28-36). When we do and work in the field doing the work He has prepared for us (Ephesians 2:10) we cannot forget the "party of parties" that is to come (Revelation 5:9-14). When we get dirty under our fingernails and we are tired we cannot forget the party that is to come.

By His Grace,
Taylor