The Time Jesus Didn't Act Like God...

Ever Get Upset with God?

There are moments in life when things simply don’t go the way we hoped. And if I’m honest, I get frustrated. Maybe you do too. As a pastor, I’m “supposed” to keep it together on the outside—but that doesn’t mean the inside always cooperates.

Jesus knew what it was like to face people’s expectations and disappointments. In Luke 15:1–2, the religious crowd watched Him eat with people they considered beneath them. They didn’t whisper—they  muttered : “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” In their minds, a righteous person—let alone someone claiming to be God—should never sit at a table with “those people.”

So Jesus told them three stories. Two made perfect sense. One flipped their world upside down.

In the stories of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin (Luke 15:3–10), Jesus essentially said, “If you lost something valuable, wouldn’t you go after it?” Everyone nodded. Of course they would. Today we slap AirTags on keys, wallets, and luggage because when something matters to us, we track it down.

They understood that then. They just didn’t have the technology.

But the third story—the Prodigal Son—was the one they couldn’t swallow. Jesus described a younger son who demanded his inheritance early so he could run off and live however he pleased. The older brother stayed home, doing the “right” things, but with a heart just as self-focused. (see Luke 15:11-31)

When the younger son finally returned, the father didn’t scold him. He didn’t shame him. He didn’t make him earn his way back. He threw a massive celebration—best food, best music, the whole town invited. It was a party fit for a wedding reception.

And the older brother? He was furious. Dad wasn’t doing what he should do. The younger son deserved consequences, not kindness. Punishment, not a party. In his mind, the father was being irresponsible, unfair, even foolish.

Here’s the truth Jesus was exposing: The Pharisees, and the older brother, cared deeply about lost things, but very little about lost people. The older brother lived in the father’s house, but he didn’t share the father’s heart.

Over the next few weeks, we’re going to look at the stories Jesus told reminding us that God has Made Us For More. If we want to grow deeper in 2026 we have to remember why we’re here.

It starts with this: The Father’s heart beats for people. People like you. People like me. People who are far from God and people who think they’re close. Jesus came to show us that God is for us. Christ died and rose again so we could come home to the Father.

So come join us this Sunday. Bring someone with you. Invite them to sit beside you. Because at the end of the day, it’s all about people—and God never stops pursuing them.

Grace and peace,
​Pastor Mike

---