“Jesus said, ‘There was a man who had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.” And he divided his property between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. So, he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
“‘But when he came to himself, he said, “How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.’” And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” But the father said to his servants, “Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.” And they began to celebrate.
“‘Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him, “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.” But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his father, “Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!” And he said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.”’” [1]
Have you ever done something that makes no sense whatsoever? If you’ve ever done something that made no sense, you will know what I’m talking about. I suspect that each of us, if we permit ourselves to be brutally honest, will be forced to admit that we have done something, likely many things, that make no sense at all. Even years after we have done that thing, it still makes no sense.
It makes no sense to own a brand-new F-150 Limited, and not have enough money to buy fuel for that fine pickup. It makes no sense to have five-hundred-dollar running shoes and yet be afraid to wear them outside. It makes no sense to have a new five-bedroom house and not be able to pay the hydro bill or the gas bill. It makes no sense to live in a one-bedroom walk-up efficiency apartment and drive a Mercedes Benz.
It makes no sense to enjoy the fruits of a capitalistic economy while demanding that the government adopt socialism to ensure financial equality rather than equality of opportunity. It makes no sense to demand universal medical care and then complain that your taxes rise to pay for what you demanded. That makes no sense at all!
It makes no sense to gossip about the flaws of others. You know that when you’re no longer hanging around with those rascals, they’re going to gossip about you. It makes no sense to hang around people who simply don’t like you. No matter what you do, they won’t like you!
It makes no sense to be envious of what God has done for someone else, when the same God is able, and always stands ready to do the same thing for you. It makes no sense to claim that God will carry your heavy load and then refuse to allow Him to do so. It makes no sense to claim that God answers prayer and then fail to ask Him to supply your needs. It makes no sense to say that the Lord will forgive you for sins you committed in the past and then continue to plead with Him to forgive you. It makes no sense to testify that you are saved and then live like the devil. That makes no sense at all.
And it makes no sense to be part of the same family and be mad when the father chooses to do for one what he hasn’t chosen to do for the other. Of course, I’m talking about the parable Jesus tells about what a father did for one son what he hadn’t done for the other son. I’m talking about the Parable of the Prodigal Son. I’m talking about the parable as Luke tells it. The older brother is shown to be angry at the father, and that makes no sense at all.
ONE PARABLE; THREE EXPRESSIONS — This parable is one of three that Jesus told in response to the truth squad that seemed always to be hanging around. Jesus was doing what Jesus does. He was preaching the Good News, and the tax collectors and sinners were crowding around Him. Because these notoriously despised individuals were trying to get to Jesus, “The Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, ‘This man receives sinners and eats with them’” [LUKE 15:2].
I can only surmise that the point Jesus was making was absolutely essential since He provided three separate stories, each with the same point. The Master had just been charged as somehow religiously deficient, as somehow ecclesiastically eccentric, because He both accepted sinners and then deigned to eat with them. In other words, Jesus treated religious outcasts as people. He showed them unfeigned courtesy. He was respectful and kind toward those whom the world was prepared to kick to the curb.
In the first parable, Jesus spoke of a shepherd who had a flock of one hundred sheep. One sheep had wandered off. It was lost. The shepherd left the ninety-nine that were still together and went back into the desert to find the stray. Now, that makes no sense at all. Perhaps you are one of those practical types; “A bird in hand is worth two in the bush,” is the dictum that guides your life. Nevertheless, I’m glad I have a shepherd that looks for me when I get lost. I’m glad that my Shepherd knows His sheep and He knows when one is missing. I’m especially glad when the one that is missing is me, He will search for me.
Did you notice how this first parable concludes? The shepherd searches for his sheep until he finds it. “When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance” [LUKE 15:5-7]. God is telling us that He longs to find the lost sheep. There should be joy, unrestrained, noisy joy, each time a sinner is found and brought to faith. It makes no sense for us to be silent when someone has been redeemed. It means we don’t understand God.
The second parable Jesus told is about a woman who had a messy house. She must not have been a great housekeeper, because she lost a coin. Now, this is far more serious than losing a dime or a nickel. She had ten coins, and they were apparently a set. Some scholars have speculated that these coins were part of her dowry. If so, she perhaps wore the coins as a headdress. To lose one is indicative that she lost a tenth of what she brought into the marriage. What is important is not the coins, but that this woman lost the coins. Houses for most people in that day were not large, so losing a coin in the house would indicate a degree of carelessness.
This coin was valuable, and she lost it in her house. Here is the thing—people can be lost in the House of God! It is not because God is a sloppy housekeeper, but it is because we grow sloppy. Seated within almost any congregation are people who are lost. They gather with the redeemed, but they have no relationship to the Living God. They hear the preaching of the Word, they may even participate in the rituals of the church, but they don’t know the Lord. Here is the thing to hold in mind—God is prepared to light His lamp, the lamp of the Word, and search the house to find the lost coin.
Again, did you notice how Jesus brought the parable to a conclusion? The woman realised that her coin was lost. She lit a lamp and swept the floor. The coin was be revealed when she heard it clinking as the broom moved the coin along the floor. She would be ecstatic when she found the coin, so overjoyed that she could not remain silent. Therefore, we read, “When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents” [LUKE 15:9-10]. Jesus is giving us a glimpse of how all Heaven reacts when a sinner repents. He is telling us that the congregation in which that sinner has secreted herself should explode in wild joy when she comes to faith in the Son of God. Dear people, it makes no sense to sit silently when someone has confessed faith in the Son of God. Our sullen silence reveals that we don’t understand God at all.
The third parable continues the theme Jesus was delivering. Focus on what the Master was teaching. He was telling those who listened—and I hope that includes us—of the Father’s untrammeled joy, the wild rejoicing expressed by the holy angels, whenever someone comes to life in Christ the Lord, whenever someone who has strayed returns to the way of life, whenever someone who was religious, but lost, comes to their senses.
Briefly, here is how the third story is presented. The father in the story has two sons. One of those sons is crazy. Every family likely has one child that is just crazy. This is the child that can learn in only one way—the hard way. This is the child that knows better than dad and mom, though the child has no experience in life. That is the younger son in our story. He demands that his dad give him his inheritance—and the dad isn’t even sick, much less dead! It doesn’t matter to this boy; he wants his money.
Here is what is interesting, the daddy gives the boy what he asks—he divides his property, giving the boy his share. Don’t judge what this father has done in the parable Jesus told. The Master isn’t focused on providing instruction for Parenting 101, He is focused on something else that is essential for godliness. Remember, Jesus was responding to the charge brought by the Pharisees that He was religiously deficient.
Therefore, in the story Jesus told, the father gives the younger son the inheritance that he would otherwise receive when the father died. The decision must have wrenched at the heart of the father, but there comes a time when our children insist that they can make it on their own. Sometimes, we need to allow our children to make their own mistakes. I’m not saying that we must assist them in destroying their lives, but I am saying that they will do what they will do.
The boy makes a series of decisions that will have real-life consequences. He leaves home, because he just knows life will be better when he lives on his own. You know how that is. No one will tell him to turn off the light when he leaves the room—he’ll pay his own hydro bill. No one to tell him that what is on the table is all there is to eat tonight—he’ll eat out every night. No one will ever tell him again to be in by ten because it is a school night and he needs some rest—he’ll stay out as late as he pleases. No one to tell him to keep at the task until it is finished. No one will tell him to stay in school until he is ready to enter the workforce. He is free at last!
The boy goes into a far country. Somehow, this far country is exciting, exotic, alluring. He always wanted to see what life was like in that country. Everybody there is having fun. No one tells you how to live—you are on your own. What is interesting about this “far country” is that it probably wasn’t all that far. It may have been just the next town over; some have suggested it was no more than a few kilometers away. Here’s the thing—the far country doesn’t have to be geographically removed by great distances. The far country is a state of mind. There are young people who are in the far country, living in the same town that their daddy and mama are living in. These children have adopted a lifestyle that ensures they are no longer living as dad and mom raised them. They are in the far country.
Let me offer an observation of the far country in which children live. We see the inhabitants of the far country, and they do seem to live without restrictions, without intervention. We only see the surface. Few of us take the time to see the end of days for those living in the far country. Life for the lotus eater, the drug addict, seems exotic, pleasant. Somehow, we miss the desperation when the addict just has to have the next hit. The young woman will sell her body for a measly couple of dollars so she can get her next fix. The few dollars she manages to get in exchange for her soul goes up her nose. The young man will risk his life to attack a complete stranger just so he can steal a few dollars to get his next hit. Everything he manages to gather goes into his veins. By the time they are twenty-five, their teeth are rotting out, their faces are lined, their bodies stink and their clothing will stand in a corner by itself. There is nothing alluring about life in the far country.
Sure enough, the young man squanders what he received from his father. He is surrounded by friends. There is an interesting observation about these friends, they are always there when you are spending your money, but when the money runs out—and the money will run out—they can never be found. Real friends are there regardless of how much money you may have. Most are available to you only if you are spending on them. So long as he has money, all the prostitutes tell him how handsome he is, how witty he is, how desirable he is. When the money is gone, they don’t have time for him. So long as he was buying drinks, there was a posse willing to hang out with him. When the money was gone, he was nobody.
The young man comes to the point that he doesn’t have enough money to pay for a room. He hasn’t enough to buy a meal, let alone another drink. He has no money and no friends. The young man who was too smart to work on his daddy’s farm is reduced to looking for some kind of work—anything that will let him make a little money so he can eat. Sleeping on the streets is not all that attractive. Living under a bridge, walking the streets and looking longingly into the various shops, sleeping at night under a cardboard box on the sidewalk isn’t all that attractive.
At last, he is hired to feed pigs. He was a good Jewish boy, and though he wasn’t all that authentic, he did absorb enough teaching in his father’s house to know that this was degrading work. He wasn’t making all that much money. In fact, despite earning something, he was hungry. He saw the pods with which the pigs were being fed, and he was hungry enough to eat even those pods. He found himself dreaming about those pods.
That is when he had a meeting of the board with the most important members of his executive present—me, myself, and I. The consensus at that meeting was unanimous. “How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants’” [LUKE 15:17-19]. This young man decided to go home. In his mind, he demoted himself, because even the servants of his father had enough to eat and a place to sleep!
I raised pigs as a boy; I know a few things about pigs. I had beautiful Duroc pigs that I just loved. I sold weaning pigs throughout my high school days. Every member of Future Farmers of America was encouraged to invest in livestock, and I chose to raise pigs. One thing I do know about pigs is that they stink. Few things on a farm smell worse than a pig sty. Pigs are actually rather fastidious in where they leave their pig deposits, but those deposits are definitely unpleasant to smell. I know that some of our youth think that pork chops come from Save-On, wrapped in cellophane and lying on Styrofoam. However, they come from pigs, raised on farms.
That boy smelled like he had been in a pig pen. Stinking like a pigpen, he determined to go home. He didn’t have time to go back to his camp to find some clothes; it wouldn’t have done him any good—there were no other clothes available. He would have to go back to his father’s house wearing what he had; he would return home covered in pig stuff.
That boy did go home, rehearsing his speech the entire distance. “Daddy, I’m hungry and I’m tired. I need a job; could I become one of your slaves?” However, the father saw the boy when he was still along way off. “Hey, that looks like Mike’s walk. Is it possible? Has he finally come to his senses?” Not waiting any longer, the aged dad raced as fast as those old legs would carry him just so he could get to the boy.
When he got to him, the father embraced him and kissed him. “Welcome home, son. Welcome home.” There wasn’t much else the father could say at that moment; he was so excited.
The young man began his speech, the same speech he had rehearsed with every step. “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son” [LUKE 15:21]. But the dad wasn’t having any of that. Immediately, that dad began to issue orders to his servants, “Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found” [LUKE 15:22-24]. Then, the party began! What a wild celebration!
The older son had been working in the field. As he was returning home, he heard music and dancing. Whenever you have a party, there is music. And now there was dancing, it was a sho’ ‘nuff party! Confused, the older brother called one of the servants and asked what was going on. The answer he received wasn’t exactly what he was expecting to hear. “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound” [LUKE 15:27]. In fact, this information enraged this older brother.
He was so angry that he refused to even go in the house; so his daddy came out to him. The older brother couldn’t hold in his rage any longer; when his dad came out, he just let it all out. “Look here, all these years I’ve slaved for you, and never once went contrary to your orders. And yet, at no time have you ever given me so much as a baby goat with which to pitch a party for my friends. But when this son of yours—who has squandered the business on whores—comes home, you butcher for him the stall-fed steer” [LUKE 15:29-30 COTTON PATCH VERSION]! [2]
The father reasoned with his son, and his reasoning becomes the point of the parable. “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found” [LUKE 15:31-32]. The father reasoned with his angry son. His response to the aggrieved older son provides us with a lesson worth exploring, a lesson that is often missed in our self-satisfied religion of this day.
THE PRODIGALS — Expositions of this text almost always present the younger son as the prodigal. To be sure, this son was profligate, a wastrel and a most foolish individual. He was self-centred and unconcerned for those who loved him. This was the son that demanded his inheritance, even before the father was dead. This was the son who foolishly wasted all he had until he was reduced to the point of utter destitution. This was the son who had never known penury or want who was now reduced to working at the most despised job imaginable. Without question, the younger son was profligate and wanton; hence it cannot be denied that he was truly a prodigal. However, the elder son was perhaps even more guilty of squandering what he had. We will benefit from considering each of these boys to see if we are included in the parable.
I want us to look at the younger son first; he is the one that normally gets our attention. Certainly, the younger son figures prominently in the parable Jesus told, but in many respects, this younger son looks a lot like some people we know—perhaps he even looks a little like us. For this reason, what is taught in this parable is pertinent for our lives now. This was a young man in a hurry. It is a truism that youth are not known for their patience. I’m not saying that a young person can’t be wise, or that someone with age on their side is inevitably wise. Nevertheless, for most of us, patience comes with experience, and negative experiences are more powerful in producing patience than the pleasantries of an easy life can ever be. Learning to cope with disappointment teaches us patience. Isn’t this what Paul is teaching when he writes, “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance” [ROMANS 5:3].
Jesus has taught those who follow Him, “By your endurance you will gain your lives” [LUKE 21:19]. Similarly, James teaches us that “the testing of your faith produces endurance” [JAMES 1:3 NASB 1995]. There is definitely a reason why one of the fruits of the Spirit is patience [see GALATIANS 5:22]. Patience is not something that is simply handed out without consideration; patience is obtained when we have passed through deep waters while holding to the Master’s hand. Patience is obtained when we have learned to trust in the unwavering love of the Saviour. Unfortunately, few youths have the maturity to have gained such experience. It isn’t necessarily their fault, but they don’t have the experience that comes with life. Indeed, it is impossible for youth to have the required experience because they haven’t had opportunity to gain experience! We hope that youth will gain this experience in time, but they can’t have it when they are young.
Whenever a crisis arises, inhabitants identified with this dying world employ the maxim, “Don’t just stand there; do something!” However, the Word teaches the follower of Christ, “Don’t just do something; stand there!” Even Christian youth, lacking the experience that comes with life and having never faced the challenges each person must face, are in a hurry. Tragically, because they are impatient, many times, perhaps even most of the time, they make matters worse through their eagerness. Youth have strength, but that strength is untested. Though strong, the lack of experience in youth means that they are prone to misuse the strength they have. They need the experience of their elders to learn how to channel their strength for good. Young people will benefit from spending time with older Christians to learn how to respond to the challenges that are certain to come into their lives. They will benefit from studying the way in which saints of another day responded to the challenges they faced.
The younger son was, indeed, prodigal. He was convinced that he had his act together. He was eager to get on with life. He was certain he could handle life. Much as it true for a disconcerting number of young people in this day, this boy fairly shouted at the older generation, “Get out of the way; let me show you how this is done!” In the parable Jesus told, the young man demanded his share of the inheritance so he could get on with life! He would face life on his terms. Life looks quite different when viewed through the lens of youth than it does when seen in retrospect or when viewed through the lens of maturity.
Here’s another point that we need to recognise—his daddy wasn’t dead! You don’t receive an inheritance until the one from whom you’re inheriting has died! A will is not valid until the one who wrote the will has died. Nothing has changed since an unknown author once wrote, “Where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive” [HEBREWS 9:16-17].
In the parable Jesus told on that day, the younger lad assumed that he deserved a portion of what his father owned by virtue of merely existing! What chutzpa! What arrogance! Where does a child get off, demanding that he deserves what he never worked for? What makes a child imagine that he should have what rightfully belongs to his father. Nothing but love could lay the groundwork for such a thought. And it would require that the child pervert that love in order to even imagine that what was not his should be given to him. And yet, this boy’s father gave him what he asked. In fact, Jesus said, “[The father] divided his property between them.” “Them!” Each of the boys received his share of the inheritance. The father was generous, munificent. Neither son objected when he showered them with his love, pouring out his wealth on them.
Perhaps I’m speaking to a younger person who imagines that their father or their mother owes them something. Stop thinking with such arrogance. Your parents owe you nothing. You owe your father and you owe your mother everything. They gave you life. They nurtured you. They invested in you and prepared you for life. What have you done to deserve the mercy you have received from those who loved you?
Worse yet are professed children of the Living God who imagine that God owes them something. Perhaps they imagine that God owes them a life free of trial and conflict, though they have done nothing of significance in the work of His Kingdom. Have we not heard the Master when he cautions those who follow Him in this Kingdom work, “Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and recline at table?’ Will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink?’ Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty’” [LUKE 17:7-10]. Did you see how we should respond? “We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.” Well that takes some of the lustre off serving the Master!
sEven those we imagine to be great in the Kingdom are compelled to confess of their service, “We have only done what was our duty!” We have nothing of which we may boast. The Apostle to the Gentiles challenges each one who follows the Saviour, “Who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it” [1 CORINTHIANS 4;7]? If I serve, it is with the strength that God has given me. If I accomplish anything in the work of the Kingdom, it is because God appointed me to that service and ensured that I would have opportunity to be His instrument of grace. Whatever I may do, He must be honoured, and He must receive the glory.
Bible readers don’t often identify the older son as prodigal. I mean, he stayed home with the father; he was obedient, doing all the father instructed him to do. He didn’t complain or place unreasonable demands on his father. However, his heart was filled with resentment; and though that resentment had not broken out in open rebellion, it nevertheless festered in his heart, poisoning his life. His pent-up rage broke forth in full heat when his brother was welcomed home; the elder brother could not stand the thought that his brother could live as a profligate and yet be accepted upon returning home. It is almost as if he was complaining, “I didn’t get to do all the fun stuff he did! I was cheated!” It seems almost as if the older boy was envious of the experiences of his younger brother.
What is obvious is that this older son had worked for those years in expectation of receiving a reward for his work. The labour he provided for his daddy wasn’t offered out of love, it was presented as a means of obtaining what he wanted. A son should serve his father out of love and not out of a sense of getting something in exchange for his service. Yet, this son had worked in anticipation of receiving something for his labour.
I don’t want to minimise the fact that God is gracious and that He does reward His servants. However, the highest service we can offer must be that which is offered because we love the Father. Why do you serve God? What motivates you to labour in His Kingdom? Far too many of the professed saints of God are prepared to serve in some capacity so long as they receive recognition, so long as they are stroked, so long as they are praised. However, it is a rare and precious saint of God who toils in obscurity because she loves the Lord. The saint that can be depended upon to do the task she accepted because she offers her labour to the Lord is a treasured member of the assembly. This is the saint who is truly walking in the steps of the Lord Who taught His people, “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve” [MARK 10:45a].
Have you noticed this emphasis in the Word? “Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” [COLOSSIANS 3:17]. Serving is esteemed. How much more is that service esteemed by the Lord when it is offered out of love for the Saviour!
Elsewhere, we are informed, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ” [COLOSSIANS 3:23-24]. Because we love Him, we serve Him.
This truth is emphasised again when we are taught, “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” [1 CORINTHIANS 10:31]. In gratitude to God and out of love for Him, we serve Him and seek His glory.
I find it fascinating that our actions are not emphasised when the Word speaks of our service; rather, the motive that impels us in our service is central to what determines God’s praise! God does indeed look on the heart [see 1 SAMUEL 16:7]. It is not that what we do is unimportant, but it is a sobering reminder that though we may do what is right, if our heart is wrong we will be cursed. If we are moved with a desire for God’s glory, He will direct our paths so that we honour Him, and we will be blessed. Seek God’s glory first, in His time and according to His will, He will bless what you are doing.
This elder son had served “these many years;” but his service was driven by payday. Payday, for this boy, was the constant motive for working. He worked, calculating what he was owed the entire time he was working. Like many saints in this day, the boy knew the cost of everything and was ignorant of the value of his labour. He loved his dad, after a fashion; but he was not motivated by love to serve the father. How tragic the account Jesus provided!
A REMINDER FOR THE AGGRIEVED — “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found” [LUKE 15:31-32]. Frankly, I’m puzzled by how gently the father remonstrated with this son. The boy is revealing that he is an ingrate in his heart. This older boy was so focused on what he perceived as the father’s unfairness toward him that he couldn’t see the benefits that accrued to him because of his position.
As we’ve seen to this point, the father had two prodigals. One of the sons is obviously a prodigal because he is seen to be profligate, a spendthrift, a wastrel; he is unrestrained, his appetites controlling him rather than controlling his desires. The other son, the elder brother in the parable Jesus told, is not nearly so apparent to us, but he is a prodigal, nonetheless. For the prodigal in a far country, the child needs to be reminded of the love of the father. That profligate child must be reminded of the way in which the father lavished love on him. Nothing was demanded of the child—he was loved because he was a child. He would always have a home, always be clothed in the robes from the father’s closet, always be fed from the father’s table. Though he might flee from the father, he would never be forgotten.
The Apostle cited a hymn that appears to have been known among the early churches. Listen to the words of this ancient hymn and draw encouragement in the Master’s love for you.
“In dying with the Messiah,
true life we gain.
Enduring, we with him will reign.
Who him denies,
he will disclaim.
Our faith may fail,
his never wanes—
That’s who he is,
he cannot change!”
[2 TIMOTHY 2:11b-13 ISV].
That’s it precisely! When we are in Christ, we are saved! We who have believed are not on probation—we are saved! He cannot change!
Elder sons must learn that the Father celebrates when prodigals return. True, they do not deserve the party that the Father throws as He rejoices in their return, but it was never a matter of deserving anything. Elder sons must learn that they have everything—all that the Father has is theirs. They can access whatever they require whenever they wish. They do not need a special occasion in order to celebrate.
Listen, church, each time we gather should be a party, a celebration. Those who qualify as elder sons should be partying because they have all that the Father can provide, and those qualifying as younger sons should join in celebration because they are returning to the Father’s house. Each time we meet should be a time of joyous celebration. The elder sons should receive the younger sons, not to lead us in some wayward direction, but receiving them because they cause the Father’s heart to swell with joy. The people of God should not come into His house with sombre mien, with solemn step and with measured speech. Here, in the presence of the Father, we who are His children should shout and rejoice because we are in the Father’s house. This is the house of feasting. This is the house of joy. This is the house of celebration. Here, the Father showers His children with His love.
To any who have been living in a far country, welcome home. Come join in the party that the Father is giving in honour of your return. Here is an old-fashioned altar where the Father waits to receive you, welcoming you again into His home. To any who have discovered that you are an elder brother, lay down your hostility. Stop standing outside grumbling. Come into the party where there is dancing and feasting, where joy reigns and where the Father showers His sons with love.
To any who are strangers to the Father, His children were once identified with the world, as you are. They were born from above when they believed the message of life that Christ died for their sin and rose from the dead. Believe Him now. Amen.
[*] This sermon was suggested by Dr. John R. Adolph, “Now That Just Doesn’t Make Sense,” (Sermon), Dr. John R. Adolph Sermon: Now That Just Doesn’t Make Sense 4.9.17, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2cxfqY-T9A, accessed 20 March 2019
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
[2] Clarence Jordan, The Cotton Patch Gospel (Smyth & Helwys Pub., Macon, GA 2004)
