To The Prodigal And The Pharisee
I have a tendency to lose things. My wife will see me wandering around looking this way and that and she will automatically ask me what I’m looking for. I will look and look, retracing my steps and trying to remember the last place I saw whatever I lost. But the last thing I want to hear while I am searching and upset over losing something, is how I’m “always losing” whatever it is or how I should have kept it from being lost in the first place. And there is always relief and joy when I find what had been lost. In Luke 15:11-24, Jesus told a parable about a father whose son was lost, but returned back to Him, and the joy that ensued. Jesus’ audience included tax collectors and sinners. They were the prodigals who had lost their way, having gone away from their Father in heaven. His parable was a message to them that God loves them and wanted them to return to Him. And it was also a message to the self righteous Pharisees, to love and value what God loves and values. Lord, thank you for loving me and saving me when I was lost, and give me your heart to love and desire to see those who are still lost, return to you. Amen
Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. (Luke 15:11-19). This parable of Jesus’, commonly referred to as the “parable of the prodigal son”, was the third in a series of parables that Jesus told about lost things. The one who lost their possession in each of the parables sought for it diligently, and then exhibited great joy over finding their possession that had been lost. In the first parable, 1 sheep had strayed away from the other 99. Next, 1 coin came up missing out of 10. Finally, with the parable of the prodigal son, it was 1 of 2 sons was lost. The prodigal was the son who foolishly and recklessly shunned his father and went his own way. He was lost to his father. Jesus made each successive parable more intimate and more relatable to His audience. It was an audience that included Pharisees, who had just ridiculed Jesus for associating with sinners and tax collectors (see Luke 15:1-2). The prodigal son parable was aimed at teaching a valuable lesson to all of us about God’s love, how much He values each of us, and His desire for all who are lost to return to Him.
“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ (Luke 15:17-19). The prodigal became the penitent (repentant). He came to his senses, i.e. he was not the same man as he was when he left the father and went his own way. He recognized the futility of living the way he had been and how much better life was with the father. We are often attracted by the things of the world, but satan is a liar and what looks good and exciting is too often empty and unfulfilling. But at some point, we realize that we need more than the world has offered us and our attitude and values change. That’s when we need to fall on our knees and call on our Father to help us change things.
So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. (Luke 15:20-24). “So he got up and went to his father”. Out of his despair and brokenness, the hope that he had in the father energized the prodigal to turn and go back to his father in order to change his circumstances. In one of the most beautiful and reaffirming moments in the Bible, Jesus offers us a picture of how much our Heavenly Father loves and cares for us and wants us to come back into relationship with Him. He never stopped looking for us when we were lost. He came to meet us and embrace us when we returned to Him. He restored us to full status in the family. And He and all of heaven rejoiced and celebrated our return. Why, because we were dead while we were pursuing the world, but in our restored relationship with our Father, we have everlasting life.
The parable of the Lost Son is one of my favorite passages in the Bible. The telling of the parable was triggered because of the grumblings of Pharisees who looked down on Jesus for associating with tax collectors and sinners (i.e. those who were “lost”). But the message is clear… to the lost and the self righteous alike. God is joyful over the return of those who are lost. And in His grace, He wants to fully restore any who come to Him in search of salvation. That’s good news to those who are lost but are apprehensive about whether the are “good enough” to come back to God. He’s a “come just as you are” God. And it is a warning to the self righteous to check their attitudes, because God does not look down on the least, the last, the lost or the left out. God has a heart and a desire… for both the prodigal (the lost) and the Pharisee (the self righteous) to come back to Him!
Blessings,
Rev. Glenn
