And He said, “A man had two sons. 12 The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.’ So he divided his wealth between them. 13 And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living. 14 Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him. 17 But when he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger! 18 I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.”’ 20 So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; 23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate.

25 “Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be. 27 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.’ 28 But he became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him. 29 But he answered and said to his father, ‘Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends; 30 but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’ 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.’” — Luke 15:11-32, NASB

The longest and perhaps most familiar of our Lord’s parables is the story of the prodigal son. Dealing with the topics of repentance and redemption, it paints one of scripture’s best known pictures of God’s grace and compassion toward sinners, and provides a model of forgiveness that all should aspire to. It follows and is linked to the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin, expanding on the theme of God’s desire to recover lost souls. While the sheep and coin analogies show the recovery of one out of 100 and one out of 10 respectively, the prodigal son story brings the idea down to a one to one level, demonstrating that God’s love and concern is applied distinctly to each and every person.

Understanding the context of the three parables is important for a good grasp of their meaning. When we come to Luke 15 we read that the scribes and Pharisees have observed Jesus associating with sinners and are hotly disparaging of it. Addressing their indignation, He tells the first two parables, equating the repentance of a sinner with the recovery of lost articles of great value and something which is celebrated to the fullest in heaven.

Repentance was something that the Pharisees did not understand, because they thought they needed none due to their outward adherence to both the Mosaic Law and their own inflated ceremonies and traditions. Grace was certainly something they did not comprehend, because they believed that redemption was earned through works. They did not embrace inclusiveness, because to them sinners were irretrievably disobedient by definition and therefore unworthy of God’s kingdom. Extending forgiveness to them was unwarranted and even being seen with them was anathema.

It is through the parable of the prodigal son in particular that Jesus holds up a mirror to these religious elites, and their reaction to what they see will ultimately save or condemn them. The story examines a pair of personal relationships in which a father, representing God, deals uniquely with two sons who are equally estranged but in different ways.

One of his sons demands an early inheritance. As the younger of two, his share would amount to a third of the estate according to the Jewish laws and customs of the time, with the older son receiving two thirds. Such a request is an insult to the father, but the son has his mind set on rebellion and sees no issue in demanding that a large portion of the family fortune bankroll it.

However, his father grants the request and allows him to go on his way, just as God gives us free will to act in accordance with our fallen nature. The son journeys to a distant country, symbolic of sinful pursuits taking one far afield from God.

He burns through his inheritance through loose living and soon experiences financial ruin. He is laid low even more by a major famine that has come upon the land. His change in fortune demonstrates that the pleasures of sin are temporary, unfulfilling and ultimately destructive, leaving one in a much worse state than they were to begin with. There is no hope for one who is separated from God.

Destitute and hungry, the son submits to hire by a gentile master and is given the job of feeding pigs, effectively rendering him unclean and among the lowest of the low. In the eyes of a Jewish audience, this would be a revolting fate. It also reflects how the Pharisees regarded the types of people Jesus was ministering to.

Starving because he does not have enough food and coveting the husks that the pigs eat, he finally comes to his senses and realizes how much better his life would be in the house of his father, where even the servants have food to spare. He knows the security to be found there and realizes that he must return for his own preservation. In making the decision to return he shows faith in his father’s capacity for mercy. Knowing his unworthiness however, he approaches in humility and repentance, hoping for enough of a reconciliation that he might be granted a position as a servant.

His father sees him coming from a distance and runs to embrace him. There is no rejection or rebuke. Instead, before the son can even suggest becoming his servant, his father has already thrown a robe and sandals on him, given him a ring and ordered the fatted calf slain. The “best robe” may be compared to the robes of righteousness and salvation
described in Isaiah and Revelation, while the ring signifies favor and authority, indicating that the son’s position in the house has been fully reinstated.

The father’s joy demonstrates that penitent sinners are not welcomed grudgingly into the kingdom of heaven but with celebration. Not only is the repentance of the sinner a thing to be celebrated, but the fact that God is willing to forgive and receive them is certainly cause for all of heaven to rejoice.

The parable shows that sinners can repent and turn to God, and when they do they will be reconciled unto Him. Just as the father shows mercy to the son who returns to him, God saves by grace through faith—a concept wholly rejected by the Jewish religious establishment.

The sequence involving the older brother marks a departure from the pattern of the sheep and coin parables in that it adds a commentary on the viewpoints and redemptive state of the Pharisees and scribes, and by extension false believers in general.

Remember that Jesus taught in parables in part to obscure truth from those who would not embrace it, yet he is telling these stories to hard-hearted rejecters of the gospel. This act in itself is a demonstration of His grace. In depicting His self-righteous adversaries through the character of the older brother, Jesus gives them another opportunity to embrace the truth of saving grace if they will hear it.

Having been informed that his brother has returned and a great celebration has commenced, the older brother becomes angry and indignant. He points to his obedience and the years he has served his father, illustrating perfectly the viewpoint of salvation by works rather than faith. This epitomizes the self-entitled perspective of the Pharisees and scribes, who believed they would inherit God’s kingdom because of their ancestry, piousness and outward show of keeping the law.

The older brother’s protest also reflects the Pharisees’ grumbling over Jesus having shared table fellowship with the miscreants of society. By referring to the prodigal simply as “this son of yours” in his tirade to his father, he effectively disowns his brother. Likewise the Jewish religious establishment bristled at the thought of sharing God’s kingdom with known sinners and went out of their way to distance themselves from them. They would never celebrate such a person’s repentance, never mind their own impurity and need for redemption.

Because of human nature, it is understandable to empathize with the older brother at first. Why celebrate someone who insults and turns his back on his family, revels in sin, squanders his fortune and has the gall to come back seeking acceptance and forgiveness? The short answer is because God accepts and forgives us when we come to Him in faith, and we are to reflect His nature.

Whatever God does is infallible, and that He rejoices over repentance indicates pretty strongly that we should do the same. By refusing to attend the celebration, the older brother is acting just as egregiously and ungodly as the younger brother did in demanding an early inheritance and abandoning the family. The long-suffering father goes out to the older son just as he ran to meet the younger son in order to bring him into the fold. In the same way, God extends a call to salvation to everyone through the gospel.

As the parable ends, the father is asking the older son to soften his heart and join in the celebration. While explaining the significance of the return of “this brother of yours,” the father reminds the oldest son that they are part of the same family. We are all sinners dependent on God’s grace, and His kingdom is inclusive of all who are redeemed in faith.

The parable is sometimes misinterpreted because of the prodigal’s status as a “son.” Some believe the title infers that the character represents a ‘carnal Christian,’ a saved person who has lapsed into consistently sinful living and needs to get morally back on track, and that the purpose of the story is to assure believers of their eternal security. But verse 24, “for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found” makes it clear that the son represents a lost sinner bound for eternal separation from God's grace had he not repented, accepted his Father’s mercy and been redeemed. The notion is also inconsistent with verses 7 and 10, which plainly state that the rejoicing in heaven is in response to a sinner in need of redemption having repented. There are no ‘carnal Christians.’ Those who profess faith in God are either truly repentant, forgiven through grace and actively working to reflect His standard in their life, or they are not.

In the same way the father restored the prodigal son, God restores a penitent sinner. Lost sinners abound in this world, with many proudly wearing their transgressions on their sleeve. This makes it easy for the Christian to become as hard-hearted and self-righteous as the Pharisees and scribes who were blind to their own unworthiness. Scripture makes it clear though that we are not to judge others, rather we are to love one another, share the gospel and forgive those who repent, lest we not be forgiven our sins. The sinner will either come to repentance, faith and discipleship in Christ or they will not. Our responsibility as Christians is to reflect and celebrate His capacity for forgiveness and acceptance, and embrace all who come to Him in faith.

Image:
Luyken, Jan (1649-1712); The Return of the Prodigal Son; Medhurst, Phillip (attribution)