The Prodigal Father

INTRO

We’ve got a lot to cover in a short time - pay close attention

CONTEXT is KING

MANY Representations of the Prodigal Son Story in Popular Culture

Context of The Prodigal Son

The Preceding Parables (Lost Sheep & Lost Coin)

BODY (Exegesis of Luke 15:11-32)

Luke 15:11–32 (ESV)

And he 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.’ ”

PRAY

The best way to address this parable is to simply work through it, bit by bit, so that’s what we are going to do...

Have your Bible out & ready, a notebook to jot some things down & stay with me...

Much like the Master of the Vineyard last week, the Father in this Parable was a wealthy landowner.

In order to give the Younger Son his share of the inheritance the Father would have had to liquidate some of his assets.

Selling land would have been a very big deal —>

Land was even MORE important in this time —> Represented PLACE, Existence - implied staying power (for family)

The Younger Son would have had claim of 1/3 of the inheritance - ONCE the Father passed away

Not unheard of to ask for inheritance early...

Proverbs 20:21 “An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end.”

There wouldn’t be a response to it if it never happened...

The Younger Son does NOT relay his plans initially...

We don’t see that the Father even asks, or seems to have any issue with giving the Younger Son his inheritance.

Then the obvious happens & the Younger Son leaves home

Again - the context matters - it’s not like today, where it is EASY to travel - it’s not like today where it’s common to go off to college a long way from home —> Where you were from YOU STAYED.

The Son goes far enough away that the Father would have no influence or connection...

We are all familiar with the next part of the story...

vs. 13 - “and there he squandered his property in reckless living. And when he had spent everything,”

Senseless spending - spent it all lavishly in a very quick fashion...

He somehow spends it all in a short amount of time —> How short?

On top of his maleficence & ignorance, he is also terribly unlucky...

vs. 14 - “a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need.”

The Younger Son has spent all of his money and then there is a famine that causes the whole place to struggle...

He gets a job just to support himself

vs. 15 - “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.”

Feeding pigs would have been disgraceful for a Jewish man...

OT Law against eating them or touching their carcass —> would be carried to the point having nothing to do with pigs,

The wages are slim...

Likely the owner of the farm would have likely supplied a place to stay & food normally.

Maybe it was a small amount of food that wasn’t enough to satisfy him

Maybe b/c of the famine the farmer was unable to provide food

NOW - We aren’t given any background information about the relationship between the Father & the Younger Son...

For whatever reason the specter of Home has not even entered the Younger Son’s consciousness until he comes to the END of Himself...

As the scales fall of his eyes, he begins to see just how good he had it & the value of his Father’s provision.

vs. 17 - 19 - “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.” 

The Son almost instantly becomes aware of his folly...

He begins to rehearse the conversation in his head —> do you ever do this?

Notice though his recognition of sin: vs. 18 - “I have sinned against heaven and before you...”

I can’t help but be reminded of David’s words in Psalm 51

Psalm 51:3–4 (ESV)

For I know my transgressions,

and my sin is ever before me.

Against you, you only, have I sinned

and done what is evil in your sight,

so that you may be justified in your words

and blameless in your judgment.

It’s not that David did NOT offend Uriah, but taking his wife & having him murdered… that is an offense that has consequences & David does face consequences for that.

But the definition of Sin - missing the mark - archery term

God, His perfection & Holiness is the target - missing the mark is against the standard - God is the standard.

Sin has become a ‘stand in’ word for wrongdoing - but in the Scriptures, Sin is falling short of God’s standard.

“I have sinned against heaven” & “Against you, you only, have I sinned”

NOW - He has rehearsed this conversation in his head, but the outcome is very different - OFTEN the case...

vs. 20 - 24 - “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.”

He was still a long way off...

The Father was waiting & watching for the Son - could not have been a short time that he was gone...

Note the Father’s compassion....

“to experience great affection and compassion for someone”

Compassion leads to —> ‘Ran & embraced him’

It would have been unseemly for a wealthy landowner to RUN —>

Embracing a man who was probably still filthy (PROBABLY HAD NOT SHOWERED IN WEEKS!)

Filthy & had so dishonored him - KISSED him.

The Younger Son is only able to squeak out part of his rehearsed speech (I imagine through tears!) … “I’m no longer worthy to be called your son.”

BUT THE FATHER WILL HAVE NONE OF THAT…

“Bring the best robe”

Would have been the Father’s OWN robe… —> Inclusion in the Family

“Put a ring on his hand”

Likely a signet ring that would be used to sign contracts with the authority of the estate...

“Shoes on his feet”

Only slaves were barefoot

This dispels any notion the Son had of simply working as a Servant for his Father…

He is FULLY welcomed back as a part of the family & as a SON of the Father - Full benefits…

“Bring the fattened calf & kill it & let us eat & celebrate”

Meat was NOT a common part of the meals for 1st Century peoples to begin with… (I would have struggled)

The fattened calf would have been RESERVED for a special occasion…

To celebrate would have included ALL of the neighbors —>

PAUSE for a Moment —> The Son who had dishonored his family, by asking for his inheritance early, leaving for a far country, squandering all his money, feeding unclean pigs & returning in disgrace (& recognition of his sin)…

Jesus’ audience would have clearly been SHOCKED by the RECKLESS love of this Father - the seemingly indiscriminate application of his Love & Favor to this child of his...

We are all very familiar with this first part of the story…

The next Act of this story would have been nearly as shocking as the first…

The existence of the Younger Son in the first Act obviously implies the existence of an Older Son

This Son is apparently the Firstborn - Would have received a “double-portion” of the inheritance - 2/3

He was apparently working in the field, possibly overseeing part of it & did not even know that his brother had returned.

vs. 25 - 27 - 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.’

The Older Brother likely inferred a few things from this explanation...

1) His Father seems to have fully welcomed him back —> this would mean that the Younger Brother would still be entitled to 1/3 of whatever was left of the INHERITANCE (after he had squandered a portion of it away!)

That doesn’t seem very FAIR does it - I can just hear the accusations my boys would lob at each other…

2) Killing the fattened calf & celebrating - this was likely the biggest party & celebration he has ever seen.

Then Jesus tells us just how the older brother felt, “He was angry and refused to go in.”

The first century Jewish culture was one of honor ->

Forcing his Father to leave the celebration that he was the host of would have been incredibly disrespectful & the Older Brother knew it.

And then the Father essentially begs him to come and join the celebration…

NOW the Older Son unloads what’s been bothering him for a LOOOONG time:

vs. 29 - 30 - ‘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!’

“These many years I have served you” - you only start with that if you think you are owed something for it…

What he is implying is ‘look how good I have been in comparison to him...’

You never even gave me something as trivial as a goat - so I could have a little celebration

“this son of yours” - he won’t even refer to him as his brother

The Father may have welcomed the Younger Son home, bu the Older Son has effectively disowned him…

The Older Son accuses the Younger son —> “devoured your property with prostitutes” - I have always believed that this was what the Younger Son had done - when you hear the story recounted, this is always a part of the recounting of how he wasted his money…

BUT the Narrator (JESUS) makes no mention of this in the beginning of the story —> “he squandered his property in reckless living”

Only implies spending a lot of money quickly on a few things.

The brothers angry accusations have made their way into our understanding of the parable.

Why is that?

I think many of us have a soft spot for the Older Brother - I know that I do.

It seems like this guy has been faithful his whole life | he’s done everything right up to this point | and even NOW, his biggest crime is what? —> Desiring justice for his foolish brother?

Sure he could have handled this better, but he has a right to expect justice from the Father…

Luke 15:32 “It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’ ”

Ephesians 2:1–10 (ESV)

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

There are, in fact 2 Lost Sons in this parable.

This is not original to me —> Tim Keller - Prodigal God

A pastor preached on this parable some 15 years ago - “The Prodigal Father”

I don’t think that negates the common usage of the parable to refer to wayward children that have departed from the Faith, or are at least now walking in the light of Christ at the present time.

This is a true, and painful reality -> This parable certainly gives credibility to praying for and even anticipating those wayward souls to return to the Love of the Father.

However, I think a better understanding of this Parable lies in the title - The Prodigal Father.

PRODIGAL = characterized by profuse or wasteful expenditure : LAVISH; recklessly spendthrift; yielding abundantly; OR ‘one who spends or gives lavishly and foolishly’

It is the Father that wastes his estate by giving 1/3 to his younger son early

then seems to recklessly welcomes him back home with open arms

then throws a lavish celebration on top of everything else

The Father seems to be the ‘one who spends or gives lavishly and foolishly’ in this story.

The Radical Love of the Father is displayed toward the Wayward Younger Son & Toward the Pharisaical Older Son.

CENTRAL THEME —> The Father desires to lavish his good gifts upon his children.

Tim Keller points out that there are 2 Lost Sons in this story & that we can be both at different times.

Sometimes we can be a Younger Brother -> who pursues fulfillment in the pleasures of this world & forsake the provision of the Father.

Sometimes we can be an Older Brother -> who thinks that we are doing everything right & exactly what we supposed to, but in all actuality we think our obedience somehow puts the Father in our debt.

Both sons are mistaken in desiring the Father’s THINGS more than the Father himself…

Luke 15:31 “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.”

The Older Son failed to recognize what had always been available to him…

“Religious people commonly live very moral lives, but their goal is to get leverage over God, to control him, to put him in a position where they think he owes them. Therefore, despite all their ethical fastidiousness and piety, they are actually rebelling against his authority.” - Tim Keller

We too often fail to recognize the good gifts of the Father…

We compare ourselves to others -> “He got the fattened calf & I didn’t even get a goat!”

“Comparison is the thief of joy.”

We don’t use the good gifts - Fruit of the Spirit - Love | Joy | Peace | Patience | Kindness | Goodness | Faithfulness | Gentleness | Self-control

Belonging - Acceptance —> We are all searching for Belonging - where do I belong? Where am I accepted?

What greater acceptance is there than the acceptance demonstrated by the love of the Father in this story - THIS is the love he has for US, His Children - those that are in Christ.

PRESENCE - God’s greatest gift to us is HIMSELF.

Through the Finished work of Jesus

Through the Indwelling Holy Spirit

The presence of God - Holy Ground ->

CONCLUSION

Tim Keller summary of this parable...

“He does not wait for his younger son on the porch of his home impatiently tapping his foot, murmuring: ‘here comes that son of mine after all he's done there better be some real groveling.’ There's not a hint of such an attitude; no, he runs and kisses him before his son can confess. It's not the repentance that causes the Father's love, but rather the reverse. The Father’s lavish affection makes the son's expression of remorse far easier. The father also goes out to the angry resentful elder brother, begging him to come into the feast. This picture is like a double-edged sword. It shows that even the most religious and moral people need the initiating grace of God; that they are just as lost and it shows there is hope, yes even for Pharisees. This last plea from the father is particularly amazing when we remember Jesus 's audience he is addressing the religious leaders who are going to hand him over to the Roman authorities to be executed. Yet in the story, the elder brother gets not a harsh condemnation, but a loving plea to turn from his anger and self-righteousness. Jesus is pleading in love with his deadliest enemies. He is not a pharisee about Pharisees. He is not self-righteous about self-righteousness, nor should we be. He not only loves the wild-living, free-spirited people BUT also hardened religious people. We will never find God unless he first seeks us, but we should remember that he can do so in very different ways.

Sometimes God jumps on us dramatically, as he does with the younger son, and we have a sharp sense of his love. Sometimes He quietly and patiently argues with us even though we continue to turn away as in the case of the older son. How can you tell if he is working on you now? If you begin to sense your lostness and find yourself wanting to escape, you should realize that that desire is not something you could have generated on your own & if it is happening it is a good indication that He is now at your side.”

Maybe you recognize that you have been the Younger Son - spending your life lavishly on the pleasures of this world…

Maybe you recognize that you have been the Older Son - living a Pharisaical religious life, expecting that Father owes you something because of your keeping the moral law…

The antidote for both is to be so Consumed by the ‘lavishly foolish’ love of the Father for you - & to fall lovingly into His arms.

Come pray at the front during the next song…

PRAY

We are grateful that YOU desire to lavish YOUR good gifts upon us, your children.

Father, we pray for those that have departed from the faith, or are not currently walking in the Light.

Draw them to yourself - bring them to the end of themselves - bring us to the end of ourselves - that all they can do - all we can do - is to fall into your loving arms.

Give us more of you, we want more of you God. Saturate us with your love & with your life.

May the overwhelming love of God drive us to take this good news to a world full of Younger Sons & Older Sons…