Parable of the Lost Son
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The Context
The Context
Fact number 1 - Leading parables
The parable tells us that there are two sons but today, due to time, we will only look at one of them. So, what’s going on here in this story. Most of us are familiar with this parable, and probably have heard it here and there – a lost young boy coming home. The lost boy, or we may call him the “wasteful” boy hence the term “Prodigal”, comes at the heel of the other two “Lost” stories told by Jesus. They are the “Lost Sheep” and the “Lost Coin.” That’s fact number 1.
Fact number 2 - Relationship building
is that we must remember that Luke’s Jesus is talking about Kingdom life. What that means is that Luke is giving us a glimpse of the activity in heaven. Certainly, this is not all of it but enough to help us understand the character of God. Now that’s really important as you are seeking to build a relationship with Christ and from Christ, you get to know the Father in heaven. Jesus says that
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
Fact number 3 - Cultural expressions
when you are reading not just today’s parable, you must read it not with Western eyes but with an Eastern mindset of their culture. Not only will this give you the true meaning of the parable but will allow you to immerse deeper into God’s words.
So now, we begin our parable knowing that,
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons.
12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
What is happening here? Or should I say, “How dare you!”
The Disgrace
The Disgrace
This maniac, brave enough to say such a thing to the father is ridiculous. No youngest son is allowed to say that to the father of the house, “Give me my share of the inheritance (estate)!” In Eastern culture, the passing of the inheritance is governed by the
Law of Primogeniture
What that is is the oldest son in the household will receive the majority of the inheritance first then the rest will be divided among the youngest and the rest of the household after the death of the father. The money is not to gain the wealth of the oldest but for the security of the family name.
But out comes this ruthless guy wanting no part of the family but only focusing on his wealth for his own sakes and gains. Can you imagine how angry the father should be? Can you imagine how much “face” he is losing in front of the entire village? Having a son that he loves so much (we will know later on) to come up while he is still alive is a complete disrespect to his father. The son is pretty much walking over his dad’s dead body!
Out of love and full of shame, “…he divided his property between them.” Yes, that’s right, “his” property. Although the younger son thinks that his father is dead, while he is still alive, the property is still his.
If we just pause here, you can already see how much the father has already gone through. The Eastern culture is all about honour for the elder. No one dares to treat someone that is older than you this way. It was a shock! It was a culture shock to those that are listening to the parable around Jesus. Those people would be,
1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus.
2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
Now, the younger son has gotten what he wanted. Where is he going?
The Fallout
The Fallout
13 “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.
The Bible tells us that he left town for another country. Somewhere that he would be the stranger of the land where nobody would know who he is. What was the younger son’s motive here? Remember, he wanted nothing to do with his family so he set foot in new lands where nobody would know who he is. He can start a new life, and enjoy the money that he’s got in wild living!
If you’ve been to Las Vegas, to me, it is a different place. I wouldn’t tell you how times I’ve been there but each time I visit, I find it mesmerizing. It’s like a drug that you get addicted to and want so badly because all that it satisfies is the flesh. It fulfills what society is selling you, sex, drugs, and money. That’s how the culture of the world lures you in and away from God. I am not saying that the entire Las Vegas county is like that but it is the “the Stripe” that I am talking about.
It is an ungodly place. It is where most ungodly people would “…squander their wealth in wild living.” And that’s exactly where the younger son was headed to, ungodly territories.
It is so ever-dangerous when one decides to leave the presence of God. A person would fall easily into temptation and into sin which pulls them further and further away from God. Their conscience will grow silent and their innate nature of knowing good and evil becomes numb. The culture says, “do this…ok, I’ll go that way.” “Do that…ok, I’ll follow.” And sooner or later, doubt will begin to grow. The book of James describes such a person like this,
6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.
8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.
The younger son decides to remove himself from the protection of the family. He chose to not receive support from his father but instead, turn to the world’s culture. In other words, a Christian, which is a son or daughter of God chooses to run away from the loving-kindness of their heavenly Father and begin on a self-destructive, selfish, and self-centered path toward death. If a person chooses on that journey, they should not have any expectation from God from their erratic and unstable behaviours!
What are these erratic and unstable behaviours, you ask?
The Prodigal
The Prodigal
14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need.
15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs.
16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
Part of his erratic behaviour included extravagant, reckless, and wasteful spending on sex and power! How do we know that?
30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
The older brother from the story tells us that his younger brother had spent money on prostitution. A degrading act against the family and against God. More is that he had spent money to gain power.
If you look at verse 15, you see that he “…hired himself out to a citizen of that country…” How do you hire yourself out? Most likely is that he had made some connections with power friends when he had money. Flashing his blings when he still had them. Now, he has to rely on his so-called “friends” just to survive.
In fact, if you think about it, when Jesus describes how the younger son had spent everything, he’s also indicating that he’s lost everything he once had. He lost his superficial friends and superficial powers.
Just look at what he’s doing for his superficial friend. He’s feeding pigs and what is he charging for the service. ZERO! When someone hires themselves out, there is no expectation of wage involved. They are basically saying, “use me” and give me what you think I should have at the end of the day.
The young son had lost everything, even his dignity. That’s not all, it gets worst.
He’s so far away from the presence of his father that he’s got nothing left. He’s begun to act erratically and in an unstable manner. Now, he’s hungry and of course, the superficial friend is not going to give him food because he’s got no money. So, he dashes for pig food. He has completely lost his mind!
You have to know that the entire land was suffering from severe famine. Pigs were not eating corn or vegetables. They were not treated with leftovers. They were being fed with Carob pods. What are they?
They are found on Carob trees which were well populated in the Middle East due to their use of providing shade. These pods are great for feeding swine but they have absolutely no nutritional value for humans.
Jesus tells us in verse 16 that “he longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating.” Although he was losing his mind but not completely yet, there is still a tiny drop of sanity in him. But it is that last droplet of sanity that saves him and he is down to that very last ounce.
The Rude Awakening
The Rude Awakening
17 “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!
18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’
The younger son has an awakening.
I believe that once you have received salvation from God and because our God never turns His back on His promises, He will be with that person forever. But it is us that chose to neglect and run away from our heavenly Father. So, the prodigal son’s awakening was not something that he could’ve done himself but it was the realization of his father’s love that had surrounded him the whole time.
17 “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!
The kindness and love of his father were the turning point from recklessness to repentance.
He knows that going back means repenting,
18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
He knows that going back means owning up to all that shame, dishonouring moments, and degrading of his father.
19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’
Going back into the context of this parable, the surrounding people that are listening are probably waiting to see what the punishment for the son would be. “Haha, now he’s going back…He’s gonna get it from this father!” “Let's see how Jesus is going play this out. We can finally see his wrath against such a sinner, wasteful, erratic, stubborn, maniac son!”
Because they know that if such a man was to return home, the first thing the father must do was to publicly humiliate his former son just as how he had humiliated his father. But this time, in a form of a slap across the face in the public. Next, an agreement will be worked out for the son in terms of how he will work his way back to his former sonship. Then if he performs adequately, then a decision will be made if the family will receive this man back.
But here’s the twist as we reach the climax of this parable.
Falling into Grace
Falling into Grace
20 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.
We know that this family was a wealthy family because of what comes next so, their house was most likely built at the top of a slope that looked down onto the village and to the horizons. What strikes me the hardest is not how well the eyesight of the father was, nor his wealth, nor his vantage point. But what truly breaks my heart from this one verse is “But while he was still a long way off…”
The father must’ve been scanning the horizon not just on a particular hour or day. He must know that horizon so well from being there daily when he wakes up till he could no longer make out what’s out there anymore.
I’d bet our Senior pastor can relate. Preaching from this pulpit week after week for 15 years, I’d think she’ll know if even one chair was missed aligned! See, we don’t know how long the prodigal used to waste all his money but it wasn’t 1 day, 1 week, or even 1 year. It must’ve been multiple years. But the father never gave up, with his neck outstretched and eyes perked scanning the horizon for a moving body, then finally,
…his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.[13]
To the public, their response must’ve been “aww…no beating?” Yes, instead of the wrath, public humiliation, and shame that the son should’ve lived with for many years, what he got was compassion.
What is compassion?
36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
Compassion is not just pitying someone but it is an inward expression that is deeply moved and characterized by sympathy. Your pain is my pain.
The father knows.
He knows so well that he ran. A nobleman doesn’t run.
He knows so well that he hugged and kissed him. A nobleman doesn’t kiss and hugs someone that herded swine for a living.
The father knows how much trauma his son had gone through. He’s lost all his possessions. He’s lost all his dignity. He’s lost all his self-esteem. He’s even lost his mind. What was important was, the son thinks he’s lost his family.
So the son says,
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
This was the line that the son had rehearsed previously in verse 19. He’s ready to say “Father, allow me to work my way back to you, like your hired servants.” But see what the father did,
22 “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.
23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate.
Without a single word of rebuke. Without laying out the pre-requisites of “working his way back,” what might seem like a hostile environment turned into a moment of celebration. The father couldn’t wait. He’s overwhelmed with excitement and joy. “My son is back, my beloved son is back!” Quick, we must restore my son to his former glory.
The Father continues to extend his grace.
Dress him in the best robe!
Resembles when honoured guests arrive. For guys, we whip out the tux or whatever best formal suites because a royal guest was coming. Here, the father is restoring honour to his son.
Put a ring on it!
Not just any ring but a ring that has the family signet on it. Anytime that you seal an important document, it would be embossed with melted wax with the family emblem. Not anyone could have this but only those who are identified as family members. The father is restoring his son’s identity.
Give him some shoes!
To wrap it all up, lace my boy up with some kicks! Servants don’t get to wear sandals back in the day (because the son is not identified as the hired servants). But there, the father completes the restoring process by bringing sandals for his son so that he could walk with honour and dignity back to their home.
Just in case you forgot, all this was publicly addressed. They didn’t hide in a dark corner of town for the restoration process to happen. The transformation was done visibly.
And finally, the father says,
24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
Jesus just told a story that had just shocked the sinners and the tax collectors. In their minds, they have always been looked down to and were the outcast of society. People hated tax collectors, but Jesus loves them (one of them follows Jesus). Sinners were those that were considered outsiders, the non-Jews or non-Israelites but Jesus ate with them,
2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
Our God has always whether, yesterday, today, or tomorrow, ready to dine with you and accepts you at the table. Just like what we talked about last week, Luke 14:17 “17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’”
But you have to choose if you want it or not. Lay down your pride, your excuses, and your self-centeredness because there is no room at the door for all that for you to drag to the table.
Luke 13:24 “24 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.”
Worship Team
You might be struggling to grasp this at this very moment, yes I get it, it’s not going to be easy but Jesus is not waiting for you to crawl your way back to earn a place with honour and dignity at the table. No!
Jesus is waiting for you with open arms at every second of your life to return home. He is, without fail, waiting for your awakening. He is yearning for your change of heart through repentance and say, sorry God, I know I have the pride that you don’t want. I have the self-centeredness that puts you in a little box and most of all, my excuses are causing me to run away from you. Jesus, forgive me! I am a sinner, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son or daughter.
But Jesus, full of compassion is standing by ready to turn your mourning into joy but restoring all the dirt that has been covering you by whatever society has splashed on you with. He’ll cover you with the robe of honour, restore you with the ring of identity, and complete you with the sandals of truth.
So church, are you ready to come boldly before Jesus. Are you ready to face Him and ask for repentance? And through that, we may run directly to the Father and fall into His grace. Let’s stop the hiding because He is, right now, got His hands open and waiting for you to come home.