Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
Our Gospel reading is one that many of you know well, but that is not to say that we all agree on its meaning. To most of us it is known as the Parable of the Prodigal Son, but some would rather it be called the Parable of the Loving Father. For you see, it is not the son’s wasteful actions that stand out as something special, but rather the loving actions of the father. We all of us know stories of boys, girls, men and women who have wandered off from their homes with all their worth with them. Many of these people, after a time, find themselves destitute and alone. Of these some of them are wrapped up in addictions (a growing and worrisome problem for our country today). Others got themselves pulled into one scheme or another and some overestimate their abilities and so find the world a much harder place than they expected. Many return home, not necessarily to stay, but to get a good meal, obtain further resources and go back out on their own.
think of those hooked on drugs, those entangled with the law, those addicted to gambling, those obsessed with their belief that they know better than anyone else and those wrapped up in get rich quick schemes. Most of these boys, girls, men and women are not bad or evil people, many are misguided, some are irresponsible and yet others may be a little self-obsessed, but not really evil. Though addicts often act in very bad ways seeking to feed their habits, their intent is not evil, the addiction I would say is. All of these people, are a lot like the son who took a half of his father’s assets and spent it all, or lost it all and so found himself hungry and doing one of the most degrading jobs, just to stay alive. Life is tough, even for those with the best of intentions and with the most thought out plans, but for those who act impulsively and foolishly, life is very, very difficult.
Jesus, as a student of life and with the wisdom of God understood the pit-falls suffered by God’s children. But there was something else that he wanted us to learn. What Jesus knew even better, was the love of God the Father. What Jesus was explaining in the Parable of the Prodigal Son (as we call it) was that God, God the Father is constantly reaching out to his children in love, no matter how impetuous, no matter how foolish they are, just like the father in the parable. All throughout the history of Israel, when God’s beloved people would find themselves in trouble, whether by their own doing or by an outside evil, God provided “Judges” (heroes like Samson and Deborah) to lead and save them and later he provided them with kings (like Saul and David) to protect and rule them and also prophets (like Elijah, and Isaiah) to lead Israel away from sin and back to God, back within God’s protective and loving fold. God would reach out to his people before they were even aware of their wrong doing and their need for God’s help.
Jesus, himself, was God’s way, of again, reaching out to the People of God, and then also to the world. Israel was no longer listening to God’s prophets and Israel’s kings had ceased following God’s will. God the Father was doing a new thing! Jesus, God’s Son came into the world to speak as a prophet, to rule the hearts of those who would follow him like a king and to heroically give up his life for the world, as did the judge Samson. But Jesus came not to provide things for God’s people, not to provide political freedom and prosperity, but to earn the forgiveness of sins and the salvation for all who would believe. In Jesus, much as the Father of the parable ran to greet his son, got him a robe, a ring and some sandals, as the son was asking to be forgiven, Jesus came to us to give us what we need most, forgiveness.
In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, it is the Father’s love that stands out to us, giving us joy but also causing feelings of injustice and anger for some. The older brother, you will remember, was not happy with his father’s generosity; he felt it unjust; his younger brother did not deserve such love; he (the older brother) deserved all of his father’s love! People have not changed! In today’s world, those who recognize their sin, their acts of foolishness, their insensitivity and selfishness, appreciate the love expressed by the father of the parable, even if they feel they do not deserve it. On the other hand, those who see their selves as righteous, who excuse in themselves for their own sin, foolishness, insensitivity and their own selfishness, who see themselves as did the older brother of the parable, see only injustice in the love and forgiveness of the father. Jesus’ message is often lost by the self-assessed righteous.
This parable is all about love, not law and justice. Jesus’ purpose, like that of the father in the parable, actually the purpose of our Father in heaven, is not that of justice, but of love, self-sacrificing love. Jesus did not suffer and die upon the cross for the purpose of justice. There was not the least amount of justice in that. God, the Father’s love, Jesus’ love alone can explain that kind of sacrifice. Is there a message for us? Are we asked to follow the father’s example of love? Neither the older brother who had such contempt for his younger brother and anger for his father, or the younger brother who acted so irresponsibly, are to be seen as examples for us to follow. The Parable of the Prodigal Son or the Parable of the Loving Father does not highlight for us the acts of either son. Love/forgiveness is the message for us to carry home. I pray that we always prove ourselves generous in our forgiveness and love for our children, our siblings and all those around us. I pray that the Father’s and Jesus’ love serve as our examples for life.