Meanwhile the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’”
(verses 25-27)
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Jesus’ three parables in this chapter were given, rapid-fire, as a response to the accusatory mutterings of the Pharisees and teachers of the Law: “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
Seeing all the tax-collectors and “sinners” pressing in close to Jesus – hanging on his every word – these religious leaders had expected him to respond with the same condemnation and rejection that is welling up within their own hearts. But Jesus doesn’t. He welcomes them with rejoicing, each and every one. Like a shepherd who locates and rescues his lost sheep. Like a woman who searches diligently and finds her lost coin. Both rejoice. Both throw a party.
But the final parable gets even more pointed. What is lost is not simply a dumb animal or inanimate metal sphere, but rather a living, breathing human. Indeed, a son. Indeed, he wasn’t just lost, but willfully went astray, consciously sinning against heaven and his own father. He’s a full-bodied representative of the people clustering round Jesus at that very moment – a “sinner.” And the party thrown by the father, celebrating the return of his lost son, is a party that involves lots and lots of eating. The killing of “the fattened calf” is pointedly mentioned three times over. The accusation against Jesus falls equally on the father in this story.
And If the father’s interaction with the younger son reveals the heart of God toward errant sinners, then the story's second act reveals the unyielding heart of the Pharisees. Here’s what I notice:
· Anger. That’s the first response. The elder son can’t fathom the father’s joy – it simply makes him mad. So, he cuts himself off from both father and brother.
· The anger is rooted in self-righteousness. “All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders,” he says. He’s certain he has fulfilled all his duties. He believes himself entitled to better treatment. Certainly, he sees himself ranking much, much higher than his brother.
· He sees his brother as “other.” He doesn’t acknowledge the depth of connection. He speaks of him only as “this son of yours,”never actually naming him “brother.” There is a disconnect. It cuts him off from compassion.
· He thinks the worst of his brother. He claims, “he has squandered your property with prostitutes,” even though this explicit detail has not been made clear to us (let alone him!) as the story has unfolded.
· He doesn’t appreciate the father-son relationship. His use of the word “slaving” is a dead give-away. He’s cast himself in the role of earning rights and privileges, chalking up points on the scoreboard, rather than living in the joyful freedom of relationship with his father.
· His source of joy is elsewhere. The father rejoices over his newly-found son. But the elder brother wants, instead, to celebrate with his friends. He finds his joy outside the family circle.
All of this gives insight into the heart attitude of the Pharisees and teachers of the Law. They stand angrily apart.
But the father in the story reaches out to his elder son as much as he has done toward the younger. He doesn’t let pride deter him. He goes outside the house, away from the party, to seek his son, to draw him into deeper understanding – to renew relationship. “My son,” he calls him, re-establishing connection. “This brother of yours,” he says, hoping to provoke renewed compassion. “We had to celebrate,” he declares, opening the possibility of new perspective.
Does the entreaty change the elder son’s heart? The story doesn’t tell us. And what of the Pharisees? Not so much. And what about us? Will we fully embrace the father’s heart? That’s a question worth pondering.
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Father, thank you for your full-hearted embrace of me. Help me to extend the same to those around me. In your grace. Amen.
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Reflect:
Have any of the elder son’s attitudes taken root in your own thinking? Turn fully to the Father. Embrace his heart.
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Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash
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