Luke 15:11-32 — “Lost” Parable #3!

READ THIS: Luke 15:11-32

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.

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. 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.

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.’

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. 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.’

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. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’

28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

31 “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?

Alright… this one is gonna be long, but trust me, it’s worth it! Remember, this is the last of 3 parables all about the lost being found, and the parables are ultimately part of Jesus’s response to the Pharisees when they asked Him why He spends so much time with sinners!

In case you are confused, here’s a short summary (if you think you got it, jump to the next paragraph): In this story, a son asks his father to give him his inheritance so he can essentially desert his family and start his own life (inheritances weren’t given until the death of the father, so he was basically treating his father as if he was dead already… yikes). The son makes some bad life choices and loses every bit of what he took from his family. He recognizes that what he did was awful, so he decides to come back and ask his father to let him come home, not even as a son, but as a servant. His father completely ignores that request and welcomes him home completely as his son, giving him the greatest treatment he can, like he is an important guest! Meanwhile, the older brother is not happy… not with the younger brother, but actually with the father! He tells him that he’s been a perfect son while the younger brother was off making bad choices, and he wonders why he was never treated like that, but his dad simply responds by saying, “your brother was dead, but now he’s alive! Why shouldn’t we celebrate?”

WOW. This parable is one of the best illustrations of the Gospel and Christ’s mission here on earth. Jesus, just like the father in this story, loves us enough to see us walk away from Him and make some awful choices. Then, despite the fact that we should probably be punished, Jesus meets us only with love and grace and celebrating when we repent and choose to come back to Him… how wild is that?! But here’s the thing… a lot of times, we can find ourselves acting a lot like the Pharisees at the beginning of this chapter (AKA the older brother in this parable), and we miss the entire point of the amazing work that Jesus is doing.

Jesus knew that He only had a few years on earth, and He wanted to spend every second He could loving and caring for the lost, the broken, the sinful and the hurting. He loves us all, and He wanted as many people to know Him as He could during His time on earth. Meanwhile, the Pharisees were sitting there like “ummm, we do everything perfectly, why is Jesus hanging with sinners and not us?” We can do the same thing… at church, we can want the sermon and the worship and everything there to be catered to us without even thinking about the person who may be sitting in church for the first time. When we hang out with friends, we want them to laugh at our jokes rather than thinking about bringing in a new person into the group who could experience Jesus’s love!

Just like Jesus, we only have a few years on this earth. We don’t know when we will be in heaven with Jesus, but until that day comes, we need to be seeking out the lost, just like Jesus did! The older brother missed out on a chance to celebrate with his dad and with his brother!!! Don’t miss out on the chances that Jesus gives you to celebrate with Him… go and seek out the lost by His side!

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. Who do you relate to most in this story (you can be multiple people at once)? Why?

2. Who is someone at your school/work/home that seems lost right now? How can you be by their side and walk with them back towards their loving Father?

TRY THIS:

Wanna hear classic worship song based on the Luke 15 parables? ME TOO! Check out this one!