A Reckless Sinner Who Humbly Repents Is Celebrated Over the Proud Whose Confidence Is in Himself
Were you ever expecting to receive an award, a gift, or a promotion you thought you deserved just to find out that someone else got it? Then you felt disappointed and upset.
A while ago I was watching a long distance race on TV. The lead runner was approaching the end line with a confident smile on her face, proudly lifting her arms, tasting the victory she thought she deserved after much hard work. But to her dismay, just a few steps from the goal, she looked perplexed at another runner passing her and crossing the end line before her. What a disappointment, what a fiasco, what a tragedy!
Today, we are going to read from Luke about a similarly tragic story of a father and his two sons, one who is obedient and well behaved and proudly thinks he deserves honor and praise, and another who is reckless and foolish and yet eventually acknowledges his folly and turns around. Just like in the race, the proud son feels confident that he deserves the trophy, and yet it is his reckless brother who is ultimately celebrated after repenting.
This story teaches us that
A reckless sinner who humbly repents is celebrated over the proud whose confidence is in himself
Please open your bibles and read with me Luke 15.
1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” 3 So he told them this parable:
11 … “There was a man who had two sons. 12 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. 13 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. 14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 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. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
17 “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! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ 20 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. 21 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.’ 22 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. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.
25 “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 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.’ 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 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. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’”
Let’s pray
We read the first verses of the chapter because the context around which Jesus tells this story is very important. It helps us understand the purpose and the aim of this parable. The goal of this parable is to communicate that
A reckless sinner who humbly repents is celebrated over the proud whose confidence is in himself
Let’s read one more time…
15:1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. (That is, to Jesus)
Tax collectors were Jews who had the infamous task of collecting taxes for the Romans. They were hated, because they were not only working for the Roman enemies, but also taking advantage of their fellow Jews by collecting extra money for themselves. They were considered immoral traitors, despised sinners. Now, we read in verse 1 that these tax collectors and other sinners were drawing near to Jesus to hear his teachings.
2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
Here we have the Pharisees and the scribes, the religious leaders of their time. They know Scripture very well, they memorize long portions of it and teach it. They are very meticulous about following rules. They are respected and admired, and have a high view of themselves. Most Jews consider them as the standard and the bar raisers of morality. They are the complete opposite of the tax collectors and sinners.
No wonder they are grumbling against Jesus. He is teaching tax collectors and sinners and even having meals with them, befriending them, spending time at their homes, interacting closely with them. Why is Jesus among sinners rather than with the well behaved, reputable models of morality?
The Pharisees and scribes cannot believe it! They do not interact with sinners that are unworthy and impure, they do not want to be involved with them and contaminate themselves, that would ruin their reputation.
It is in this context that Jesus tells them a parable, a story that illustrates the condition of the souls of these self-righteous, self-confident Pharisees and scribes. Jesus is about to reveal what hides behind their fake morality and let them know that …
A reckless sinner who humbly repents is celebrated over the proud whose confidence is in himself
You may be surprised at how this story may apply to you personally. Perhaps this parable is more relevant in your life than what you may think. So as we dig into the story, I want you to think about how it could apply to your own life. Where do you find yourself in this story? Which of the characters represents you best? Let’s listen to Jesus as he tells the story:
11 … “There was a man who had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he [the father] divided his property between them”.
Here we have a selfish, insensitive, rude young man. He has little respect for his father. All he cares about is his inheritance. He wants his portion ahead of time.
Imagine you go to your father and tell him, “Dad, I don’t know how long you’ll be around. And I don’t really care. What matters is that I am young and I want to enjoy life, travel around and have tons of fun. I do not have the patience to wait until you die to receive my money, so just give it to me now”
And, surprisingly, the father does it. He divides his property between the two sons and gives the young man what he wants.
13 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.
So the younger son doesn’t waste any time. He receives his money, and not many days later he takes off, and he goes as far as he can, away from his father and his home. Perhaps, he does not want anyone around questioning his actions, calling him out on how he is living and using his money. He just wants to have fun and no joy killer around.
So he goes and wastes his money, burning his inheritance in reckless, wasteful living. Drinking, smoking, doping, paying women to satisfy his desires. He is “living the life”, enjoying his freedom, with no one telling him what to do.
14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 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. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
He spends everything. Now remember, his father had not given him a weekly allowance for doing his chores. He gave him a big chunk of cash, an inheritance that is supposed to be managed and spent wisely. But the reckless son spends everything, all of it. If he had a credit card it would be smoking because he is swiping it left and right, everywhere, until it is maxed out.
And then, his days of fun come abruptly to a full stop. He has squandered his property completely and now a severe famine arises. The economy has collapsed, Wall Street has fallen, and he has no savings and no job. There’s not even much food around.
So he joins a stranger who does not even offer him a job. The reckless boy is so desperate that he offers himself to this man, without expectation of payment. No one gives him anything. He is sent to the fields to feed the pigs!
Now, the fact that the animals that he feeds are pigs may not ring any bell in your head. But for a Jewish audience and particularly the Pharisees and scribes, pigs are not just any type of animal. Pigs are bad, they are impure and unclean. Jews do not eat pigs, they do not even get close to them. Pigs are awful, despised animals to be avoided. Only filthy pagans have pigs.
So as the Pharisees and scribes hear about the story of this miserable boy craving pig’s food, they probably feel a strong repulsion, they may be even gagging, feeling nauseous at this point. I am not sure we can fully grasp this. Perhaps if we imagine that he is among big, fat, ugly rats, and he is so desperate that he is willing to eat the repulsive food rats eat. That may illustrate imperfectly the vivid effect that this scene has over the original audience.
17 “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! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’
In his misery and desperation he remembers his father, and the wealth, the security and the shelter his home used to provide for him. He says: “Even the hired servants of my father have more than enough bread to eat, and here I am dying with hunger, craving the food of filthy pigs! What a fool I am! I will go back to my father and humble myself. I know that I have sinned before him and against heaven. I recognize that I am unworthy to be called his son, he has the right to reject me, but I will beg him to take me as one of his servants. I will appeal to his mercy.”
So the young son takes a deep breath and initiates the long and painful journey towards home. He does not know how the father is going to react. He may reject him rightly so.
If you were the father, how would you react? Would you be bitter and offended for how your son has treated you? Would you reject him? Would you say: “I told you so? I want to make sure you learned the lesson before I let you back”? Would you lay out clearly the conditions under which your son can come back to make sure he does not do it again? What would you do?
20 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.
I do not know what exactly the father was doing before this scene, but somehow he is able to spot a distant figure in the horizon, a crooked man, skin and bones, dragging his feet, walking slowly, showing clear signs of starvation. As the father focuses his old eyes in an attempt to recognize this stranger, all at once it hits him. “My son, it is my young son”. An overwhelming wave of compassion, mercy and unspeakable joy floods his whole being. He runs as fast as his old body allows him to, he rushes towards his son, and embraces him, and kisses him and rejoices in him.
21 And the son [immediately] said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
During the long journey back home, the son may have been playing out in his mind and rehearsing over and over again what he would say: “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son”. We know this because those are exactly the same words that he had planned to say in verses 18, 19
But before he is even able to say the last sentence …
22 The father [interrupted him and] 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.
The son was coming back with old, torn, ragged clothes, perhaps half naked, his sandals falling apart, or maybe he was barefoot, his hands dry, cracking down. Then the father says to his servants: “Quickly, quickly, bring the best robe, let’s dress my son, put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. Dress him like a prince. Go to the field, and find the best calf, and kill it immediately, we will feed him like a king, he does not have to crave pig’s food any longer. Let us eat and celebrate, for he is back! My son is back! He was dead but he is alive again, he was totally lost but now is found”.
The rest of the parable is painfully anticlimactic. This is not the type of story that ends with: “and they lived happily ever after”
The older son comes home from the field and he hears the music and the dancing, and wonders: “What’s going on?”. A servant informs him: “Your brother is back! He is safe and sound and your father asked us to kill a calf to celebrate his return”
The older brother thinks: “What? Why? How can this be? This is outrageous!” He is so furious that he refuses to get in the house. So the father goes out to implore him to come in, but the older brother replies unleashing his anger:
29 … ‘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. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’
What an injustice! If you were in the shoes of the older brother, how would you react? Would you think that the father is unjust? I mean, he has a good point, right? He has worked very hard to be obedient and has served his father faithfully, while the reckless brother has squandered and devoured his father’s wealth. Would it not be just to reject the younger son, so he will reap the consequences of his foolishness the rest of his life? Why are we celebrating wrong behavior, why are we celebrating bad actions, why are we celebrating such a reckless sinner?
31 And he [the father] said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’”
And that is how the story ends. The older son stays outside, bitter, angry, resentful, while the rest of the household celebrates the return of the reckless son, who seemed to be dead but turned around and repented and is now alive.
Jesus tells this parable to the self-righteous Pharisees and scribes, to illustrate their condition. They are represented by the older son, who sadly never sees or accepts his problem and misses the celebration and joy in the father’s house. Just like the older brother, the religious leaders think they deserve a place of honor and they are blinded by their pride. They grumble about Jesus spending time with sinners because they do not see themselves as sinners in need of mercy. But through the parable Jesus shows them that …
A reckless sinner who humbly repents is celebrated over the proud whose confidence is in himself
Although the parable addresses the Pharisees and scribes, on one hand, and the tax collectors and sinners, on the other, it also has an application to us. Some of us may be like the proud older son. Some of us may be like the reckless younger son. Or maybe you have bounced between the two, or you are not as extreme, but have tendencies in your heart that you need to pay attention to. Where do you see yourself in the story?
Are you a little or much like the older son? You work hard to obey God, you have done it for years, you think you are good and deserve much, and you secretly resent God when you see ungodly people succeeding while you seem stuck. Your life feels boring, packed with rules to obey and you wish you had the freedom to do whatever you want.
Maybe you see yourself as superior to others, and you despise the sinners, the pagans of the world. You think: “there is no hope for this guy. He is so lost. There is no way he will become a Christian, there is no way God will save him. God will never welcome him. He has such a pathetic and sinful lifestyle that he has no chance”.
If that is your inner logic, this parable is for you! Jesus warns you through this story. Don’t assume that because you look clean on the surface you are clean inside. Do not be like the older brother, or the Pharisees and scribes. Recognize your pride and repent. Humble yourself and acknowledge that deep inside perhaps you are not too different from the reckless son, and the sinners and tax collectors who accept their condition and need for mercy. Do not keep running the race to tragically find out at the end that you didn’t make it. Repent from your self-confidence and self-sufficiency and turn towards the forgiving God.
What about the young son? Do you see yourself in that character? Have you squandered the riches, the gifts and blessings of the Heavenly Father? God has given you life abundant, he has formed you in the womb of your mother, he has provided for all your needs, he has lavished you with breath and life and everything. What have you done with the abundant riches he has granted you? Have you used them for his glory? Or have you squandered and wasted his blessings? Do you seek to honor your Creator? Or do you follow your own selfish ways, misusing and squandering his gifts?
It is not too late, do not be a fool, humble yourself today. Turn around from your corrupt ways. Run to the Father, he is full of mercy, kindness, patience and unfathomable love. If you humble yourself he will receive you with open arms, just like the father of the parable. He will dress you with clothes of righteousness, he will cover your nakedness, and celebration will arise as you go from dead to alive.
This is really the story of all genuine Christians. We were all once spiritually dead in our trespasses and sin, worshiping idols and dishonoring and rejecting God, but now… we are alive, we were lost and now are found.
Oh, may our hearts be filled with gratitude, recognizing that we are not worthy to be called children of God, and yet we are. In spite of our recklessness, God has welcomed us, not because of our goodness, but because of what the storyteller, Jesus, has accomplished at the cross on our behalf.
God welcomes reckless sinners like us who repent and turn around, putting our trust completely in Jesus who paid on the cross for our recklessness so we may become children of the merciful, gracious and compassionate Father.