In luke 15, we find one of Jesus’ most famous parables, but it may also be his most

.

Luke 15:11-32
*11  And he said, “There was a man who had two sons.*
• From the subheading, it seems like the main character is the Prodigal Son.  However, this verse helps us see that the main character is the

.
• Jesus’ goal in this parable is to show both groups represented the

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of God the Father towards them.

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.
• Let’s call this “The Father’s Grace (Part 1)””
• Very few words are devoted explicitly to describing how the Father responded. Honestly, the parable should have ended here with the father rejected the younger son’s request, disciplining him, & sending him back to work.
• The fact that the father abides by the

of the younger son would have been shocking to the Pharisees. Why would the father do that? Doesn’t the son know how disrespectful this is to his father?
• “Citizens” >> most likely a

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• “feed pigs” >> For the son, this is proof that “Sin takes you farther than you want to go, keeps you longer than you want to stay, & costs you more than you want to pay.”

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.”’
• We will call this “The Father’s Grace (Part 2)”
• V. 16 >> The younger son comes to his senses about what he has lost. Once again, this words reflect the context of Luke 15. The tax collectors & sinners in being near to Jesus have, like the younger son, come close to seeing what they have lost by loving their

.
• The father is at the center of this movement because, after the younger son comes to the end of himself, he remembers his father’s

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, not just to his sons, but to his workers as well.

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.
• Here we see “The Father’s Grace (Part 3)”
• V. 20 >> Just like God the Father with the tax collectors and sinners, the father loves his son and longs for him to come home. Rather than the son bearing the shame, the father shamefully lifts up his long robe to expose his ankles & runs to his son. He kisses and embraces him (he had been with pigs & this would have disgusted the Pharisees).
• The father is at the center of this movement because he bears the shame of the younger son coming back into town.
• If the story was rightly named “The Parable of the Prodigal Son” then it would end in verse 24. The fact that Jesus includes the next section shows that main point. In one sense, Jesus is saving the

for last.

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.’”
• Finally we see “The Father’s Grace (Part 4)”
• Vv. 25-28 >> Whereas the younger son was consumed with self-centered desires for

, the older son is really no different. Whereas the younger son longed for the

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of others that he is willing to purchase with money, the older brother longs of the approval of his father that he is seeking to purchase with his own

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. Both neglect the gracious

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of their father.
• The father is at the center of this movement because he engages the older son who is

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about the graciousness of his father.  Instead of focusing on his father’s character, he is playing the comparison game & trumpeting his own faithfulness rather than loving his younger brother.
• V. 31 >> Jesus is extending a gracious invitation to the Pharisees through the father’s response to his older son. This, in one sense, is really the main point of the parable – the father’s joy that his younger son, who was foolish & tested the father’s grace, has returned, & how joyful the father would also be if his older son, who is self-righteous & is testing his father’s grace, came to the end of himself & repented as well.

Conclusion

• Who do we identify with the most? The younger son or the older son? Do we feel like there are those who are untouchable with the Gospel? This parable is meant to challenge that.
• When you hear that God gets excited about sinners who repent, it should cause you to experience such joy that you, without regard for your own reputation, introduce Jesus.
• Do we get excited when people repent? Are we introducing Jesus to people, even the kinds of people that we think might reject Him, because we believe in the power of the Gospel & the purposes of God?