Lent 4C
March 27, 2022
Good Shepherd, Wells, MN
Luke 15.1-3, 11b-32
This is a hard parable to preach, but maybe it’s even a harder parable to hear. One reason the so-called “Parable of the Prodigal Son” is hard is because it is so familiar, which may cause us to think that we already know what it means and so dismiss it. An even harder reason is that all of us have family stuff in our backgrounds, whether in our family of origin or extended family. That family stuff triggers something deep inside of us, bringing to surface strong emotions we’d just as soon not deal with. Yet, if we can sit with those emotions, they may actually help us hear what Jesus is saying to us.
It is important to remember that Jesus’ parables are not puzzles to be solved. Rather, they are mysteries to enter. Parables are not so much to be opened and dissected as they are meant to open our imaginations about God and God’s kingdom. And open us up this parable does, more than we may like. We feel like we need to wear full body armor to protect ourselves. A son does an absurd thing, asking for his legacy too soon. In effect he is saying to his father, “I wish you were dead.” To make matters worse, the younger son squanders it on inconsequential things and is reduced to feeding pigs, an abomination to Jews. He returns disgraced.
The father, himself disgraced by his son’s actions, further embarrasses himself by running to meet his son. The first hearers of this parable would have been scandalized by their behavior. Yet, it gets worse. When the elder son learns about the outrageous party and refuses to join, his father comes to him. The father pleads for him to join the party and can only offer a rather lame excuse: everything of the father’s already belongs to the elder son. Then he adds, as if it helps, it was necessary to celebrate the younger son’s return because he was once dead and is now alive, he was lost and is now found.
This week I was drawn to the elder son’s behavior, trying to imagine what he was going through. I’ve been angry seeing time, energy, and resources poured out upon those who don’t deserve it. I’ve been on the outside looking in before, and the loneliness of those feelings still hurt. Jesus tells this parable in response to the grumbling of the religious leaders who feel overlooked and underappreciated. Frankly, I find Jesus’ breezy response to the elder brother and to them less than satisfying.
So, I wonder, maybe the parable is not just about God’s unfettered grace, but maybe it is also about me. So, I ask myself, what is it about me that keeps me on the outside looking in, unable to join the party? Why is it that I can’t trust God’s promise that everything he has for me already belongs to me? Why do I have such a hard time realizing that I’m already home, embraced by a loving God? What is it going to take for me to experience the joy that God has already prepared for me?
I’m going to be sitting with those questions for some time. Depending on where you find yourself in this parable, you may have other questions of a different kind. But wherever you are in this parable, know that God’s love for you is unshakable and over the top. We look to the cross as an indication of how far this God will go to love us back to him. Wherever you are, welcome home, my sisters and brothers in Christ, enter into the joy of one who gives life. Amen.
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