The parable, we know as “The Parable of the Prodigal Son”, is
one of three which are recounted in the Gospel of Luke, chapter fifteen.
The author begins by purposely telling us that, Many tax collectors and sinners came to listen to Jesus. Then
the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to complain, “Look, this man welcomes
sinners and even eats with them!” – Luke 15:1-2 (ERV)
Then he writes, Jesus told
them this story and proceeds to
record Jesus’ parables of the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin and the Prodigal Son.
Nowadays, there are many interpretations which are obvious
and rarely challenge our intellect. Expositions that simply confirm the
expected Christian perspective rather than the deep-rooted message the parable would
have conveyed to Jesus’ original audience.
Parables were never meant to be confined to any one
particular explanation as they hold different meanings to a diverse audience. With
every parable, we ought to be prompted to confront our own values.
Jesus told stories in a way that His listeners could relate
to what was being said, they were able to picture themselves in these stories
and in so doing learn lessons, not just about God but about themselves. This
hasn’t changed. When we hear or read Jesus’ parables, we are meant to step into
the story; we are supposed to see ourselves in the characters.
Understand that every character in the parable is there for
a very specific purpose. Jesus wasn’t just telling a fanciful tale; there was
always a reason for relating these stories. With each parable there is a who, a
why and a what.
So, to whom
was Jesus speaking when He told these parables? To whom were His words
directed?
There were many listeners, but Luke gives us a clue from the
very first verse.
Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees and the Scribes who
stood watching, muttering, complaining and criticising Him for eating with tax
collectors and sinners.
Every word He spoke was aimed at a specific target; Jesus
was being very intentional.
There is a spiritual lesson in every parable. In the
preceding parables and in the one we know as the prodigal son, something has
been lost, then found.
A sheep, a coin and a son.
The first two are somewhat straight forward but when it
comes to the son that was lost Jesus provokes His audience to dive deeper.
Remember, the religious leaders who were highly displeased
by Jesus’ mode of fellowship were also hearing Him speak.
Jesus begins this parable with, “There
was a man who had two sons.” (Luke
15:11 ERV)
From the jump, Jesus reveals the main characters in this
parable. Then He tells us that the younger son asks his father to give him his
inheritance.
These days, some parents, before they die, will give their
children what’s called a living inheritance, however, in ancient times, to
request your inheritance before the death of your father was unheard of as it
was basically saying that you wished your father was dead.
Despite this, the father complies, giving not just the son
who asked but also his older brother; so, both sons received their inheritance
at the same time (see Luke 15:12).
It’s interesting to note that later in this same Gospel, and
in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus tells the story of a woman who gave her last two
coins, her whole “life”, the same term He uses to describe what the father gave
to his sons.
Now, while the older son remained at home with his father,
the younger son went off and lived prodigally. Needless to say, money eventually
ran out and he ended up living in a pigsty and eating pig slop.
The son realized that he had
been very foolish. – Luke 15:17 (ERV)
There’s nothing like having to eat pig food to bring you to
your senses.
This young man was a Jew. Pigs are non-kosher, so to end up
living with pigs was a disgrace and a dishonour. This must have caught the
attention of every Jewish person within earshot of Jesus, provoking them to
think deeper.
Repentant, the prodigal decided to head home (read Luke
15:17-19)
On seeing his son, the man ran to him, embraced him and
kissed him (Luke 15:20).
Beloved, understand that this was not the customary
behaviour of a man of this father’s social status. Running? Can you imagine the
reaction of Jesus’ first-century listeners on hearing this?
They’re provoked again.
As aforementioned, these three parables, recorded in Luke
chapter 15:1-32, are especially directed at the religious leaders – the
Pharisees and the Scribes.
With this in mind, let’s look at the characters in this third
parable; there’s the man, there’s his younger son, the prodigal, and there’s
his older son.
Who is the man? We can view the father as a representation
of how God deals with people.
Who is the prodigal son?
He represents the tax collectors and sinners, the ones who
Jesus is eating and celebrating with, those that were lost then found and now
clothed in the garment of salvation and the robe of righteousness (see Isaiah
61:10).
When the father called for the best robe to be placed on his
prodigal son (see Luke 15:21 NRSV), this symbolizes salvation.
Now, enter the man’s other son, the prodigal’s older brother
(Luke 15:25).
Verse 28 tells us that he was angry and refused to celebrate
the return of his brother that was once lost but had found his way back home,
into the fold.
Sounds familiar? Does this remind you of any situation you
may have experienced or witnessed?
Who is the older son?
He was the son who, though he didn’t ask for it, also got
his share of the inheritance and much more as he was living with the father all
this time. He was blessed tremendously.
The man’s older son, the prodigal’s older brother holds the
key that unlocks the poignant lesson of this parable.
You see, the title given to this third parable has caused
its readers to automatically focus their attention on the prodigal son and the
father, so that the older son is often side stepped, but this entire parable
boils down to the older son’s response, his reaction and his behaviour.
This man’s older son refuses to come into the party, he
refuses to celebrate his brother’s homecoming, he refuses to even acknowledge
his relationship to his former prodigal brother – he actually disowns him (Luke
15:30). How terribly unfortunate.
He represents the Pharisees and Scribes, the religious
leaders and elders. The church grumblers who oppose everything.
Those who scoff at the unkempt man or woman who enters the
sanctuary seeking solace.
Those who judge other’s outward appearance while they are
the pretenders who look the part on the outside, but their hearts are
deceitful.
Those who believe themselves to be above all because like
the older son, they religiously serve the father, dutifully doing what is
expected of them as members of the father’s house but don’t realize that for
all their doing, for all the works they perform, their hearts are in the wrong
place, and they are just as lost as the younger son once was.
The younger’s story was bad but ended with his confession of
sin and his repentance, he had been lost but found his way back to the father,
while the older received all that his father had, yet was angry and bitter,
neither recognizing nor appreciating the generosity and blessings of the father
that he possessed.
We, like the father, are convinced that the younger son is
lost, and he was for a while, but in the end, we see that it is the older son,
though present, is the son who’s been lost all this time. The man had been
desperately looking out for the son that went astray, not realizing that it was
the son who remained that he had lost.
Beloved, can you step into the story? Are you the parent who
hasn’t realized that you’ve lost that child who’s living with you? Are you the
lost child? Can you relate to any one or all of these characters?
If we’re honest, we probably assumed the roles of the man
and his two lost sons at any given point in our lives. And sadly, even now, we
just might be the older son.
Thankfully we don’t have to remain lost. We can choose to
confess, repent and return, wholeheartedly, to our heavenly Father.
Amen †
Shelley Johnson “The Parable of a man who had two sons” © September
22, 2025
