Lost and Found
Some thoughts on Luke 15
In an introductory New Testament class I recently taught at Perth Bible College, I asked this question in relation to Luke 15: “If you only had the parable of the prodigal son, what would be the main take away of the story?” There were some interesting answers:
Wisdom (wise living; the younger son did not live wisely).
(In)justice (the Father acted unreasonably toward the younger brother).
Repentance (the younger son returns)
Forgiveness/reconciliation (the Father embraces the younger son)
Not one person suggested the celebration! Interesting. What falls off the radar without the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin is, apparently, the scene of celebration. Yet it is the scene of celebration and rejoicing that threads all three together.
That said, there is also a critical difference between the first two parables and the parable of the prodigal that would otherwise go overlooked if the first two parables were not there. Note that each of the first two parables follows the same pattern. In each instance:
Something valuable is lost
There’s a search
That which was lost is found
There’s a celebration
This makes total sense. When you lose something of value, you look for it.
What then to make of the Prodigal Son for whom there is no search? The lost sheep gets a search party The lost coin gets a search party. The rebellious son in the story does not get a search party. So, what is going on?
Narrative
Let’s consider the narrative. The younger brother requests his inheritance early and, incredibly, his request is granted! he then squanders his wealth in wild living before famine strikes the land. He has nothing left. It so happens he must be in gentile territory for he finds himself employed feeding pigs. We know we’re at rock bottom upon learning that he longed to eat the pig’s food.
And if we’ve paid attention to the earlier parables, we should expect—a search party! And yet, we don’t get one.
(HOLD ON TO THAT and LET’S CONTINUE THE NARRATIVE)
By vv. 17–19, the younger son comes to his senses and begins the long journey home but note the mindset in v. 18. He no longer sees himself as a son and so determines in his own mind to seek out the position of a hired servant.
Before he can even get his little speech out, the prodigal is embraced by the Father. In fact, the Father runs to embrace him; he can’t contain his joy. The formerly rebellious son tries to confess, but within the blink of an eye, he is restored to the family and finds himself a son once more. He’s clothed with a robe, a ring, and sandals; there is feasting and celebrating. This son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is now found.
To re-cap: we’ve had scenes of departure, debauchery, tragedy, return, and restoration. The younger brother is back inside the house, enjoying the celebrations.
What of the Elder Brother?
Verses 25–27 reveal singing, dancing, revelry, because of the younger son’s return. The party is well under way. But the elder brother is not pleased. The father, having gone out to the younger brother earlier, must now go out to the elder brother. He implores him to join the celebration. But the elder brother refuses. His response is worth noting in full:
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. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ (Luke 15:29–30)
Some observations:
Like the younger brother earlier, the elder brother has lost any sense of sonship, seeing himself as a servant/slave, “All these years I’ve been slaving for you…”
He is outside the house because of his obedience, “[I’ve] never disobeyed your orders”.
Like the younger brother, the elder son also wants the Father’s stuff, “you never gave me even a young goat…”
The elder brother disowns the younger brother, “This son of yours…” (i.e., not this brother of mine).
And he accuses the father of playing favourites, “[Your son] squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, [and] you kill the fattened calf for him!”
The parable ends with both the Father and the elder brother outside the party, the father urging his eldest to join. No resolution.
Where’s the Search Party?
Having traced the broad narrative and made a few observations, we still haven’t answered our earlier question. Why was there no search party in the third parable? Around v. 16 we expect to learn that the search party will have been sent out to rescue the son who has fallen on hard times, but no such details are given. Why?
The question we are meant to ask is this: “Where is the big brother?” He should be the one to leave the Father’s house to bring back the prodigal, but he stays at home: safe and “obedient”, presumably hoping for the Father’s stuff. Perhaps hoping his younger brother never returns(?)
The key to the story is the failure of the elder brother. A true elder brother would honoured the Father by leaving the comfort and safety of home to go in search of and bring back the lost brother.
Who then, is the true elder brother who will leave the comfort and glory of his Father’s house to rescue rebel sons? JESUS! Jesus is the one who leaves the glory and sanctuary of his Father’s presence to rescue prodigals like you and me.1
Acknowledging the failure of the elder brother allows us to see that a person can be a so-called prodigal in one of two ways: (1) through rebellion (“give me my share of the inheritance”), lost away from home much like the lost sheep; or (2) through obedience (“all these years I’ve slaved for you and never disobeyed your orders”), lost at home much like the lost coin.
Both options are self-salvation projects doomed to failure: one through breaking the rules; the other through keeping them. One through being irreligious, the other through being very religious. Notice also that both sons see themselves as servants or slaves. The younger brother returns hoping to work as a hired hand; a servant; a slave. The elder brother complains: all these years I’ve slaved for you. In each case, the Father asserts their sonship. There is nothing they can do to earn or lose the Father’s love.
This is why Jesus opens the three parables with the following sentiment: “Which of you men wouldn’t go looking for that which is valuable?” And this is the point being driven home. This is exactly the failure of Israel’s religious establishment. The so-called “shepherds” of Israel have not looked after the sheep. They have not gone looking for that which is most valuable. They are the “elder brother” who failed to go after the younger brother to bring him home.
In the OT, Yahweh had harsh words for those shepherds who failed in their duty:
(7) “Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: (8) As I live, declares the Lord God, surely because my sheep have become a prey, and my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd, and because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds have fed themselves, and have not fed my sheep, (9) therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: (10) Thus says the Lord God, Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my sheep at their hand and put a stop to their feeding the sheep. No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, that they may not be food for them.
(11) “For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. (12) As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. (13) And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. (14) I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. (15) I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. (16) I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice (Ezek 34:7–16).
Elsewhere in the gospels, Jesus feeds 5,000 people and we are told that he saw them as “sheep without a shepherd” (Mark 6). They were scattered, no one to care for them, no search party looking for them. The disciples wanted to send them away, but Jesus took pity on them and fed them.
Jesus is the true elder brother—the one who seeks out those who are lost, and those who love Jesus share his heart for the lost and long for them to be found.
How that works itself out in the lives of believers and churches largely depends on context, but I do think that in an increasingly polarized social climate, some form of hospitality is a good start. Opening one’s life and home over a good meal and bottle of wine goes a long way (sorry, Southern Baptists, its time to get on board—Welch’s just doesn’t cut it in 2021). Most people just want to know you love them, even if the sh*t hits the fan in their lives. Hospitality is a great way to demonstrate such sentiments.
When the pandemic winds down, this must be a priority. In the meantime churches and believers need to get creative in the manner in which they love and serve their respective communities.
*** A lightly edited version of this article has now been published at The Gospel Coalition Australia.***
💛you are so very handsome, David... Hugs & Kisses Xx💛