PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON

[Albert Finch]

Luke 15:11-32 - 11 Then He said: “A certain man had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood. 13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. 14 But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. 15 Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine 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 bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, 19 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’
20 “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.
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 So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’
28 “But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him. 29 So he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. 30 But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’
31 “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. 32 It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’” NKJV

In the story of the prodigal son where the father killed the fattened calf and gave the returned son the signet ring and the robe -- the elder brother was hugely upset and complaining. The father's response to the elder son was, "All I have is yours..."

Luke 15:31, "And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.'"

In other words, the father was saying, "It has been here for you the entire time." The father shows us how this elder son, which represents someone caught up in the rituals of religiosity, never accessed what had rightfully been his all along.

All in the Father's house is ours, but it will come only through obedience. And when He can trust us, we will not come behind in anything. - ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

Many feel like they lost time and missed the opportunity of grace due to foolishness or sin with the idea they have to get back on the highway of holiness and start all over again?
In the story of the prodigal son not only did the father see the son afar off and kiss him and embrace him, but he did so even though the son had squandered away his inheritance. Have you ever felt you squandered away something God gave you and you came to your senses and said, "I have to go back to the Father"? The father said, "Let's give him the robe and ring." The ring and the robe are a sign of authority and position. He said, "Let's give him back the inheritance."
Redemption has to do with the recovery of what was lost and the ransomed price, the Blood, the precious price that was paid for you to be bought back in every area that you were once a slave. - ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

In the immediate application of the parable, the father is the great Father of the souls of men; the elder son represents the respectably religious Pharisees; the younger stands for the class of publicans and sinners. In its subsequent developments, it applies to the two types of character which answers to these in any age or country. On a wider scale, but with a less close parallelism, the elder son may stand for Israel according to the flesh; the younger for the whole heathen world. Looking back to the genealogies of Genesis 5:10; Genesis 9:18, and even (according to the true construction of the words) Genesis 10:21, they correspond respectively to the descendants of Shem and those of Japheth. It is obvious from the whole structure of the parable that the elder son cannot represent the unfallen part of God’s creation. - Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

The only sadness experienced on the day of the return of the prodigal son is the reaction of the prodigal's older brother – the son who did not stray.
"The older brother was angry and wouldn't go in. His father came out and begged him, but he replied, 'All these years I've slaved for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to. And in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my friends. Yet when this son of yours comes back after squandering your money on prostitutes, you celebrate by killing the fattened calf!'" Luke 15:28-30

In essence, he was saying, "Father, you've forgotten me! This celebration is what I deserve," and right there we see it. Can you hear the older brother's waywardness?

No, the older brother did not leave His Father, he stayed in His home. And yet, in his heart he had left. His heart was not ONE with the Father's heart, it was invaded by a spirit that, although he remained with His Father, had caused his heart to leave Him a long time ago. The demon pride had taken it captive, and he'd forgotten that all that was his was a gift and not something that had been earned.
Truly, the gifts of the Father bestowed on the older brother had been received not as gifts, but as a deserved payment. The work he'd done was not out of love but was something he viewed as slavery.
In his mind, without realizing it, the older brother had saved himself...
Because of pride, he reasoned that as he had dutifully stayed by his Father's side and did not leave like his younger brother had, he believed all that the Father possessed was his by right. He felt he'd earned it and the younger brother had not. Indeed, inheritance is not a right, but an endowment.
God's love and acceptance is a GIFT. It cannot be earned. Who are we to say (or think) we've earned salvation. "For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard" (Romans 3:23 NLT).

Only the humble can rejoice with the Father on the return of His prodigals and it is this precious humility and joy we're beginning to sense entering into the spirit-realm around us. It is separating the wheat from the chaff.
It's a work done in each of our hearts preparing us to properly receive the prodigals to ourselves – into our arms as we become HIS ARMS extended. It is the passion of the Father's heart we feel now. Can you feel it?
the Father longs to see His prodigal sons and daughters returned safely to His house and be reunited to their family. We will not truly be whole until they are returned to us. We must prepare our hearts to receive them and love them as He would. They, as the Father said, want desperately to be accepted and restored. It is the love of the Father that leads them to repentance and wholeness (Romans 2:4) and we are the vessels through which the Father chooses to share His love.

If we will not allow the prodigals true and total forgiveness and acceptance into the Beloved, then we cannot accept it for ourselves. "If someone says, 'I love God,' but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don't love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see?" (1 John 4:20).

"God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them" (1 John 4:16). It is only in loving that we can become more like Him because He IS love. Since we cannot save a soul or send a soul to Hell, we cannot be the judges of humanity. "God alone, who gave the law, is the Judge. He alone has the power to save or to destroy. So what right do you have to judge your neighbor?" (or brother?) (James 4:12 NLT). In truth, what right do we have to judge God's mercy?

"When He arrives, He will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.'" Luke 15:6 - Victoria Boyson