The Other Son

There are times in our lives when we examine our surroundings and make certain determinations about ourselves. As a pastor these times have become more and more frequent, as each time I delve into the scriptures to prepare another sermon I must make certain evaluations about them, their relation to my life, and how the members of my congregation will relate to them as well. This past week one of these times arose while I was reading in the book of Luke. Jesus offers up a parable to the people concerning a man and his two sons. After a time the younger son asks for his share of the inheritance in order that he might go off on his own. The father then divides the inheritance among his sons and the younger son travels to a distant land where he begins to fulfill his young heart's desires with all the pleasure that his new found wealth can bring. Before long, the land in which he is enjoying himself becomes ravaged by a great famine and the young man is left without food or shelter. The only means with which he can sustain himself is to feed a citizen's pigs. The young man has reached such a bottomed out point that he longs to eat the food that he brings to the pigs each day. At this point the young man comes to the realization that he could live a much better life if he became one of his father's slaves rather than continue to feed the pigs in a foreign land. The young man heads back home with the intention of begging his father for forgiveness and asking to be made one of his slaves. However when the son returns home and his father sees him walking down the path towards their home, the father runs to his son and wraps him in his arms. The father then calls for his servants bring the finest clothes and sandals and place them on his son, and to prepare the fattest calf for a feast for his son. What madness is this? The son never expected to be treated so. He came back with the intention of being made a slave and instead he is being treated as returning royalty. Upon hearing the commotion the older son ask the servants what is going on and is infuriated when he finds out that the father is throwing a feast for the younger son. The older son skulks off in disappointment like any good older brother would and the father comes searching for him. The son relates to the father his frustrations that the son who squandered his share of the inheritance is being celebrated while he the faithful son is not. The father tells his son that all that he has is his because he has been with him all along, but that the younger son has to be celebrated because he was lost and is now found, he was dead and he is now alive again. I talked before about how we have to make certain determinations about ourselves. This time the determination wasn't about me per se, but rather about a large majority of believers in general. You see every time the story of the prodigal son has been preached that I have heard, every preacher, pastor, teacher, and deacon has addressed the issue of a child running off and acting crazy, destroying their life day by day, minute by minute, until they have reached rock bottom and dug down another six feet, and about how God still welcomes them back with open arms because he is their Father and they are His children. And that is a wonderful message, and I am extremely glad that people feel led to preach that message because it is a message with an attachment of grace that needs to reach the people's ears and hearts. But as I went through this time of reflection prior to preaching this story this past Sunday, I made a realization. That realization is that there is a message in this parable that isn't preached. You see there are two children in this parable of forgiveness. You see the realization that I came to is that there are many people in this world who are the younger son who is welcomed home by the Father. Yet there are a whole lot of people in this world who are the older son. You see there are so many of us who are not content with all that we have. And the point of this story is that the thing we are not content with is everything. You see all that we have that we are not content with is the entire kingdom of heaven. An inheritance from the almighty creator of heaven and earth. We are already heirs to the throne of the savior, and yet we continue to skulk about as if we have been mistreated. Wake up, world! So often I see believers who wallow in self pity because they see God working in the lives of others and they have the audacity to complain about it. Wake up, you are already an heir to the kingdom! Let God work how He will work. You have already gained the inheritance, allow others to do the same. I've been talking for several weeks now about revival in this land, and in order for that revival to take place, the heirs to the kingdom must be willing to celebrate the return of the prodigals to the throne. Because you see that's the whole point. Revival. Restoration of life. Those that were dead, alive again.