Jesus used a variety of teaching methods in his three-and-a-half-year ministry here on Earth. Sometimes He lectured. Other times He taught by example. Still other times He used parables or stories to teach a lesson. He wasn’t the first to use those, as we find some in the books of the Prophets. The Jewish rabbis (teachers) of the day used them as well. But Jesus used parables probably more effectively than anyone else ever did. We are still learning from those parables today.
Many people have a false concept about these parables, thinking that Jesus used parables as a teaching method in order to make the lesson easier for people to understand. But that’s not what Jesus Himself said, when asked by His disciples.
And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given… 13 Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.” – Matthew 13:10-11, 13
The Jewish rabbis had a method of teaching, using parables, which they called the “mashal & nimshal” method. The mashal was the parable itself, with the nimshal being the explanation of that parable. We only find Jesus doing this once in the gospels, with the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:3-9, 18-23) being the only one recorded in the Gospels, where He gave the nimshal. This is not to say that He never gave the nimshal to His disciples, He probably did; but only one of those were recorded in Scripture. He probably did make a regular habit of giving them the nimshal, as we just read where He said, “it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.”
Of the many parables that Jesus used in his teaching, perhaps the most beloved is the “Parable of the Prodigal Son,” sometimes referred to as the “Parable of the Two Sons,” found in the Gospel of Luke. In a nutshell, this story is about how the younger of two sons goes to his father, asking for his half of the inheritance. He then sells everything, goes to a foreign land and wastes his money on wanton living. Once impoverished by his waste, he returns back home, where his father receives him with joy.
There is an obvious reference to us being the prodigal sons who have left our Father God to live a life of sin, along with His joy when we return to Him. But, one of the great things about this and many of the other parables that Jesus taught, is that there are many other lessons that can be brought forth from it.
The Characters in the Story
The Parable of the Prodigal Son is a story of three major characters, with a few minor ones thrown in to round out the action.
- The Prodigal Son – The star of this drama is the younger son, who doesn’t want to wait for his father to die, in order to receive his inheritance. He wants it now, while he is young and can enjoy it. But he doesn’t have the wisdom needed to temper his desires and make good use of that inheritance. He represents all of us who want God to give us freedom from His commandments, but don’t know how to use that freedom, without the commandments to restrain us.
- The Father – A loving father, if perhaps one somewhat lacking in wisdom. He represents God the Father in the story.
- The Older Son – He never asked for anything and so never received it, forgetting that it was all his anyway. He represents the person who grew up in the church, never strayed, but never bothered to try and receive God’s blessings.
The Prodigal Son
The Prodigal is the younger of two sons. When we look at him, we can see everything wrong with youth. He is an impetuous young man, who knows what he wants and what he wants is to enjoy life. He doesn’t care about the traditions of his culture, if they get in the way of what he wants. He sees his father as holding him back from what he wants, hence his asking for his share of the inheritance.
Like most young people, the Prodigal Son has trouble accepting the idea that the things that he wants out of life could be considered sin. Life is to enjoy, not to work. Why should he work, when his father has lots of money. All he has to do is get that money and he’ll have it made.
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 it all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. – Luke 15:13-14
Of course, such a lifestyle is not sustainable. No matter how much money his father had or how much his father gave him, it was inevitable that he would spend it all. It was just a matter of how quickly he would do so. The amazing part isn’t that he went through the money, it’s that once he had hit rock bottom, he realized that he would be better off as a servant of his father, then he was on his own. Based on this realization, he returns to his father.
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 rise and go to my father…” – Luke 15:17-18a
The life that the Prodigal Son lived is much like most people do and is intended to be an allegory to that. Many of us decide that God’s plan for our lives is not right for us and decide to go off on our own. It isn’t until we reach the end of ourselves, often reaching rock bottom, before we realize that we need to turn back to our heavenly father and submit to Him, regardless of the cost.
The Son’s Request
The request that the Prodigal Son made to his father, asking for his part of the inheritance, was probably unprecedented. While many children might wish to receive their inheritance early, asking for it is akin to wishing their parents dead. Asking of it from a father who he didn’t have a bad relationship with, is stranger still.
And the younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.” So he (the father) divided to them his livelihood. – Luke 15:12
But what of the father? He was under no obligation to divide his wealth and give his son any part of it as an inheritance. That would normally happen after his death. Yet, it appears that he didn’t put up any argument, at least in the way that the story was told. While it is possible that he considered the request for some time, that isn’t recorded in scripture.
The younger son’s inheritance wouldn’t be half of his father’s wealth, but a third of it, assuming there were only two sons. At the time, the custom was for the inheritance to be divided into one more part than there were sons. Each son would receive one part and the firstborn would receive two. This was considered part of the right of the firstborn. So, what the father would have given his younger son in this parable would have amounted to one-third of his wealth.
We live in a time when parents lavish material blessings on their children, whether they deserve them or not. Like the Prodigal Son, children seem to believe that their parents owe them something. That doesn’t seem to stop when they grow up and has led to what many are calling the “entitlement mentality” that is so prevalent in society today.
Had the father used any reasonable modicum of wisdom, he would have denied his son’s request. If the son really wanted to go off to another land, he could have worked to earn what he needed, either working for his father or for someone else. He could even have been hired out as a sailor, leaving the ship when he reached an appropriate destination. But no, he wanted to live high off the hog on his father’s dime and his father humored him.
We can see the results of such actions in what happened to the Prodigal. Sadly, many young people today are heading in the same direction as he did and their parents aren’t displaying any more wisdom in dealing with them.
Since the Father in the story represents Father God, we must assume that what He did was not out of ignorance, as it appears. Would it be anyone else doing that, it would have seemed ignorant. But if God Himself were to do that, it would have to be for a greater purpose. In this case, it is quite possible that God had determined that the only way to get the younger son to fully turn towards Him, would be to allow that son to experience the failure and futility of going his own way. If that were the case, it would make sense for the father to give his wealth to the son, allowing him to squander it.
In this understanding, we can see just how deep the father’s love was for his son, even without seeing his reaction when the son returned. His concern would have been for the son and his salvation, rather than for his own wealth. If losing his wealth was the price he was going to have to pay, in order to see his son saved from his sin, he was willing to pay it.
The (not so) Triumphant Return
The beauty of this parable is the scene where the Prodigal Son returns home. He had practiced his speech, preparing the words he would use to apologize to his father, asking to be taken in as one of his servants; no more. Yet it was as if his words were in vain, as his father paid little attention to them, calling for a party to honor his son’s return.
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. – Luke 15:21-23
This is the image that Christ was trying to convey in this parable, showing how much Father God rejoices, when one of His prodigals comes back to Him. God knows that we are all prodigals and awaits our return. He rejoices over each one that comes back to Him.
I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. – Luke 15:7
Just a note on that last verse. While it might seem like it belongs in the Parable of the Prodigal Son, it actually comes from another parable, “The Parable of the Lost Sheep,” which Jesus told earlier in the same chapter of Luke’s Gospel.
All the rejoicing of the father doesn’t mean that the Prodigal Son was fully restored. There is nothing in the parable which says that. Rather, it just shows us how happy the father was at his return. If we look back in verse 12, quoted above, we see that the father had “divided to them his livelihood.” In other words, the father not only gave the younger son his portion of the inheritance, but he also gave the older son his portion. This is confirmed by what he said to the older son, when he said “all that I have is yours” (Luke 15:31).
Although the story doesn’t tell us, it is likely that the younger son received just what he asked for; he was allowed to work as one of his father’s hired servants. At this point in his life, he was not worthy of more and to get more would have required either his father taking something from the older brother, which would not have been right or the older brother giving something to him out of his inheritance. Considering the older son’s attitude, that doesn’t seem likely.
What of the Older Son?
While the parable focuses on the younger son, it is worthwhile to take note of the older son’s reaction to his brother’s return. Whether or not he loved his younger brother, he was clearly unhappy about how his father reacted to that return, becoming angry and refusing to come into the home.
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… – Luke 15:25-28a
This is the son who had stayed home all those years, working the family farm, rather than going out and squandering his father’s wealth. One could say that he was the “good boy” in the family, unlike his brother. But being a good boy doesn’t necessarily mean having a good attitude. This son was so upset that his father was throwing a party for his brother, that he refused to go into the house.
It would be natural to ask what was behind this attitude and the older son gives us some insight, saying:
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. – Luke 15:29b
We see two basic complaints here. First, the son was tired of working and being a good boy. He felt that he was owed something for that. Apparently, his pay, whatever it was, was not sufficient in his eyes. The second complaint backs that up, as he complained that his father never even gave him a goat, something that would be cooked for a meal, not something saved for a celebration, like the fatted calf. In his eyes, his father was giving his brother preferential treatment, when he felt that he was the one who deserved it.
But there’s actually a much bigger problem with the older son, which the father mentioned. He had already given the older son his inheritance, two-thirds of the father’s wealth. The father was actually living off the son, rather than the son living off his father. Yet the son had not received what had been given to him. He acted more like a servant than a son and resented being treated that way. That’s the root of why he was bitter at his brother. While he should not have followed after the way of his brother, he could have lived a good life.
There are many who refuse to accept the gifts that God offers them, while still complaining that God hasn’t given those gifts. They complain about God not healing them, when they haven’t prayed in faith for healing. They complain that God hasn’t provided for their needs, when God has. They don’t see the blessings that belong to them and decry their lack.
Which Son are You?
If we take a good look at these two sons, we can see a bit of both of them in ourselves. We all have a bit of the Prodigal in us, as well as a bit of the son who doesn’t accept the blessings that God gives to us. Rather than taking our rightful place as sons and daughters of God, living under His blessings, we tend to try doing things our own way, then complain when God doesn’t bless us as we think He should.
God has on desire for any of us to fall into sin. That is made profoundly clear in scripture. Yet we all have some area of sin in our lives that we don’t want to give up and expect God to change His holy Law for us. We want God’s blessing on us, while we don’t do what’s necessary to receive the blessing.
That goes for not believing that the blessing is ours, just as the older son did. Sadly, some denominations teach that God doesn’t heal or bless today. There is no healing and no blessing in those churches, because the people don’t believe for them. They’ve been taught not to. Yet that doesn’t define God any more than sinning like the Prodigal and expecting God to accept our sin defines Him. We need to discover who God is, through what He shows us in the Bible and accept whatever He says; regardless of our own opinion.