Everything you need to know about The Prodigal Son? Jesus had his specific audience, a mixture of “sinners” and “righteous,” in mind when he told these three stories. Jesus was prompted to tell these parables because the Pharisees and teachers of the law were accusing him of welcoming sinners and eating with them (verse 2). Clearly, the Pharisees and teachers of the law viewed themselves as righteous and the other half of the audience as sinners. Jesus told the stories of the lost sheep, coin, and son to clear up the matter of who is truly “lost.”
In the Bible, God’s people are commonly referred to as sheep or God’s flock (Matthew 26:31; Luke 12:32; John 21:17; Acts 20:28-29). Pastors are admonished to shepherd “the flock of God” (1 Peter 5:2), and Jesus is referred to as the “Chief Shepherd” (verse 4). The point of the parable is that God desires to bring those who are lost (sinners) into a relationship with Him, and He rejoices when they repent.
In the Gospel of Luke 15:11-32, we are told of a wealthy man who had two sons. The younger son gets up one morning and decides to leave home and go about himself. He asks for and gets his inheritance from his father and he heads off to a strange land. Since he had so much money and possessions, he begins to lavish his substance on vanities – without thinking of his future. He had wine, women, and other pleasures whenever he wanted. Eventually, his profuse and wasteful expenditure costs him all his inherited fortune.
“Prodigal” means being wastefully extravagant. In this story the man’s son recklessly and wastefully spends his inheritance. In the context of this famous parable, the prodigal son has also come to mean someone who is spiritually lost and someone who has returned after an absence. What is commonly understood: God loves us When we understand that a parable is an imaginary story to illustrate a spiritual point, we can quickly perceive that Jesus is using this account to teach us of God the Father’s love for each of us.
After being hit by difficult living conditions – owing to his foolishness – he decides to humble himself and return home to his father. Instead of being rejected by his father, he gets a warm welcome with gifts and celebration. This gets his big brother crossed and starts a quarrel with his father. His father placates him and reassures him that all that he has belongs to him. Come along with me as we, together, learn the rich lessons in this parable. I divided it into four parts for a much easier understanding. Please do well to open your Bible and read the entire story (Luke 15:11-32). Discover additional info with the The Prodigal Son video on YouTube.
Despite the diverse audience, Jesus was speaking directly to the religious leaders and teachers of the law. He was aiming straight into the darkness of their hearts, pleading with them to lay aside their trust in their own righteousness and works. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were trusting in a works-based religion, rather than experiencing salvation by God’s grace through their faith. Like the older brother in the parable, they viewed themselves as worthy “sons.”