I have been thinking about the brotherhood of the prodigal son and the elder son. There is no mention of the elder brother from the prodigal son. He confessed his sin against God and the father, but not to his elder brother. At the same time, I could feel that the elder son was deeply injured so much so that he could not rejoice in his brother’s return and his welcome party by his father. If they had had a reasonable and ordinary brotherly relationship, at least the elder brother could enter the house and greet his younger brother first. It could be possible that there was brotherly jealousy in his heart. All his righteous living, good morality, and obedience to the father’s orders could not remove the root of bitterness in his heart. He was a best kind of person in his own ways, and people must have praised him for his virtues, but no one including himself knew that there was darkness in him. It reminds me of the story of Nicodemus. He was a Pharisee, a religious man pursuing a course of righteousness, a ruler of the Jews (John 3:1) and a teacher of Israel (3:10). He came to Jesus at night, probably to avoid the eyes of people. It was a secret visit. He confessed a very serious and remarkable confession to Him in 3:2, “… we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.” To this man, Jesus replied with totally unexpected words in 3:3, “… verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Do you remember that the main audience when Jesus gave a parable of the prodigal son were Pharisees and scribes? Now, Nicodemus is a Pharisee. It seems that the Lord Jesus is giving them the same lesson. The elder son, who was self-righteous, and Nicodemus, the Pharisee, must have known that they needed to be born again. That which is born of the flesh is only flesh, that which is born of the Spirit is spirit (3:6). You must be born again. 

I think we could apply it in two ways in relation to the parable of the prodigal son. First, it must be applied to the unbelievers. There is no righteous one by oneself. All men are sinners, and their nature is only sinful. Thus, no one is able to enter the kingdom of God with one’s might. If I compare the elder son with unbelievers, then he must be born again for salvation. It is a lesson that man’s own righteousness will not make him saved. This lesson is hard for moral unbelievers to accept. They see the publicans and sinners sitting at the feet of Jesus and scorn them of their unclean and blameable lifestyle. They see themselves much cleaner than such group of people. This kind of thinking pattern keeps people with clean lifestyles from coming to Jesus by confessing their sins. It was the elder son’s problem, if we identify him as an unbeliever. His heart must be touched by God’s love and mercy and drawn to Him by faith and gratitude. Second, it could be applied to the religious people, too. Some believers are more passionate and zealous in serving the Lord than others. While they are giving themselves faithfully and fully to the service of God, others are lukewarm or even backslidden. Their passion for God could muster a spirit of judgment and condemnation against less enthusiastic people, and they are stumbled. The more they strive to serve God, the more resentment they have against immature and lazy brethren. This inner resentment gradually erodes their relationship with the Lord. They cannot see their problems because of their passion and zeal for God. Their virtues blind their eyes. Again, their awakening must come from heaven above. Isn’t it true that they are heavenly citizens? Their emotional and physical collapse and exhaustion must be healed by God. It means that “born-again” Christians must walk closely with the Lord. Paul repeatedly said to the believers to abide in Christ, walk in Him or in the light. I stress on the elder son’s problems here more, not because his sins are more grievous than the prodigal son, but because his sins are harder to detect and identify than his younger brother. 

The highlight of the story is, I think, the father’s desire to bring both sons to home. Though the prodigal son’s return is more dramatic and interesting, we must not miss a father’s desire to bring his elder son, too. He wanted to bring the elder son to the house of joy. Luke 15:28, “And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him.” The father spoke to him in the way of exhortation, entreaty, comfort, or instruction. He pleaded with him to come into the house and join the family for welcoming his lost brother. Two brothers seemed be widely apart from each other. We often focus on their differences and make them separate from each other. Their characters are different. However, we must not forget that there is something that binds them together. It is the father himself. If we do not think carefully, we say that the prodigal son was bad, and the elder son was a bit better. However, what the parable says is that only the father is good, and he is the one bringing and biding them both. He loved both sons. He went out to meet both. He comforted them both, one by forgiveness and another by assurance. 

What is outstanding from this story is that the father had not forced his thoughts and love upon them. His desire for them was very clear, but he left them to make their choices. Father was always waiting for them to come to him. Two sons had to make their own choices whether they would step into the house again or not. Father’s love was always there for them. That is not the only truth about the father’s love. Father’s love was also free and independent. It did not depend on the sons’ merits but solely upon himself. It illustrates the love of God to the sinful mankind, too. The love of God was shown to us, while we were yet sinners. God made His Son to be sin for us. God did not send His Son into the world to condemn, but the world might be saved through Him. After all, God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. This love of God is not because of something in us, which causes Him to love us. He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. If there is any reason that we love Him is because He first loved us. 

To understand ourselves better in light of this parable, I need to bring you back to Luke 15:2, which gives a light to the main motif behind this parable. “And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, this man receiveth sinners and eateth with them.” Their charge against Jesus was “this man receiveth sinners and eateth with them.” It is one of such examples that man claims to be more righteous than the Saviour. The Pharisees and scribes could not receive the people received by the Lord and accused Him of receiving them. Their minds were snared in their self-righteousness. This ensnared mind not only complains about the Saviour and condemns the sinners, but also groups themselves in opposition to Him, backbites and disregards the Saviour’s words and works. Besides, they are resentful to the Saviour, too. The healthy ones do not need physicians. The righteous ones do not need a Saviour. Jesus was with the sinners and the publicans, but it does not mean that He invited them only. The Pharisees and scribes could have come and joined them, but they refused to come in and to sit together with them, just like the elder son. Instead, they murmured among themselves about Jesus with a critical spirit. Jesus was concerned and cared about the marginals in society like the poor, the sick, and the sinners, but the Pharisees and scribes despised them. 

When father came to bring the elder son, it is noticeable that he did not try to defend himself, and he did not rebuke him of his words and attitudes. Instead, the father said to him, “And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine” (15:31)… I’ll continue..

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