Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Lost and Found, Part 26 of 78

TEXT: "Then He said, 'A certain man had two sons. 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. And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything. 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! I will arise and go to my father and will say to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.' ” 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. 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." 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. And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found." And they began to be merry' " (Luke 15:11-24).

IDEA: We often feel that we would be better off if we didn’t have to bother about God.

PURPOSE: To explain the text and to help listeners identify with the younger brother and perhaps see themselves.

Robert Bridges, a Unitarian literary critic, said of the story of the prodigal son that “it is an absolutely flawless piece of work.”

Charles Dickens who wrote A Christmas Carol and scores of other stories, said, “The prodigal son is the finest short story ever written.”

Do you tend to think these opinions are overblown?

What does it take to appreciate the story?

Thought and imagination.

Let’s look at the story analytically and imaginatively to try to understand it. Limit ourselves to the opening scene that sets the stage for the rest. In both, we have to get back into the world in which it was written.

Jesus sets the scene in Luke 15:11-12: “A certain man had two sons. 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.”

What are some of the things we learn from those two verses?

“Give me my share of the estate.” The younger son wants both the right to possess and to dispose of his portion of the inheritance. The two requests mean that the boy is in a hurry for his father to die.

How would the people in the village and Jesus’ listeners have expected the father to respond? In an unprecedented act of love, the boy’s request is granted.

The older son would be expected to refuse his share until his father’s death.
He would also be expected to fill the role of reconciler. He fails on both counts.
This foreshadows something of his relationship both to his brother and to his father.

We can stand outside this story, but we need to identify with the characters. Do you think this event happened all at once? Imagine the talk at the dinner table. How do you think the younger son would have talked? Can we imagine the conversation?

FATHER: You’re not eating, Son. Can I pass you something?

SON: No, thanks. I’m not hungry. I’ve got other things on my mind.

FATHER: Anything I can help you with?

SON: We’ve talked about it before.

FATHER: Oh?

SON: Dad, I want to be independent. I want to be my own person. I’ve got nothing against you. All I ask is that you give me my freedom. I’m tired of being tied down by all the rules—being in on time and my homework and doing the chores. My friends aren’t held on such a short leash. I’ve got to be free. I just want to be me.

FATHER: Son, do you really think you have no freedom?

SON: You may think so, but you’ve got all those stupid rules. I feel stifled.

FATHER: Stifled? I don’t want to hold you down. I want you to enjoy real freedom.

SON: Your idea of freedom and mine don’t match.

FATHER: You’re my son. You can come to me anytime you wish. You can tell me anything and everything that troubles you. Many young men in the community would envy you. Look, my whole estate belongs to you [and your brother]. I love you. I give you your daily food. You eat at my table. I only want the very best for you. You’re accountable to no one but me. How can you say that you’re not free?

SON: To be perfectly honest, I don’t give a rip about all of that. I have a room of my own, but I want a life of my own. I resent this constant training. For me freedom means to be able to do what I want to do.

FATHER: No, Son, that’s not freedom. Freedom means that you can become all that you were made to be. You’re not free if you’re a slave to your desires and your appetites. People think that freedom is the power to start anything . . . but that’s not freedom. Freedom is having the power to stop those things taking over your life.

SON: I don’t like restrictions. I won’t live with chains . . .

FATHER: I don’t forbid you to do something to chain you. I don’t want to limit your freedom. Just the opposite. I want you to have the freedom to grow and develop. It’s my love for you that lies behind any restrictions I place on you.

SON: Don’t you understand that I want to live life to the full? Is that so wrong? Just once I want to have a fling. I’m not out to destroy myself. I simply want to be free to have a good time. I’m still young and I want to enjoy myself. I can’t do it around here. Not in this town . . . Not in this house.

FATHER: What do you want me to do for you?

SON: I’ve been thinking about that. Just give me what’s coming to me. Split up your estate. I’ll sell what belongs to me and take off. I’ll be out of your hair and out of your life.

How do you think the older brother might have contributed to the conversation?

How do you think audiences in a modern talk show would respond to that conversation?