Luke 15:11-32

Applebury's Comments

The Parable of the Lost Son
Scripture

Luke 15:11-32 And he said, A certain man had two sons: 12 and the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of thy substance that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. 13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together and took his journey into a far country; and there he wasted his substance with riotous living. 14 And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that country; and he began to be in want. 15 And he went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. 17 But when he came to himself he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight: 19 I am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. 20 And he arose, and came to his father. But while he was yet afar off, his father saw him, and was moved with compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. 21 And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight: I am no more worthy to be called thy son. 22 But the father said to his servants, Bring forth quickly the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: 23 and bring the fatted calf, and kill it, and let us eat, and make merry: 24 for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry, 25 Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called to him one of the servants, and inquired what these things might be. 27 And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. 28 But he was angry, and would not go in: and his father came out, and entreated him. 29 But he answered and said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, and I never transgressed a commandment of thine; and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: 30 but when this thy son came, who hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou killedst for him the fatted calf. 31 And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that is mine is thine. 32 But it was meet to make merry and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.

Comments

A certain man had two sons.Note the progress of thought in the three parables: a lost sheep, a lost coin, a lost son. The sheep got lost; someone lost the coin; but the son was an intelligent human being created in the image of God with the ability to think and decide his course of action. He deliberately left his father's house and wasted his life in riotous living.

to feed swine.The wastefulness of sin led to degradation in sin. Jews were proud shepherds of sheep. They loved David, their shepherd king. Jesus called Himself the Good Shepherd. But for a Jew to become a swineherd was to sink to the lowest possible state of disgrace. Swine, according to the Law of Moses, were unclean. But this destitute son who was really lost actually ate with the swine.

no man gave to him.He had friends while his money lasted, but none when it was gone. Those who lead others to sin usually abandon them when they are of no further use to them. This should be a strong warning to those who run with the crowd that cares nothing for God or Christ or the Bible.

But when he came to himself.When he realized that he was needlessly wasting his life, he resolved to do something about it. Repentance is mentioned in each of the parables, but in this one Jesus shows what it means to repent. It arose out of the awareness of the sinful, lost, and utterly hopeless state of the son who had wasted his life. It is the resolution to do something about the situation. It is inspired by the memory of home and all that it meant to be a son. It is accompanied by a sense of genuine humility that recognized that the right to be called son had been forfeited. It was a sense of appreciation of the privilege of becoming a servant in the father's household. It is the decision of the lost son who said, I will arise and go to my father.

Sinners do have a responsibility for their condition and can do something about it; they can follow the instruction of the Word of God and go back to the Heavenly Father through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ who died that their sins might be blotted out. Repentance is accompanied by confession to the father of the sin committed against heaven in the father's sight. Few people have the courage to make such an acknowledgement before God. Too many are like the Pharisee who needed no repentance. Such are not saved from their sins; they merely join the church! They are not really hungry for the bread in the father's house. They act as if they were doing God a favor by casting their influence with His church. Phariseeism is present in so many places today!

And he arose and came to his father.The prodigal had left his father's house by his own free choice; he was returning as a result of the decision he had made to go to his father and home. Those who teach that we are born with a tendency to sin fail to see that it was absolutely unnecessary for him to have left in the first place. Neither was it necessary to waste his inheritance. James plainly says that each man is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lust and enticed (James 1:14). His own lust is his desire for that which is evil. God did make man with the ability to choose between the heavenly home and the alluring thing that Satan offers, but He did not make man incapable of resisting the devil. James says, resist the devil and he will flee from you (James 4:7). Being made in the image of God, man is capable of deciding whether he will please God or Satanit is just that simple. The prodigal went into sin by his own deliberate act; he returned to the father by his own deliberate choice, because he wanted to escape the intolerable state of sin.

But while he was yet afar off.The father didn-'t wait until he came knocking at the door; he saw him afar off and ran to meet him.

God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself (2 Corinthians 5:19). He came from heaven to Calvary to meet the sinner who had the courage to start toward heaven. The starting point was the decision to get up and go to the father.

moved with compassion.God's love and pity for a lost son is shown in the father's attitude toward his son who had the courage to want to get out of his sad state. This is Jesus-' answer to those who were criticizing Him for receiving sinners.

And the son said unto him, Father.Only part of the words of Luke 15:18-19 are restated here. According to the footnote, the son repeated the confession as he planned it. Some may ask, Did the father interrupt the son's confession? It is impossible to tell from the text. The son planned the confession. For the son's sake, the father probably heard him out. After all, it was brief, but very necessary. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). One of the hardest things we may be called on to do is to admit that we have sinned, but the prodigal said to his father, I have sinned. The Pharisee, of course, according to his own opinion of himself, didn-'t need to make such a confession. He was one of the ninety-nine that didn-'t need to repent. But John says that if we say that we have not sinned, we make God a liar and His word is not in us (1 John 1:10).

Bring forth the robe.There is nothing in the father's action that indicates that anything less than full restoration of the lost son had ever entered his mind. It reveals the true story of the grace and mercy of the Heavenly Father. The sinner who repents and gets himself baptized into Christ, washing away his sins in the blood of the Lamb, becomes a member of the family of God with all the rights and privileges of a child of God.

As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us (Psalms 103:12). He has said through the inspired apostle, Repent and turn again that your sins may be blotted out (Acts 3:19). He has promised in the Word, Their sins and iniquities I will remember no more forever (Hebrews 8:12). How wonderful is the grace of our Heavenly Father!

To be effective in the proclamation of the gospel, the church must return to the high standard of Christian living that meets God's approval (Romans 12:1-2). Too many try to live half in Egypt and half in the Promised Land. The Father has not required the impossible, for He has provided the armor with which to withstand the devil. With the shield of faith, the Christian can quench all the fiery darts of the evil one (Ephesians 6:16).

let us eat and make merry.The feasting and joy in the father's house is contrasted with the famine and sorrow of the life of sin.

for this my son was dead and is alive again.Sin brings death (Romans 6:23). Did the critical Pharisee now see why Jesus was receiving sinners? He had reached the climax of His argument; with the finding of the lost son there was cause for real rejoicing by all.

Now his elder son.The elder son presents a clear picture of the Pharisee's estimate of himself; he was like one of the ninety-nine that didn-'t need to repent. But he was angry that the father had received his lost son back into the family.

I never transgressed a commandment of thine.If there had been any doubt that Jesus had the Pharisees in mind when He spoke of the ninety-nine, the nine, and the elder brother, this should remove it. The elder brother reacted exactly as the Pharisees had done.

The claim of the elder brother is remarkable to say the least. But the father didn-'t stop to argue the point with him; he accepted it at face value, but argued that it was appropriate to welcome his lost son who had returned.

this thy brother was dead.The elder son in his anger had disowned his younger brother, just as the Pharisees had disowned the publican and sinner. With contempt, he said to his father, This son of yours devoured your living. He spoke as if he were in no way related to him. But the father, correcting this attitude, said, This brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.

A more devastating answer to the position of the Pharisee could hardly be imagined. Only hearts that were completely hardened could fail to respond to the logic and love of Jesus-' defense of His mission of seeking and saving the lost.

Sinners are dead through their trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1). Christ shed His blood that their sins might be blotted out and that they might be made alive together with Him and sit with Him in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:4-10).

Summary

Perhaps there is no place in the whole Bible where the saving grace of God is more clearly presented than in this chapter devoted to the three parables of grace. Christ defended His mission against the hypocritical charge of the Pharisees with a logic and love that could not be answered by His critics. It is true that they were not converted, but sinners of all ages since then have been grateful for His clear explanation of God's grace which He made available by His death on the cross.
Sinners are lost as the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son clearly show. The story of the lost son shows what it means to repent, for he decided to get up and go to his father. The once arrogant lad came back in genuine humility; he only asked to be made as one of his father's hired servants.
A welcome awaits the lost when they return to the Heavenly Father's house. Heaven rejoices over one sinner who repents. The rejoicing over finding the lost sheep and the lost coin indicate it, but the feast of joy in the father's house when his son returned shows what it means to God. It was certainly appropriate to rejoice and make merry for the brother was dead, but was alive; he was lost, but found!

Questions

1.

What was the occasion for the Pharisees-' complaint against Jesus?

2.

What was their object in making the complaint?

3.

How did Jesus answer the complaint?

4.

In the parable of the Lost Sheep, who were represented by the ninety-nine?

5.

Did the Pharisees need to repent?

6.

Why didn-'t Jesus attack their sinful lives at this time?

7.

Why did He tell about the shepherd who went to find the lost sheep?

8.

Why did He tell about the rejoicing when the sheep was found?

9.

Over what sinners does heaven rejoice?

10.

What kind of sinners does Jesus receive? Where did this leave the Pharisees, in reality?

11.

In considering the whole chapter, why can we say that the ninety and nine who need no repentance represent the Pharisees?

12.

What does the story of the lost sheep show about people who are lost?

13.

What is the purpose of the parable of the Lost Coin?

14.

What do these parables suggest about the first business of the church?

15.

What is the relation of preaching to social reform?

16.

Should the church take over the responsibility for teaching children? What about parental responsibility?

17.

What responsibility does the church have in regard to standards for the home?

18.

What is a possible distinction between the fact that a sheep was lost and a coin was lost?

19.

What should be the concern of church leaders for those who drop out of Bible school or church?

20.

What attitudes of church people may cause others to be lost?

21.

Why mention the rejoicing among the angels?

22.

What makes the case of the lost son different from that of the lost sheep or lost coin?

23.

How did Jesus picture the degradation and waste of sin?

24.

What was the attitude of Jews toward swine? What bearing on the job the prodigal took?

25.

What became of the prodigal's friends when his money was gone?

26.

What caused him to think of his father's house?

27.

How does his story illustrate the meaning of repentance?

28.

What does James say about the cause of sin?

29.

What does the father's attitude toward the returning son teach about God's attitude toward sinners who repent?

30.

How far did the Heavenly Father go in order to meet the sinner?

31.

What does the parable of the Lost Son show about the necessity of confessing sins to the Father?

32.

What did the father do for his son upon his return to the home?

33.

What does this teach about God's treatment of sinners who repent?

34.

What do the Scriptures say about the removal of our sins?

35.

What kind of standard must the church uphold in the matter of living if it is to be effective in proclaiming the gospel to the lost?

36.

How did the father describe the fact that the son had returned?

37.

Who is represented by the elder brother?

38.

What about his claim that he had never transgressed a commandment of his father'S?

39.

Why didn-'t the father argue the point with him?

40.

What did he call the lost brother?

41.

How did the father correct this view?

42.

How did he appeal to the elder son to accept his own brother?