Jesus told many parables to the Pharisees and the grumbling scribes. A favorite of mine starts this way: “There was a man who had two sons.”1 My ESV Bible has the heading The Parable of the Prodigal Son for this story. But Jesus didn’t label the younger son that way. And, by the way, the word prodigal not only means wasteful but also philanthropic and generous. So, we must be careful about our labels. Of course, the young son “squandered his property in reckless living”2 so wasteful does seem apropos—though not necessarily in an evil way, as we shall see!
The young son simply wanted what was rightfully his. He said, “Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.”3 And his father did not flinch, did not try to talk him out of it, did not rebuke him at all. The father gave the younger son his share. And then, “not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country.”2 He left home. It was an adventure! His life was suddenly his own, to live any way he wanted. He could reinvent himself! And he began to spend his money recklessly, as many do who come into a large sum of money. But we are not given any details of what this “reckless living” entailed. The phrase is also translated as “foolish,” “riotous,” “loose,” “wild,” and “extravagant” living. We imagine all kinds of awful things but many people become very generous after they win the lottery! The young son might actually have enjoyed giving a lot of his money away to new friends. He probably threw lavish parties and took great pleasure in helping people out. His “reckless living” could have been deemed “reckless” only in the fact that it was not wisely managed, not that it was spent on evil and wicked things. Some of the son’s new friends might have described him as unselfish!
So “reckless living” occurs when we try to manage our lives without our Father’s guidance. “Reckless living” could be happening as we try to be good and generous people. Hmm.
And so, this young son’s story is quite applicable for us. We believers also have “obtained an inheritance”4 as the son did. And sometimes, knowing our place in heaven is secure, we try to manage our own lives, live life our own way, and neglect our father’s guidance—as the young son did. He actually “spent everything.”5 How does that happen? Didn’t the son, at some point, realize he was running out of money? Of course, he did! But people were counting on him. And so, he gave all his money away or invested his money in bad deals. Until he was broke.
He was not a bad son. He was a bad manager of his inheritance. And here’s what happened next. “But when he came to himself . . .”6 When the young son realized that he had made a huge mistake, he came crawling back, “and came to his father.”7 He was expecting a rebuke. He believed his inheritance and standing in the family was gone.
He was wrong. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.”7 And even more than being thrilled that his lost son was found, “the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet.’”8
So what does this great parable teach? So many things but most importantly three things: 1) We are God’s children, and nothing we do will change that status. And 2) our inheritance is “imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for [us].”9
At times we may try to manage our lives without our Father’s good guidance and live recklessly—which may appear to others as quite unselfish! But when we come to ourselves and realize we are truly lost without God’s guidance, he will show us his unending love. Which leads us to the last thing on the list of important things this parable teaches: 3) “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.”7
This picture illustrates that our Father is quite reckless—foolish, riotous, loose, wild, and extravagant—in his love toward us. So, to borrow Timothy Keller’s idea*, who is the prodigal now?
1Luke 15:11 2Luke 15:13 3Luke 15:12 4Ephesians 1:11 5Luke 15:14 6Luke 15:17 7Luke 15:20 8Luke 15:22 91 Peter 1:4 *Keller, Timothy. The Prodigal God. Zondervan, 2009.
