In the churches of my youth, the story of the two sons, recorded in Luke 15:11-32, was used as a warning against “loose” living, hence it was referred to as the story of the Prodigal Son.
The highlight of the story for me is that the loving father is waiting at the crossroad to greet the prodigal when he decides to return. Rather than condemnation, the prodigal is greeted with an embrace, wrapped up in the arms of the father.
The thought that comes to me this morning is that the older brother needed that embrace just as much as the prodigal. The older brother, who felt superior to his brother because of his continued service, showed that he did not understand the father’s intent for both of his sons.
God, as represented by the father in the story, is focused on restoring the relationship with us. That hug, that embrace, those tears, and the warm greeting by the father is what we all need.
The prodigal accepted the grace of that embrace, and we can suppose that he lived the rest of his days reminded of the gift he had been given.
We can hope that at some point, the unforgiving older brother also came to realize his need of grace and took steps to experience the father’s love. We can hope that once he experienced the father’s love, he extended the grace of the father to his younger brother.
Both sons needed grace. Not only the son who ran away from his responsibility and flagrantly violated his father’s expectations but also the one who outwardly kept the rules but not from a grateful heart.
Thankfully, the embrace is available to both sons.
Whether we are more like the older brother and look with judgment on others, or if we are like the younger who made obviously bad choices, the ebrace is waiting.
We only need to walk into it.
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