That was the
complaint of the scribes and Pharisees.
Maybe he
didn’t know any better? At first, the scribes and Pharisees tried to correct
his behavior. “Jesus, don’t you know what sort of person that is?”
But they
quickly realized that he knew very well what sort of persons they were. He
didn’t care that they were unclean. He didn’t care that they were the wrong
sort of people. He didn’t care that his own reputation as a leader and teacher
would be tainted by associating with them.
And
eventually, the other religious leaders stopped inviting him to their banquets.
By associating with unclean persons, he had become contaminated by their filth,
and his presence would only ruin the reputation of any host and any guests at
any formal banquet.
The scribes
and the Pharisees continued to dine together. They continued honoring Caesar
with the mixing of wine, and debating points of the law during the post-meal
symposium.
And in the
midst of it all, they were grumbling about Jesus, saying, “this guy who, we
regret to say, reclined at the table with us in the past, welcomes sinners and
reclines at the table with them…”
So, despite
being a recognized teacher, rabbi, and leader of the faith, Jesus has cast his
lot with the unclean, the undesirables, the outcasts. And all the other
recognized leaders of the faith were left grumbling about this. Teachers and
leaders of the faith just didn’t do that sort of thing. Teachers and leaders of
the faith were supposed to keep themselves clean and uncontaminated by the
filth of humanity.
In response to
their grumbling, Jesus told them three stories, three parables.
The second
story is about a woman who loses a coin. She goes to great lengths until she
finds it. And when she finds her coin, what does she do? She throws a huge
party! She calls together her neighbors and her friends, and spends that coin –
and then some – on the celebration. The ridiculous extravagance of the
celebration doesn’t make sense.
The third story
is about a father who loses a son. The son says to his father, “Give me my
share of the inheritance.” An inheritance is something you get after a person
has died; so basically, the son is saying, “Father, I wish you were dead.”
And the Father
did as the son asked!
From that
point on, the son and the father are dead to each other. The son has willfully
separated himself from the household. From this point on, he is considered an
outsider, a nobody. Social custom dictates this.
So when this
son finally comes to his senses, it’s no wonder that he figures his only chance
is to beg his father to accept him back not as a son, but as a slave. Even that
may have been hoping for too much. In welcoming him back as a slave, the father
would be welcoming back the one who, it could be said, killed his son. How
difficult would that be?
But the son
doesn’t have any other option. He is down and out. He is desperate.
By the way,
these are the same words spoken by Pharaoh in the midst of the plagues that
were destroying Egypt. Pharaoh said, “I have sinned against God and against
you.”
Perhaps the
son thought that by humbling himself, admitting that he was no better a person
than the evil Pharaoh, he could convince his father to have at least some mercy
on him.
Now if the
scribes and Pharisees were to have any say, the father would still not even let
him in the door. After all, this son has made himself an outcast. He has made
himself unclean. To admit him back into the household – even as a slave – would
risk contaminating the entire household with his uncleanliness. His bad
reputation would bring down the entire family.
He made his
choice; now he has to deal with the consequences.
It wasn’t even
just the scribes and Pharisees who thought this. It’s pretty much what society
expected. The son had made himself dead
to his father; now he should expect to be treated as such.
“Then the son
said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I am no
longer worthy to be called your son.’
“But the father
said to his slaves, ‘Quick! Bring out a robe – the best one – and put it on
him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf
and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate.” It’s time for a banquet! “For this son of mine was dead and is alive again;
he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.”
Meanwhile, the
older son was out in the field, working. When he came and approached the house,
he heard music and dancing. The banquet had already begun. In fact, it seemed
that it had already progressed to the post-meal symposium, which, in this case,
was all fun and celebration.
The older son
called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. The slave replied, ‘Your
brother has come home, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he
has got him back safe and sound.’”
The older
brother refused to join the party. So the father went out to him and pleaded
with him. But the older son still refused.
He said to his
father, “All my life I have stuck with you, I have remained true to my family,
and I have worked hard, like a slave. Where’s my party?... But this son of yours…”
Notice how he
refuses to call him “my brother.” “He’s no brother of mine…. This ‘son’ of yours…”
And then he
describes what his younger sibling had done. “This son of yours, who has
devoured your property with prostitutes…”
There are
certainly echoes here of the scribes and Pharisees; remember when Jesus
welcomed the uninvited guest, and the scribes and Pharisees said, “don’t you
know what sort of person that is?”
If this father
was truly a good father, he would know what his younger son has done, what kind
of a person he is, and what the consequences of his actions are…
Well, of
course the father knows. The younger son confessed it all to him when he said,
“I have sinned against heaven and before you.” This son was lost; he was dead.
But now he is
back! He wants to be reconciled. He wants to be forgiven. He wants to restore
the relationship that had been destroyed, even though the most he could hope
for is to be accepted back as a slave.
And the
father, because he is full of love and compassion, embraces him as a son, and
celebrates with extravagance the return of his lost son.
The father
says to his older son, “This brother of yours…”
See how he
refuses to let his older son deny any relationship? “This brother of yours; he is your brother… He was dead, but now has come to life; he was lost, but now he has been found.”
Does the older
brother go back in? Does he join the party? Does he listen to his father, does
he reunite with his brother, does he embrace his brother and reconcile with him
and renew their relationship?
The story ends.
The questions are unanswered. We don’t know how the older brother will respond.
Perhaps how he responds is up to us….
Like the other
banquet stories in Luke’s gospel, this one is subversive and revolutionary. The
father’s banquet welcoming the lost son goes against the norms of society by
welcoming one who, by all accounts, should have been excluded.
And yet Luke
believes that every person is a child of God. Therefore every division is
contrary to the will of God. Every division that exists, every division that we
maintain, is representative of Caesar’s kingdom, and not the kingdom of God.
Every time we refuse to associate with someone, every time we divide people
into “us” and “them,” every time we build walls of separation, every time we
refuse to forgive and reconcile… we act in ways that are contrary to the
kingdom of God.
In our society
today there are people who perpetuate stereotypes and prejudices and paint
people as “other,” and who do so in Christ’s name. Media outlets describe
Muslims and immigrants and other groups as wholly “other,” “not like us,” and
unworthy of a place at the table. They bear false witness against them,
claiming that they are anti-peace, anti-America, anti-God. These media outlets
are determined to divide society into “us” and “them,” but no one who seeks to
divide people into “us” and “them” is following the way of Christ.
The way of
Jesus is about reconciliation. The way of Jesus is about hospitality. The way
of Jesus is about welcome. The way of Jesus is about restoring relationships, and re-uniting those who have been
separated for too long.
And when that
reconciliation takes place, the way of Jesus is about throwing the most
ridiculously extravagant party ever.
Meanwhile, the
older brother is still standing outside, debating whether or not to join the
party.
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