In preparing a sermon for this weekend I have developed a biblical #hottake: we should NEVER call the story Jesus tells in Luke 15 “The Prodigal Son” again. It is the parable of “The Lost Son”.
At this point, we probably don’t think about it because Prodigal Son is common terminology and the point of reference for the story. But that label is wrong. Like straight up wrong. Completely misses the point of the story.
How we’ve come to talk about The Lost Son story is a great example of how we completely misunderstand and interpret what Jesus was trying to say.
First, the story comes after the stories of The Lost Sheep and The Lost Coin. Hint hint.
Calling the story The Prodigal Son focuses on the son’s behavior while gone and centers the son. But it’s not about him. The father is at the center of this story.
We really want to make it about our works. We gravitate towards judgement of others. That’s why we call it Prodigal- focusing on the son’s squandering of resources and life, instead of Lost- focusing on the disconnection of father and son.
I could go on and on. But the point I wanted to get to is how we misunderstand repentance.
Because the story is about the father’s compassion, NOT the son’s disobedience, then we must look at repentance differently.
The father runs to the son with open arms and welcomes him home BEFORE the son verbally repents and apologizes. It’s not about the son.
The very act of coming home is a posture of repentance.
For believers, repentance is a very important part of spiritual growth. It’s part of how we use a healthy relationship with God.
We as believers can still feel lost. But we can ALWAYS come home.
For those who don’t believe, I think repentance looks different than the narrow definition we’ve given it. The very act of believing in Jesus is an act of repentance. Seeking a savior is turning away from our way.
*have, not use
When we focus on a full acknowledgement of sin and verbal repentance for people who don't yet believe, we overshadow the grace of a God who is waiting to welcome them with open arms. Faith, by nature, is a posture of repentance.
The right words originate from the right posture, which flows from the state of a person's heart. It works from the inside out.
When focus on the "prodigal" part, we elevate the importance of a person's sins over the grace of God.
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