I've been spending a lot of time thinking about and studying the parable of the lost sons over the past month or so. This parable, which is usually referred to as the parable of the prodigal son, is found in Luke 15. It has been called the gospel within the gospel and has been used countless times to paint a picture of grace for those of us who have ever gone astray. It is a beautiful story.
My study, however, has helped me to see that the typical understanding and presentation of this story, while beautiful, falls short of what Jesus was intending to communicate. I have now come to see that this story is as much of a warning as it is a story of grace.
I plan to take the next few posts and share some of the things I have learned. Most of what I will be sharing has come from a book by Kenneth E. Bailey called The Cross & the Prodigal: Luke 15 Through the Eyes of Middle Eastern Peasants. I've owned this book for some time but have just now read it. A second book that I will draw from is called The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith, by Timothy Keller. I also listened to a sermon series by Keller called The Prodigal God. This sermon series tracks with the book.
My plan is to do five posts, including this introductory post. The second post will be a discussion of the context of the story. The third post will look at what we know about and learn from the younger son. The fourth post will be a discussion of what we know about the father and what that teaches us about God. The fifth and final post will look at the elder son, who is really the key to understanding what Jesus was saying.
I look forward to writing these posts and to our discussion as well.
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