WEBVTT

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Hey friend, welcome back here to the Seminar

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Seminary, and I'm Pastor Jim, and yeah, I'm not

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just a famous podcaster, I'm also pastor of a

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small town church. And what you're joining with

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us tonight is our Wednesday night Bible study.

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Tonight, we're going to look at the parable of

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the prodigal son. Now, listen, you've heard it

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a hundred times. The wayward rebel, the loyal

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rule follower, one runs, one resents, and every

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preacher draws the map. Don't be like him, be

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like him. But here's the truth. Jesus wasn't

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talking about either one of them. He was aiming

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at the people who thought they had already had

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it figured out. He was talking to the grumblers,

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the one who couldn't stomach mercy being served

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to the wrong folks. And if you're listening to

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this thinking, well, that's not me, you might

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want to hold on. Because this parable doesn't

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just reveal grace, it exposes pride. And sometimes

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the most lost person in the story never even

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left home. If this kind of hard gospel wrapped

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in storytelling hits you just right, do me a

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favor. Like, share, subscribe, tell somebody

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else who's been sitting outside the party. Let's

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dig in. I'll see you on the other side. Are we

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ready, Wayne? So parables part four. And I think

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what we're going to find as we continue to look

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at these parables that many of the details that

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we were taught about these stories as kids. we're

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going to find that we had wrong and that the

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lessons being taught are actually different than

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the way that we thought. I think the story is

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just one of those. We're doing the parable of

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the prodigal son tonight, and this story is not

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about the younger son. In fact, this parable

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isn't about the elder son either. It's about

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neither of them. Parable actually is a lesson

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on God's grace. So you've been here all day,

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dust settling on your shoes, grit creeping between

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your toes, the sun slipping lower, but the crowd

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still presses in. You'd think hunger or weakness

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would scatter them, but not when he's speaking.

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There's something about his voice that makes

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the stomach grow quiet. Something about his stories

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pulls you in deeper than the ache in your legs.

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You glance around at the faces. On one side,

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the ones who can't usually get this close. Tax

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collectors with shifty reputations. Women whispered

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about. Men with pasts so heavy they rarely lift

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their eyes. But tonight they lean in as though

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the words themselves are bread. On the other

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side, arms folded, jaws set. Pharisees, scribes,

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synagogue leaders. You can feel their tension

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before you ever even hear their grumbling. They

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don't like the company he keeps. And they hate.

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that holiness smells like lamb fat and cheap

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wine set at a sinner's table. That's the stage.

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Hungry ones near, self -righteous ones grumbling,

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and right in the middle, Jesus. And he doesn't

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back down, he doesn't scold, he doesn't retreat.

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He opens his mouth and he tells a story. So,

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let the ancient sound wash over you. Here not

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just with your ears, but with the deep place

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where memory and spirit meet. Luke chapter 15,

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verse 1. Now the tax collectors and sinners were

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all drawing near to him. And the Pharisees and

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scribes rumbled, saying, This man receives sinners

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and eats with them. So he told them this parable.

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And he said, There was a man who had two sons,

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and the younger of them said to the father, Father,

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give me the share of property that is coming

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to me, and he divided his property between them.

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Not many days later, the younger son gathered

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all that he had and took a journey into the far

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country. There he squandered his property in

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reckless living. And when he had spent everything,

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a severe famine arose in that country, and he

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began to be in need. So he went and hired himself

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out. One of the citizens of that country sent

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him into the field to feed the pigs. And he was

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longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs

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ate, and no one gave him anything. But when he

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came to himself, he said, How many of my father's

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hired servants have more than enough bread? But

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I perish here with hunger. I will arise and go

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to my father, and I will say to him, Father,

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I've sinned against heaven and before you. I

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am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat

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me as one of your hired servants. And he arose

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and he came to his father. While he was still

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a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion

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and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And

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the son said to him, Father, I have sinned against

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heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy

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to be called your son. But the father said to

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his servants, Bring quickly the best robe. Put

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it on him. Put a ring on his hand and shoes on

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his feet. Bring the fatted calf and kill it.

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And let us eat and celebrate. For my son was

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dead and is alive again. He was lost and is now

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found. And they began to celebrate. Now the older

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son was in the field. And as he came and drew

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near the house, he heard music and dancing. And

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he called one of the servants and asked what

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these things meant. And he said to him, Your

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brother has come, and your father has killed

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the fatted calf because he has received him back

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safe and sound. But he, that's the older brother,

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was angry. and refused to go in. His father came

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out and entreated him, but as he answered his

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father, Look, these many years I have served

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you, and I never disobeyed your commands. Yet

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you never gave me one young goat that I might

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celebrate with my friends. But when this son

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of yours came, who has devoured your property

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with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf

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for him. And he said to him, Son, you're always

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with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was

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fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your

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brother was dead and is now alive. He was lost

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and is found. The word is spoken, now it lingers,

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asking to be lived. You actually hear it before

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you see it. Not loud, not shouted, low and steady.

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A grumble, faintly rumbling like distant thunder.

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You glance to your left and there they are, the

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Pharisees, the scribes. Lips moving, heads leaning

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close to whisper to one another. You don't need

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to ask what they're saying. You can feel it.

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Disapproval. Disgust. Their arms are crossed,

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their eyes narrowed, their voices carry a single

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word, grumble. Now, we get this account from

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the gospel, according to Luke. Luke tells you

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exactly how to name that sound. Diagongazo. Say

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it with me into your breath. Diagongazo. It feels

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like the word itself. In fact, in Greek, it's

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an onomatopoeia. a growl in the throat, a complaint

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rolling low. It isn't just one man shaking his

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head in disapproval. It is a whole group grumbling

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together, letting their discontent buzz in the

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air. And remember, we're in that crowd. If you've

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heard the scriptures at any point read in the

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synagogue in your life, you know this sound already.

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Because the Greek Old Testament, something called

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the Septuagint, used this very word to describe

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your ancestors when they were in the wilderness.

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Now, the Septuagint isn't just any old translation

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of the Hebrew Bible. It is the scriptures in

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Greek. It is the version that Jews in Jesus'

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day... as well as most of the early church of

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Christians, read aloud. It's the bridge between

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Hebrew memory and Greek storytelling. And it

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matters here because when Luke writes Diagongazo,

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he's not just describing complaint. He's dragging

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the wilderness. Into the street right where Jesus

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stands. Close your eyes. Suddenly you're not

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in Galilee anymore. You're standing in the desert.

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Your tongue cracked with thirst. Your stomach

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twisted in hunger. You've just passed through

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the Red Sea. Your sandals, your cloak are still

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damp from freedom. Pharaoh's army is gone, swallowed

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up whole. And yet this sound rises from your

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own throat. You may remember Exodus 16. And the

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whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled,

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against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And

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the people of Israel said to them, Would that

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we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land

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of Egypt, where we sat by meat pots and ate bread

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to the full, for you have brought us out into

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the wilderness to kill this whole assembly of

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hunger. Can you hear it? Even with manna on the

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ground, they still grumble. Even with water gushing

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from the rock. still grumble, God's grace raining

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down on them and God's people murmuring back.

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Now we're back in Galilee, different desert,

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same sound. Jesus is welcoming sinners, feeding

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them with his presence, and the Pharisees stand

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on the edges, lips curled, grumbling the wilderness

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word, Diagonal. And here's what Luke wants you

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to feel. That word is not a throwaway. That word

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is not an accident. In the first century, these

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stories were carried very carefully, word for

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word like precious cargo. The eyewitnesses, that's

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how Luke got his account, the eyewitnesses telling

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and retelling the moment that we're talking about.

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had other Greek verbs that they could have chosen

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and used. But they reached for this one, the

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wilderness word, so that you would hear that

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echo, so that you would know that when the Pharisees

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grumbled, they were standing in the exact same

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posture as their ancestors who doubted in God's

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provision. This is why the Septuagint is such

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a gift to us, because it lets us lay Greek over

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Greek, Luke's verb over Exodus' verb, and watch

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the words line up. The lexicon of the New Testament

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gets colored in by the palette of the Old Testament.

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The grumble here used in Luke carries the dust

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of the Sinai on it. And watch how the parable

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itself will carry that sound to the very end.

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The elder brother, standing outside the feast,

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arms crossed, jaw tight, his lips will shape

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the same complaint. The story begins with a grumble,

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and it ends with a grumble. The wilderness is

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not behind you, it's here. And it is alive in

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every grumble that rises when grace somehow offends

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your sense of fairness. So then the question

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presses in. When grace sets the table, when forgiveness

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smells like roasted calf and music shakes the

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walls, what sound will come out of your mouth?

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Will it be a song of joy? Or will it be that

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same old wilderness grumble? The boy, the younger

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son, had rehearsed his speech a hundred times

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on the road home. Dirt covering him from head

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to toe. Shame bowing his shoulders. The only

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words that he can imagine. I have sinned. I am

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no longer worthy. Treat me as a servant. That's

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the script he writes for himself. But the father

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won't even let him finish it. While the boy is

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still a long ways away, far off, Scripture says,

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the old man sees him, feels compassion, and runs.

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Also know, fathers didn't run in this world.

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Running for an adult male with the... tunics,

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was considered beneath their dignity. But this

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one gathers up his robes and sprints down the

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road. He embraces his filthy son, kisses him,

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and cuts his confession off mid -sentence. Everything

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the crowd expects, the father refuses. Expected

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a beanie. Given a kiss. Expected a slave's lot

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in life, a servant contract. Given a robe, a

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ring, sandals, food. Expected slow earning back

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of trust. Given instant restoration to sonship.

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It is grace that doesn't wait for permission.

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It is reconciliation that ignores decorum. It

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is a joy that explodes in music and dancing before

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the neighbors can even stop gasping and clutching

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the pearls. And here's what you must see. To

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the sinners in the crowd, this is a revelation.

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God's not wanting to scold you for your unworthiness.

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He runs out to meet you. To the Pharisees, it's

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a rebuke. And it's a comfort wrapped in one.

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The father's honor is not diminished by welcoming

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in the sinner. His house does not somehow get

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smaller because another son has come home. The

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same reality of God's love is revealed to both

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audiences at once. Notice also the order of the

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father's reassurance to the elder son. He doesn't

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start with the bank accounts. He starts with

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his presence. To the elder son, he'll say, son,

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you've always been with me. And only then all

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that is mine is yours. Presence, then property.

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Communion, then calculation. And if we miss that

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order, I think we miss the heart of God. Let's

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look at him, the elder son, sweating from the

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fields, hears music, and his rage flares up.

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He's not going in, so the father comes out. Think

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of that. Just as he's run to... Meet the younger,

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now he steps outside for the elder. Two sons,

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two refusals, two humiliating journeys of the

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father. One onto the road, one out of the party.

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And don't miss it, that same wilderness word,

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diagongazo, comes here too. The elder's grumble

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mirrors the Pharisee's grumble. The wilderness

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complaint echoing through the generations. are

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being embraced by a grace that moves first. And

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this is where we need to see the double edge

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of the parable. Because Jesus is teaching to

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two audiences at once. To the sinners in the

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crowd, the story is pure hope. The Father runs

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to meet you, robe and ring ready, no delay, no

00:19:14.589 --> 00:19:18.109
earning it back. Your shame cannot keep you out

00:19:18.109 --> 00:19:22.339
of his house. To the Pharisees, that same story

00:19:22.339 --> 00:19:26.539
is a mirror. The father comes out to you too.

00:19:27.059 --> 00:19:31.440
His covenant with you hasn't changed. Not one

00:19:31.440 --> 00:19:35.319
thing has been taken from you. The younger's

00:19:35.319 --> 00:19:40.740
welcome back is not at your loss. It's the father's

00:19:40.740 --> 00:19:46.559
freedom to love both sons. The same reality of

00:19:46.559 --> 00:19:50.490
God's love is shown to both sons, to both crowds,

00:19:50.650 --> 00:19:54.490
and it is wholly at the discretion of the father.

00:19:56.390 --> 00:20:02.130
Grace does not divide a finite pie. It overflows

00:20:02.130 --> 00:20:05.410
the table so that everyone can be called in.

00:20:06.289 --> 00:20:09.910
And some of us know what it's like to live that

00:20:09.910 --> 00:20:15.230
younger son's story. Ashamed, reckless, desperate

00:20:15.230 --> 00:20:20.099
for mercy. And others know the other son's resentment,

00:20:20.440 --> 00:20:24.940
faithful, dutiful, quietly furious that grace

00:20:24.940 --> 00:20:27.240
could be given so freely to someone who hadn't

00:20:27.240 --> 00:20:32.180
earned it. And here Jesus said, God is not choosing

00:20:32.180 --> 00:20:36.599
between you. He's choosing for you, both of you,

00:20:36.680 --> 00:20:40.180
with a love that does not diminish when it's

00:20:40.180 --> 00:20:44.839
shared. Picture the crowd again. The tax collectors

00:20:44.839 --> 00:20:49.160
and the sinners breathing easier. The Pharisees

00:20:49.160 --> 00:20:53.200
shifting on their heels. Jesus isn't pitting

00:20:53.200 --> 00:20:57.119
one against the other. He's pulling both towards

00:20:57.119 --> 00:21:01.019
the Father. You may come home, he tells the sinners.

00:21:01.599 --> 00:21:06.180
You may come in, he tells the Pharisees. The

00:21:06.180 --> 00:21:10.880
only one who ends the story outside is the one

00:21:10.880 --> 00:21:16.240
who chooses. to keep their arms folded. So ask

00:21:16.240 --> 00:21:21.720
yourself, where do your arms rest? Are they open

00:21:21.720 --> 00:21:24.839
like the fathers or crossed like the elders?

00:21:25.660 --> 00:21:28.220
Have you learned to rejoice when someone else

00:21:28.220 --> 00:21:33.920
gets grace at your party? Isn't it almost wasteful

00:21:33.920 --> 00:21:38.140
the way the father gives the robe, the ring?

00:21:38.700 --> 00:21:41.700
calf, the music, all for a son who had burned

00:21:41.700 --> 00:21:45.660
through his inheritance. From a human perspective,

00:21:45.940 --> 00:21:50.119
you could call it reckless. You could call it

00:21:50.119 --> 00:21:54.460
inefficient. You could call it wasteful. And

00:21:54.460 --> 00:21:58.339
you wouldn't be wrong if the father were working

00:21:58.339 --> 00:22:02.299
with a limited supply. Think of the vineyard

00:22:02.299 --> 00:22:06.000
owner that we talked about. Paying the last hour

00:22:06.000 --> 00:22:10.039
workers a full day's wage while looking at the

00:22:10.039 --> 00:22:14.380
dawn crew in the eye when they grumble and saying,

00:22:14.420 --> 00:22:19.539
do you begrudge my generosity? You can hear the

00:22:19.539 --> 00:22:23.680
elder brothers grumble in that question. You

00:22:23.680 --> 00:22:26.279
can hear the Pharisees grumble in that question

00:22:26.279 --> 00:22:30.220
too. The master is free to be generous. Grace

00:22:30.220 --> 00:22:36.029
does not require your consent. Let's stand again

00:22:36.029 --> 00:22:39.250
in the yard, listen to the soundtrack of this

00:22:39.250 --> 00:22:42.809
house. Inside, singing, laughter, the shuffle

00:22:42.809 --> 00:22:46.630
of sandals on packed earth, the thrum of a drum,

00:22:46.809 --> 00:22:51.049
neighbors clapping, offbeat and not caring. Outside,

00:22:51.390 --> 00:22:54.730
the cicadas buzz, the night wind grits the teeth

00:22:54.730 --> 00:22:59.190
of the elder son, and between, the father's voice,

00:22:59.470 --> 00:23:03.930
low and pleading. The same kindness that once

00:23:03.930 --> 00:23:06.549
sprinted down the road now pausing in the doorway,

00:23:06.750 --> 00:23:13.130
begging pride to die and letting joy live. Wasteful,

00:23:13.130 --> 00:23:18.930
says the elder, because he thinks that calf was

00:23:18.930 --> 00:23:26.029
his. Wasteful, says the Pharisee, because he

00:23:26.029 --> 00:23:29.630
thinks his holiness will be cheapened by the

00:23:29.630 --> 00:23:36.039
Father's mercy. Wasteful, say we, when we forget

00:23:36.039 --> 00:23:38.740
that none of us hired the band or bought the

00:23:38.740 --> 00:23:44.000
wine. The father owns the house. The father fills

00:23:44.000 --> 00:23:49.599
the table. The father is the one who says it

00:23:49.599 --> 00:23:54.000
is fitting to celebrate and be glad. Here's one

00:23:54.000 --> 00:23:58.000
more echo. The father says all that is mine is

00:23:58.000 --> 00:24:02.230
yours. And if you stand in that, Since it's long

00:24:02.230 --> 00:24:07.089
enough, you can feel a mystery open. The inheritance

00:24:07.089 --> 00:24:11.309
is not about a stockpile of money. It's about

00:24:11.309 --> 00:24:16.029
a relationship. The son's true wealth is the

00:24:16.029 --> 00:24:20.589
withness of the father. You are always with me

00:24:20.589 --> 00:24:24.930
is the first treasure. All that is mine is yours

00:24:24.930 --> 00:24:29.450
is the second. Presence then property. God gives

00:24:29.450 --> 00:24:35.470
himself first. Everything else is wrapped around

00:24:35.470 --> 00:24:39.869
that gift. So here we stand at the edge of the

00:24:39.869 --> 00:24:43.829
party, music drifting through the windows, the

00:24:43.829 --> 00:24:46.890
smell of roasted calf in the air, the father's

00:24:46.890 --> 00:24:49.450
voice still echoing, it was fitting to celebrate

00:24:49.450 --> 00:24:52.130
and be glad for your brother was dead and is

00:24:52.130 --> 00:24:56.339
alive. He was lost and he is found. And the question

00:24:56.339 --> 00:24:58.880
is not just for the Pharisees, not just for the

00:24:58.880 --> 00:25:02.700
elder brother. It is for you and for me. Will

00:25:02.700 --> 00:25:07.299
you walk inside? Will you lay down your grumble,

00:25:07.319 --> 00:25:10.299
your clenched jaw, your arms crossed tight across

00:25:10.299 --> 00:25:15.059
your chest? Or will you stay outside, grumbling

00:25:15.059 --> 00:25:19.279
while grace dances without you? Because here's

00:25:19.279 --> 00:25:21.619
the crystal truth. Plain enough for midnight

00:25:21.619 --> 00:25:25.769
radio and Sunday morning both. Jesus is teaching

00:25:25.769 --> 00:25:31.349
two audiences at once and one God in both. To

00:25:31.349 --> 00:25:34.170
the sinners, he says, the Father runs to you.

00:25:34.250 --> 00:25:37.690
Stop rehearsing your unworthiness and let him

00:25:37.690 --> 00:25:42.390
wrap you in a robe you did not buy. To the Pharisees,

00:25:42.390 --> 00:25:45.630
at the same time, he says, the Father comes out

00:25:45.630 --> 00:25:48.910
for you too. Nothing has been taken from you.

00:25:49.589 --> 00:25:53.369
Your place at the table has never been in jeopardy.

00:25:54.279 --> 00:25:58.099
Do not let another's mercy feel like your loss.

00:25:59.220 --> 00:26:01.980
The same reality of the Father's love is poured

00:26:01.980 --> 00:26:05.180
out to both, never diminished, never divided,

00:26:05.240 --> 00:26:10.339
and always at his discretion. Grace is not a

00:26:10.339 --> 00:26:14.740
pie that shrinks when shared. It's a feast that

00:26:14.740 --> 00:26:17.440
multiplies when you decide to pick up your fork.

00:26:17.960 --> 00:26:24.170
So choose. Not between sons. Between postures.

00:26:25.470 --> 00:26:31.289
Between grumbling and music. Between counting

00:26:31.289 --> 00:26:36.869
and rejoicing. Between staying outside or stepping

00:26:36.869 --> 00:26:38.730
into the light that leaks through the cracks

00:26:38.730 --> 00:26:41.950
of that door the Father holds open with his very

00:26:41.950 --> 00:26:47.210
own body. Lift your head. Hear the drum. Smell

00:26:47.210 --> 00:26:51.109
the feast. Feel the hand of the Father on your

00:26:51.109 --> 00:26:56.119
shoulder. Father is free in his love. He does

00:26:56.119 --> 00:26:59.119
not ask the Pharisees permission to forgive the

00:26:59.119 --> 00:27:01.940
sinner. He does not ask the sinner's permission

00:27:01.940 --> 00:27:05.559
to bless the faithful. His love is wholly his

00:27:05.559 --> 00:27:09.759
to give and he gives it in abundance. That is

00:27:09.759 --> 00:27:14.160
what Jesus wanted that crowd to see. And that's

00:27:14.160 --> 00:27:18.119
what he wants you to see too. Grace is already

00:27:18.119 --> 00:27:20.799
poured out, friends. The party has already begun.

00:27:21.930 --> 00:27:24.829
The only question left is, will you join in the

00:27:24.829 --> 00:27:39.529
song or grumble? Amen? Amen. Thanks, guys. You

00:27:39.529 --> 00:27:41.450
know, maybe the most haunting thing about this

00:27:41.450 --> 00:27:44.509
parable is that the elder brother never walks

00:27:44.509 --> 00:27:49.559
in. Jesus leaves it open. He doesn't tell us

00:27:49.559 --> 00:27:51.819
if the brother forgives or even listens. Just

00:27:51.819 --> 00:27:55.980
silence. Father's invitation hanging in the air

00:27:55.980 --> 00:27:58.880
like smoke from a sacrifice. And maybe that's

00:27:58.880 --> 00:28:01.759
because the story ain't finished. Maybe it's

00:28:01.759 --> 00:28:04.779
your turn. You see, the elder brother obeyed

00:28:04.779 --> 00:28:07.579
every rule but missed the father's heart. He

00:28:07.579 --> 00:28:10.039
stayed near the house but far from joy. And if

00:28:10.039 --> 00:28:12.859
we're honest, there's a little bit of elder brother

00:28:12.859 --> 00:28:16.619
in all of us. We want grace for ourselves but

00:28:16.619 --> 00:28:20.619
justice for them. We want celebration when we

00:28:20.619 --> 00:28:24.539
come back, but punishment when they do. We love

00:28:24.539 --> 00:28:29.619
the idea of God's mercy until he gives it to

00:28:29.619 --> 00:28:33.460
someone we don't think deserves it. Then we hear

00:28:33.460 --> 00:28:36.140
the spirit whisper, my child, you're always with

00:28:36.140 --> 00:28:39.619
me. All I have is yours, but we had to celebrate.

00:28:40.339 --> 00:28:45.180
He's dead and now he's alive. This is the gospel.

00:28:45.319 --> 00:28:47.779
God doesn't wait at the door. He runs down the

00:28:47.779 --> 00:28:50.680
road. He walks out of the party. He pleads with

00:28:50.680 --> 00:28:54.160
the proud. He forgives the grumblers. He refuses

00:28:54.160 --> 00:28:58.779
to write anyone out of the story. So maybe it's

00:28:58.779 --> 00:29:00.799
time to stop folding your arms and start walking

00:29:00.799 --> 00:29:02.680
towards the music. If this stirred something

00:29:02.680 --> 00:29:05.980
in you, would you like, share, subscribe? Not

00:29:05.980 --> 00:29:08.220
for clicks, but because someone you love might

00:29:08.220 --> 00:29:11.420
be standing in the field, arms crossed, and they

00:29:11.420 --> 00:29:15.200
don't even know the feast has started. I'll see

00:29:15.200 --> 00:29:15.759
you next time