Parents of Prodigals

Joshua 5:9-12; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

During the 60's, in the middle of the Viet Nam War, over a hundred students at a military academy voted to go on strike in protest of the war. As what this amounted to was a mutiny, the parents of the young men were notified by the administrators of the school. One by one, the parents of these students sent them telegrams regarding the situation. In a way these telegrams were like telescopes through which one could look into the various kinds of homes and parental relationships these boys had grown up with.

One father wired his son, "I expect you to stop this protest and obey at once." Another said, "If you are expelled from school, you needn't come home." Still another, "I'll send you to an insane asylum if you are sent hime." Another said, "I'll cut you off without a penny if you disgrace the family." But, the best message was found in these brief words: "Steady, my son, steady! It was signed, "Your Loving Father".

The writer of these words was a man who believed in his boy. And, probably, there is no greater influence upon a child than a parent who respects the spirit of his or her child and treats him or her with respect.

And, this is the kind of father we have in the story of the Prodigal Son, told by Jesus in our gospel lesson for today. In fact, as we examine the characteristics of this parent, we have to be amazed at the kind of trust and generosity he displayed, especially when it came to his son's request that he give his son a share of the family estate.

Now, in those days it was common practice for a son that was going to leave home to go into business on his own to receive what amounted to back wages for labor done for the family business over the years. What he got wouldn't amount to a whole lot of money, but it was like a nest egg that would help get the young man started in business in some other community. So, essentially, this is what the father gave his son, even though he probably had an idea that his son might squander the money. Sure, he could have told the boy that he didn't think he could make it on his own. He could have told him to wait a couple more years. He could have ignored the boy's request, completely. But, instead, he gave the boy what he wanted. And then the boy left home.

How many of us parents haven't gone through this kind of trial in our lives? It's not easy when, at last, our children come to us and tell us, "Mom, Dad, I'm moving out!" What thoughts must rush through the mind of a parent when that day comes! "Is this child really old enough to make it one his or her own?" "Has he or she made the correct decision?" "Is that child going to be ok?" "Will that child be happy?" "Will he or she have enough to eat? good clothing? a roof over his or her head?"

This aspect of the parable of the Prodigal Son is played out again and again in the life of every family. Sooner or later, for the ultimate psychological good health of the child and of the parent the day must come when the parent and the child have to let go and say "fare well."

The word "prodigal" actually means "wasteful" or "extravagant". And, indeed, being extravagant is one of the lessons our culture does a great job of teaching our youth, today! For instance, several years ago tin cans became one of the latest things in gift packaging. The colorful cans came in several different sizes. The small cans were for ties, belts and jewelry; the largest 8½-inch can held a sweater or shirt, glass or silverware. After selecting a gift, the customer could take it to the canning counter. Once the gift was sealed in, nothing but the kitchen can opener could perform the undoing.

This kind of extravagance is common in our society. Everything you buy is throw-away, anymore. If you buy something electronic, you might as well throw it away if it breaks down, because it will cost you more to try to get it fixed. So, we have throw-away telephones, throw away TV sets, throw away VCRs, throw away CD players, and throw away radios. And we have the landfill sites to prove it -- mountains of garbage, mixed with dirt, that we're handing down to our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren to enjoy for ages to come. And, in doing so, we're teaching our children to be prodigal. Our whole society is prodigal.

Someone once pointed out that the parable of the Prodigal Son could also be called the parable of the Prodigal People. In the parable of the Prodigal People, God is the Father, and we are the son. And our share of the estate is the the good old planet earth. Like the son who left his father to seek his own fortune and ended up squandering it, we live here on earth spending our days in overindulgence, until the very earth we live on is used up and destroyed. Sitting here, upon our ash heap, we wonder where we can possible go once our inheritance, the earth, is gone. And the only answer we have is, "back to the Father." And the question that lies on our mind is, "will the Father take us back?" And, somehow, ironically, amazingly, the answer is "yes."

God isn't an ordinary Father, anymore than is God the ordinary judge. God doesn't look at what we have done when he sees us coming up the road, on our way back home, once again. Rather, God looks at who we are.

I was talking about this with our confirmation class, yesterday. I asked the kids, "How do you think God decides who will get into heaven?" And, of course, some of the kids answered, "God will only let the good people in." Immediately, I scribbled a picture of a man standing on a machine that looked like one of those old fashioned scales that tells your fotune. Somehow, while standing on this thing, instead of his body, the person's good deeds were being weighed. If there were enough good deeds the pointer would go over to the place on the scale marked "heaven." But, if there weren't enough then the pointer would stay over on the side of the scale marked, "hell." And I asked the kids in the class if they thought that this is how God judges.

It's amazing to think how many of us believe God works this way. How quickly we forget that it isn't by works that we are saved, but by grace, alone. How quickly we forget that it is by faith in Jesus Christ that we are saved. How quickly we forget that when we have faith in Christ we become clothed in the righteousness of Christ, so that when God looks at us on the judgment day, he doesn't see a sinful wretch, but a brother or sister of his Son Jesus Christ! As the Father sees us walking up the path, it isn't what we have done, but who we are, that God will see.

If only every parent could love his or her child this way! We want to be proud of our children. We want to have children who will not dissapoint us. We want children who are bright, productive, wise, honest and respectable. But if it doesn't turn out this way, when trouble comes into their lives because they weren't as bright, or productive, or wise, or honest, or as respectable as they should have been, how do we, how will we receive them back -- reluctantly? angrily? with dissapointment? with reservations? -- because they failed, or with joyful celebration because they are our children?

When we put our faith in Jesus Christ we become wrapped in his righteousness. When God looks at us, he doesn't see sin. With Christ surrounding us, God doesn't see a broken slave. But, standing before God, our lives in Christ, God sees victory. God sees perfection. God sees his child.

Amen.