God's Family Values: Luke 13:1-2, 11b-32 - Fourth Sunday in Lent

¹Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to [Jesus.] ²And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
  ³So he told them this parable: ^11b“There was a man who had two sons. ¹²The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So he divided his property between them. ¹³A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. ¹⁴When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. ¹⁶He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. ¹⁷But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! ¹⁸I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; ¹⁹I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.” ’ ²⁰So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. ²¹Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ ²²But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. ²³And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; ²⁴for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.
  ²⁵“Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. ²⁷He replied, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.’ ²⁸Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. ²⁹But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. ³⁰But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’ ³¹Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. ³²But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’ ” (NRSV)

The Father and his Two Lost Sons by Lawrence OP on Flickr. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Long before Oprah and Maury began entertaining us with stories of family dysfunction, Jesus spoke a parable about a family that would make Dr. Phil’s face turn red…

Imagine these two brothers sitting on the coach:

Older son is complaining how younger son manipulates their father into giving him everything he wants. Father constantly favors him and lets him get away with everything. Meanwhile, older son remains steadfastly obedient, hard-working, loyal—and completely unappreciated.

Then younger son complains of how his older brother is “Mr. Perfect.” Success comes easy to him; whereas younger son has never been able to quite measure up. Tired with being the black sheep, he decides to strike out on his own. He asks for and receives an advance payment on his inheritance—but is ill-prepared to handle his newfound freedom. Then, a famine strikes, and he winds up destitute.

Remember—this is a parable. But most of us can easily identify with the dysfunction that exists in all family relationships. One can never do wrong; one can only do wrong. One gets away with everything; the other gets scolded for even the slightest offense. One is the shining star; the other is the family disappointment.

We talk about family values—hard work, respect, patience, fairness, personal responsibility, gratitude… These are important so that the family unit can flourish—and so that family members can flourish.

What makes this parable so outrageous is that the father demonstrates a complete disregard for all of them, especially forgiveness, where he’s absolutely reckless.

Traditionally, we call this the Parable of the Prodigal son, but all three persons are prodigal. In my opinion, the one who comes out of this looking worst is the father. Shame on him for giving the older, obedient son a stern lecture—while giving the foolish, younger son a banquet. Shame on him for enabling this whole thing to happen in the first place.

If this parable is about God (and it is), God doesn’t come off looking very good.

Here’s the thing—God made us in his image, so we return the favor. We demand a God who thinks like we think, who values what we value, who works in ways that are reasonable to us and that we can understand. Good people ought to be rewarded and the transgressors punished. Forgiveness is granted to those who are sorry for what they’ve done and who make satisfactory amends.

This is what we do—we assign value to people based upon their adherence to our values. We demand (and assume) that God does the same. We value human beings based upon their hard work, personal responsibility, success, and what (we believe) they contribute to society. If you violate the values, you have no place among us—until you make it right. Do the crime, do the time. That’s justice. That’s fairness. That’s righteousness.

But here’s the kicker: when it comes to God’s family values, it’s not the values themselves that are of ultimate importance. It’s the family members who are valued above all else. And those, who, from a human point of view, are unworthy of belonging still are included and valued.

God values human beings because that’s what God does. And the fullness of your value to God is revealed on the cross—regardless of whether you are slovenly unrighteous, slovenly self-righteous, or a genuinely worthy of sainthood. This prodigal God stepped out of heaven and suffered hell on the cross because that’s how much you are loved—regardless of whether you fully love God or couldn’t care less. This prodigal God forgives sins regardless of whether or not you are truly repentant. This prodigal God will never stop seeking you out, no matter how many times you wander off.

That’s not to say that God—or you—should tolerate or enable bad behavior. The righteous should be rewarded and the transgressors punished. But God wants to be known for God’s mercy; not punishment.

And you can’t truly repent and live a new life if you believe that you have no value in God’s eyes.

We are a society that says to its criminals, “you have no value.” And we act surprised when they re-offend. Treat someone like garbage and that’s exactly how they will act.

But when you’re valued, forgiven, and restored in relationship, then you can be born again.

Your identity is built upon the fact that you are made in the image of God and that your value is measured by the cross. The same holds true for neighbors, strangers, and the people who show a complete disregard for your values. One of the best ways to experience your value is to show someone else how much they are valued—particularly if they’re not strong, successful, self-sufficient, or squeaky-clean. To feel valuable, affirm someone else’s value. Share something of value. Forgive a sinner’s sins. Receive forgiveness as an affirmation of your value.

The bedrock of Jesus’ family values aren’t the values themselves— but the valuing of persons. This prodigal God loves the prodigal you—and willingly suffered death and hell because that’s what a prodigal God does.

All praise and thanks be to our prodigal God for God’s prodigal family values.