To
illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: "A man had two
sons. The younger son told his father, 'I want my share of your estate now
before you die.' So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. A
few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a
distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. About the time
his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve.
He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields
to feed the pigs. The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was
feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything. When he
finally came to his senses, he said to himself, 'At home even the hired servants
have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! I will go home to my
father and say, "Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I
am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired
servant."' So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a
long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he
ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. His son said to him, 'Father, I
have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being
called your son.' But his father said to the servants, 'Quick! Bring the finest
robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for
his feet. And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast,
for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but
now he is found.' So the party began. Meanwhile, the older son was in the
fields working. When he returned home, he heard music and dancing in the house,
and he asked one of the servants what was going on. 'Your brother is back,' he
was told, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf. We are celebrating
because of his safe return.' The older brother was angry and wouldn't go in.
His father came out and begged him, but he replied, 'All these years I've
slaved for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to. And
in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my
friends. Yet when this son of yours comes back after squandering your money on
prostitutes, you celebrate by killing the fattened calf!' His father said to
him, 'Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is
yours. We had to celebrate this happy day. For your brother was dead and has
come back to life! He was lost, but now he is found!'" Luke 15:11-32
Have you ever fed a pig?
Meditate.
Consider this story of The Prodigal Son.
A
few years ago, I read the book The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of
Homecoming by Henri J.M. Nouwen, a priest from the Netherlands, who vividly
describes both sons and their relationship to their father in Jesus’ parable
known as the Prodigal Son, depicted in the painting by Rembrandt, The Return
of the Prodigal Son. Rembrandt painted his rendition of the story in about
1667. Nouwen viewed the painting in Saint Petersburg, Russia in the Hermitage
Museum and wrote about his deep connection with the artwork in 1992. In his
book, Nouwen clearly conveys the feelings of the father, the wayward son who
has returned home willing to be a slave, and the older, loyal yet jealous son
who has remained with his father on the family farm. In the Prodigal Son story
as told by Jesus it is often interpreted that the father is God the Father,
welcoming home his son whom He thought was lost, who is throwing a big
celebration to rejoice at His son’s return. He draws the older son into the
story—reaching out to encourage him to take part in the celebration. That’s how
it is with God—He reaches out to all His sons and daughters. He tells us, you
are mine—let’s rejoice and celebrate. It is such an awesome story when you dig
into the meaning behind just the basic storyline and visualize the father
embracing His sons. Can you interpret it as both were lost and now are found?
With which of the characters in the story do you identify? The younger son, the
older son, or perhaps the father? As you look at the growth in your spiritual
life, can you see yourself in each of these characters? At any rate, let’s
celebrate. We were lost, and now we are found!
What
do we learn about Jesus from this parable?
Prayer
– Holy Spirit—we rejoice that we have returned to our Heavenly Father…and to
You. Please continue to guide and direct us in that whatever we think, say, and
do would be acceptable to You. Direct us moment by moment to make choices that
keep us on the straight and narrow path that would continually lead us to You.
Verse
of Salvation ~ So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves.
Instead, you received God's Spirit when He adopted you as his own children. Now
we call him, "Abba, Father." For his Spirit joins with our spirit to
affirm that we are God's children. And since we are his children, we are his
heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God's glory. But if we are
to share his glory, we must also share his suffering. Romans 8:15-17
© 2026 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
Portions are reused from June 19, 2015, Banquet With The King
blog.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
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