The Other Prodigal

So I was reading in Will Metzger's book To Tell the Truth for my Personal Evangelism class the other day and he was retelling the Prodigal Son story from the Gospel of Luke from the older son's perspective. His account was really eye-opening for me. The older son, for me, is kind of an after thought to the story, which is also the way he is portrayed in most of the sermons I have heard. From this biblical account we learn the older son is the "good" son. He stays home with his father while his younger brother leaves home and lives a wild and sensuous lifestyle. The older son does all the right things - helps around the house, stays out of trouble, and does what his father says - but even though he appears to be the perfect son, his heart is as far away from the father as the younger son is physically farther away. At the end of the parable, we can see this clearly. When the younger son came home, the father threw a huge party for him. This made the elder son very angry and jealous. He thought he deserved a party. He had "earned" the right to have one. You see, when I used to read this story, I saw it in generic terms. The younger son corresponds to each person who has rebelled against God but have now repented and accepted Christ. While this is true, I had trouble relating to the younger son. I have never been a partier or drinker or anything else that is outwardly rebellious. I can, on the other hand, relate to the older son. He focused on doing what was right. He wanted to be a "good person." He seemed to have it all together but he was still rebellious. He was a rebel on the inside. He typifies the Pharisees and anyone else that thinks they can earn their way to heaven. I can relate to him. BUT what is so great (and something I never really noticed before) is that the father went looking for him too. When the elder son was not at the party, the father went out to find him. Both the younger and older sons think that they are going to make their own way, but the father searches for both of them. This is what God the Father does for us. This is what He did for me nearly 8 years ago. I grew up in a Christian home but did not understand my need for Jesus Christ as my Savior. I was a "good" girl, why wouldn't God want me? The Lord revealed to me, however, that my rebellion festered within. I had my own plans and wanted complete control of my life. BUT God who is rich in mercy, knowing that I could never choose Him on my own, took the intiative and called me to Himself (Ephesians 1:3-15, Ephesians 2:4-8 & Romans 5:8). This is the Good News of Jesus Christ. God took the initiative by sending His Son to live the perfect life we are supposed to live but cannot and by having His Son to die a brutal death on the cross and then raise from the dead 3 days later. God takes the initiative now by offering salvation to each of us and by sending His Holy Spirit to convict our hearts of our need for Jesus as our Savior. For Jesus is the only way to God and He is everything we need.

In other news...

• I taught my lesson yesterday. It went well. The Lord was graciously with me and His Word did not return void. I may have even enjoyed teaching...
• I finished my application to serve overseas next fall. I have a couple more references to get in before it will be officially complete. Then, we will have to see what the Lord has in store. :)
• The Lord prompted me to call my aunt last night. I hesitated at first because I didn't know what I was going to say, but the Lord reassured me that He would give me the words to say. He was faithful...I have probably never spoken the Gospel so clearly in my life. This is the same aunt that I shared the Gospel with last fall. My sister and I have her a Bible. I asked her if she had read any of it and she said no. I shared the Gospel with her again. Please pray for her. I want her to believe so much that it brings me to tears...yet I know that that is not my job. Only the Holy Spirit can open her eyes to her need for Christ. She believes in the facts about Jesus but does not personally know Him. In our conversation, I repeatedly stressed the inability of good works to save us. She has been greatly influenced (negatively) by the legalistic and judgmental believers in my family. Please pray for her and her two sons.