The Crux Chapter 3 Betrayal and Redemption (Luke 15:11-32)

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1 BIBLE STUDY (Luke 15:11-32) What s This Passage All About? Luke 15:11-32 is a classic story and probably the most famous of Jesus parables. While many know the general premise of the story, few understand the key details of the story that make it so remarkable. It is a great story to share with beginning or mature Christians alike. Context The context is absolutely critical for this parable. At the beginning of this scene, the Pharisees and scribes, who were the religious leaders of Jesus day, question Jesus. In particular, they question Jesus about how he receives and eats with sinners and tax-collectors. For Jews during this time, with whom they ate meals with was highly significant to their relationships and religion. Not eating with someone was a way of showing that you disapproved of where that person stood morally. Because of this cultural norm, the religious leaders are questioning how Jesus can eat with sinners. A good Jew during this time would never be caught eating with morally corrupt people. The Big Picture The Big Picture Jesus reveals His identity as the way, the truth, and the life. He and the Father are one. Faced with these facts, the reader is forced to make a decision about Jesus. Rather than just telling the Jews the reason directly, Jesus answers them by telling three stories or parables. The story in Luke 15:11-32 is the third story, commonly called The Prodigal Son." Keep the context of this passage in mind as we examine the meaning of this story. Premise (Luke 15:11-16) The story begins with a son asking his father for his inheritance. At first, this appears to be a tame request. However, in the time of Jesus, to ask for your father s inheritance before his death would have been a profound insult. The son is in effect saying to his father, I wish you were dead. Despite this insult, the father surprisingly gives the inheritance to the son. The son not only takes the inheritance, but quickly squanders it on loose living (that is, on sexual immorality and prostitution) in a foreign land. Penniless and far from home, the son hires himself out as a laborer. Notice the spiral of sin. Before, he had been a son; now, he is a mere servant. At first, the son s rebellion was filled with fun and excitement. Now, he is enslaved by his current situation, so much so, that he must serve pigs, animals that repulsed the ancient Jewish people. He has officially hit rock bottom. Continued on page 2

2 2 Repentance (Luke 15:17-24) Notice the stages of repentance that the younger son experiences. 1. He realizes what is going on: He came to himself (Luke 15:17). The first step of repentance is realizing your mistakes and the consequences of your actions. He no longer ignores his mistakes and is willing to examine his life anew. 2. He recognizes where he could be: How many of my father s hands... (Luke 15:17). The son contrasts his current situation with what his life could be. He has no sense of entitlement or revenge, just an overwhelming need for something more. 3. He makes a sincere action to seek out forgiveness: He arose and came to his father (Luke 15:20). Not only does he think about repentance, he acts on it. Compare that with the stories in the Gospels, when both Judas and Peter betray Jesus and are remorseful. The significant difference is that Peter goes to Jesus for forgiveness, but Judas does not. Let us examine what the father does. He is the true hero of this story. 1. The father sees him at a distance (Luke 15:20): The father is waiting for the son to return. He is actively watching for him and is able to see him at a distance. 2. The father runs to him (Luke 15:20): How often do you see old men run? This act would have been even more undignified in their culture at the time. Application to Jesus Jesus reveals to us the Father s heart He is waiting to take us back. Jesus also shows He is not concerned with just our outward actions. He is more concerned with a relationship with Him. 3. The father embraces him (Luke 15:20): Think about this: the father loves the son even before the son has made any confession whatsoever. The father is far more concerned with his son as a person than with his son s actions. 4. The father celebrates (Luke 15:22-24): The robe, the shoes, the ring, and the fattened calf these are all signs that the son is back in the family. The father tells everyone, My son was dead and is alive again. The older son (Luke 15:25-32) The story then turns to our last main character, the older son. Just as with the father and the son, the details surrounding this character are essential. Be sure to watch the father in this scene. The older son: 1. He refuses to join the party (Luke 15:28): He protests his father s ability to forgive. 2. His reasoning he has faithfully served and obeyed his father while the younger son disobeyed his father (Luke 15:29-30): Notice how the older son views himself as a servant, and not a son. He falls into a similar, yet different, mistake as the younger son. Despite having stayed in the house, the older son still fails to be a true son of the father. 3. He does not recognize the son as being back in the family (Luke 15:30): The older son tells his father, This son of yours. Continued on page 3

3 3 The father s reaction: 1. He goes out to his older son, just as he went out to his younger son. 2. He pleads with the son rather than commanding him. 3. He corrects the older son s vision of their relationship: The older son is not a servant, he is a son. He addresses him as my son. He assures him that You are always with me and Everything I have is yours. The older son s work is not about rewards and servitude; it is about family and relationship. Living story The story seems to end abruptly. What happens in the end? What does the older brother do? Are they all reconciled? To answer these questions, we have to remember the context of the story. Why is Jesus telling the story in the first place? Remember, the Pharisees and scribes are upset that Jesus is in a relationship with sinners. The people that Jesus is talking to are really the characters in the story. The tax collectors and sinners are the younger son, the Pharisees and scribes are the older son, and God is the father, represented by Jesus on earth. By telling this story, Jesus is asking his audience to see God and themselves in an entirely new way. He is painting a picture of the Father who is not so much concerned with judgment and punishment as He is with love and forgiveness. Jesus is calling the Pharisees and scribes to see the connection between their attitudes and the older son s, and by doing so, realize their mistakes. They fail to view the tax-collectors and sinners as a part of their family, as true brothers who need help returning home. Jesus leaves the story open-ended because the Pharisees and scribes need to finish it. In telling the parable, Jesus is the father talking to the older son outside the party. As the older son, what will the Pharisees and scribes do? This is the true conclusion of the story in real time. Just as this story came alive in the lives of Jesus listeners, this story can come alive in the lives of your Bible study members. First, we need to focus on the father. What is the character of God? How does He react to sin and forgiveness? Then, we can relate to a particular character in the story. Maybe you are currently caught up in a life of sin and need to come home again. Perhaps you see yourself as the older son who, while obedient to his father, forgets his sonship and fails to invite others back to the family. You can even put yourself in the place of the father; you could be in a situation where you are waiting for the lost to return. Application to Our Lives Jesus wants us to re-discover who the Father truly is. The characters also reveal how we fail, despite outward appearances, to uphold Application our relationship to Jesus with God. This story is full of meaning. Feel free, if necessary, to take two sessions to go through this passage. Continued on page 4

4 4 DISCUSSION GUIDE FOR YOUR BIBLE STUDY Opener Have you ever had to apologize to someone? How did you feel about it beforehand? What were your feelings afterwards? Backdrop During the time of Jesus, there were many different groups of religious teachers among the Jewish people. One of these groups was called the Pharisees. At the beginning of this story today, these religious leaders ask Jesus why He is willing to hang out with sinners. In response, Jesus tells three parables or stories. Today, we are going to read the third parable commonly known as The Prodigal Son, although a better title for it might be The Generous Father. Passage Read Luke 15:11-32 together. Exploration 1. What does the son request from his father? 2. What do you think is going on in the life of the son? 3. How would you feel if you were his father? 4. The father does not have to give the son the inheritance. Why do you think he does? 5. What title, in two words, would you give this scene in Luke 15:13-16? 6. What goes through the mind of the son before he returns? 7. What keeps us from repenting and coming back to God? 8. The climax of most great stories takes place when the hero saves the day. Who is the hero of this story? List all of the things the father does when the son returns. 9. How would you describe the father s actions? 11. Do you think the older son is justified in his thoughts? 12. How are the older son and the younger son different? 13. How are the older son and the younger son the same? 14. The story ends without our knowing the actions of the older son. Why do you think it ends so abruptly? 15. In the story of the prodigal son, with whom do you identify the most? 16. What can this identification tell us about our relationship with God? 17. In the story, the father gives away his inheritance to his son even though he does not have to do so. If the father in the story is like God the Father, what does this tell us about Him? 18. What can we learn about repentance from the thoughts of the young son? 10. How does the older son react to the younger son s return? Continued on page 5

5 5 Answers 1. He asks for the inheritance from his father before his father is dead. This is like telling his father that he wishes he were dead. 2. The son is deciding to live a life according to his desires. 3. A father would feel betrayed, hurt, insulted, and resentful. 4. Allow the group to discuss. The father is not forcing the son to be in a relationship with him. 5. Several pairs of words come to mind: rock bottom, downward spiral. 6. See the Repentance section in What s this passage all about? 7. Allow the group to discuss this. 8. The father is the hero of this story. See the Repentance section in What s this passage all about? 9. The father s actions seem to be absurd. He does not think of what his son did and he seems to go to the extreme to show his son how much he loves him... even before the son repents. 10. He becomes angry and refuses to join the party. 11. Allow the group to discuss this. The situation does not seem fair, but the sons are not business partners with the father, they are his sons. The restoration of the relationship is more important than the fault. 12. The initial difference between the two sons is their actions. One openly rebels while the other is seemingly obedient. 13. They are the same because, at their worst, they do not view themselves as sons of their father. 14. We have to look at why Jesus told the story in the first place. See the first two paragraphs of Living Story in What s this passage all about? 15. Allow the group to discuss this. 16. Allow the group to discuss this. 17. The father loves the son enough not to force the son to have a relationship with him. Instead, he lets him choose what he wants. It has been said that God is a perfect gentleman He will not force a relationship on us. 18. See the Repentance section in What s this passage all about? End FOCUSequip is based on Ephesians 4:12 for the equipment of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for building up the body of Christ. These materials seek to equip you for lifelong Catholic mission. We would love to hear your feedback at: focusequip@focus.org Copyright 2011 FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students). You are free to make copies for non-commercial use as along as you attribute the material to FOCUS. For commercial use please contact us.