“Known by the Company” (Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32)

We have all heard the quote before . . . “A man is known by the company he keeps.”  It is often believed that a person tends to be very similar in attitude, character, ability, or personality to the people with whom they associate or spend time with.  We probably heard it from our parents, preachers, teachers, and coaches as they thought they were watching out for our best interests.  They didn’t want us falling into the wrong crowd.  I will let you determine what “wrong” was, but I think that you get the point.  “A person is known by the company that he or she keeps.”

I share this because this is the attitude being expressed by the Pharisees and teachers of the law as they watch Jesus.  Jesus seems to have the tendency of drawing the wrong crowd around himself . . . people like sinners and tax collectors.  The Pharisees and teachers of the law believed that this had a lot to say about Jesus, his character, and intentions.  They muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”  In other words, those who Jesus was hanging out with told a lot about him . . . and, it wasn’t positive or good.  The Pharisees and teachers of the law saw Jesus as being no better than the scum he associated with.

Apparently, Jesus had pretty good hearing because he heard all the muttering going on about his associations.  Probably did not please him, but the writer doesn’t tell us Jesus’ reaction.  The writer only goes on to tell us that Jesus tells a parable . . . actually three parables, but we are only dealing with the last parable . . . the parable of the Lost Son or Prodigal Son.  Most prefer the title, The Prodigal Son, but I think it is more aptly named The Lost Son.  I think you will figure it out as we go along.

In the first two parables about lost sheep and a lost coin, the emphasis is upon the two individuals dropping everything and looking for the lost until it is found.  Then upon finding the lost sheep and coin the two individuals call upon everyone they know—family, friends, and neighbors—to rejoice with them for the lost had been found.  So it will be in heaven, says Jesus, whenever one lost sinner repents and returns to the fold.

The third parable, The Lost Son, is similar, but different.  This time the “lost” is the younger son who chooses to take his inheritance, run off, and sow his oats with despicable living—wine, women, and song.  He runs around with the wrong crowd.  Things were great for the younger son until a catastrophe hits and he runs out of money . . . things get tough, really quick.  Reality for the young son sucks.  In the meantime, the older son decides to stay home, work the property with his father, and be a good son.  And, that is what he does . . . he stays home and works hard each and every day.  He does everything that his father asks him to do . . . and, he never complains.

At least he never complains until his younger brother decides to lick his wounds, admit defeat and fault, and come back to the homestead by throwing himself at the mercy of his father.  This irritates the older sibling to no ends.  Upon learning of his brother’s return being heralded with an all-out party, he refuses to have anything to do with either of them.  Instead he complains to his father about having done everything right . . . everything by the book, and in the end, he gets nothing. Needless to say, the older son feels duped.

It is apparent, in all three parables, that the “lost” get associated with the “wrong crowd” . . . in the first two, repentance is the key to the rejoicing.  In the third one, the wayward son comes to his senses having chosen to run with the wrong crowd, seeks forgiveness, and is willing to turn around and start at the bottom of the pile.  I think that qualifies as repentance.  In other words, the “lost” are equated as “sinners”, or as the Pharisees and teachers of the law would say, the “wrong crowd.”  The bad people. 

In the parable of the two sons, which one is actually “lost”?

Of course, we know the younger son—the prodigal—is the one identified as being lost; but, Jesus has a way of making people have to think differently.  So, is it really the younger son who is “lost” or is it the older son?

I imagine that the evidence speaks for itself.  The younger son went off and did all the wrong things.  He ran around with all the wrong people.  He was in the wrong crowd.  His older brother even points this out to their father.  He also points out that he has done everything right . . . he stayed home to help his father . . . he did not run with the wrong crowd . . . and, he did not squander his inheritance.  As far as the older brother is concerned, his younger brother is what he is . . . scum.  Scum does not deserve grace.  Scum especially doesn’t deserve a party.  The younger brother is the one who has been lost.

The father does not disagree.  No, instead, it is because this child has been lost, but is now returned home, that he should be welcomed with love and grace back into the family.  Or, as the father put it, “But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”  It is the right thing to do . . . the godly thing to do.  He tells his older son, “You are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”  The father doesn’t understand his older son’s anger and refusal to welcome his brother home.

So, which son is the “lost” son?

A lot of theologians will argue that whoever you identify with in the story tells a lot of about you.  Who do you identify with . . . the prodigal son, the loving and grace-filled father, or the angry brother who feels burned by it all?  I guess those theologians fall into that common understanding of the phrase, “A person is known by the company that he or she keeps.”  That there are only “good” people or “bad” people.  There is either the “right” crowd or the “wrong” crowd.  And, depending upon which group or crowd you run around with, it says a lot about you.

Unfortunately, this is not true with Jesus.  Jesus ran around with the wrong crowd . . . the wrong people.  Jesus ran around with “sinners”.  He hung out with the tax collectors . . . the prostitutes . . . criminals . . . all sorts of sinners.  Of course, there were always those around who liked to point this out . . . like to let everyone know that Jesus was no better than the people he ran around with.  But, we know that this is not true.  Jesus hung out with the those who were disenfranchised . . . those who were left out . . . those who were on the outside looking in . . . those who were not included . . . those deemed less than good enough . . . those that others did not want.  Jesus hung out with those that the religious in power deemed to be the “wrong” crowd.  He not only hung out with them, but he welcomed them into the fullness of God’s love and grace . . . welcomed them back into the family of God.  These were the ones who God desired . . . those who were lost but are now found.

Jesus wasn’t going to find them in the places that the Pharisees and teachers of the law hung out.  They weren’t in any need of being “included” . . . though they did want what Jesus was offering.  Thus, they were offended . . . offended that the wrong crowd—the sinners—were reaping the rewards . . . after all, they had done everything that was expected of them.  It seems to me that this group was the “lost” group.

We all know that Jesus put more into “action” than “words”, especially when it comes to love and grace . . . especially when it comes to relationships.  Jesus hung out with those who needed love and grace . . . with those who needed to be included . . . with those society and the world deemed as the “wrong crowd”.  Jesus understood the power of God’s love and grace . . . of God’s desire to restore that which was “lost”.  Jesus lived God’s will.

And, Jesus calls us to do likewise.  Don’t be “lost” . . . and, watch the crowd you hang out with because in the end, it says a lot about you.  It did for Jesus.  Amen. 

“The Cost of the Prodigal” (Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32)

There are lots of people who “weigh” the cost before they make purchases . . . especially the big ones like cars and houses.  They research, they compare, they ask the experts questions, and they do their homework so that they can figure out the exact “cost” of what it is that they are purchasing.  I imagine that there is not any of us sitting here this morning that would say that this is not a smart thing to do . . . do your homework to figure out the cost.

The definition of “cost” is “an amount that has to be paid or given up in order to get something.”  When it comes to purchasing something with money . . . we know the cost because it is right out there for us to see . . . we see exactly what we have to pay in order to have that something that we want.  That is the “amount” to be paid.  That is in the world of economics—the world of business; but, in life there is also the “cost” of other things that we want in our lives . . . the “intangibles” . . . and, they, too come with a “cost”.  Typically it comes with having to give something up in order to get what it is that we want.  It seems that everything in life comes with a “cost”.

My wife’s sister—my sister-in-law—has her college degrees in economics . . . a bachelor and master’s degree, and she told me years ago that all of life is based on economics.  Everything has its price in life . . . everything has a cost . . . nothing in life is free.  Now, as idealistic as I think I have been over the years since she told me this, I have come to the conclusion that she is right . . . everything has a cost . . . everything.

Consider our scripture lesson this morning.  Jesus is going about his public ministry . . . teaching and preaching to whoever shows up . . . and, we are told that in this particular scene the majority of those who were gathering around Jesus were the sinners and tax collectors.  These sinners and tax collectors are from the wrong side of town . . . they were the people that “good” people avoided and looked down upon . . . they were the people on the edges . . . the shadow people.  Yet, they are the ones who keep showing up.  This was not good for Jesus . . . it was ruining his reputation . . . putting a damper on his ministry . . . making him look bad.  At least that is what the Pharisees and teachers of the law were mumbling.  And, of course, what they think should matter, right?  After all, they are the leaders . . . the figureheads . . . power and representatives of the faith in the community.  To mingle with the scum was not acceptable and it brought Jesus down in the sight of those who were important. 

Jesus wasn’t deaf.  Jesus wasn’t blind.  He heard the words of these important people . . . he saw their reactions to the people he was ministering to; and, he didn’t care.  He didn’t care what they thought because what they thought was all wrong.  So, Jesus responds with a parable . . . actually, three parables.  In our reading this morning we focus on the third parable . . . the parable we all know as the “Prodigal Son”.

The youngest son of a man comes to him and asks for his inheritance.  So the man divides his estate between his two sons.  Not long after the youngest son takes his inheritance and skid-daddles off to the bright lights of the big city where he proceeds to blow everything he has . . . squanders it all on wine, women, and song . . . has a good ol’ time.  Then one day, he wakes up . . . discovers that he has nothing and he is sitting in the middle of an economic depression . . . there are no jobs anywhere . . . he is hungry . . . but no one would give him any help.  He was up the creek without a paddle.  It gets so bad he even considers eating the food being fed to the pigs . . . like one of the lowest acts that any Jew could ever commit.

But then he remembers . . . the old man has money . . . the old man has a clean place for him to live . . . the old man has food.  He figures that if his father takes care of his servants, surely he would take care of him.  He would throw himself on the mercy of his father . . . ask to become a servant in order to survive.

When you think about it . . . it sounds like a good plan; but, before he even gets up to his father’s house, his father sees him coming.  Filled with compassion he runs to his youngest son, throws his arms around him, kissed him, and welcomed him home.  Before the kid could finish his confession and seek his father’s help, the father is in the hospitality mode . . . he dresses his son in the finest clothes, decks him out with jewelry, kill a fatten calf, and throws one heck of a party . . . singing and dancing fill the air.  The father is exuberant that his son has returned.

Of course, the older son . . . the good and obedient son . . . hears all the commotion but refuses to go up to the house to see what is going on . . . refuses because he knows his ungrateful and sinful brother has returned home.  He is angry . . . angry at his brother . . . and, angry at his father.  He refuses to go to the party . . . to welcome his brother home. 

The father goes out to his oldest son in hopes that he can convince him to come and join in the festivities.  But the older son refuses and complains . . . complains that he had done everything that was expected of him, stuck around and did all the work, and what did he ever get from his father . . . nothing . . .  not even a goat to throw a party.  Then he points out that the wayward son . . . the sinful son who did nothing but squander his inheritance . . . gets the royal treatment.  He refuses to welcome his brother home.

This floors the father . . . he does not understand . . . his heart is broken.

Who paid the greatest “cost” in this story?  The youngest son who squanders his inheritance?  The oldest son who sticks around, does everything according to the book, and then refuses to welcome back his brother . . . to step back into the relationship of sibling . . . at the risk of losing his relationship with his father?  Or, is it the father who loses his estate when he splits it to give each son their inheritance . . . who loses his youngest to a sinful life . . . or, lose his oldest by welcoming the sinful son back into the family?  Who pays the biggest price in this story?

Well, the youngest son loses quite a bit of money when he squanders away his inheritance in wine, women, and song . . . he is rock bottom and knows that there is nothing left for him back home except the possible mercy of his father.  The oldest son . . . he loses a brother . . . possibly a “life” since he does the work of two by staying with his father to do the work . . . and, he loses his father.  Those are some pretty heavy “costs” that both the sons pay . . . but, I think that it is the father who pays the greatest cost in the end.

The father loses his wealth and status when he gives up his estate in order to provide his sons with an inheritance . . . he is not yet dead, but he gives it all up for his sons.  This does not look good to those in the community around him.  He allows his youngest to go off and blow his inheritance . . . and, to blow it in the most decadent way possible . . . and, to return with a status lower than a servant.  I am sure the tongues were wagging in the community about the man and his youngest son.  Then he welcomes his sinful son home . . . throws him a big party . . . and, never once, does he ask for anything in return from this wayward son . . . no apology, nothing.  How silly he must have looked to the community.  And, then to have his oldest son . . . the hard-working, abiding, and obedient son refuse to come and take part in the festivities . . . to ignore the wishes of his father.  To allow his oldest to basically tell him to go to h, e, double toothpicks.  This got the tongues wagging even more.  Nothing this father did was the way he was supposed to act . . . was not the way that things were done . . . and, with each act the father fell further and further down the social ladder of his community.

And, he didn’t care.  He didn’t care what anyone else thought.  His son had returned to the family, and he gladly welcomed him back into the family.  The lost had been found.  The family was restored.  This is not a story about the prodigal, but the story about the one who welcomes him back . . . it is a story about the father.  The father is full of grace and forgiveness in welcoming his son home . . . he does not care whether or not it is the way that things are supposed to be done . . . he does not care whether or not it knocks him down the social ladder.  He does the right thing and welcomes the lost back into the family. 

So it is with God.

Jesus is doing all the wrong things in welcoming and allowing the sinners and tax collectors into the family . . . but, he does not care.  He is welcoming others . . . it is pure grace and love.  With it, God is happy because Jesus is doing exactly what God wants him to do . . . he is restoring the family . . . finding the lost . . . and, not only bringing them back to the family, but welcoming them in.

In the season of Lent we are to weigh what it is that keeps us . . . as individuals and a church . . . from fully embracing our relationship with God and others.  One of those things that we should consider is the “cost” of following Jesus—his words and example . . . faith is not free, it comes with a “cost”.  To do the will of God is often to go against what others think is right . . . what society thinks is important . . . what gives us status with others . . . what gives us importance and power.  It is to go against the flow.  And, when we cannot pay the cost we act a lot like the oldest son . . . the cost is too much . . . and, though the world around us stands beside us in principle, we lose in the end.

In this season of Lent we weigh the cost . . . the cost of being a prodigal.  Is it worth stepping up and embracing those who are the sinners, taxpayers, and those who are standing on the outside looking in because they are not the status quo?  Jesus thinks it is more important to welcome those who have been lost than to dance with those who think they have already attained sainthood.  It makes God happy.  In the end that is all that matters . . . and, Jesus really did not care whether or not anyone else agreed. 

     Jesus told a story . . . what will be our story?  Amen.