I will get up and go back to my father and say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against God and before you.
Commentaries
15:11 - 15:32
Parable of the Lost Sons.
Jesus exposes the harmful effects of legalism and the distortion of God’s true nature. He shares his experience of God as a loving father who cares for his children equally. In the parable, the older son believes he deserves all the father’s love because of his obedience, while he thinks his younger brother should be punished for his actions. However, Jesus shows how the father’s love is given to the younger son despite what he has done. The parable challenges legalism by emphasizing that divine love is given freely, not as a reward for good behavior, but through grace and always celebrated in the awareness of that free love.
Commentaries
Parable of the Lost Sons.
Jesus exposes the harmful effects of legalism and the distortion of God’s true nature. He shares his experience of God as a loving father who cares for his children equally. In the parable, the older son believes he deserves all the father’s love because of his obedience, while he thinks his younger brother should be punished for his actions. However, Jesus shows how the father’s love is given to the younger son despite what he has done. The parable challenges legalism by emphasizing that divine love is given freely, not as a reward for good behavior, but through grace and always celebrated in the awareness of that free love.