Finding Faith ... in knowing we all at some point will be the younger brother

This week's gospel text: Luke 5:1-3, 11b-32

15 Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

3 So he told them this parable:

The Parable of the Prodigal and His Brother

11 Then Jesus said, “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the wealth that will belong to me.’ So he divided his assets between them. 13 A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant region, and there he squandered his wealth in dissolute living. 14 When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that region, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that region, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. 16 He would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, and no one gave him anything. 17 But when he came to his senses he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.” ’ 20 So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. 21 Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate, 24 for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.

25 “Now his elder son was in the field, and as he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. 27 He replied, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf because he has got him back safe and sound.’ 28 Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command, yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your assets with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’ 31 Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’ ”

The message:

Whoowie!!! … Now today’s gospel is gettin’ into it! … Isn’t it!

“The Parable of the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus Son.” … Now if there isn’t something in there to make every single one of you oldest siblings sitting in here today angry, then I wonder if you’re human. … Right?

I mean just look at the artwork on the cover of your bulletin today. It says it all. … The joy-filled father with his arm around the youngest son clad in the best robe. … And the angry older brother stormin’ off in the forefront.

Now, quickly, by a show of hands … how many of you older siblings sitting here today can relate with that older brother? … Just kidding. No need to verify that, I already know.

I’ve actually heard this parable be called “The Lament of the Older Brother,” and the very relatable thing for many of us is … who can blame him? Right?

None of this seems fair. … And it eats at the very foundations of what this world teaches us is justice.

Come on help me list the aphorisms … “A fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.” … Right? … “The early bird gets the worm.” … We could go on listing these quotes all day long.

“There’s no free lunch.”

Well, evidently there because now, Pastor is saying that Jesus says so! … Free lunch for everyone!

Because, here in America, this is what we are taught from the youngest of ages. … You are the measure of your work. … You get what you earn. … Meritocracy, right?

We get incensed when we think someone else is getting off easy. … When someone else takes a shortcut to success. … When someone else gets something they don’t DESERVE!

But, you see Faith Family, those are not the same scales of truth that guide the Heavenly Kingdom. … That’s what Jesus is telling us today, and not a … single … one … of us likes it! … Do we? 

Come on, be honest, with yourself! … You are silently sitting there thinking: “Jesus … This parable is just wrong. It’s unfair!”

And you know what Jesus’ answer to you is, Faith Family? … “Yup … it’s unfair. Because that is a human measurement. Something this world has taught you. … The Heavenly Kingdom measures in equity … and that is delivered through infinite grace.”

That’s what Jesus is trying to point out to the Pharisees and scribes who are mentioned at the beginning of this gospel text.

Because this entire episode begins with the Pharisees and scribes upset that Jesus is spending too much time … with tax collectors and with sinners. 

Harumph! … “Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them!’”

Gasp! … How dare Jesus! … Right! … How dare he sink to the levels of those … those … sinners! … He EATS with them! … And the TAX COLLECTORS TOO!

And the Pharisees and scribes -- the religious leaders of the day, mind you -- are besides themselves! They are incensed that Jesus would lower himself to the sinners’ social levels.

Faith Family … to completely understand what’s happening here we need to unpack a little context of what kind of social customs were practiced in the 1st century.

What the Pharisees and scribes are making reference to were customs known as table laws.

And one of those laws was that you did not eat at a table with those of a lower social class. … Especially … if you were really upper class … like a religious leader.

“Did you see that Jesus eating with … a tax collector? … Heavens!” … “And sinners too! Of all people! Jesus was breaking bread with SINNERS!”

And I think, Faith Family, this is where today’s gospel lesson gets messy for a lot of us. … Because these 1st century table laws make little sense to us in 21st century America.

We cannot understand the big deal because our customs surrounding social mobility make it hard for us to understand that in 1st century Jewish life, the classes did not mix. And your mobility among those classes -- either up or down -- was fixed.

Additionally, your station in life was EVERYTHING, and you did not dare jeopardize that social standing because you and all of your future descendants stood to lose everything with one social misstep.

And if you happen to have been born into the upper classes, then life was pretty OK. But to those born into the lower classes, life often wasn’t.

So, when Jesus comes along and plunks himself down at a table alongside a tax collector -- who remember, was collecting taxes not for the benefit of Jewish society, but rather was enriching the Romans … the very people who were oppressing the Jews -- well then, the Pharisees and scribes’ dander gets up.

And who knows, maybe you think that’s rightfully so.

But then there were the sinners too. Jesus, really? … You had to eat with the sinners too?

Well, you see, all of that was too much for the Pharisees and the scribes. They’d had enough. They were incensed!

And those of us here in the 21st century maybe are left to wonder what the big deal was? Right?

So Jesus is grabbing a burger with the guys who were doing the Roman empire’s extortion for them. Or maybe eating some vittles with a prostitute or two. … Meh.

It’s Jesus! Let him eat with whom he wants to eat! … Right?

But I promised you a little while ago that this is where this parable is going to get messy for each and everyone one of us. … You ready?

Because the intention of Jesus’ parable is not only to address the Pharisees and scribes’ reaction to him eating with tax collectors and sinners. … It’s also meant to address yours and my reactions to all of the other classifications of folks whom we think don’t deserve Jesus’ attention.

That’s right. … Because Jesus wasn’t just addressing the Pharisees and the scribes in this passage. … He’s also addressing us.

And he’s telling us that we can insert any two groups we don’t like into the first sentences of this gospel text … and he’ll sit down to break bread with them too.

“Now all the [blank] and [blank] were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the 21st century Christians were grumbling and saying, ‘This Jesus who is supposed to exclusively be ours welcomes the [blank] and eats with them.”

Now that’s hearing this gospel a little differently, right?

Gasp! … Jesus how could you! … They are [blank] and [blank]! … They don’t deserve your attention! They don’t deserve God’s grace! … It’s ours and ours alone! Right?

We 21st century Christians are the older brother that stayed home all these years, and dutifully worked the fields and tended to the goats and the calves.

We stayed and worked like slaves while all of those [blanks] and [blanks] took their share, ran to another country, partied it up with prostitutes and squandered everything given to them.

And now, Jesus … you welcome them home! … You welcome them to sit at the table and eat with you? … You adorn them with the best robe, kill the fatted calf for them and host a party! … What????

It’s not fair, Jesus! … They don’t deserve God’s love and abundant grace like we do! … They are [blanks] and [blanks]!

I told you this was about to get messy for us. … Because we are in LOVE with this earthly concept of fairness. We get things because we earn them.

The older brother was angry at the father because the younger brother didn’t earn the rewards of coming home. … We get angry with others because there is simply no way that God could love the [blanks] and the [blanks] as much as he does us because they didn’t earn it. 

That’s just not fair!

And that’s when Jesus looks the Pharisees and the scribes … and yes, even us, Faith Family … directly in the eyes and says …

“God’s kingdom isn’t about what’s fair. There’s actually no meritocracy in heaven at all. … What heaven is about is infinite grace. … And there’s simply nothing you can do to earn it.”

And that Faith Family is what sets off the silent triggers of every single one of us sitting here today. … Jesus is going to sit down and eat at the table with every [blank] that you don’t believe deserves it.

That is what fuels the “Oldest Sibling Syndrome” in every one of us sitting here today. And it convicts each and every one of us. … We are guilty.

Who are the people that you would fill in the blanks with in today’s gospel, Faith Family? … If you were one of the Pharisees or scribes Jesus is pointing his finger at? … Who in your mind, doesn’t get to sit and eat at the table with Jesus?

I told you this was going to get messy … because it’s always messy when we have to share our Jesus … with someone else. … Someone whom we believe doesn’t DESERVE to eat with our Jesus.

If you were truly honest with yourself, who would you fill in those two blanks with, Faith Family? … The worst of the worst who just don’t deserve to eat at Jesus’ table. 

Would you dare say them out loud for fear of how those around you would react? … Not many of us would.

But trust me, you have plenty of company … because we are all convicted by Jesus’ message today.

And I am pretty certain that at least one of us here today is thinking, “But surely, pastor, Jesus would not sit down to eat with the [blanks]!” … And you would be wrong.

Because no matter how despicably low of a person you might conjure up in your imagination … Jesus is telling us he’d sit at their table. … And that is why this parable angers every single one of us.

But the reality is … that if we weren’t so shortsighted because of our finite human ability to love … Jesus’ message today actually should make each and everyone of us rejoice!

Because at some point every single human being is going to be the younger brother … and God is going to welcome us home too!

And that is the Good News for this Sunday, the Fourth Sunday in Lent, March 30, 2025. Amen.