From an unquestioned
fundamentalist Christian environment I was pretty much handed a Bible
and told, 'Read this and you will know what God is like.' Then about
forty years later , supposedly as a preacher of the Bible, I
realized that the Bible shows many different images for God, not one.
And most troubling they are indeed often contradictory. But much
Christian teaching still tells folks that God in the Bible, which often
ordered the murder of innocents and genocide, is the same as the one seen in Jesus'
depiction of God here as an emotionally moved compassionate father.
Luke pictures a father God extravagantly and unconditionally
embracing his wayward son asking no questions. I could not continue
to hold such a split notion of God in my head. I think this remains a
problem for many today.
The author of the
gospel of Luke attempts to describe what he had come to believe
was the idea of God which Jesus carried in his mind and heart. As ones
encouraged by what we see as the nature and character of Jesus, we
can responsibly choose the nature of the ultimate God to include what is
described here. We might be convinced that such a view of God just
might help keep humans from destroying themselves and the planet in
this post modern impersonal age, whereas other images of god only
lead us toward destruction. This very reading helps me in sorting out the nature and the
will of what humans have immemorially referred to as God.
Luke begins here presenting Jesus as someone who
became focused on the suffering plight of the most powerless and
marginalized and morally discredited people in the country villages
where he traveled as a poor teaching rabbi. He recognized these
people were being horribly treated and despised by both their
religious leaders and the Roman civil authorities. The poor were
unable to establish a livelihood for their families. Life was
unlivable. Luke simply says such persons were naturally drawn to
Jesus and came to him for his words of encouragement. Luke implies
that the religious leaders were annoyed at Jesus and saw him as a
threat to their power over these ordinary folks. Luke says they
grumbled accusingly to each other, “ This fellow welcomes sinners
and eats with them.”
Luke describes Jesus
giving two quick metaphors about the nature of God: God's nature is
like that of a shepherd who risks leaving the whole flock in order
to find and bring back the one sheep that got lost. And God's nature
is also like a woman who lost one of ten valuable coins and eagerly
went to work sweeping the floor until she finds the one coin that was
lost. I've noticed , as one prone to losing things, that nearly
always 'endurance' is the key to finding anything lost. First my
mother then my wife were always willing to help find my keys,
billfold etc I had lost but for more than ten years I've been on my
own. I'm now very aware that if I did not do the careful work of
searching for such lost items then they are never found. So I hear
Luke telling me something about how intent the ultimate nature of God
is about finding a way to recover his creatures and whole creation
when they get lost or disconnected.
Finally in more detail, as
if to emphasize it, Luke speaks of a wealthy Father's two sons. The
more adventuresome one , somewhat unappreciatively, asked for his
full inheritance and headed out to see what he could make of life.
Like many a person he pretty much made a mess of it. But he had in
his youth at least noticed that his father likely had his best
interest at heart. So with life wrenching humiliation Luke describes
him returning home to beg a job from his father. But he never
even got to make his apology or do any begging. To his amazement his
father asked no questions, but instead ran out to meet his ragged
child, embraced him and invited the whole extended family and workers
to join him in a great party explaining that ' this son got
lost from me but is now found.' And so they began to celebrate.
Ironically Luke's theme
does not focus on the young brother's story of 'getting lost' through
his misguided, but maybe necessary, path of finding out for himself
what in life is most valuable to him. But the emphasis here is on
the seemingly irrationally extravagant
acceptance
by the Father of his son, without any need of apology or questions of
where he had been or what he had done. No doubt most were expecting
the father to drill his son and demand apology etc. But this at odds
with Luke's description. The father was simply carried away with
the fact that his son safe and home. He experienced an emotional
high that demanded expression. That was all this Father needed in
relationship with his sons. The younger son's process of development
seems to be presented as a rather natural course of a human life
finding itself. Life simply is not a perfect path by any means but
one of much trial and error, success and failure.
An equally central concern
of the whole teaching here is to examine the destructive disposition
that frequently overtakes a human life and leaves it in an animal
like state of complete self seeking. I'm speaking of that 'grumbling'
elitist disposition of the leaders at the top of Luke's presentation.
For he now returns to it. (Does anyone remember this 'grumbling state
of mind' as displayed in Mr. Bluster on the Howdy Doody show? Well
that is just another version of what Luke is addressing.)Only this
time it is sadly occurring in the older brother. The attuned father
listens when the older son takes him aside and demandingly asks,
“What is all this making over 'this son of yours'.” The older
brother is unable to really see his own returned brother but only now
sees him as this despicable 'son of his father.' He then lets the
resentment pour out. “ I've always been a good boy, never breaking
the rules, always doing exactly the right thing but 'this son of
yours' totally screws up , embarrasses you ; yet for him you throw
this big party. We never do that here. Maybe I should not even try to
be so good?” Luke has the father try to explain that his love for
both sons is of equal quality but when either one has become
dangerously forever lost , Well, “ We just have to celebrate his
return. Please join us”, the father asks. Note the father makes no
apology to the older son but makes clear that all are invited to
celebrate. That is how it ends. This beautiful teaching about God and
humans. This grumbling disposition is a life destroying trap that
humans in all places and circumstances remain most vulnerable to.
Luke leaves his readers to
reflect on this. To come up not only with how the story might
continue but also to explore the implications of what his teaching
about the nature of God and humans are in their personal lives. So I
will not insult you reflecting intelligence by offering my take on
what this story can mean today, no doubt many things. I do find
myself contemplating these images frequently. You can use Luke's
teaching to contemplate your own present life situation, with its
complications of family, friends, work , play and even perceived
enemies. Or how it might apply regarding your attitude to various
misjudged, maligned and marginalized persons and groups in our
communities , nation and world. And as you bring your own complicated
life into contact with these images of an ultimate nature of God,
Luke's images can still have a profound and living impact on how you
sort things out. Perhaps we can consider we each have these elements
within our most inner life. We are at times the younger son with all
his youthful exuberance that always comes crashing down. We may also
be at times the extravagantly compassionate father capable of
embracing all that life brings, both joys and sadness, without making
exacting demands on others and life. And perhaps still alive in us is
that older grumbling brother, unable to open up to the explainable
nature of how life happens and thus at times unable to either weep or
laugh, but only to judge and grumble. We are not likely just one of
these but all of them in the complicated packages we refer to as
'you, me and us.'
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