Jesus' Invitation to the Self-Righteous to Celebrate the Clearly Unrighteous

Last week, as I considered the Parable of the Prodigal Son in my lectio divina, I wrestled with how this came as the climax of three “lost and found” parables that Jesus told because “the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow [Jesus] welcomes sinners and eats with them.’” (Luke 15:2) To just consider this a rebuke to the self-righteous religious leaders just seemed inadequate. Thank you, Sarah MacDonald, for your worship message for Milwaukee Mennonite Church yesterday that help clarify and articulate some of the thoughts I had but couldn’t quite assemble during the week.

Just as the father invited the elder son to join the celebration of the younger son’s return, with these parables, Jesus was inviting the religious leaders to loosen their grip on their stifling self-righteousness and enter into the joy of welcoming and celebrating those who were returning to life.

With the masterful stoke of superb storytelling, Jesus did not finish the story. We are left to wonder whether the elder son came into the party or not? With what attitude and emotions? What was the relationship between the brothers during and after the party? Did the younger brother become a hired hand? What happened after the father died? Similarly, Luke did not indicate the response of the religious leaders to whom Jesus told these parables. We know that as a body, they continued to oppose Jesus to his death. But we also know some followed Jesus – Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathea. But here, Luke did not indicate any reaction or response from them to Jesus’ sharply pointed parables clearly directed at them. I think the open-endedness of  both Jesus and Luke were intentional to prompt our divergent thinking and responses.