The word "prodigal" does not mean "wayward" but ... "recklessly spendthrift." It means to spend until you have nothing left. This term is therefore as appropriate for describing the father in the story as his younger son. The father's welcome to the repentant son was literally reckless, because he refused to "reckon" or count his sin against him or demand repayment.
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In this story the father represents the Heavenly Father Jesus knew so well. St. Paul writes: ”God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not reckoning to them their trespasses."
這就是神在基督里叫世人與自己和好，不將他們的過犯歸到他們身上。（林后5:19)
Jesus is showing us the God of Great Expenditure, who is nothing if not prodigal toward us, his children. God's reckless grace is our greatest hope, a life-changing experience, and the subject of ... (查看原文)
No, the original listeners were not melted into tears by this story but rather they were thunderstruck, offended, and infuriated. Jesus's purpose is not to warm our hearts but to shatter our categories. Through this parable Jesus challenges what nearly everyone has ever thought about God, sin, and salvation. His story reveals the destructive self-centeredness of the younger brother, but it also condemns the elder brother's moralistic life in the strongest terms. Jesus is saying that both the irreligious and the religious are spiritually lost, both life-paths are dead ends, and that every thought the human race has had about how to connect to God has been wrong.
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The gospel is distinct from the other two approaches: In its view, everyone is wrong, everyone is loved, and everyone is called to recognize this and change. By contrast, elder brothers divide the world in two:"The good people (like us) are in and the bad people, who are the real problem with the world, are out." Younger brothers, even if they don't believe in God at all, do the same thing, saying:"No, the open-minded and tolerant people are in and the bigoted, narrow-minded people, who are the real problem with the world, are out."
But Jesus says:"The humble are in and the proud are out" (Luke 18:14). The people who confess they aren't particularly good or open-minded are moving toward God, because the prerequisite for receiving the grace of God is to know you need it. The people who thi... (查看原文)
Elder brothers base their self-images on being hardworking, or moral, or members of an elite clan, or extremely smart and savvy. This inevitably leads to feeling superior to those who don't have those same qualities. In fact, competitive comparison is the main way elder brothers achieve a sense of their own significance. Racism and classism are just different versions of this form of the self-salvation project. This dynamic becomes exceptionally intense when elder brothers pride themselves above all for their right religion. If a group believes God favors them because of their particularly true doctrine, ways of worship, and ethical behavior, their attitude toward those without these things can be hostile. Their self-righteousness hides under the claim that they are only opposing the enem... (查看原文)
Elder brother obedience only leads to a slavish, begrudging compliance to the letter of the law. It is one thing to be honest and avoid lies for your sake, but it is another to do so for God's sake, for truth's sake, and for the love of the people around us. A person motivated by love rather than fear will not only obey the letter of the law, but will eagerly seek out new ways to carry out business with transparency and integrity.
Honesty born of fear does nothing to root out the fundamental cause of evil in the world - the radical self-centeredness of the human heart. If anything, fear-based morality strengthens it, since ultimately elder brothers are being moral only for their own benefit. They may be kind to others and helpful to the poor, but at a deeper level they are doing it eith... (查看原文)
作者: 提姆·凯乐 原作名: The Prodigal God ：Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith isbn: 7510433665 书名: 一掷千金的上帝 页数: 119 译者:吕允智 定价: 25.00元 出版社: 新世界出版社 出版年: 2012-11 装帧: 平装
