December 1, 1895

The Prodigal Son

[Extracted from the chapter on “The Prodigal Son,” in Sister White's forthcoming “Life of Christ,” and furnished by the author for this present week of prayer. It is requested that this article be not published elsewhere.]

Reading for Thursday, December 26

EGW

The parables of the lost sheep and the lost piece of silver represent the attitude of God toward the sinner. The parable of the prodigal son also represents the attitude of the sinner toward God. While one presents the divine, the other gives also the human aspect of redemption. “A certain man,” said Jesus, “had two sons; and the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country.” This younger son desires to have his own way. There is in his heart no response to his father's love, no gratitude for the years of care and tenderness that have been his. Having obtained his patrimony, he goes into “a far country,” away from his father's home. With money in plenty, and liberty to do as he likes, he flatters himself that the desire of his heart is reached. He has no one to say, “Do not do this, for it will be an injury to yourself;” or “Do this because it is right.” Evil companions help him to plunge deeper and deeper into sin, and he “wastes his substance in riotous living.”GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 1

The Bible tells of men, who, “professing themselves to be wise, became fools” (Romans 1:22); and this is the history of the young man of the parable. The wealth which he selfishly claimed from his father he squanders upon harlots. The treasure of his young manhood is wasted; the precious years of life, the strength of intellect, the bright visions of youth, the spiritual aspirations,—all are consumed in the fires of lust.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 2

A great famine arises, he begins to be in want, and he joins himself to a citizen of the country, who sends him into the fields to feed swine. To a Jew this was the most menial and degrading of employments. The youth who had thought to make the world his servant, now finds himself its slave. The glitter and tinsel that enticed him have disappeared, and he feels the cruel burden of his chain. He has boasted of his liberty, but he is the servant of corruption. He is in the worst of bondage,—“holden with the cords of his sins.” Proverbs 5:22. Sitting upon the ground, in that desolate and famine-stricken land, with no other companions than the swine, he would fain have filled himself with the husks on which the beasts were fed. Among all the gay companions who flocked about him in his prosperous days, and ate and drank at his expense, there is not one left to befriend him. Where now is his riotous joy? Stilling his conscience, benumbing his sensibilities, he thought himself happy in scenes of revelry; but now, with money spent, with hunger unsatisfied, with pride humbled, with his moral nature dwarfed, with his will weak and unreliable, with his finer feelings seemingly dead, he is the most wretched of mortals.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 3

What a picture here of the sinner's state! Notwithstanding that we are surrounded with the blessings of his love, there is nothing that the sinner desires so much as separation from God. Like the ungrateful son, he claims the good things of God as his by right. He takes them as a matter of course, and makes no return of gratitude, renders no service of love. He will not wait for the future to receive his inheritance. His thoughts are centered on the present. He will enter into his kingdom now. Present enjoyment, selfish indulgence, is his aim. As Cain went out from the presence of the Lord to seek his home; as the prodigal wandered into the “far country,” so do sinners seek happiness in forgetfulness of God. They do not like to retain God in their knowledge. Romans 1:28.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 4

Whatever the appearance may be, every life is squandered that is centered in self. Whoever attempts to live his life apart from God, is but wasting his substance; he is squandering the precious years, squandering the powers of mind and heart and soul, and working to make himself bankrupt for eternity. The man who separates from God that he may serve himself, is the slave of mammon. The mind that God created for the companionship of angels, has become degraded to the service of that which is low and earthly and bestial. For this is the end to which self-serving tends.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 5

Yet the hunger of the soul is unsatisfied. You would fain feed on the husks that the swine do eat. You try to content yourself with that which ministers to the carnal and earthly nature, but you know that you are spending money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which satisfies not. Alone in the far country you feel your wretchedness, and in despair you cry, “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” Romans 7.24.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 6

The prodigal son in his wretchedness “came to himself.” The deceptive power that Satan had exercised over him was broken; he saw that his misery was the result of his own folly, and he said, “How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, while I perish with hunger! I will arise, and go to my father.”GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 7

As the youth with weary and painful steps pursues the toilsome way, he knows not that one is even now waiting his return. And when he is yet “a great way off,” the father discerns his form. Love is of quick sight, and not even the degradation of the years of sin can conceal the son from the father's eyes. “He had compassion on him, and ran, and fell on his neck,” in a long, clinging, tender embrace.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 8

The youth has trusted his father's love, and love shall work his rescue. No contemptuous eye shall mock at his misery and tatters. The father takes the broad, rich mantle from his own shoulders, and wraps it around the wasted form, and the youth sobs out his repentance, saying, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight. I am no more worthy to be called thy son.” The father holds him close to his side, and brings him home. No servant he, but a son of the house, who shall be honored with the best the house affords, and whom the waiting men and women shall respect and serve.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 9

The father said to his servants, “Bring forth quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet, and bring forth the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and make merry: for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.” (R.V.)GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 10

In his wild, restless youth, the prodigal looked upon his father as stern and severe; how different his conception of him now! So the heart that is deceived by Satan looks upon God as hard and exacting; his law is regarded as a restriction upon men's happiness, a burdensome yoke, from which they are glad to escape. But he whose eyes have been opened by the love of Christ, will behold God as full of love and compassion. He does not appear as a tyrannical, relentless being, but as a father longing to embrace his repenting son. The sinner will cry with the psalmist, “Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him.” Psalm 103:13.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 11

In the parable of the father and the son, there is no taunting, no casting up to the prodigal of his evil course; the boy feels that the past is forgiven and forgotten,—blotted out forever. And so God says to the sinner, “I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins.” “I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Isaiah 44:22; Jeremiah 31:34. “Let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” “In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found.” Isaiah 55:7; Jeremiah 50:20.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 12

What assurance here of God's willingness to receive the repenting sinner! Have you, reader, chosen your own way? Have you wandered far from God? Have you sought to feast upon the fruits of transgression, only to find them turn to ashes upon your lips? And now, your substance spent, your life-plans thwarted, and your hopes dead, do you sit alone and desolate? Now that voice which has long been speaking to your heart, but to which you would not listen, comes to you distinct and clear, “Arise ye, and depart; for this is not your rest: because it is polluted, it shall destroy you, even with a sore destruction.” Micah 2:10. Return to your Father's house. He invites you, saying, “Return unto me: for I have redeemed thee.” Isaiah 44:22.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 13

Do not listen to the enemy's suggestion to stay away from Christ until you have made yourself better; until you are good enough to come to God. If you wait until then, you will never come. When Satan points to your filthy garments, repeat the promise of Jesus, “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:37. Tell the enemy that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin. Make the prayer of David your own. “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” Psalm 51:7.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 14

Arise, and go unto your Father and say, “I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight. I am no more worthy to be called thy son.” (R.V.) He will meet you a great way off; he will give you his love and compassion; he will clothe you with the garments of salvation, and cover you with the robe of righteousness. “Though ye have lain among the pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold.” Isaiah 61:10; Psalm 68:13. He will bring you into his banqueting house, and his banner over you shall be love. Song of Solomon 2:4.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 15

In the beautiful parabolic prophecy of Zechariah, the high priest Joshua, standing clothed in filthy garments before the angel of the Lord, represents the sinner. And the word is spoken by the Lord, “Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.” “So they set a fair mitre upon his head and clothed him with garments.” Then was given the promise of restoration to the father's house: “If thou wilt walk in my ways, ... I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by,”—even among the angels that surround the throne of God. Zechariah 3:4, 5, 7.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 16

“As the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.” “He will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.” Isaiah 62:5; Zephaniah 3:17. And heaven and earth shall unite in the Father's song of rejoicing; “For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.”GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 17

Thus far in the Saviour's parable there is no discordant note to jar the harmony of the scene of joy; but now Christ introduces another element. When the prodigal came home, the elder son “was in the field; and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things meant, and he said unto him thy brother is come, and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. And he was angry, and would not go in.” It is evident that this elder brother has not been sharing in his father's anxiety, and watching for the one that was lost. He knows not of the wanderer's return, and when he hears the sound of rejoicing, it kindles no gladness in his heart. He does not enter into the joy of the household. He inquires of a servant the reason of the festivity, and the answer only irritates his jealous disposition. He will not go in to welcome his lost brother. The favor shown the prodigal he regards as an insult to himself.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 18

When the father comes out to remonstrate with him, the pride, envy, and malignity of his nature are revealed. He dwells upon his own life in his father's house as a dreary round of unrequited service, and then places in mean contrast the favor to the son just returned. He shows that his own service has been that of a servant rather than a son. He has worked, not from love to his father, but for gain to himself. He has found no joy in his father's presence. He shows that in heart he looks upon the young brother's riotous life as one of greater pleasure than his own. He has foregone all this enjoyment for the sake of reward; and now if his brother is to share equally in this reward, he counts that he himself has been wronged. He has judged his father by his own grasping spirit; he has not claimed the privileges that were freely his in his father's house, but has depended upon what he could earn for himself, and now in the same spirit he grudges his brother the love and favor shown him. He plainly reveals that had he been in the father's place, he would not have received the prodigal. He does not even acknowledge him as a brother, but coldly speaks of him as “thy son.”GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 19

Yet, notwithstanding his expressions of contempt and arrogance, the father deals patiently and tenderly with him. “Child,” he says, in sorrowful surprise, “thou art ever with me, and all that is mine is thine.” (R.V.) The father, in his love for his eldest son, counted that to him as to himself the privilege of companionship, the daily association of the home, was the highest joy. He poured out his heart's love upon his sons, and love gives all. Everything that could minister to their happiness or blessing was freely theirs. The son need have no question of gift or reward. “All that is mine is thine.” You have only to believe my love, and appropriate the gift that is freely given. One son had for a time cut himself off from the ministry of love, misinterpreting the father's heart. But now he has returned, and the flood-tide of joy sweeps away every disturbing thought. “This thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.”GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 20

Was the elder brother brought to see his own mean, ungrateful, and unloving spirit? Did he come to see that though his brother had done wickedly, he was his brother still? Did the elder son himself repent of his jealousy and hard-heartedness, and his lack of filial love? Did he ask his Father's forgiveness for so misrepresenting him? Concerning all this, Jesus is silent. For the parable was still enacting, and it rested with his hearers to determine what the outcome should be.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 21

By the elder son were represented those unrepenting Jews of Christ's day, and also those Pharisees in every age, who look with contempt upon the publicans and sinners. This class consists of those who do not go to great excesses in vice, and because of this they are filled with self-righteousness. Jesus met these cavilers on their own ground. Like the elder son in the parable, they had enjoyed special privileges from God; but while they claimed to be sons in God's house, they had the spirit of an hireling. They did not know and believe the love that God hath to us. 1 John 4:16. They were working, not from love, but from hope of reward. In their eyes, God was an exacting taskmaster; for they made him out to be altogether such a one as themselves. They saw Christ inviting the publicans and sinners to come as children to the father's house, to receive freely the rich gift of his grace,—the gift which the rabbis hoped to secure only by toil and penance,—and they were offended. In their apparently zealous service, they had been working for self, not seeking to save the lost. The prodigal's return, which filled the father's heart with joy, only stirred them to jealousy.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 22

The father's remonstrance to his elder son was heaven's tender appeal to the Pharisees, taking them for what they claimed to be. “All that is mine is thine,” (R.V.) not as a wage earned by your own efforts, but as a gift which you can receive only as the prodigal receives it, the free, unmerited bestowal of your Father's love. Your self-righteousness not only leads you to misrepresent God by your false conceptions of him, but makes you cold-hearted and critical toward your brethren. You are constantly questioning, “Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God? Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings, with calves of a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? ... He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” Micah 6:6-8.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 23

This is the service that God has chosen,—“to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke, ... and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh.” Isaiah 58:6, 7. When you see yourselves as sinners, saved only by the unmerited love of your heavenly Father, you will have tender pity for others who are suffering in sin. You will no longer meet misery and repentance with censure, with suspicion, and jealousy. When the iron of selfishness is melted from your souls, you will be in sympathy with God, and will participate in his joy in the saving of the lost.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 24

It is true that you claim to be children of God; but if this claim be true, it is “thy brother,” who was “dead, and is alive again, and was lost, and is found.” He is bound to you by the closest ties; for God acknowledges him as a son. Deny your relationship to him, and you reveal that you yourselves are but hirelings in the household, not sons in the family of God.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 25

Though you will not join in greeting to the lost, the rejoicing will go on, the restored one will have his place by the Father's side, and in the Father's work. He that is forgiven much, the same loveth much. But you will be in the darkness without. For “he that loveth not, knoweth not God; for God is love.” 1 John 4:8.GCB December 1, 1895, Art. A, par. 26

E. G. White.