From the pulpit
The prodigal son
The cover page of this issue wasn't among the newsletter pages we have, so this page starts with the sermon.
Today we hear what is arguably the greatest story that demonstrates the radical mercy and love of God: the parable of the prodigal son. There are so many layers to this story, but today I will focus on the younger son and the father's reaction.
The son who left
The younger son goes boldly to his father and asks for his inheritance. As we know, inheritance is something we receive when someone passes away, when our loved ones depart and choose to leave something to us. For this son to ask for his inheritance while his father was still alive was deeply shocking. It was almost as if he was saying, "I wish you were dead."
The father could have rebuked this boldness. He could have rejected the request. But instead, he respects his son's freedom and gives him the inheritance so that the son can choose whether to love him or not. This models the Lord's love for us. God gives us free will. He respects us and allows us the liberty to choose Him, or not.
The son then travels far away from his father and spends his inheritance, money he has not earned, on prostitutes, alcohol and partying.
But don't we sometimes do the same? Don't we keep God at arm's length and dull our conscience, acting as if God does not see us?
A famine then hits the land, and the son has wasted everything. He is humiliated and in pain. Desperate, he finds someone who sends him to feed pigs. This is the lowest point of his life. The Gospel says that at his lowest point, no one gave him anything.
For a Jewish man, feeding pigs was particularly degrading because pigs were considered unclean and filthy. He could not have sunk any lower. When we make the wrong choices, we often end up in a similar pit.
He came to himself
But Scripture tells us that at this lowest point he came to himself. In the misery of his condition, he remembers that he has a father. Sometimes we need to hit rock bottom. Our ego must be broken before we wake up to ourselves.
So the son makes a decision to return to his father. He says, "I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants."
This son would have been in an utterly miserable state (skinny, dirty, smelly) and he had to travel all the way home in that condition. Rumours had spread about his debauchery and how he had wasted his inheritance. You can imagine the pain and shame his father must have felt.
The father was watching
Yet Scripture tells us that while the son was still far away, the father was watching.
As soon as he sees him, the father runs toward him. In those days, for a man to run meant lifting his robe and exposing his ankles, something considered shameful. But the father did not care about the shame. He only cared that his son had returned. He did not allow his son's sin to become an obstacle to his love.
As the son begins to confess his wrongdoing, the father interrupts him and says, "Bring out the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet."
Clothing symbolised identity and status. The father wanted to restore his identity as a son. He wanted to cover his sin and clothe him again with dignity.
Then he gives him a ring, a sign of belonging and authority in the household. Some scholars say the ring symbolises not only forgiveness, but full restoration and reunion with the father.
And the sandals were important too. In those days, slaves went barefoot, but sons wore sandals. The sandals symbolised that he was no longer a slave: he was free.
It is a radical display of the father's love. This parable shows us the depth and breadth of God's mercy. And if we are honest with ourselves, we are all prodigals. Through our love for this fallen world, we continue to fall again and again.
Sometimes we think we are too entrenched in our sin to ever return to God. But these thoughts come from the devil, because he knows that our Father is always watching the road, waiting for our return so that He can clothe us once again with dignity.
This parable needs to be etched into our hearts as a reminder of the love that God has for us. If we know God in this way, then what can separate us from the love of God? Nothing. The only thing that disconnects us from God's love is when we continually choose darkness.
Returning this Lent
Right now we are in the season of Lent. If we want to know God more deeply, we must repent. We must be honest about where our choices have led us. We must humble ourselves and return to our Father. In that humility, the Lord restores us to our divine dignity as daughters and sons of the living God.
Daily repentance allows us to connect more deeply with Him. The humility of repentance draws the love of God to us. Repentance opens the door for grace.
I encourage you to make your confession open, raw and honest. The more open we are, the more grace God gives us, and that grace liberates us from the sins of this world. I also encourage you to ask your confession father for a spiritual rule during Lent so that you can connect with God more deeply.
Keep an icon of Christ nearby and speak to Him. Read the Psalms from the Agpeya. Light candles. Burn incense. Put your phone away and focus on God.
In my own home, I keep icons of the Crucifixion around the house to remind me to reflect on God's sacrifice and His love. Allow these contemplations to inflame your heart.
Through this desire and effort, we will experience the Resurrection in a far more meaningful way. We go through Lent every year to remind ourselves to go deeper into the love of God.
May God help us return to our Heavenly Father, reconnect with Him, and allow Him to clothe us again in dignity.
Glory be to God.
