Parables for the Privileged
Text: Luke 15
The parables of Jesus are some of our favorite and most beloved passages in all of Scripture. And yet, familiar as they are, there is often a lot more going on than we realize. As short as they are, they offer some of the deepest and longest lasting truths about the Kingdom of God.
Why Jesus often chose to encode the good news in parables, we may never fully know. But one thing we do know: We humans love a good story – and stories have the ability to live on for generations in ways that few sermons ever do.
In Luke 15, we find Jesus telling a set of parables, all three related and building on one another, popularly known as: The Parables of The Lost Sheep, The Lost Coin, and The Prodigal Son.
It’s important to keep in mind that these titles were added later and not given by Jesus himself. In fact, I have come to think that these titles actually skew the meaning and message that Christ intended for his audience that day – that is, the Pharisees and teachers of the Law.
They were concerned that Jesus was spending too much of his time and energy with a particular subset of society, the sub-human sinners that they had ignored and dismissed.
But Jesus understood that these folks were exactly those who needed to be heard and embraced at this moment. And so, Jesus told three parables in quick succession, all of which are largely about celebration that comes about through such attention, and all of which are directed at the Pharisees and teachers of the Law.
The shepherd leaves the other 99 sheep to find to one who is in danger. The woman leaves the other 9 coins to seek out the full amount she needs. And the father leaves one son to meet and embrace the other, so that the family can be One again.
Jesus’ message to those who were confused or offended by his attention to the ones who needed his attention at that moment is clear: Sometimes turning to the one in a crucial moment is the only way that all of them can be made whole and holy – and that comes with a celebration for which all should be longing.
These parables, I think, would more accurately be titled: The Parable of the 99 Sheep, The Parable of the 9 Coins, and the Parable of the Offended Son – because it is such as these for whom these parables are intended.
As the Church, the Body of Christ, we are called to follow Christ in all things, including paying attention to those who most need it in this moment – not with impatience or cynicism like the Pharisees and teachers of the Law – but with generosity and humility, like the one who gave up everything for us.
So, Church, who are we going to be? What do we need to leave and who do we need to find, hear, and embrace?
