Having a relationship with Jesus is a journey. From the moment we say yes. It is a winding road, full of euphoric mountain tops and hopelessly low valleys. Perhaps however, the majority of our lives are spent walking down seemingly normal roads, all which whether we realize it or not are leading us closer and closer to Him and the eternity we seek. As we travel this road of life, It is vitally important we stick pretty close to our Leader (Jesus) or we will find ourselves lost, confused and wondering how in the world we got there. 

I was reading the story of the prodigal son found in Luke 15. If you are not familiar with the story, let me provide a quick paraphrase. There are two brothers and a dad. One day, the youngest says “Hey dad, why not give me my inheritance now and I’ll jet, be out of your hair for good”. The father gives what he asks and the young son is off. As we all know, it doesn’t take long to blow a heap load of money when we are making foolish decisions. Now this young man wishes he was back at home, working for his dad. So, he makes a plan to return home and beg for forgiveness and a job. Meanwhile the older brother has stayed with his father and worked with him every day. The dad apparently never stops hoping his youngest will return and looks for him because in verse 20 we read “But while the son was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion. He ran and threw his arms around his neck”. The father welcomes the young son back into the fold and calls on his hired help to put together a party to celebrate. The older brother, still working, hears the commotion and arrives on the scene to find a party being thrown in honor of his younger, foolish brother. He gets mad! Not in the least bit happy to see what is happening, he confronts his dad basically saying “What gives!? This son of yours (notice he won’t even call him his brother), has wasted so much of your wealth and you just welcome him back, like nothing happened! It’s not fair! What about me?” This is a brief snapshot of the story, I encourage you to read it all for yourself.

Which brother do you identify with? Personally, I’ve always identified with the older brother. He’s right, it doesn’t seem fair. While I understand the point Jesus is making (no one is ever too far gone to be welcomed home by Him), it’s hard to stomach. It’s easy to miss however, the older brother has been just as lost as the younger one, only he didn’t even realize it! Let me explain – Jesus is the Father in our story, the two sons are us (you can decide for yourself which one you are more like). We are all lost without Jesus. For us older sons or daughters, we spend a lot of time trying to do the right things and be good people. We’ve more than likely had some great mountain top experiences and walked through some pretty dark valleys. The problem comes during those mind numbingly normal and long stretches of life. Because, even though we have surrendered to Jesus, we’ve either run ahead of him and got lost since it turns out, we really didn’t know the way. Or we’ve become frustrated with the hardness and mundaneness of life and just stopped moving, losing sight of Jesus. 

Those younger sons and daughters among us usually know they’ve gone the wrong way. We may have also said yes to Jesus at some point in our lives, but somewhere along the line we decided we’d rather have fun and live how we want instead of following Jesus. The difference is they see and understand their sin because it’s turned their lives into a wreck. They are unafraid to admit their mistakes, failures and sin asking for the forgiveness and help they are desperate for.

Meanwhile, us older sons and daughters get stuck in our pride and self-righteousness. Days, months, even years pass with us refusing to see our sin or ask for help. We continue trying to live a good life and do the right things but we do so with a bad attitude and hard heart. In a way we stop moving forward and become more bitter with each passing day. What’s worse is often we don’t even realize we are stuck. 

This Bible story doesn’t come with a tidy wrap up, we are left wondering about the older son. Did he come to his senses and welcome back his lost brother? Or did he dig in and choose bitterness towards his brother and father? And that really is the point Jesus was trying to make. We all have a choice, a daily choice actually. Will we stick close to Jesus, following His every lead as we travel through life? Or will we choose our way instead-whether that means continuing to live as a prodigal or becoming more and more self-righteous? 

Thankfully Jesus never stops pursuing His children! Isaiah 53:6 says “We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished him for the iniquity of us all.” He will draw you back home and set your feet back on His path regardless of how far you’ve wandered off. He is waiting for each of us? There is nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about. Every single one of us is a sinner and we are all saved in the exact same way – by the grace of God alone! Will you call out to Him today?