THE PRODIGAL SON

the thought i had presented to me so articulately and clearly was
this. ever read the parable of the prodigal son? most of us consider
ourselves either the first or the second son, never the father (who
obviously is god,) but in more ways than we can understand. the main
theme of what i learnt was that, we were so lost, we never realised
how lost we were. often, we realise that the prodigal son is an idiot,
with inclinations to rebel. but we forget that his disobedience and
wickedness began at home. even in the protection and comfort of the
father's home, we are prone to sin and weakness. secondly, the rest of
us consider the point of return and repentance the turning point in
the story. but if u read carefully, i think there's a hint of abuse
and utilitarianism in his "genuine" repentance, isn't there?he comes
out wiht a strategy to ask forgiveness and even has a proposal for his
father, telling him what to do, treating him as a servant and not as a
son. is the father supposed to feel bad? emotional blackmail? and what
drives the prodigal son to this point anyways? the pain of his
disobedience and the punishment of his sin. only after suffering the
humiliation and the hunger of being poor and destitute does the
prodigal son turn around. doesn't that sound manipulative to
u?furthermore, he wants to WORK out his earnings, like a servant?
working ur way back into the acceptance of god? obviously he thinks he
must prove himself useless to his father before his father will accept
him again. sound like working back his way to god the father? in the
least? the point being, even in his REPENTANCE, the son was a lost
son, so lost and so out there. but god the father was watching, and
FROM A DISTANCE, (implying that he must have been watching for the
faint shadow of his son on the horizon) such is thte extent of his
love! of god's love! and then notice the prodigal son's reply! no more
plans, no more survival strategies, no more suggestions, proposals and
pretentiousness! just whol-hearted apology- i have sinned against
heaven and against u! (well, even if he wanted to use the survival
plans and the pretentious apologies and the proposals- the father
denied him the chance to do so! he went straight for the ring, the
robe and the fattened calf!) so wat's the point? even though we suffer
and we wrestle with god..he loves us, even in our total imperfection.
even our repentance is NOT good enough for god to forgive us on. he
has to do it himself- true grace!