Yesterday at Brooklife, I concluded the Storyteller series with a sermon on Luke 15 called “The Tale of Two Sons.” Luke 15 contains three parables by Jesus, the last of which is commonly called the parable of the prodigal son.
My sermon focused on this parable, but I strongly believe that it should really be called the “The Tale of Two Sons” or “The Story of Two Lost Sons.” While a great deal of attention is often given to the younger son in this parable, I think it is important to recognize that what makes this parable unique is Jesus’ attention to the older son in the second half.
The main point of this parable, in my opinion, is that God not only wants to save those who are clearly lost in sin, but also those who are ‘righteously lost’. This parable is really a challenge to the religious leaders who are listening to Jesus tell this stories.
You can listen to the message online here or download our podcast here.
For some background on this series and parables, read here.
Two books on this parable that I highly recommend are:
You can view the very simple presentation that accompanies my message below.
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I’m not sure if you mentioned this as an inspiration to John MacArthur’s series “A Tale of Two Sons” or not but, it is an outstanding book & dvd. I think ultimately the elder son is a depiction of the Pharisees and the father is Jesus who the Pharisees eventually kill. Amazing complex story that only JESUS himself could tell.
Here is what I wrote and it has a video to John MacArthur’s book & dvd about it!
http://christcomesfirst.com/2010/02/28/prodigal-son-story-incredible-illustration/
Thanks, Jeremy. I have no read MacArthur’s book but am lad for your comments on it.