The parable of the prodigal son reveals something about the heart of many brothers and sisters in faith. Jesus told us about a son who wandered away, a son who enjoyed his father’s blessings, demanded his inheritance, then packed up and left. Does that sound familiar? Maybe you know someone like that. A beloved child of our Heavenly Father who walked in God’s immense blessings, and then all of a sudden veered off the path of righteousness. He or she started “living large,” started “living life,” and completely forgot about the God who made him.
But there is a character in Jesus’ parable that we rarely speak about: the brother of the prodigal son.
What was he doing while his brother was gone? How did he feel when he learned that his brother just woke up and left his father’s kingdom or house?
The Bible doesn’t tell us how the elder brother felt during those years, but we can infer it from how he reacted when his brother came home. A man who was truly worried about his younger brother would have shown it. He would have wondered where he was. He would have asked after his welfare. He would have prayed for him. Instead, the moment the lost son returned, what do we see?
- Instead of jealousy, he should have expressed joy!
- Instead of envy, he should have given thanks to God for restoring the lost sheep.
- Instead of contempt, he should have embraced his brother.
He did none of these. In my opinion, that exposes his heart, both towards his brother and towards his father’s Kingdom. Notice that he refused to even call him “my brother.” He said, “this son of yours” (Luke 15:30). He was physically in the house, but his heart had been far away all along. All that consumed him was enjoying the richness of his father’s house for himself. Selfish traits, I must say.
Does this sound like the church today? I stand to be corrected, but I perceive this exact state of mind within the body of Christ. Not everyone, but many of my brothers and sisters. We are so consumed with me, me, me!
A great example is when the pastor raises a prayer point for the country, for someone else; then I notice the volume goes down. We should not only pray when the prayer point has our name on it. More so, when one goes slightly or completely off the path of righteousness, we are so quick to throw stones, judge blindly without even trying to reach out to the soul being lost. Scripture tells us to look not only to our own interests, but also to the interests of others (Philippians 2:4).
Now let us speak a little bit about this other son’s jealousy; thank God he opened his mouth. Thank God the elder brother at least expressed his mind to his father. He complained bitterly that the father had lavished so much on the returning son, while he had never received at least a young goat to celebrate with his friends.
It wasn’t pretty, but he took it to the right address. He took it to his father. We could and should pick a leaf from the elder brother.
Many of us don’t or won’t do even that. We carry our jealousy to the wrong address. We bottle it up, throw side-eye, whisper in corners, and aim our bitterness at a son or daughter of God who is simply basking in the Father’s lavish love.
Have we forgotten where that child just came from? Poverty. The awful claws of the devil. Months, even years of being lost, broken, and battered by depression, while you were safe in the Father’s house all along. Now the Father is restoring the years the cankerworm devoured, and you are standing at the door with a long face?
Haba now!
Instead, we should learn to bring every emotion we feel to the Lord, because He is able to set us back on the right track.
And notice the Father’s answer to the elder son: “Son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours” (Luke 15:31). You were never short of anything. Your brother’s restoration takes nothing from your inheritance. There is no shortage in the Father’s house. Chances are the elder brother wasn’t fully aware of the access he had to the abundance in His father’s house. This is similar to the reality of many believers and children of God: walking in ignorance of the many blessings they have access to through the finished works of Christ Jesus. You see, this very ignorance is the reason for the envy and jealousy because nobody who is fully aware of the gold and God they carry would be envious of another
So what do we do?
Let the life of Christ dwell richly in you, boys and girls, sirs and mas. Let His love govern and rule your heart and the way you think (Colossians 3:15-16).
Ideally, we should spend time in prayer and in the Word of God, asking the Holy Spirit to search our hearts and show us where the elder brother syndrome is hiding in us. We should spend time in intercession for the ones who have wandered, praying them home before they ever come back. And when they do return, we should be at the gate with the Father, ready to celebrate, because heaven rejoices over one sinner who repents (Luke 15:7).
The Father is throwing a party. The only question is whether you will come in and dance, or stay outside with your arms folded, filled with bitterness, envy, and jealousy.
May the love of God flood our hearts in Jesus’ name.
Amen.