Read Luke 15 at Bible Gateway.
Luk 15 outline:
Luk 15:1-2, The tax collectors + sinners drew near to hear Him/ Pharisees + scribes complained
Luk 15:23-7, The parable of the lost sheep
Luk 15:8-10, The parable of the lost coin
Luk 15:11-32, The parable of the prodigal son
Luke 15:11-32 chiastic structure:
1a) Luk 15:11-16, The disobedience of the younger son;
1b) Luk 15:17, When the younger son came to himself, perishing with hunger;
1c) Luk 15:18, I will go to my father: I have sinned, am no longer worthy to be called your son + make me a hired servant;
central axis) Luk 15:20, “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him;”
2c) Luk 15:21, The son said: I have sinned, am no longer worthy to be called your son;
2b) Luk 15:22-23, Father to his servants: Bring the best robe + ring + sandals + fatted calf/ let us eat + be merry;
2a) Luk 15:24-32, The obedience of the older son, and his anger + reconciliation;
1a) Luk 15:24a, Father: “For this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found;”
1b) Luk 15:24b, And they began to be merry;
1c) Luk 15:25-26, The older son was in the field, and as he drew near, he heard music + asked a servant about it;
1d) Luk 15:27, Servant: “Your brother has come/ because your father received him safe, he has killed the fatted calf;”
1e) Luk 15:28a, But he was angry and would not go in;
central axis) Luk 15:28b, Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him;
2e) Luk 15:29, He answered his father: “I have served you, never transgressing your commandment, yet you never gave me a kid to make merry with my friends;”
2d) Luk 15:30, “But as soon as this son came, who spent your livelihood on harlots, you killed the fatted calf;”
2c) Luk 15:31, Father: “Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours;”
2b) Luk 15:32a, Father: “It was right that we should make merry and be glad;”
2a) Luk 15:32b, Father: “For your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.”
Today in Luke we have three parables with one message: the parable of the lost sheep, the parable of the lost coin, and the parable of the lost son. Three, the sign of Messiah in Scripture! This is Messiah’s ministry: He came to seek and to save that which was lost (Luk 19:10)!
Please do not miss, that the central axis of both the larger structure, and the smaller one within it, is the actions the father takes to restore his sons to himself!
Many of you have heard our testimony. Our youngest daughter was introduced to drugs while at youth group at church, left home, and was completely led astray into the dangerous and worldly life of a drug addict living on the streets. 90% of the time we did not even know where she was. This state of affairs lasted for four full years plus while my husband and I sought the LORD with tears night and day (Deu 28:32).
Something the enemy beat me over the head with every day, was how greatly we — who claimed to love the LORD so intensely, who went to church every week and spent our lives serving the LORD, who were leaders in the homeschooling community — how greatly we had utterly failed in raising our children likewise. That condemnation ran so so deep. But one day as I was reading the parable of the lost son, it occurred to me that the father in the story also had a son who went missing. And this father represented Father God, who is the perfect parent. It comforted me to realize that God understood and identified with the pain I was in.
(God miraculously protected and preserved our daughter while she was lost; and after four plus years He miraculously restored our daughter to us; He delivered her from every addiction; He healed her of every disease; and completely circumcised her heart toward Him. Today she is serving Him, married to a wonderful man, who, by the way, the LORD also delivered from many deep pits and snares of the enemy, to the praise of the glory of His grace, and is raising their own son! Every day the joy of the father in the parable, is our joy!)
This parable that Jesus told is also prophetic. In Amos we begin seeing the LORD God refer to Israel as “the house of Joseph,” (Amo 5:4-6, 15). Now in the Scriptures, out of the twelve sons of Jacob, two are highlighted again and again: Judah, and Joseph (or Judah and Ephraim, who received the blessing of the firstborn of Joseph from Jacob, Gen 48).
Then the unified kingdom of Israel was divided into two, an occurrence that was from the LORD (1 Kin 12:21-24), it became the southern kingdom of Judah and the northern kingdom of Israel (also known as Joseph or Ephraim, the ten remaining tribes.) These two kingdoms: Judah, and Joseph (Israel or Ephraim) are two sons. The younger son, Joseph or Ephraim, took his Father’s inheritance and spent it all on riotous living. From the first king of the northern kingdom, Ephraim forsook the LORD and served idols. He went away in captivity to a foreign land.
However, the older son, Judah, remained in the land with the Father (except for the relatively brief Babylonian captivity of 70 years), even though some of her kings led her astray. YHVH was always faithful to raise up a king who restored Judah to Himself. Judah the older son served and obeyed his Father.
Ephraim (Joseph), who has lived in a pig pen among the nations for millennia, is now waking up and realizing who he is and what he has done, and is making his way back to his Father’s house. This is why so many Christians and Gentiles are discovering their Hebrew Roots in this generation! The son that was lost is now found, and Ephraim and Judah will be restored together under their Father’s roof!
For further reading:
Redeemed Israel by Batya Wootten, a thorough investigation of all the prophecies concerning Joseph and Judah in Scripture – a life- changing book!
Revelation 11, the two witnesses
B’ney Yosef North America (Sons of Joseph)
I loved your testimony concerning your daughter! I was a prodigal myself and unfortunately that time did run into the formative years of my children. Upon my return I could think of nothing else but to raise my family that day forward in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. During their teen years all the rebellious behaviors you mentioned in your testimony occurred and like you, I sought God with tears and like you was overcome with the shame of failing so miserably at what I wanted so desperately to be different for my children.
I was told by a pastor that my children were behaving so terribly because I had not loved them enough to which I returned home sobbing and pleading with the Lord. I begged Him to tell me if this was true and I would just accept it. This is what I heard… “Did Adam and Eve sin because I did not love them enough?” to which I replied “no” I then heard… “Why did they sin?” I replied, “I suspect because of their rebellious wish for independence from You”
What I concluded about this internal conversation was this, I don’t think that God was discounting the monumental mistakes that I had made early on or how that may have affected my family, but he was educating me on the fact that rebellion against God isn’t about any of those things. Rebellion against God is just that…its rebellion. Rebellion turns us from the only source of our healing and love. No one on the planet is capable of loving anyone enough because there is only One God Who is the God Who is Enough and rebellion against Him is a futile choice.
My children are late 20’s now and early 30’s all in varying stages of growth but growing nonetheless. My prayers for their total restoration will continue until their righteousness goes forth as brightness.
We serve the God who is Mighty to save! <3