It's Not Fair: The Often Surprising And Always Amazing Grace Of GodSample

Yesterday we learned about God’s unfair love for sinners. We saw how he loves us and forgives us no matter what we have done. In today’s passage, we encounter the older brother who is stuck in a very different kind of sin.

The older brother is angry and upset when his father throws a party for his rebellious little brother. He thinks it is unfair that he isn’t thrown a big party for his good behavior but his little brother gets a big party after his bad decisions. The older brother is so mad he refuses to come in and celebrate that his brother came home.

The older brother is angry because he thinks he has been such a good rule-keeper he deserves a party. He is so selfish he does not want his father to be generous with his younger brother. He thinks it is unfair because he thinks his little brother didn’t earn the party, and he (the older brother) did. He is trying to earn his father’s love through his good behavior. He thinks if he can do enough good things, he will deserve a nice reward. 

But the truth is that none of us deserve a big party. We can’t earn God’s love through our rule-keeping because we are all sinners. We should not be selfish when God forgives somebody else. Instead, we should celebrate because God has forgiven us too! Nobody earned it through their rule-keeping. God gave it as a gift.

We may feel like the older brother sometimes. It can be confusing that God loves, forgives, and gives good things to bad people when they turn back to Him. But this feeling reveals in us the same problem the older brother had: we are selfish and we think we have earned God’s love.

We might expect the father to punish the older brother for his selfish attitude. But once again, God’s love is astonishing! The father (who represents God) goes out of his way to invite the older son into the party. He listens to the older brother and helps the older brother understand why they are celebrating. When we try to earn God’s love through rule-keeping and are upset when He gives grace to others, God loves us in the same way. Even though He doesn’t have to, He comes to us and invites us in. He wants us to participate in the celebration. He wants to share His joy with us when somebody starts following Him. Instead of judging others for their sin, we should ask God to help us have grace like His grace. Who is somebody you are frustrated with today for their actions? How can you forgive them and join God in celebrating His love for them?