A Tale of Two Siblings – The Younger Brother

Scripture: Luke 15:1-3, 11-24 (NRSV)

This week we begin a new two-part series on the Parable of the Prodigal Son. This is a tale that tells of not just one, but two lost siblings and their loving Father.
It’s a drama with two acts—

Act One: The Prodigal Son, and
Act Two: The Elder Brother

These brothers shared the same father, but they couldn’t be more different. One chose the path of finding himself to attain happiness. The other chose the path of moral duty to achieve happiness. One was about expressing himself, the other was about coloring within the lines. One self-indulgent, the other self-righteous. The deadly sins of the prodigal son were greed, gluttony, sloth, and lust. The deadly sins of the elder son were pride, wrath and envy. They had all seven deadly sins covered. In other words, both brothers are lost and both need a Father to reach out to them. And thank God, he does. But each brother, each of us, must decide how they and we will respond to the Father’s love. Today, in our families of origin, in our homes, our churches, and in society we have younger brothers and sisters and elder brothers and sisters. We have a little bit of both brothers in us all. This is an age-old story that keeps being told and retold. It never gets old. Join us for this two-week series through the Parable of the Two Lost Brothers.

February 7, 2021 Service Bulletin and Bible Study

Sermon Art: “The Return of the Prodigal Son” (1773) by Pompeo Batoni

All of our sermons are available in our Library of Sermons.

Other Sermons In This Series

A Tale of Two Siblings – The Elder Brother

February 14, 2021