Looking at the popular prodigal son parable but the second part of it this time (Luke 15:25-32 Please read?). As a lot of us know, in the first part the younger brother asked his father for his share of the property, traveled to a far place, squandered his fortune on nonsense, became penniless, was willing to eat the food for the pigs but he wasn’t even given, went back to his father to ask if he could be a servant, father accepted him, dressed like a son that he is and even threw a welcome home party for him.

So our main place of study is the second part that had to do with the elder brother. When he heard his brother was back and the father organised an imprumtu party for his brother, he was furious. The amplified version says he was angry and deeply resentful and not willing to go in. If you read the story, you can say he was kind of justified to feel that way and it’s a feeling most of us will have if treated this way.  vs 29 says – “But he said to his father, ‘Look! These many years I have served you, and I have never neglected or disobeyed your command. Yet you have never given me [so much as] a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;” – just so you understand how hurt he felt, little did he know that he had a problem of ignorance that was causing to feel this way.

Like the elder brother, at one point or the other, I have come across ‘older’ Christians that get really jealous and angry of the ‘new’ believers because this new believers are getting more blessings from God than they have ever gotten especially when they have obeyed God from day 1, taken care of God’s people, etc. This sometimes causes them to sin against God, hate starts to harbor in their heart, etc.

Look at the father’s response – “The father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.” If he understood this before perhaps he won’t have been bitter on his brother’s arrival.
You have access to everything your father owns as a Christian, just ask.

Have a lovely week!