self-righteousness

It’s striking that Christianity introduces itself to the world with a book written by someone despised by religious insiders, someone they considered beyond the reach of God. It’s as though the New Testament begins with an exclamation point of grace. We see this vividly in Jesus’ call to Matthew.

This is one of the most famous and beloved story Jesus ever told. Though it’s commonly known as the parable of the prodigal son, the story actually features two sons. They represent two different ways of avoiding God. And it turns out there’s more than one prodigal. The father in the story helps us to imagine just how outrageously extravagant God’s love for us is.