The Restless Son

by Terry Wane Benton

Why was he not happy at home? Jesus tells the story of a son who became restless and felt too controlled by the family rules (Luke 15:11-32). Sometimes a child can be foolish and self-centered, thinking the grass is surely greener where they can do as they please and no one is telling them what to do.

In this case, the son was foolish because:

• He thinks only of using his inheritance early and leaving the home to live the dream of freedom and ease. But there is no such thing. Somebody worked on the supply, and the supply is sustained by responsible choices.
• He squanders the inheritance among people who are only happy to use him until his supply runs out. Where will these "friends" be when the supplier of the party runs out of free stuff and falls into hard times? They are not dependable at all.
• He was willing to eat with pigs for a while, thinking that the party life was bound to return. But life is not a party after all. It was not a party at home because the parents were being responsible, and now it was his turn to learn to live responsibly.

Then he "comes to himself" and realizes that home was not as bad as he thought. His father was not really being mean as he had thought. His father was only looking down the road and trying to teach his sons the value of responsibility. A responsible home is a secure home, and the friends the son thought loved him like a home never did turn out to really love him at all. They were only using him.

While eating with pigs, he came to realize that home was a place of responsible love. Responsible living is not so bad after all. He decided to go home. Even living as a servant would be better, far better. He went home expecting the father to be frigid and angry, but the truth is that love is just happy when a soul wakes up, makes a turn-around, and takes personal responsibility.

Life is not a pleasure ride devoid of responsibility. Responsible living is good for all. Responsible love shares responsibility for the common good and for the ultimate good, the eternal good of all. That is what real love looks like. Hopefully, we don't have to blow everything up to start to realize it.