the elder brother – Tim Keller
this is a rough outline of Keller’s sermon. my comments are marked in advance with ‘-‘
I want your things, I don’t want you
the father doesn’t kiss the son because he repents. the son is able to repent because the Father kisses him
this chapter is more about pharisees than prodigals
- is that so? is that what the preceding parables (sheep and coin) set up? I think it’s more complex than that, more like ‘the Father offers us restoration, and if that scandalizes us, we’re in big trouble.’ the rule of three sets up the way the Father treats prodigals, then Jesus develops the Pharisee side.
- to be more precise, it’s a communication to the Pharisees about how the Father sees ‘sinners’ – the ‘tax collectors and sinners’ the Pharisees are worried about and the Pharisees themselves. Jesus teaches us that both are lost.
nothing comes between you and God like morality and goodness and decency and respectability
whenever the church wakes up, morality is preached against
in come the outcast, out go the good people in outrage
respectable people are always outraged by the real message of Jesus
the elder brother
1. is lost
the point of each parable is lostness
both younger and elder son in this parable
someone searches for
in this case the Father searches for both lost sons
you can be with God and be far from God
‘I never knew you’
it is possible to keep God’s orders and be lost
2. is more lost than the younger brother
2.1. because I obey, I have a right to say I don’t like the way You’re running the universe
the thing that really separates us from God is not so much our sins but our damnable good works
goodness masks your battle with God
the Bible defines sin as trying to be your own savior and Lord, cosmic treason, overthrowing your rightful savior and Lord and saying ‘no, I want to do that.’
in younger brother lostness it’s straightforward, you know your rebellion. when your life falls apart, you know where to go.
in elder brother lostness the goodness masks the fact that you’re also being your own savior and lord. you don’t want salvation, you just want help at certain points. when your life falls apart, you blame God because you think you’re serving Him and he’s not responding rightly
2.2. goodness is your main weapon in your battle against God
you use your goodness to say to God – You owe me
and use it against other people, too, to demand your rights
difference between an elder brother and a Christian
CSLewis – Great Divorce example
we understand that to become a Christian we have to repent of our badness. but most people don’t understand you also have to repent of your goodness.
therefore, don’t invite people to convert to elder brother lostness/Pharisaism. then you’ll really mess them up, like us.
signs of elder brother lostness
1. very angry about how his life goes. compares himself to others. ‘I deserve better.’ we look from the outside and judgmentally think their lives are better. nobody’s life goes better. what matters is how you see it.
there are two kinds of anger when life doesn’t go well
either I’m good and I’m valuable or I’m bad and I’m worthless
when they don’t work out we get mad at God or ourselves, respectively
but the Gospel says I’m very sinful and very valuable.
- and the pity thing from Willard needs to treat the latter response, and letting go of pride needs to treat the former
therefore, you don’t complain when bad things happen, because you know you’re a sinner
but, you don’t think it’s punishment, because you know you’re valuable in Christ – that Jesus already took all of the punishment
- K. has a deep Christology here
2. he hates the law of God and he’s obeying
I have followed your orders. I have slaved for you.
they hate the law, they’re just using it
- good point, but is he making too much of some of these details, exegetically
the difference between an elder brother and a Christian. both do the will of God. elder brother’s sometimes do better in the morality part. but there’s a big difference in why they’re doing it.
when you find something beautiful, it is it’s own reward
why does God love me? the elder brother thinks God wants something. but he doesn’t get anything out of it. the Good News is that Jesus died for us because He loves us. when you realize this your relationship with God becomes personal and aesthetic. elder brothers say ‘I’ve just about had it. I’ve obeyed you and I haven’t gotten the real thing that I want.’.
- what is the real thing I’m tempted to want?
the premise is God is not the ultimate thing I need.
3. lack of joyful assurance and tremendously judgmental attitude toward others.
you never even gave me a goat
you never asked
- I worked for you like a slave
- I never asked you to.
the younger brother tried to get control of the Father’s things without the Father by going away
the elder brother tried to get control of the Father’s thing without the Father by staying (and putting himself in the Father’s debt, in his mind).
when you ask a Christian ‘are you a Christian?’ they know, joyfully. you can lose track of it, but it doesn’t take long to get it back.
if you ask an elder brother that question he gets defensive
there’s never a party in the elder brother’s relationship with the Father
elder brother doesn’t admit younger brother back into family – ‘this son of yours’. you don’t know if you’re in the family, but you’re very sure who else is not.
you’re very unsure of yourself, but you’re very sure about others
‘sinner saved by grace’ – is this a Biblical appelation? if not, what is?
if you’re a sinner saved by grace and you understand the gospel, you become incredibly sure about yourself. you’re charitable toward others. you become the most unjudgmental people in the world
the elder brother only wants to invite his friends.
but a fatted calf is way too much for one family to eat. you want everyone in town to come, no matter who they are. they thought the Father was an idiot.
the difference between an elder brother and a Christian is that elder brothers are judgmental, Christians are the least judgmental people in the world. ‘I want you to feast with me as much as you are able. that doesn’t mean I’m going to convert you.’
the elder brother can’t forgive. if you think you’re saved by works, you think I would never do something like that.
‘don’t you see, it’s your self-righteousness that’s really screwing up your life. it’s not your badness. it’s your goodness that makes you angry, bitter, hate obedience, miserable, which is at the heart of all the problems. it’s your self-righteousness. it’s the cause of racism, classism, family breakdown,
all you’re doing is bashing conservative people
wrong. elder brothers are not just conservative people. moralists aren’t always conservative people. (smoking, seat belts, environment, condoms, evolution, free speech, . people on Metafilter are as moralist as anyone else. they get morally outraged by certain things. they’re just different things.
an elder brother hates evangelism. or they might give lip service to it but they’re terrible at it (yikes! although it seems to me you could have elder brothers who are good at evangelizing people to elder brotherism/Pharisaism)
moral liberals
‘dancing, raising your hands, talking about people being lost and found? the poor and uneducated people like that kind of thing, but you’re a college graduate. grow up.
some of you are younger brothers. and when you became a Christian, you were very excited to see that Jesus is always harder on elder brothers than on younger brothers. you hate elder brothers. you’re an elder brother toward elder brothers. if Christianity is really taking hold in you, it will be shown in your hatred of those people being destroyed.
the Father pleads with the elder brother to come in, too.
- this core message of Keller’s is huge. Willard doesn’t make such a big deal of it, but it’s just as powerful there, as I seized upon for my pity message.