In St. Luke's account of the prodigal son, the elder son is not portrayed in the limelight. (Luke 15:11-36) Though the elder son had always been at home with the family, his mind was far away from his father's. He thus failed to understand his father's love and magnanimity though he had always been with him.

Strangely enough, the elder son was blessed with two special gifts: constant fellowship and steadfast love, both naturally from his father. Sad to say, this son was not even aware of those marvelous rights that already belonged to him. And so, he failed to possess and enjoy them. His father's love and fellowship, with all its beauty and charm, waited for him in vain. He did not receive his rights because he denied them. While the prodigal son was away wandering in a remote place like an alien, his elder brother, though staying at home, ironically felt deprived of the bliss that remained in their house and was rightfully his.

Constant Fellowship
A wise father loves his child; he will always be keen to make his child happy. "God is Love," (1 John 4:8, 4:16) so God delights to transmit His Divine love to man. Many may grumble that God hides His face from them. But that is quite absurd. If we believe in Him and love Him, avoiding every possible occasion of sin, He will always be with us and definitely reveal Himself to us.

Just as the shining sun radiates its energy constantly, so also God's love is steadfast and everlasting. Even if one neglects God, He continues to impart His Divine graces faithfully. He pours down His Fatherly affection upon all His children. The Lord is merciful and compassionate and full of constant love. As a father who is kind to his children, so is the Lord to those who honour Him.

You may wonder whether this is applicable in your case; whether it is possible to remain always happy and in His Presence. The answer is Yes. In the Scriptures, there are several supporting promises. St. James says, "Come near to God and He will come near to you." (James 4:8) "May you always be joyful in your union with the Lord. I say it again, rejoice!" writes St. Paul (Philippians 4:4)

God wants that we should live according to His Divine statutes. Do you think your trade, profession or your circumstances may be a hindrance to live up to the standards stipulated by our Almighty God? If you pray to God, He will certainly pour down His blessings upon you. That should strengthen your faith in Him.

Steadfast Love
When the prodigal son returned, he was given a magnificent and warm welcome! Great feasts were celebrated. The elder son could not 'digest' the thought of all those parties and festal celebrations for his prodigal brother's homecoming. In short, the elder son was jealous of his brother and angry with his father. He began to grumble and, even questioned his father: "What have you given me?" According to the elder son, he had always been obedient and hard working, seldom had any fun, and never wasted any money. Patiently, his father consoled him saying, "My son, you are always here with me and everything I have is yours." (Luke 15:31)

Our Heavenly Father says the same thing to us. But our reactions may often be negative and pessimistic. We may lament, "I am weak; I cannot give up my sins; I cannot do anything perfectly." and so on. But with our God, nothing is impossible. Our Almighty Father keeps consoling us, "Everything I have is yours."

We should believe that God has given us everything through Christ Jesus. Hence, we have the strength to face all situations by the power that Christ gives us. We get God's power and knowledge through His Holy Spirit. He has given us everything. Remember what our Lord said? "I have always loved you, so I continue to show my constant love." (Jeremiah 31:3)

Many misunderstand God's promise as vanity. They ask: if God is so powerful and rich, why do we remain so poor and wretched? Is God's Word really true and worth believing? St. John encourages us to pray in the name of the Lord Jesus to get a miraculous reply. (John 14 & 15) But can a Christian follow such a prayerful life? Many may still doubt.

Why did the elder son become so poor and miserable while his father was immensely rich and affluent? Though the father had everything, his elder son had to lead a pathetic life. Is not this the plight of many of the children of God today? They fail to enjoy the blessings of our Almighty God like the elder son of the rich man. It is indeed paradoxical.

Ask a person whether he or she is happy and the answer will always be in the negative. According to some people, it is not possible to lead a happy and holy life always. For them grief and misery, mishaps and misfortunes are all part of life.


Sin and lack of faith obstructs us from God. We cannot experience God without deep faith and purity of heart. If we are spiritually poor, unhappy and unable to conquer sin, then we should turn to the Almighty God. We may be weak and weary but our Lord is unable to support and strengthen us. No father would want to see his children become nasty and unclean. We too have a very rich Father, our Heavenly Father. He would definitely never want to see us in a wretched, grimy state. He wants to fill our lives with His enormous riches.

In the parable of the prodigal son, both the sons represented two different aspects of life. While the elder son had deviated from the steadfast fellowship of his father's constant love, the prodigal son slipped and fell into the gutter of sinfulness. Both became poor. But here, the elder son needs more transformation than the prodigal son. The elder one would have to repent and admit his failures, then claim his paternal fortunes that already belonged to him.

Similarly if we are in sin, we must repent, confess to God and make ourselves eligible for gaining salvation. Just as the prodigal son later confessed, "Father, I have sinned against you," (Luke 15:18) the elder son should also confess to God.

There are people who fail to enjoy the blessings of our loving Heavenly Father. The parable of the prodigal son throws light on the reasons why one cannot enjoy the overflowing blessings of our loving God. Let us examine the nature and character of the elder son in the parable. He was not at all naïve, but very arrogant and maintained wrong attitudes towards his father. He misunderstood his father's love and measured everything in terms of money and worldly riches. He complained that his father denied him freedom and stood against his happiness. He only valued his father's wealth, but neglected his love and concern.

This is applicable to those who complain against God's love. Some may say, "I prayed a lot, but God never helped me; He never blesses me, but He always blesses others."

Surely, God promises His everlasting salvation to each and every one, and unlike most of us, He always keeps His promises. He grants His promises to anyone who comes to Him with the innocence of a child.

A father having many children of different ages may not be able to give worldly goods like money, clothes or food equally to all children, but one at a time according to their needs. At the same time, the father will be ready to share his wealth and fortunes equally among his children at an appropriate time. He is impartial when it comes to his love and concern for his children.

So we should never grumble against God's love and concern for us. Instead, we should confess to God, saying, "Lord, my God, I had wrong conceptions about you. I did not know your power and lacked true faith. I was arrogant and disobedient. Now I understand, I must be a child who always trusts and entrusts everything with his father." When we believe in God and leave everything to Him, our lives will be totally changed. "Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." (Isaiah 40:30-31)

The Solution for Revival

Let us consider the solution for revival of the wretched. The prodigal son repented. Therefore those who claim that they are with God should also repent. There are people who seem to be in union with God, but not always enjoying His blessings and the bliss of His loving Presence. They also need repentance.

Everlasting salvation is not at all a complex or complicated process. Of course, when we try to achieve it ourselves, this may take a long time; perhaps we may not be able to secure it at all. But if we believe in God and try to achieve it with Him, we can attain salvation very easily. Let us then surrender our lives to God for His Divine mercy. Let us find asylum in His warm bosom and surrender to Him all our sins and weaknesses. God will then liberate us from all the bondages of sin and sinful occasions. When we begin to walk with God, beware! The distance from darkness to light is very short! "Father, how wretched I was! I lived with you; but I never trusted in your constant love." Let us repent like that.

Before His suffering and death, Jesus made a marvelous prayer: "Father, all I have is yours, and all you have is mine." (John 17:10)

Job, the patriarch, in the midst of all his miseries and misfortunes, could admit the supremacy of the Almighty God. And so he could leave his belongings along with his sufferings to the Almighty God. He had the conviction that what God had belonged to him also. Job said, "The Lord God gave and now He has taken away. May His name be praised." (Job 1:21)

While Abraham was about to offer his only son, Isaac to the Lord as a sacrifice, he too had the same mystical experience that Job once had. Abraham considered God as the Supreme, Sovereign, Custodian of all his belongings, including his son, Isaac.

If anyone still suffers and is unable to bear the grief of the death of his dear ones, I suggest that he meditate on the prayer that Jesus made in John 17:10, claiming the mystical experiences of Job and Abraham.

Back to the parable of the prodigal son. While the elder son criticizes his brother and judges him, the father never retorts. Instead he came out, went up to the courtyard and begged him to come in. "My son, you are always here with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to make merry and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found." (Luke 15:31)

Here, the father is calling his elder son to the mystical experience of relying on God's supremacy. The elder son established only superficial relations with his father by his own efforts. But mystical experiences can be attained only through ardent faith in God.

The prodigal son when he committed sins, kept himself away from God and from His Divine love. His elder brother, on the other hand, became unable to enjoy the mystical experience of God's love because of his lack of faith.

God invites us to His Kingdom by assuring us that everything He has belongs to us also. He wants us to remain with Him as the branches to the main stem of the vine in order to bear more fruit. The father stepped down and walked up to the courtyard and assured his elder son that his (the father's) wealth belonged to him also. Similarly, our Heavenly Father never hesitated even to leave heaven to come close to us and make us all His children forever. And He continues to promise us: "All I have is yours."