Its my first Blog for a while but I've been thinking. Parables are amazing - They are the fine art of story telling. There are many levels, sub context, layers and meanings which can exist all at the same time in harmony . Parables are very much like a well-cut diamond with different crystal faces reflecting a different aspect of the same diamond.

Recently, I was reflecting on the famous lost parables found in luke 15. Much has been written/taught/analysied/disected/rewritten/deconstructed about these famous parables regarding a lost sheep/coin/son and people have looked at it from the angle of the lost and the loser(of the thing).These parables are often used as Hope to those with wayward loved ones or as an example of God's nature.

What caught my eye this time was the way the stories interconnected and to whom they were told to (I'm aware that I'm probably rethink a great persons thoughts but I'm not that well-read so sorry :) ). Jesus told these stories to the pharisees a.k.a the good ones, the religous, the know-it-alls and the ones "waiting for God". The initial environment was one of complaint with people moaning about Jesus's choice of people to hang out with. Jesus replies with the three parables. The first talks about a lost animal, then a coin - The reaction of the people observing is one of partying and celebration at finding of a lost thing. The wise religous people maybe knew that they were the "observers" in the stories. They patted themselves on the back when listing to the first two parables because of course, they would celebrate when a pagan or someone who doesn't know God is found and they become a good Jew. The third story jarred them as it is completely opposite to the first two. The first two parables, something simple was lost, in the last story, the son willing and wantingly goes against the father. He comes back and a party is thrown. The observer (the eldest son in the case), can't celebrate and gets angry. His response is interesting and sheds light into the heart issues. He compares himself to being a slave (working out of duty not love/desire/passion), wanting to party elsewhere (not with the family) and makes accusations about the other (where does it explicity the other son spent money on prostitutes?). His heart was shown for what it was, hard, caring for rules more than relationship. I imagine the response to this was a bit less positive .... Am I selective in my praise, support, celebrating?