The Prodigal God by Timothy Keller

THE PRODIGAL GOD, by Timothy Keller (Dutton: New York, NY) 2008.

Reviewed By Randy Harrison

If we hear a word used enough it attains a certain familiarity.  Probably most of the words we use every day we’ve learned by a kind of verbal osmosis.  And, we add those words to our personal vocabulary.
Then, one day someone asks us exactly what a particular word means and we realize that we can’t really say.   Prodigal is such a word.  We hear it enough.  We may even use it.  But, can we define it?  What exactly does the word mean?
As a Bible student, I’ve read Jesus’ parable of the Prodigal many times.  Maybe I’ve even preached a sermon about it.  It’s a little embarrassing to admit, then, that I didn’t know the actual definition of the word, prodigal. The first page of Keller’s book contains the definition:

adj. 1. Recklessly extravagant;  2. Having spent everything.

The word, prodigal, is not actually used in the text, by the way.  The story probably was entitled by some monk a thousand years ago.  Nevertheless, it’s apropos.
Definitions aside, I’ve read the parable a hundred times over the years.  It’s very familiar to me, and I admit to some doubts about finding anything new as I started my reading.  “What can this guy Keller possibly say that I haven’t already comprehended?”   He does walk the well-treaded ground that any commentary on the story is obliged to cover.   If you are a novice (not a bad thing!) with the New Testament, here is an excellent introduction to one of Jesus’ great teachings.
If you are proud of your learning (a bad thing!), swallow your pride and pick up this book.  I’m speaking from repentance.
On page 15, Keller came across with the most memorable passage in the book for me.

Jesus’s teaching consistently attracted the irreligious while offending the Bible-believing, religious people of his day.  However, in the main, our churches today do not have this effect,  the kind of outsiders Jesus attracted are not attracted to contemporary churches, even our most avant-garde ones.

Zing!  He’s correct, and he’s exactly on target.  He reminds his readers that Jesus did not invent this parable for the heathen and irreligious.  Nope, he delivered this story to the religious leaders.  And, in a stroke of inspiration, Luke the Gospel writer adjoins this parable to two others in the chapter that when taken together build up to a spiritual “smack down.”   The whole chapter is a rebuke of leaders who hold themselves aloof from the publicans and sinners that Jesus was seeking to reach.

Waiting for the prodigal son

There are three main characters in the parable, a father and two sons.  Everyone remembers the younger sons, the profligate, the prodigal!
Keller expends at least as many words on the older brother.  Rightly so.  Considering Jesus’ audience he is actually the central figure, and the most pathetic.   He’s the one who doesn’t “get it.”  He’s filled with resentment and jealousy.  He separates himself from the celebration, and his own blessing is lost.  He becomes embittered toward his father and newly found brother.   Yes, he still has an inheritance waiting, but he’s a lost soul now.
The book ultimately forms this question: “Who is the prodigal?”  The old monks titled the story, I’m sure, with reference to the younger brother.  Keller captures the irony in the definition and points out that the father is likewise prodigal.

The father is “recklessly extravagant” in his love toward both sons.  By extension, our heavenly father is likewise prodigal.
More than one prodigal!   This is a fresh insight from the parable.  The monks should have simply titled the parable “The Prodigal,” and left it to the reader to decide who the prodigal is.  Going forward, this will be my title for the parable.

Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell

I had heard so much good and bad about this book and Rob Bell I just had to read it.

One accusation I heard over and over was how Rob doesn’t use the Bible in this which is completely false.  Everything is Bible based and loaded with footnotes.  The other thing is that he doesn’t mention Jesus which is also completely false as Jesus is the basis for the entire book and mentioned on nearly every page.

I think that most of the people who have problems with this book never get past the title and the first two chapters.  Like author Mike Yaconelli in the 80s-90s there are many single lines if quoted by themselves can seem way off base and even heretical.  There were times occasionally where I went pages  thinking “Rob is really off here, how can he be saying this?” before he brings it all back around into perspective.  With a book subtitled “repainting the Christian Faith” it would not be fitting not to voice any questions.

There are several areas I don’t exactly agree with Rob on but nothing major.  But that is exactly what this book is about.  If we accept everything without prayer, study, discussion we are freezing God and the church in the past.  We do not have a stagnant God.  The church is not finished.  God is not done with me or the church yet and we need to keep journeying to be closer to Him.  He has things yet for us to do. This book really challenged me to think and to pull out my Bible and look stuff up.

Another thing that caught me off guard is how Rob uses the entire Bible in most of his subjects.  He mentioned that when they began their church he preached the entire first year through the book of Leviticus.  Not exactly what most church growth advocators would prescribe I bet.  But the insight and knowledge he has on Jewish culture and particularly ancient Jewish religion was very thorough, easy to understand and enlightening making me look at several passages differently knowing the culture more they were written in.

It would be a great book to read with someone and discuss chapter by chapter, particularly with someone teenager thru 30’s (or someone who is disenchanted or even bitter about the Church). If you are not in the age group just mentioned, this book captures closely the revelations God is moving in those generations right now. (poverty, social and economic justice and environmental responsibility)  All, some very Biblical areas we older generations have not emphasized nearly enough and often look down on or ignore because they don’t fit into our political party platform.  This book lends itself to hours of discussion easily and the chapters are short and cover a variety of themes and you will understand the next generation of the Church so much better and see how God is working in them in exciting and spectacular ways.

Lastly, I want to get on my soapbox for a second and hit it once again with a question?  Why do we as “Christians” always seem to focus almost singularly on what we don’t like or agree with when it comes to our brothers and sisters in Christ?  Rob Bell has been such a lightening rod for criticism and praise.  We polarize ourselves on ALL things “Christian” immediately and mock anyone who may be “wishy washy” enough to be in the middle ground!  Example:  The other day I heard one person talking about reading the uber-popul;ar book “The Shack” and immediately two others standing around the conversation assaulted them to the point to where I felt sorry for the first person who was just bringing up something they found interesting about the book.  “That book is not Biblical.  We can’t read it and believe that is truth.  People need to read the Bible to find out what God is like.”  It is a book of fiction for crying out loud!!!  Half an hour earlier the same people were talking about the awesomeness of the Twilight series (Truly an awesome series) just on the merits of what it is and for the joy it brings and things they liked about it.  No one was crucifying it for not being a Biblical book (and they shouldn’t either) No one was saying we should just read the Bible!

Instead of looking for God in all things around us and rejoicing and delighting in the glimpses we get where ever it may be, we are constantly looking for what is not good and pointing out the bad in all things and inexplicably enough…even more with fellow Christ followers!!!

“Since then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”  -Colossians 3:1-2

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think  about such things.”  -Philippians 4:8

Not…whatever is lowly, whatever is wrong, whatever is soled whatever is ugly, whatever is not so good —think about these things!!

And with music we, as Christians, REALLY hit an all time low with this.  We enjoy the latest T.I. song but when we hear a “Christian” band we immediately crucify them as being “not Christian enough”, “too many christian cliches”, “too fluffy”, “Too Christian” even though this is music from the hearts and souls  of our brothers and sisters in Christ even if it is only a song about someone’s girlfriend leaving.  And the all time pit of focusing on the bad is when we say the cruelest and most uncalled for things about fellow Christians worship styles.  We infer that ours is more Holy or correct and that others can not worship God as authentically because they do not do it the way we do it.  And how is that?  Compartmentalizing our lives into Spiritual and Nonspiritual?  Worshiping our God abandoning everything and with such passion but walking out the door and not seeing the hurt, poverty and injustice around us? Shifting our passion from “worship” to the Colts within the span of an hour?  Is that worship?  All life is spiritual and yet we settle so many times for appetizers only and completely miss the 7 course meal!!

When we focus on the evil in things all the time instead of God we begin seeing evil everywhere instead of God everywhere.  No wonder we compartmentalize everything into Christian and worldly!  It is the only way we can stay sane if we are always looking for the flaws in everything.  That is why it becomes so over the top important for everything we label as “Christian” to be perfect, completely Biblical and beyond any questions!  And conversely it makes us just as uneasy when we see spiritual Godly things in the things we have deemed “worldly”.

Pfffshhooo!  I am sorry!  (stepping down off of my soapbox)

Bottom line.  Great book. Read it. Don’t just swallow it (or any book for that matter).  Discuss it with others. Enjoy it!