Luke 15:21-24 – “And the son
said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no
longer worthy to be called your son.’[c] 22 But the
father said to his servants,[d] ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on
him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf
and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he
was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.”
Look closely
at Rembrandt’s Return of The Prodigal.
Look at his feet. His sandals are worn, ripped, torn… The sandals are torn because
of his journey away from the Father. The son had taken his share of his father’s
dignity and inheritance and run away to a foreign land, far from his father. He
squandered all he was given living wild. His new foreign friends took advantage
of him and used up his inheritance and dignity. He purchased the approval of
others with the last of the wealth given him by his father. Broken, poor,
hungry he returned to his father’s home hoping just to gain a place as a
servant. Never did he hope or even consider that his father would allow him
back in the home.
The torn
sandals are seen prominently in the painting. They represent the shame of the
son. They shout to all that see of his sin, his brokenness and of his status as
one who is homeless. But the Father
removes the torn sandals and gives new shoes to his son. He gives him the best
robe – his own, he gives him a ring – signifying the authority of a son, and he
gives him new sandals, new life!
I remember
my torn sandals. We all have them. But the Father would give us all new
sandals, new life! I know there will always be people that only remember the
torn sandals and forget what the Father did with those shameful shoes. But don’t
you forget!
I love Holy
Week, the week that begins with Palm Sunday and ends with Easter Sunday. I remember
my torn sandals and my Lord that took them away. I remember at the crucifixion
that Jesus picks up my torn sandals and carries them to the grave. I remember
an empty cross… and my risen Jesus… and I begin to celebrate.
No more torn
sandals… not in the Father’s house.
“…and they
began to celebrate”
Anchored in
the Risen Lamb of God!
Harrison
