Seeking God's Ways | From Exceptionalism to Inclusion | Richard Olfert

The human point of view named in 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 causes us to think that we are "in" ad others are "out."  In Jesus' parable, the elder son is stuck seeing from this perspective and thinking that his father should love only him, not his brother who left home.  The elder son struggles to realize how blessed he is.  The younger son experiences reconciliation, which can radically open our hearts to be welcomed and to understand God's welcome.  The prodigal son is a new creation because he came home to receive his father's love.  We may wonder about the Israelites and their rituals of circumcision (Joshua 5:2-8) and Passover (Exodus 12:12-13) that defined and celebrated who was chosen and who wasn't chosen.  We can ponder their shift from receiving the grace of manna to eating the produce others had grown.