The lost sons

I know not every character or event in a parable has an exact real life equivalent. But in the parable of the prodigal son, who does the older son who stays working with his father represent?

Here's the end of the parable from Luke 15:

25 “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’”

Jim Ramsey explained to us on Sunday night that this second lost son of the parable (the older brother) is the type of lost person who is hidden well in church. Externally they look fine, but in reality their relationship with their heavenly Father is fraudulent. This makes perfect sense to me. Luke 15:1-2 helps fill out the logic;

1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

As the parable was originally given, the most obvious equivalent of the older brother is the Pharisees and the scribes (who today are the unconverted church-goer). But isn't there a problem here? The description in 15:31 that "Son you are always with me, and everything that is mine is yours" seems an overly positive view of how the Pharisees stand before God. Jesus usually tries to highlight just the opposite - that though they appear to be right with God in reality they aren't. So are the Pharisees the older brother?

Jim reconciled this by suggesting that 15:31-32 leaves the parable on a cliffhanger ending, that we are not told of the older brother's (Pharisee/unconverted churchgoer's) fate. Perhaps my problems comes from a different understanding of the words of the Father to the older son. It appears the Father is rebuking the Son within relationship. That is, he is not telling the younger son you need to be saved, rather he is rebuking him about resenting his brother back. You dig? But if this is right, it radically alters the meaning of older brother. That Jesus is not teaching at that point the need to be saved but of those who would call themselves God people should desire for all people to return to God's family.

Either way, this intellectual issue I'm having does help highlight both sides of the parable. It's not just about the lost being found (Jim's evangelistic sermon) but also about the found not resenting others being found.

Do you have other thoughts on the older bro?