“You are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”
— Luke 15:31

The Bitterness of the Faithful

It’s hard not to sympathize with the elder son in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11–32).

  • He stayed.
  • He worked.
  • He obeyed.

But when his reckless younger brother returns, what does the father do?

He throws a banquet.

To the elder son, it feels like betrayal disguised as blessing.
“You never even gave me a young goat to celebrate with my friends,” he protests.

Sound familiar?

When Blessing Looks Like Betrayal

Sometimes, we feel like the elder son in our relationship with God:

  • We’ve been faithful for years.
  • We’ve served, given, prayed, obeyed.
  • But the celebration? It goes to someone else.

Maybe it’s a new Christian getting breakthrough blessings.
Maybe it’s someone who wandered far from God and returns to open doors.
It stings.

It feels like they got the banquet, while we’re still out in the field.

The Father’s Response

The father’s reply is everything:

“Son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”

In other words:

  • You were never without my presence.
  • You already had access to my resources.
  • You’ve been living inside the inheritance all along.

The younger son didn’t return richer, holier, or stronger.
He returned broken.

And what did he get?

  • One robe.
  • One ring.
  • One night of welcome.

All he got was a banquet.

Grace Isn’t Fair — It’s Better

God’s grace offends human fairness — and that’s the point.

Grace is not a paycheck.
It’s a homecoming.

The elder son thought he was being overlooked.
But the father hadn’t withheld anything.

The banquet wasn’t about rewarding the younger son —
It was about restoring him.

The Real Blessing

The banquet wasn’t the blessing. Here’s what was:

  • Constant access to the Father.
  • Ongoing trust and relationship.
  • Full inheritance and identity.

If you’ve walked faithfully with God and feel unseen when others are celebrated, hear this:

You haven’t missed the blessing.
You are living in it.

Final Thought

When someone comes home, and grace feels too generous —
don’t let that make your heart bitter.

The Father’s love isn’t divided when others return.
It’s multiplied.

The prodigal got one night of grace.
You’ve had a lifetime of it.

All he got was a banquet.
You have everything.

Written with love and honesty. If this encouraged you, feel free to share or reflect.