Leadership Echo: Prodigal 9 - Brosephus: When Fairness Boils Over

Brosephus had finally had enough. He’d stayed home, carried the load, kept the order, and worked hard while his prodigal brother wasted everything. So when he saw a feast being thrown for the reckless one, the anger that had been simmering finally erupted.

From the outside, his frustration looked justified. From the inside, it became a barrier.

Leaders know that moment, when duty turns into resentment, when comparison steals joy, when fairness becomes the lens through which everything is judged. We start counting what others didn’t do and forget why we started leading in the first place.

Brosephus confronted his father with a list of everything he had earned. He expected a debate. But he got a hug.

Grace interrupts scorekeeping. It exposes what leadership by fairness alone can never fix: a heart drifting from the Father.

“He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve or repaid us according to our iniquities.” Psalm 103:10

Jesus died and rose again to reveal a different kind of leadership: one built not on what is deserved, but on what restores. Leaders who echo Christ lead with truth, but also with mercy. They confront what’s wrong and they restore what’s broken. They measure success not by perfect balance, but by transformed hearts.

Take time to reflect this week: Where has fairness started to outrank grace in your leadership and what would it look like to lead from the Father’s embrace instead of your own effort?