Luke 15:20-24, 31-32
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
“ ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ”
So I changed my mind. In this post I want to look at the final character in this parable. On Saturday's post I will look at the one person who is missing from this parable, but before I go there I want to spend the next few moments learning about the father in this story and discovering what it reveals for us about our Father in Heaven.
When you look up the word prodigal in the dictionary you will find that it is defined as; recklessly extravagant or having spent everything. So when you read the story of the prodigal son, and you understand what prodigal means, you will begin to realize that the real prodigal person is the father. First, the father destroys his own name and tears apart his estate and sells off half of what he owns so that he can give what his first son asks for. The father loves the first son so much that he knows it is probably going to turn out bad in the end for this rebellious son, but the father gives it all and sacrifices himself and his name for what the son asks. Then, after the younger son comes slinking back, the father runs, which was shameful for a respected man in that culture, to go and greet and love his rebellious son all the more. The father re-sacrifices himself and some of his wealth to bring back this rebellious son into his home.
Than the older son becomes rebellious and starts to show his true lostness and what does the father do? The father runs out and chases after his older son. The father pleads with his other lost son that everything he has is now his son's and the father extends a hand of love and forgiveness to this son also. Simply put the father spends everything he has and everything that he is on his two sons and sacrifices totally for each son, trying to bring them back into his life and welcome them home with open arms.
So what does this father teach us about our Heavenly and perfect Father? First, His love is sacrificial. God knew that loving us, His rebellious and moral children, would mean total and complete sacrifice, even to the point of death. Second, we can never escape or run to far from God's love and even when we come back skulking God will open His arms wide and welcome us back just like we had never left or ran from Him. Third, God and His grace for us, is abundant and will never run out. Just like when the younger son came back and the father gave him more again after he had spent all of his, God will give us grace and love continually. This also means that even when we spend and waste the blessings God has given us from Him, He will freely and unconditionally give us more when we seek with a forgiveness. Fourth, whether we are rebellious and outside of the church, or moral and lost inside the church, God our Father will chase after us and continually seek us out to welcome us into His family and give us His blessings and love. This important to realize because even after we enter a church door and call ourselves "Christians", God is still chasing after us sharing His love and compassion to us and desiring us and a relationship with Him. Lastly, this father teaches and shows to us about our Heavenly Father, that if and when we enter His home, there will be a celebration and great feast. God desires for us to come home and come inside the family so that He can celebrate and we enjoy the feast of God and explore and enjoy His many blessings.
I pray that next time you read through this parable or hear someone teach on it, that you will remember and rejoice in everything the father in this story can teach us about our true, perfect, and loving Heavenly father.
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