Luke 15:20-24
“So he got up and went to his father. 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. The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 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. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.”
The Prodigal Son is a story about a son treating his father about as badly as you can. The prodigal son was a selfish person. He didn’t care about his father. He only cared about his money. He goes to his father and demands his inheritance. In essence, he wished his father were dead! And his father gave him what he requested and let him go out into the world to make his own choices. The son wastes his money and makes a bunch of foolish decisions. He finds that the people he thought were his friends were really just opportunistic mooches who only stuck by him while he had lots of cash to spend on them. He finds himself working as a pig herder, the lowest job a Jewish person could do. Pigs were unclean animals, and taking care of them and touching them made the person unclean as well.
The son decides that he’s going to go and beg his father’s forgiveness and offer to work as a slave. He reasons that even his father’s lowest slave was treated much better than he himself is being treated right now. So he goes home, rehearsing his apology all along the way. The audience that heard Jesus’ story probably had their own opinion about how the father would treat his son. Some may have thought the father would finally get revenge on such a disgraceful son. Some might have thought that the father would take pity and let the son be a servant. But I doubt any of them saw the ending that Jesus had in mind. In Jesus’ parable, the father sees the son while he is a long way off. This father never gave up hope. He had been waiting for his son to return. He had been watching the horizon for any sign of his son on the road. And while the son is a long way off he runs to him.
The father’s response is one of unconditional love and forgiveness. He doesn’t ask for an apology. He doesn’t demand respect from his son. He doesn’t tell him “I told you so” or “serves you right! You got what you deserved.” No. His only response is love for his son. He doesn’t care what the son has done. He loves him anyway. This is God’s heart toward each one of us. God isn’t sitting on His throne in heaven like an angry judge waiting to meet out punishment to us whenever we do wrong. He isn’t saying, “Well, I’ll forgive you once you’re really truly sorry for your actions and you’ve suffered a bit.” He doesn’t say, “I told you so.” or even “You got what you deserved!” No. God is watching for us like a loving father. He’s scanning the horizon for any sign that we are headed down the road that leads back to Him….and while we are a long way off, He comes running to meet us.
God’s love for us is unconditional. No matter what we’ve done. No matter how badly we’ve sinned. No matter how deeply we’ve wounded God’s heart with our actions. His love for us never changes. He is waiting with open arms to welcome us home, to offer us complete forgiveness, and to celebrate our return!
Father, thank you for your great love for me. I have sinned against you so many times, and yet you are always there waiting for me to turn around, to repent, and come back to you. You don’t punish me. You don’t demand justice. You just want me to come home, admit I was wrong, and live like your Son. You sent Jesus to die in my place, something I never deserved. That’s something I could never deserve. You did it because you love me. You did it because you are a good, good Father. Thank you, God, for being a good father to me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
A Beautiful Mess 