Reflections of the Prodigal Son: Part III

I have been talking for a little while about the story of the Prodigal Son Jesus tells in the book of Luke. Read the story here. Here are the earlier posts, Part I and Part II. For Part III, want to share my thoughts on the father.

Four things we can learn about our Heavenly Father:

 1. He has great vision.
“But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him…” (Luke 15:20). Even though we may not be able to see what’s ahead of us, our Father sees. It is not our vision when it comes to faith. But it is the vision of the Father that can lead us to the expected end that Jeremiah talks about. God sees where we are, where we can be and how to get there. Knowing that gives us the courage to keep going.

2. He understands.
We can only assume the son was in a pretty bad shape – tattered clothes, holes in his shirt, dirt on his face, no shoes. But despite how he appeared, the father didn’t care about that. Similar to us, no matter how we present ourselves, God still loves us and understands where we are now – and what to do to help us get out of it.

3. He is forgiving.
No matter what we have done, our Father always welcomes us home. We can never stray too far or make too many mistakes to come back home. He doesn’t hold our mistakes in front of us, reminding us of what we used to do. He forgives us and to him, they are thrown into the sea of forgiveness.

4. He is Generous.
The son would have been more than happy just being accepted back home. But his father does much more than that. He doesn’t hand him his old clothes and scraps to eat. He doesn’t open the door and let him come on, not giving him a hi or hello (how some of us might do). No, instead he throws a celebration!

“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” (Luke 15:22-24).

Perhaps you are desiring to return home. Do it today.
An omnicient,  understanding, forgiving and generous God awaits you!