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| The father, however does not show him mercy, he shows him grace! “20 But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him… 22 The father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe–the best one–and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.” The name of this parable is “The Lost Son,” but that is only part of it. I tend to see it more as being about the father’s heart. And as our heavenly Father’s heart is clearly for his lost and estranged children, so we, as his ministers of reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18), must pursue them and extend to them the warm embrace of grace. As we look closely at verse 20 and examine the father’s actions, I think that there are some very practical applications that we can relate to our own lives and ministries. First of all, we see that the father saw his son while he was still a long way off. Philip Yancey depicts this scene as the “Lovesick Father” who is “standing before the plate–glass window in his living room, staring out into the darkness,” waiting for his child to come home (56). I believe that God is telling us that we need to open our eyes and see the estranged sons and daughters all around us trying to find their way home. We need to be watching. Jesus said, “Look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting” (John 4:35). All around us the fields are white and ready to be harvested, but how often do we just walk past. It may be that we’re too busy with “our ministry” to see those right in front of us. We need to first open our eyes, look around us, watch, and wait for those who are hurting. Secondly, verse 20 says that when the father saw him, he was “filled with compassion” for him. Compassion was one of the characterizing aspects of Jesus’ life and ministry. 36 “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Continued... |
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