Featured Article 2nd qtr. 2001

It was at a recent staff meeting where we were talking about our Heavenly Father’s love. As we discussed the power of His love and the need to experience a greater depth of His love, we soon found ourselves asking, how does the Father feel about His children?

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. (NIV)

How did this father feel? This father was looking for his son. I imagine throughout the day he would every once-in-awhile look up towards the horizon hoping to see his son. And then, finally, one day while his son was still a long way off, he saw him and he was immediately filled with compassion for him. Not disgust. Not anger or even righteous indignation. There was no ‘I told you so’, or ‘it serves you right!’ It was just unconditional love. Love, that was totally undeserving, but yet freely flowing.

This, my friend is the love of the Heavenly Father. And this is how He feels about YOU!

Verse 20 is only one of many verses in scripture that reveal the true heart of God the Father. You see, when you stray, fall short, sin and turn your back on Him, He hurts for you. And He waits and looks for you. Longing for the day when He can run and throw His arms around you and kiss you!

So why do we allow ourselves to believe that the Father is mad when we fall short; that somehow He is going to blow up at us so we had better keep our distance? In part, it’s because we unconsciously project our experiences of conditional love upon God; therefore we struggle in accepting this kind of extraordinary love because somehow our performance is less than acceptable.

The truth is, you’ve been made acceptable through the blood of His son, Jesus Christ! You are a joint heir in Christ Jesus and are entitled to all the same benefits because you are family!

If we’re ever going to truly experience in this life what the Father feels about us then we must deliberately resist the lie of an angry Father and renew our minds to the fact that He is waiting patiently for us, longing for us to draw near. No matter what we’ve done!

I know it sounds too good to be true but it is! And we must refuse to accept anything less!

Now when it comes to a mother’s love and how she feels, we all have a pretty good idea. But in today’s society where half the marriages “made in heaven” end in divorce and the number of children growing up in fatherless homes increases, it’s no wonder that people struggle believing in or relating to a loving Heavenly Father.

While there are many aspects of how our Heavenly Father feels towards us, I want us to understand just how much the Father loves us as we focus in on the parable of the Prodigal Son found in Luke chapter 15.

We all pretty much know the story. Son thinks he knows all and wants all. Son leaves home and blows all. Son returns home with nothing at all. And parents who have gone through similar experiences with their own children have found great comfort and encouragement in this passage as they too are awaiting the return of their prodigal sons or daughters. While this is so true there is more to this story and I’m referring to the love of the father.

Now I’m sure the father wasn’t pleased with his son’s decision to take his inheritance and leave home. His father was very aware of the potential dangers that were awaiting a young man loaded with goods and money that he hadn’t paid the price for. And as any loving father would do, I’m sure there were many discussions over this matter as the father tried to convince his son that what he was about to do was not wise.

Nevertheless the father relented and gave his son his inheritance and sent him on his way. Can you imagine the hurt the father and his wife must have felt? The tears they cried? The prayers they prayed?

After a season of time had passed the son having lost everything and starving in a pig pen, finally came to his senses and decided to go home.

In verses 20 - 24 we read the following:

20 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.


		Featured article from our 2001 2nd quarter newsletter.

April - June 2001 Issue - Volume 6, No.2