The Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32)

The aim of this parable is to teach us about God’s infinite love, a love that is not greater for us when we do good, nor lesser when we do bad, but instead is constant. Yes, God is pleased with our obedience and saddened by our sins, but His love for us does not diminish if we are unfaithful to Him. If we repent, He will always welcome us back.

As the parable opens, we, at once, see the selfishness and immaturity of the younger son by his hasty request for his inheritance (ver. 12). He had grown tired of being under the father’s rules and wanted to break loose and experience the world. Sadly, many Christians leave God today for the same reason. They do not want to abide by the will of God, so they leave and go back to the world. The consequences are the same for us as they were for the son in this parable. While he was sure that everything would be wonderful in the world with his new-found freedom, the reality was different. Before he knew it, he had wasted his inheritance with reckless living (vers. 13-14). Now this young man finds himself without food and no place to lay his head. After he squandered all his money, things got so bad that he found himself feeding pigs for a living and would have gladly eaten their food to satisfy his hunger (ver. 15).

The lesson here is that when we leave God, a spiritual famine will follow. In the far country of sin, you might find the adventure of an extra-marital affair, but in the end, you will be left with a broken marriage and a broken life. You might experience the excitement of drugs and drinking and doing your own thing, but in the end, you will be left with bad health, little wealth, and a defeated life. You might enjoy the freedom of not being under the law of God, but in the end, it will cost you your relationship with Him, the privilege of His providential care, and the salvation of your soul. Eventually, in the far country of sin, you will be in want.

Here is the good news. If you ever leave God, you do not have to stay away. Finally, after too long, the young man came to himself and returned to the Father (vers. 17-20). If we find ourselves in the far country of sin, we can do the same thing. We can repent of our sins and return to our Father, and just like the Father in the parable, God will receive us with open arms (vers. 20-24). Notice, when the son was on his way home, His father saw him when he was a great way off. That tells us that the Father was watching for his boy’s return. He waited day after day for his son to come over the horizon. That is a beautiful picture of how God, from the moment we leave Him, waits for our return. Isn’t that comforting? I pray none of us make the unwise decision to leave our Father, but if we do, we know that He does not stop loving us. He waits patiently for us to repent and return to His open arms. If you have been unfaithful to God, I urge you to come to yourself before it is too late. If your repentance is sincere, no matter what you have done, God will accept you back, for while He hates sin, He continues to love the sinner. He is a God of mercy and second chances. As you wind down for the night, think on these things.