Extravagant, Loving Father

God's love for us is revealed in the story of the two sons, the younger, irresponsible son and the older responsible son. Let's not focus on the sons, but on the father. Read Luke 15. Especially verses 17 - 24 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 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. [accents mine]

I noticed something today that I had not put together before. The story in Luke 15 is a pre-telling of Jesus on the cross in Luke 23. Now read Luke 23:40-43 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”

Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

The son's father ran to greet his wayward son. In this culture, this was very undignified and unseemly for this older man to run. How dignified do you think Jesus was, battered, bruised and hanging on the cross? Galatians 3:13 says that anyone hanging on a tree is cursed - (see Deuteronomy 21:23 ESV). That sounds undignified and unseemly to me.

In Luke 15, when the son returned home, his father didn't grill him about where he'd been, what he'd done, how much money he had left. He didn't ask him anything. He simply invited him back into full loving familial fellowship with him.

Notice the same is true of the criminal hanging next to Jesus on the cross. Jesus didn't ask if he'd been baptized or to list his crimes or to ask for forgiveness. Jesus didn't ask the criminal, "what have you learned?" He simply responded in the most loving way He could have; He welcomed him into fellowship. Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43)

Contrast this with the way that David dealt with Absalom in 2 Samuel (Link for the full story.) David's response to Absalom is in 2 Samuel 14:28 Absalom lived two years in Jerusalem without seeing the king’s [David's] face. To be honest, Absalom did not act like the son in the parable. Absalom had not returned to his father; he was not humbling himself (see verse 32). David had the expected response to Absalom's actions. The hearers of the parable Jesus told in Luke 15 would have expected this type of response to the irresponsible, murderous son's actions. They would have been blown away by the father's actions in this parable, His extravagant, irrational, over the top response to his son's return, regardless of what had came before.

No one expected Jesus, part of the Triune God, to become so low as to accept the criminal and all of us back into fellowship with Him. The parable of the prodigal son(s) could be more appropriately called Extravagant, Loving Father. God our Father is waiting and watching for us as we approach from a distant country. He watched and still watches for our approaching and while we are still far off, He runs to us after hanging on a cross for us and calls us back into relationship with Him. He puts the best robe on us, sandals on our undeserving feet and throws a feast for us as angels rejoice in heaven. Think of the excitement.

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