The most famous story Jesus ever told was about a father and his two sons.
One son is a wild, brash party animal.
The other is a self-righteous snob.
The wild son asks for his inheritance early, which in an ancient honor/shame culture, is the ultimate act of dishonor. He’s essentially asking his dad to hurry up and die. In a shocking twist, the dad (who you quickly figure out is a picture of Yahweh) says yes, and the narcissistic son “set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.” Meanwhile, the older brother stays at home to be a good boy and work the field.
Naturally, the profligate son runs out of money, and his life goes belly-up. he lands in abject poverty – eating pigs’ food, the end of the rope for a Jewish kid. Finally, he comes to his senses and decides to go back home and beg his dad for mercy.
But when he gets close to home, “his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; and he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.”
Usually we read the story as if it’s about the two sons.
But what if it’s actually about the father?
The son has done everything imaginable to break his father’s heart, but the father’s compassion is unshakable.
And get this: this is Jesus’ view of God.
For Jesus, God is a merciful parent who feels deeply for his children. The kind of dad who sees his wayward son on the horizon and goes running out to meet him because he just can’t wait another minute to wrap his son up into his chest.
Jesus had a name He used for God over and over again: Father.
For Jesus, the primary way we relate to God is not as a puny mortal cowering before an angry, malignant deity in the sky. But as sons and daughters in Daddy’s lap – in trust, in vulnerability and intimacy, in relationship and love.
– John Mark Comer, God Has A Name
Here’s a cover of Matt Redman’s song, ‘The Father’s Song’. We pray it blesses you. A shoutout to the vocalist, Sushmita Majumdar for being an incredible blessing.
