Background Story: Jesus taught the crowd the deep truths of the Kingdom of God using parables, or stories that held a meaning. This method of teaching was prophesied in Psalm 78:1-3.

Read Luke 15:11-24

There was a man who had two sons. ¹² The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

¹³ “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. ¹⁴ After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. ¹⁶ He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

¹⁷ “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! ¹⁸ I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 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.

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.

Big Idea: God is a Good Father.

Our view of God is often shaped by human to human experience. You might have grown up with a kind father. Or you might have a father that is harsh, never satisfied, unreliable, or completely absent. What we received from our earthly father, we often expect from our heavenly One.

But Jesus showed us the most perfect heavenly Father in this passage. A son living with his father, everything he needed was provided by his father’s hand. Yet despite this, he wasn’t satisfied and wanted to leave home and experience what was outside the walls. Being a good father, he gives his child the freedom of choice. He allows him to reject him and to choose sin over his father’s protection and provision. I am reminded of Creation and Adam and Eve’s choice to sin. How sad the father must have been watching his son leave his home. He must have longed for him to stay within his protection and provision.

As the son leaves for the “better” outside, he soon discovers that sin is fun for a time, but leads to pain and destruction. Having grown up as a son, he forget who he is. But one day when he is eating pig slop, he wakes up and “comes to his senses” remembering what it was like in his father’s home. Shamed, he heads back to face his dad. And here is where we see another truth about God. Seeing his son approach the house, the father doesn’t hold back his affection, yell at him, or shame him. He runs to him!

Thinking back to creation, we see God respond the same way. Adam and Eve feared God’s response to their sin so they hid in shame. So God went to them, calling them out of hiding. God is a good father who knows everything we have done and will do. The best life possible for us in within the protection and provision of His will and presence. But when we falter and fail, we serve a God who embraces us. Don’t choose pig slop because you’re worried about God’s response. God is standing at the door waiting- not to punish you, but to restore you. As you approach Him in honest confession, He will clean you up, cover your shame, and welcome you into His presence as His child.

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Looking For More?

Dig Deeper: 1 John 1:9-2:2, 1 John 2:28-3:2, Genesis 3:6-12, 21, Hosea 6:1-7, Jonah 2, Psalm 51, Matthew 7:7-11, Revelations 21:1-7

Similar Devotions: It’s Personal 2, Love Story, Law Breaker, Not a Typo, Both Can’t Remain, Sneaky Vines, Wedding Clothes, More Than Religion, Who I Am, The Curtain

Devotions4Teens Video: Salvation in Jesus, Becoming More Like Jesus, The Gospel- 3 Minute Presentation