PARTY

In today’s passage, Jesus uses three different parables to illustrate the love of God towards us, and the celebration that takes place when we turn from our selfish, sinful ways and return to him. The parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin show us that God doesn’t just sit idly by and hope that we’ll figure out that we are lost. Instead, he actively pursues us and draws us to himself. It is only because of this pursuit that we can be found.

But the third parable, often referred to as the parable of the prodigal son, is different. It is a story about someone who is already a child of the father. In this case, the son isn’t just lost; he has walked away. He has turned his back on his father and what it means to be his son. The first parable isn’t really about the sheep, but the person who loses the sheep. The second is about the woman who loses the coin, not the coin. So too, this third parable is more about the father than it is about the son.

Jesus uses this story to show us how God the Father loves his children. He loves us enough to let us make our own decisions. Even the ones that draw us away from him. In the midst of our wandering, he doesn’t stop loving us. He patiently waits for us to come to our senses. And he meets us with open arms when we return. There is so much that can be learned from this parable. How our heavenly Father loves us. How are we as parents to love our children? And how we, as wandering children, have never wandered too far from his love.

The closing point of each of these three parables is what happens when the lost are found, and the wanderer returns. There is a party! The Creator of the entire universe celebrates whenever one lost soul is found. More than that, all of Heaven celebrates. There is no greater expression of knowing God’s love than for us to join in that celebration. Revelation 19 tells us that one day, everyone who comes to Jesus, the Bride of Christ, will celebrate together in an incredible feast. We are told that it will sound like “the roar of rushing waters and loud peals of thunder.” In light of these heavenly celebrations, I pray that our earthly celebrations can reflect even a fraction of that intensity. This is the mindset behind the song, “Party.”

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for pursuing me. For drawing me to you when I was lost in my sin. And thank you for patiently waiting for me to turn back to you when I wander. Help me to see even the little ways in which I keep drifting away from your best for me. And Lord, help me to have your love for those around me that still don’t know you. Use me, however you see fit, to help draw them to you. And bless me with the excitement of Heaven whenever I see one of your lost ones return to you. Let me join in with that heavenly party! Amen.