Scripture to Read: Luke 15:31–32
The older son had shared his bitterness toward his younger brother with his father. The older son also scolded his father for his willingness to so quickly forgive his younger son and to throw a party for him. But Jesus then reveals this in Luke 15:31–32, “And he said to him, ‘Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.’” We know from Luke 15:28 that the father had come out to talk with his older son and that the father “began pleading with him” to come in and enjoy their celebration. But the older son was unwilling, and then, we see how the father reminds the older son that everything that belongs to the father is his and that the reason for the celebration is that the younger son had died to the family and now he was alive again. The younger son had been restored to the family. The father never lost sight of the value of either of his sons. He had lost the younger son, like a death to the family, and when the younger son repented, he was given life again. God looks upon all of mankind as His precious children. Some have chosen to live lives indulging in their fleshly desires and denying Him who created them. But when just one surrenders to Christ as Lord, there is incredible rejoicing in heaven, and they are welcomed as family.
Challenge & Application
How does God view this lost world, and why should that motivate us to share the love of Christ with them all?
How has God’s love, grace, forgiveness, and mercy changed you, and how are you living for Him because of it all?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!