So He Got up and Went to His Father
(Luke 15:11~20)

When Jesus was doing His earthly ministry, He was even close to sinners who were distanced and avoided by people. In the Scripture today, when the Pharisees and the teachers of the law saw that the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus, they muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So Jesus taught them by telling them a parable.

1. A son who left his father
1) There was a man who had two sons. The younger son inherited wealth even though his father was alive and set off for a distant country. He squandered his wealth in wild living. Ultimately, he couldn’t make his ends meet. (Lk. 15:13~16)
2) A life of the younger son who left his father clearly shows the reality of human beings who left God since Adam. People who left God lives a tiring life that has to makes ends meet by toiling and by the sweat of the brow, and ultimately returns to dust. (Job. 14:1)

2. I have sinned against heaven and against father
1) When the younger son was on the brink of death because of hunger, he thought of his father’s house where even hired men eat until they are full. So he determines to return to his father. (Lk. 15:18~19)
2) Repentance is to return to God. If people repent and go before God, God will welcome them delightfully and make them as His children. (Hosea 6:1)

3. So he got up and went to his father
1) The father waited for his son to come back every day. The father put the best robe on his returned son, put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. He had a feast for him. The father completely restored his son’s status. (Isa. 30:18)
2) The older son became furious by seeing that the father delightfully welcome the younger son and hold a feast, calling his neighbors. How the older son acted shows the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who criticized Jesus becoming close to sinners. (Lk. 15:29~30)

Conclusion
People who left God are those who lost everything. Today, God is looking for those who are lost and waiting for them to return. The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) Anyone who repents and believes in Jesus becomes a child of God.