The Gospel of Luke 15:11–32 tells a parable that Jesus tells to His listeners. Today, as I was about to go to sleep, I felt an urge to sit there and worship for a moment, and I obeyed. Starting this year, one mantra that I live by is “Thou shall not postpone promptings.”
Promptings aside, let’s look at The Parable of The Prodigal Son. You have probably read and heard a sermon on it more times than you’ve thought through it. So tonight, as I sat there, with my Bible open, and a notebook and my worship playlist playing in the background, a thought hit my mind. “A man had two sons…” Note the choice of words used by Jesus in this parable.
Jesus does not talk about a man having friends, workers, relatives, or grandsons; He talks about sons. That got me thinking, why “sons?” Then I embarked on a journey to discover and unravel this mystery. Not me, but the Holy Spirit, who is meant to guide me into all truth (John 16:13), dropped the light bulb in my already open mind.
You see, a father has many sons; maybe you are one of the many sons of your father. Different sons have different attitudes and characters. Some are disobedient, others are proud, and many others are soft-spoken. I don’t want to ask you what type you are.
Let us try to find out who a son is. Shall we? Here are a few signs that will tell you if you’re a son or a slave.
Signs of sons;
Sons resemble their fathers (John 14:9). They believe in their fathers and trust them for everything. (Mathew 6:9-13). They honor and obey their father, according to Malachi 1:6 and Ephesians 6:1–3. Sons also do what their fathers do (John 5:19) and carry the words of their fathers. (Proverbs 4:3) Finally, sons are forever. (John 8:35, 1 John 2:19)
Now that we have established who a son is, let us look at how it plays out for the younger son. He had packed his loads—all that belonged to him, including the inheritance—and traveled to “far country.”
A distant country here does not necessarily mean you went to another continent, or to another country, or to Mars. A distant country is anywhere you are or have gone where Jesus is not. It may be behind your church, in the corner of your house, at your workplace, or at school. When you move away from the presence of God, you have gone to a distant country.
The good news is that you can always come back home because you are a SON! Sons are forever! I am a son myself, one of two sons of my biological father, and, coincidentally, the younger son. No matter what you do, your father will always be willing to have you back, Because you are his son, he will fight for you whenever a chance comes up, He wants to see you do better and prosper. If that is your earthly father, how much more God, the Heavenly Father?
Who knows if the rejection you’re facing right now, the pain you’re going through, the crisis that you’re in and can’t seem to find a way out, the longing in your heart, is Jesus saying to you, “Come home son?”
Oh, now you are asking, but I’m a lady, I’m a mother; is this word for me too? Of course, the Bible says that in Christ there’s no male or female, so this message is yours too, and because you believed in Jesus, you have been granted the power to become a son of God, daughter of Zion.
I just want to remind you that no matter how far you think you’ve fallen, God is still calling you to come home, He is not going to make you a servant because you squandered all that he gave to you, He will replenish you. The prodigal son carried his clothes and everything that belonged to him and went, came home and still the father had the best robe and ring for him. He even ordered a banquet to celebrate his son’s coming back.
A host of heavenly angels are rejoicing when you make the decision to come back to God at this moment. Your diet is washed away and there is no longer any condemnation when you are in Christ Jesus. If you feel so far away, ask God to fill that longing to come back home, that out of your belly, rivers of living waters are going to flow and bring to life every part of your life that was dead due to your going into the distant country, Pray with me this prayer.
Lord Jesus, I come to you as a sinner, lost and condemned to hell. I believe that you died and rose again from the dead for my sake. I accept you today as my Lord and savior. Come and take control of my life. Rub my name from the book of death, and write it in the book of life. From now on, I am a born again Christian. Thank you Lord for sending your son to die for me. Amen
May it be known that the slave mentality is what makes one not prosper or stay. I see God banishing the slave mentality from your mind. I see God renewing your mind when He pours out His spirit on you this day! Go out and conquer the world, son of God!
Authentic Christian 