How the Father Demonstrates Forgiveness

The father said, “. . . Let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.”

–Luke 15:22–24

In the story of the prodigal son, we tend to focus on the son’s actions: asking for his inheritance, squandering all his money, and finally deciding to return home. But the story of the prodigal son hinges on his father’s attitude. The father responded to his lost son with forgiveness.

The father’s forgiveness was demonstrated in three specific attitudes toward his son. First of all, the father longed for his son’s return. Luke 15:20 says, “While he was still a long way off, his father saw him.” I imagine the father spent his days on the front porch scanning the horizon for any sign of his son’s return. Every sunrise brought hope that this would be the day his boy would come home, and every sunset was a prelude to a sleepless night of wondering what had happened to his boy. The father longed for his son’s return.

Second, the father felt compassion toward his son. Jesus said when the father saw his son, he “felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.” (v. 20). The Greek word translated as “felt compassion” is splagchnizomai, which literally means to be moved in the bowels. As we learned in our study of Colossians, the bowels were considered the seat of emotion. In other words, the father so was moved in his gut with love for his son that he ran to meet him. In those days, a wealthy man of dignity would never run anywhere, but the father put aside his dignity, lifted his robe, and ran toward his son.

Third, the father desired restoration with his son, not retribution. Imagine the surge of relief the son felt when he understood his father’s true feelings toward him. Nevertheless, the son still had a speech to deliver. I imagine the son had rehearsed what he would say with the only audience he had: the pigs he was feeding. Now the moment had arrived. So the son gathered his courage and launched into his speech: “Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son” (v. 21). But his father cut him off. That was all he needed to hear. He said, “Let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found” (vv. 23–24).

If you want to know God’s attitude toward you, just look at the story of the prodigal son. God doesn’t hate you when you wander away from Him. He loves you, and He longs for your return.

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Today’s devotion is adapted from “The Waiting Father” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2009.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.