THE FATHER WHO RAN
From Luke 15:20 we read, “But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran…”
THE FATHER WHO RAN. A father was at the park with his four-year-old son. For just a moment, he looked down to answer a text message. When he looked up, his little boy was gone. Immediately, panic set in. He searched behind the playground equipment, around the swings, and near the walking trail. Then he saw him standing on the other side of the park. The father did not stay where he was and motion for his son to come to him. He took off running. Why? Because love runs.
That is exactly the picture Jesus gives us in Luke 15. At first glance, this appears to be the story of a father and his wayward son. But a parable is an earthly story with a heavenly message. Someone has said, “A parable is heaven’s truth wearing earthly clothes.” This story is much more than a family story. The father represents God the Father, and the prodigal son represents every person who has wandered away from Him. The word “prodigal” does not simply mean lost or wayward; it carries the idea of someone who wastes what has been given to him. This young man wasted his inheritance, his opportunities, his years, and nearly his life. Yet even after all he had done, he discovered that he had not exhausted his father’s love.
GOD ON THE RUN. Here is something amazing in this story. Throughout the Bible, we read about God creating, speaking, saving, judging, healing, and delivering. We read about Him walking in the garden in Genesis. We see Him sitting upon His throne, and riding upon the clouds in Isaiah. But in this beautiful picture painted by Jesus, we see God represented as a father running. That’s an amazing thought to me! The day this father ran was, in reality, a picture of the day God ran. The God who walked in the garden looking for Adam is the same God who ran down the road looking for a prodigal son. Few pictures in Scripture are more moving than this one: God running. Notice a few particulars in this story …
WHEN THE SON LEFT. The younger son asked for his inheritance early. Normally, an inheritance was received after the father had died. This young man was literally saying, “Father, I wish you were dead, but since you’re not, I want what would eventually come to me now!” That is the heart of sin. We want God’s blessings without God’s authority. We want His gifts, but not His guidance in our lives. What did the father do? The father gave him his inheritance and allowed him to leave. The son went into a far country, leaving behind an empty chair at the supper table, an empty bed in the house, and an empty place in his father’s heart. He may have left home, but he never left his father’s thoughts.
The far country looked exciting at first. There was money to spend, friends to impress, and pleasures to enjoy. But sin always overpromises and underdelivers. Before long, the money was gone, the friends were gone, and the young man found himself feeding pigs and even thinking of eating some of the slop he was feeding them. Notice…WHEN THE SON CAME HOME. The Bible says, “When he was yet a great way off, his father saw him.” How could he see him from so far away? Because he had been watching for him. I can picture that father looking down the road day after day, wondering if this might be the day his boy came home. Then one day he saw a figure in the distance. The young man was ragged, weary, and broken. His shoulders were drooping, and his steps were slow. But the father recognized him. It was his son finaly. coming home! Then came the most surprising part of the story: the father ran. This father was a wealthy, successful man of that day. Men of dignity and position did not run in that culture. But remember, this was no ordinary father. This father represents the God of mercy and grace. He did not stand on the porch with folded arms and demand that the son crawl all the way home. He ran to meet him.
The son took one step toward home, and the father came running toward him. Then note…WHAT HAPPENED NEXT. The son was still wearing rags. He still carried the stench and smell of pigs and the far country. Yet before he got cleaned up, he got hugged up.
The father did not say, “You will have to earn your way back.” He did not say, “Let’s see if you have learned your lesson.” He did not make him stand outside until he could prove himself. He received him. Then came the robe, the ring, and the shoes. The robe covered his shame. The ring restored his place in the family. And only servants went barefoot so the shoes showed that he was not a servant; he was a son. That is what salvation is about. God does not merely forgive us and leave us at a distance. He receives us, restores us, and rejoices over us. Jesus said there is joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth.
DOES THIS STORY HIT HOME? Maybe you feel like you have wandered into a far country. Maybe sin has taken you farther than you intended to go, kept you longer than you intended to stay, and cost you more than you intended to pay.
Remember this: the Father is still watching the road. He is still full of compassion. And if you will turn toward Him, you will discover what the prodigal discovered on that unforgettable day: our God is still the Father who runs. Think it over…🙏