Words Are Not Enough

11 And He said, “A man had two sons. 12 “The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.’ So he divided his wealth between them. 13 “And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living. 14 “Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished. 15 “So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 “And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him. 17 “But when he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger! 18 ‘I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.”‘ 20 “So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 “And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 “But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; 23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate. — Luke 15:11-24

Words are often such poor tools to convey what we are thinking. How often have we read an email, and thought it meant one thing, but then we read it again and realized that it could mean something very different. Without physical expression, it is difficult to know what someone really means. It is said that only 30% of what we communicate is though words, and 70% is by other means: body language, gestures, posture, … .

In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, the father’s communication is clear, but disgraceful. Mature men do not run; they walk calmly and purposefully. And they don’t kiss a disobedient son. It’s so undignified. They should listen with an air of distance and then pronounce punishment.

How can Jesus use this as an example of God’s love for us? We disobey God. We bring disgrace to His name by our sin and we waste what He gives us. We go our own way, and when it all goes wrong, we come back to Him because we have nowhere else to go. And he runs to greet us.

How can God do this? God, who is the creator of all things, who is all-powerful, who is all-knowing and who is holy, runs to greet us and celebrates joyfully that we, who once were lost, are now found, that we, who once were dead, are now alive.

Truly, the love God is greater than we can understand. We can simply turn to God and offer thanks.

Prayer:
• Do you marvel at the magnitude of God’s love for us? Do you receive His love with a heart
full of joy?
• Pray that God will help you understand how much He loves you and how much He gave for you.
• Pray that your heart will be filled with love for the God who runs to us.