EFT: Banking Details: LoveKey NPC, FNB, Current Account Number: 62824888525, Branch code: 250655

Card Payment link: https://pay.yoco.com/lovekey-npc

PayPal: partner@lovekey.co.za

SERIES: ALIGNING WITH GOD
SUBSERIES: IMPACT OF FOUNDATIONS

UNDERSTANDING THE FATHER HEART OF GOD

MESSAGE TITLE: "TETHERED TO THE FATHER'S LOVE"

MAIN MESSAGE: “TETHERED TO THE FATHER’S LOVE”

God the Father loves you and nothing can separate you from His love
We are tethered to the Father’s love - it never stops, it never ceases
He is our father, whether we accept Him or not. He remains our Heavenly Father - he created us

Accepting Jesus as our Lord and Saviour is the key to having a relationship with the Father and through that having access to eternity with Him
Whether we choose that or not, does not change His love for us.
He will draw near to us if we draw near to Him - he will run to us when we draw near to him.

Last week we established through many scriptures that Jesus came to reveal God as Father and that He is a Father. If you missed it, please go watch or listen to the podcast.

Now we will see how this Father in Heaven loves us and that nothing can separate us from His love. But we will also see that stepping into a relationship with him and having access to eternity with Him is wrapped up in a decision and commitment we need to make.

TRUTH: HE LOVES US

TRUTH: NOTHING CAN SEPARATE US FROM HIS LOVE

Let’s look at the story of the so-called prodigal son. The Bible doesn’t call it that. People who read it has called it that. Prodigal means reckless or wayward.

Jesus told this parable, a story for illustration, in the context of speaking to people about the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of Heaven. And within that context, He was sharing about the lost sheep and the lost coin, and now turned to the lost son.

The father in this story is God the Father. The son is the people of God, the Jews, but through Jesus, also all us who believe. But, since God created all mankind, he is Father of all who are on earth and He loves the whole world and wants none to perish. So, His love as a Father extends to all. Whether believers or non-believers.

Keep that in mind as we now read this parable again and analyze it. As my friend, Ade always says - the blessing is in the details.

Once again, keep in mind that Jesus told this in order for people to understand the kingdom of God and the Father heart of God.

The father in this story has two sons. He loves them, cares for them and takes care of them. He provides shelter and food and they are in relationship with Him. He has many servants and seems to be a rich man with a large estate. I want you to imagine that his love for His sons is like a rubber band that goes around his waist and theirs. The band can stretch to wherever the son may go, but the band never snaps or breaks. This band represents the father’s love for his children. They are forever tethered to him by his love for them. Tethering normally refers to an animal that is tied with a rope to a post. The tether secures him and he cannot move. But in this context, I have felt that God is revealing to us that as his children that he created we are forever tethered to Him by His love, whether we like it or not. Nothing will change or take away his love for us. That is confirmed by the first scriptures we looked at.

The youngest son comes to the father and asks for the portion of the goods that fall to him. You normally only receive your inheritance when the father dies. The father’s reaction is unexpected, especially to a Jewish crowd, like the one Jesus was speaking to. This kind of request would be considered rude, highly disrespectful, and tantamount to the son saying to his dad, “you are dead to me.” (note the father saying at the end that his son was dead, lost…) The father divides his livelihood to both sons. It doesn’t say he argued or tried to convince the child to not do it, or that he was angry and disowned the boy.

Then just a few days later the boy leaves with what he got and basically went to the fun city far away from his family and he partied up a storm … with people who only liked him while he had money. Who only were his “friends” while he could keep the liquor tab running. But he wasted his possessions. He wasted the gift, the livelihood of his father. He squandered it. He used it for the wrong purpose - which means he abused it. When it was all finished, at the same time, a famine arose in that faraway party land. No food. Almost like the place was hit by a market crash or a pandemic of sorts… But note, he had already lost it all before the famine broke… the famine just made things worse… He hit rock bottom, and then the bottom went lower…

Then it says he “joined himself to a citizen of that country”. I believe this is significant and we need to pay attention. What does the Bible call the redeemed ones, the saved ones, the believers? “Citizens of heaven”. We belong to heaven, we are from heaven, heaven is our home, heaven is our heritage. The son’s original citizenship was established by his father in the land from which he came and where his son was born. But the son left out of his own choice and when the paw-paw hit the fan, he gave up his citizenship and joined that of another. He renounced his original identity and purpose and out of desperation and hunger, he basically sells himself as a slave to another person from another nation. This citizen represents a bad father. A dysfunctional father. A father of lies. A father of abuse. A father that does not love. To the jew, swine is an unclean animal. To touch them is to become unclean. It means you cannot enter the presence of God, you cannot enter the assembly of the people of God.

This boy renounced his father, bound himself as a slave to another father figure and allowed himself to become unclean physically and spiritually. In a Jew’s mind, there is no way this boy can ever go back to his father and to the way things were.

Then we get the very important 6 words, “But when he came to himself.” This is the moment of revelation, of repentance. He knows instinctively that he has sinned. Do you remember when we discussed the foundation of repentance? This is what happened here with this son. He realized that the servants in his father’s house live better than he is living right now. This revelation, this repentance didn’t just stay a thought or an idea. It turned into action! Now, I want you to go back to that picture of the father’s love being like a rubber band around this boy… always there, always pulling, even when it is unrequited. Do you remember my message called unrequited love? If you missed it, go listen. It ties in beautifully with this moment right here. The father’s love for his son was not returned. The son had a revelation of how much better life is with the father. But now we see him prepare a speech of what he will say to his dad when he returns. A speech designed to just get him in the door to the servants’ quarters so that he can just have a place to sleep and eat something other than swine food. So he has a revelation but it is not a complete revelation based on a realization of how much his dad loves him. It is only a revelation so far of how his dad can provide to a servant… It is not a revelation, yet, of how the father loves his son so much that he will take him back as his SON not a servant. No downgrading is necessary…

The son starts walking back… he is tired, malnourished, he feels ashamed, guilty, foolish… he may feel that he deserves all of this and what may be coming to him in terms of a scolding and discipline from his father. As he walks he mutters the speech he is preparing. He needs to get this right.

In verse 20 we read, “ And he arose and came to his father.” Wow, beautiful. He stood up from the mud, the filth, the uncleanness. He stood up from the consequences of his own decisions and sins. He stood up from what that citizen from that far off land did to him - abusing him. He stood up from all fo that and put it behind him and he started to walk away from it all and walking toward his father’s house.

The rest of verse 20 is so epically beautiful. “But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.” Wow! Amazing! Surprising, especially to the Jewish audience Jesus was speaking to. And definitely to the religious leaders how may have been listening. How can this father run to and kiss this wayward son who wasted all his money and possessions?

His father ran, which was not done in that culture, he fell on his neck and kissed him - that speaks of passionate, emotional love being expressed. Wow! After this, the son starts his prepared speech. He admits his sin and he says he should no longer be the father’s son. He doesn’t finish his speech - he is interrupted by the father, who by the way does not speak to his son directly in words, but he just ran to him and kissed him. Now he starts shouting instructions to the servants - the same servants whom the son thought he may be equal to now since he lost his position as son by his actions… they are now preparing him the best robe, a ring, sandals and a feast with the fattened calf - the choicest of meats. Wow! Only the best for the son who has returned. This is the love of the father.

Did you know there are two lost sons in this story? There’s the prodigal son and then at the end, we see the religious son. The one who thought he needed to do everything right in his own strength in order to win the approval of his father and that his father should just know to give him a goat every now and again. A goat is hardly a fattened calf. So can you see, even this son was aiming low. Both sons had an orphan spirit when approaching their father. One said I should only be a servant I am no longer a son. The other resented the father because he didn’t get even something small for all his hard work and doing all the right things. But they both miss the father’s heart.

Listen to verse 31-32: '“And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’
There are so many important truths in these two sentences. Son - he establishes that he is a son in the house. You are always with me - establishes belonging, acceptance. All I have is yours - as a son he legitimately has access to all his father owns.

Then the father lovingly corrects the religious son and points out it was right to celebrate the prodigal son’s return. Because he returned from being dead and lost to being alive and found.

The father is acknowledging that the prodigal son was dead and lost through the consequences of his own actions. This I believe speaks of eternal death and a sense of being lost when we choose not to be in a relationship with God through accepting Jesus as Lord and Saviour. But when he repented, when he came to himself and took action to leave the sin and brokenness and go to father, everything changed!

Did the father mention his sins? Did he tell him he would need to work very hard to earn back his trust and to once again be considered for his will? No! The son’s true, heartfelt, direction-changing repentance did all of that and prompted compassion from the father. This is the heart of our Heavenly Father as well - when he sees true repentance, he has only grace to give. The Bible teaches that God gives law to the proud and grace to the humble. The law will humble us so that we can receive grace. The young son was humbled by the consequences of his choices and by circumstances beyond his control. The father’s love extended above all of that and brought freedom, acceptance, and celebration.

Do you feel like God owes you something? Do you feel He is holding out on you? Do you look at other believers and even people in the world and compare yourself and think - how come they have it so easy? How come they do so well? Look at me.

Have you perhaps taken what God has given you - talents, opportunities, platforms, influence, and used or are using it for you own benefit or even just knowingly squandering it for your own enjoyment?

Have you perhaps ended up in a pigsty of bad decisions, toxic relationships and the rock bottom of stubbornness toward God?

Maybe you have never decided to be a Christian. I want you to know today that there is God, he created you, and therefore He is your father. And not only that, He loves you just as you are. Nothing you can do or have done or will do can change his love for you. It is unconditional and unrelenting. But in order to step into a relationship with Him and experience the fullness of this love that is freely available, you need to make a decision, and make it today - make Jesus you Lord and saviour and surrender your life and will to Him. This gains you access to the Father and to eternal life with Him.

If you have given your life to Jesus at some point, but you know that in your heart you have strayed, moved away from his father heart, joined yourself to someone or something that is not of heaven, or that you’re caught up in some selfish self-destructive addiction or habit or relationship and you realize today you need to come to yourself and arise and go to the Father, your Father in heaven - this can be your moment to come home and be set free of that guilt and shame and broken identity.

Whether you fall in the first or second category, or neither, you may to some extent still struggle to know that you know that God is your heavenly father, that he truly loves you unconditionally and that he wants you to do life with him. This can hinder you from living life to the full. To whatever extent you do not see Him as a good father who loves you, to that extent you won’t live completely like a son, but rather a servant, slave, or orphan.

Let us all ask Holy Spirit to help us, lead us, heal us, in this moment.

REFLECT AND RESPOND