Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Luke 15:17, 31-32

But when he came to himself he said, “How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger!
Then the father said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.”’

One thing doesn’t change

A man has two sons. One takes his inheritance while the father is still living, thinking he can separate from the family and make a better life elsewhere.

The older son stays home, works like a dog on his father’s estate, doing everything he thinks his father wants from him … and resents it.

How many sons does the father have? Answer: none. One discards his identity and treats his father as if he doesn’t matter. The other never accepts and claims his identity as a son. Neither of them realize who they are … or how privileged.

But the younger son comes to himself and realizes he has a home and a father to which to return. He doesn’t claim his identity right away. He returns home hoping for a job, believing he burnt his bridges so there’s no going back to where he started. He refuses to believe his father will accept him as a son until his father sees him coming and throws a party.

The elder never left but also never accepted that all the father has, the love, the wealth, the blessings … are all his. All he ever needed to do was accept and enjoy what is right in front of him. Instead he resents his father and refuses to celebrate his brother’s return.

How many sons does the father have now? Answer: one, unless the older son comes to his senses and joins the party.

The story is all about identity, ours and God’s. God is full of grace and love, giving us a privileged identity as blessed children, sharing the wealth of divine life and love with us. It is God’s good pleasure to do so.

All that is in Christ is ours—forgiveness and blessing, power and wisdom, and intimacy with the great love that is in him. This, too, is ours.

Accept it, trust it, receive and revel in being God’s beloved, a soul in whom God delights. This is who you are. Never forget it. Remind yourself of this central truth of your life every morning. Nothing that happens today … or ever … can change this.

It’s who you are … and who God is.                  

Pr. David L. Miller