“[Jesus] said, ‘A certain man had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me my share of your property.” So he divided his livelihood between them. Not many days after, the younger son gathered all of this together and traveled into a far country. There he wasted his property with riotous living’” (Luke 11:11-13 World English Bible).

What is the Parable of the Prodigal Son all about? First, it’s about the Third Son, the one telling the story. He’s the Son who left His royal throne, took on human flesh and humbled himself to be born of a virgin. But He didn’t waste his Father’s inheritance. We did. We took God’s blessings of life, health, and wealth and used them to pursue our own selfish interests. We are why Jesus was born into this sin filled world. We are why He was crucified.

This parable is about us too. God lets us go our own way, but He never stops trying to lead us to repentance. And the most amazing thing is that no matter how many times we run away, He’s always waiting to welcome us home, always ready to cover our sinfulness with the robe of Jesus’ righteousness. No matter how badly we have treated our Father – He welcomes us back with no questions or conditions, just full and immediate restoration.

--thoughts from next Sunday’s sermon, submitted by the Rev. Ken Johnson, Pastor of Zion and Our Savior’s Lutheran Churches of Avon and Springfield, South Dakota