What is God Really Like?
By Tim C. Moore
LUKE 15:11 And he said, A certain man had two sons: 12 And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. 13 And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. 14 And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. 15 And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. 17 And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, 19 And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. 20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. 21 And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. 22 But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: 23 And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.
You know, there is God as He is and there is God as we conceive Him to be. We worship God only as we conceive Him to be. Everything in the Christian life is simply a response to what we believe about God.
The Luke passage is a picture of a father’s heart and shows us the kind of God we have.
The NT gives us a new revelation about God. You don’t find this concept of God the Father in the OT. That God is referred to as "our Father" is found in Matthew 6:1.
MATTHEW 6:1 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
God has to accommodate Himself to our language. Everyone understands what a father is supposed to be.
God voluntarily exposes Himself to pain when He becomes 'our Father.' The greater your capacity to love, the greater your capacity to hurt. (v 20) The father is hurting more than the prodigal. 20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
God receives us just as we are!
He won’t let you stay as you are but there are no words of recrimination. There is no blame, rebuke, correction and no retort.
The Father saw him a great distance away and the Father ran to him.
You see the son waited so long to come home because he didn’t know his Father.
The Father is willing to assume FULL RESPONSIBILITY for the life FULLY yielded to Him.
The son said, "I am no longer worthy to be called thy son." At one time he thought he was worthy, but the son’s worthiness never had anything to do with the relationship with his Father.
The son's sin never made him less worthy and his righteousness never made him more worthy! IT’S ALL A MATTER OF GRACE.
Remember the verse about Christ walking on the water. You see what you believe is really over your head...is already under His feet!
The son begged, "Make me one of you hired servants." (v19). But God has a fixed and established attitude toward us and it is always an attitude of mercy and grace.
Justice: When you get what you deserve.
Mercy: When you don’t get what you deserve.
Grace: When you get what you DON’T deserve!
God treats us as though we had never been away.
There is no rebuke in the Father's voice. There is no judgment in his actions.
James 1:5 "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
There is no probation period with God. The Father didn’t wait until the son was cleaned up. He didn’t wait until he took a bath. He didn’t wait until the son smelled right, looked right or acted right. The father said to his servants, "Quickly bring out the fatted calf. He had them place a ring on his hand.
That act alone was like giving him a brand new credit card.
He had his servants put sandals on his feet. They went barefoot, but not the son.
This young man found everything he was looking for in his Father's house. He had made the trip away from his Father and out into the world for nothing.
Conculsion: Ask not for God's judgment on your sin; ask for His forgiveness because He is a God of mercy and grace.
PSA 25:11 " For thy name's sake, O LORD, pardon mine iniquity; for it is great.
(v15) My eyes are ever toward the Lord, for He shall pluck my feet out of the net."
When David penned these words, it was a time of great affliction and danger. His distress makes him think of his sins and leads him to confess them and to cry out to God for pardon.
He pleads for pardon for God's name sake. He has no expectation of pardon for the sake of any righteousness or worthiness of his for any good deeds he had done or any compensations he had made for his sins.
It was the greatness of his sins are his plea for mercy. He doesn't plead little sin. He doesn't plead some righteousness. He pleads great sin. He pleads he cannot bear the punishment. He pleads he will be punished miserably unless he is pardoned.
When a man in distress cries for pity, what more suitable plea can be urged than the extremity of his case?
And God allows such a plea, for He is moved to mercy toward us by nothing in us but the miserableness of our case.
God does not pity sinners because they are worthy, but because they need His pity and mercy and grace.
The invitation of the Gospel is always in universal terms. "Everyone that thirstety; come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden; and whoever will, let him come.
"Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out." John 6:37
"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." Mark 16:16.
When you come to Christ you must come to Him to make you better. You must come as a patient comes to his physician with his diseases and wounds to be cured. Spread all your wickedness before Him and do not plead your goodness; plead your sin and your necessity and need for His pit. Say as the psalmist, "pardon mine iniquity, for it is great."
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