Have you ever stopped to think about what it means to abide in Jesus’ love? If you haven’t, I suggest you make it a regular part of your schedule. Jesus tells us in John 15:9-10 that we should abide in His love just as He abides in His Father’s love. The Bible tells us that nothing can separate us from His love and yet, we must learn how to abide in His unconditional, never ending love. How do we reach that point of abiding in His love? Jesus gave us a parable that I believe shows us our first step in abiding.
It might surprise you that this lesson in abiding in God’s love comes from the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). But before we see how to abide in God’s love, we first get a lesson in how to miss out on His love. This lesson comes in the form of the decision made by the younger son, when he chose his inheritance over the love of his father.
In choosing to take the money and run, the younger son chose to chase after all that the world had to offer. I suspect his father’s house, with all its rules and daily chores, had become too restrictive for the young man. He looked at all that the world had to offer and felt that he would be better off doing things his own way. Think about it, this wasn’t just about having the money. It was about using the money to live life on his own terms and for a while I bet it was a lot of fun.
Meanwhile back at home, the father waited. The fact that he saw the son when he returned seems to imply that he was on the lookout hoping one day to see his son on the road. He never stopped loving his son and our Heavenly Father never stops loving us. But his son was not experiencing that love. What was he experiencing? Initially he had a lot of fun. He may have even called it the experience of a lifetime. Eventually, though, he began to experience hunger. He learned what it’s like to be in want. What he was not experiencing was his father’s love and this is where we find ourselves when we choose the ways of the world over the way of our Lord.
So what did the prodigal son have to do in order to get back to where he could abide in his father’s love? He simply had to make the choice to accept the truth. What was the truth? The truth was that his father’s servants were living better lives than he was. The truth was that his life had become empty and meaningless, amounting to nothing more than ministering to the needs of pigs. In truth he had sinned against his father and was no longer worthy of being called his father’s son. Still, he understood that being home was better than anything the world had to offer. He chose to believe the truth and in response he went home.
So, what happens when he gets home? Before the son can turn off of the road his father is running to meet him. The father does not even stop to see what the son wants. For all he knew, the boy could have been back to ask for more money. But the father did not care. He loved his son and wanted nothing more than a hug. At that point, even before he had fully confessed his sins, the prodigal son was once again abiding in his father’s love. That love was always there but until the son returned home his father could not pour that love out on him.
Of course this parable is not about a real human father and son. Jesus uses this parable to reveal how He feels about us. Jesus loves us all. However, when we turn away from Him, seeking to live according to what we think best apart from God, we are no longer in position to receive His love. We cannot embrace the teachings and the allures of this world, and expect to experience His gift of abundant life or of His love. It’s not that He cuts us off. We walk away, rejecting all that God has to offer us through His Son. How do we return to where we can abide in His love? Choose to seek the truth and to believe the truth. And in response to the truth, humble yourself before the Lord. Then you too will feel His warm embrace as He pours His love out in your life.
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