So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way from home his father saw him, and his heart went out to him; he ran and hugged his son and kissed him. (Luke 15:20)
“Eroni, don’t go so high or you’ll fall,” I said to my four-year-old pal. He was swinging dangerously high in our hammock on the porch in the Fijian rainforest.
A few minutes later Eroni hit the deck. There was a silence while he gathered air to bellow his pain.
Eroni didn’t need to hear, “I told you so.” The hard knock from his fall was reminder enough of his error. I scooped the lad up and he sniffled against my shoulder. It was his way of saying, “Forgive me.”
What the prodigal son, young Eroni, and I all have in common is that when we sin, God rushes to forgive. Even before we grasp the depth of our folly, divine pardon is applied.
Maturity in Christ means I will come to recognize my sinfulness, but the path to that knowledge starts with forgiveness. The result of grace is that when my full confession and repentance finally come, as they must, they’re genuinely from the heart.
God’s restoration frees me from hiding my guilt out of fear of judgement. Instead, I can admit my sin and resist it. There is a deep spiritual principle at work here. Forgiveness yields increased holiness where condemnation so often fails.
Prayer: Father, thank you for your swift and complete forgiveness.