Stamp of Love- A Story of Redemption

And he said, A certain man had two sons: 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. 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. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. 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! I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. 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. 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. 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: and bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. Luke 15: 11-24

It was a simple story. I was saved at a young age. Given the chance to know Jesus in my youth. Not much to it. No overwhelming miraculous change of direction, but a solid knowing I was a part of God’s family where once I was not.

But then, life brought confusion. My wings were ready to send me on an adventure and soon I left all I knew behind, reaching for all the things that could be found in the pleasures of this world. Like the prodigal son, I wanted my share, to find my way on my own.

When the son left his father’s home with his inheritance, he was already a son. He already had an inheritance. He belonged to his father. He bore his name. Nothing about him didn’t belong. But what he had and where he was just wasn’t enough. It was too simple a story.

And so, he walked away, with his inheritance and his nobility and his prestige and his testimony. It got him where he wanted to go, but it wasn’t enough to make him truly happy.

Much like the prodigal son, I had some lessons to learn.

I was living in a dark and lonely place of my own making. I had forsaken my birthright and the promise of God’s presence and traded it for the temporary pleasures of sin for a season, foolishly believing the best life could be lived outside the perfect will of God. Chaos was fun for a season. Freedom felt good at the time. The sounds, the smells, the life of the party, finally putting to rest the idea that grass was not greener on the other side…it totally was!

And then…REALITY!

I actually started typing “a giant slap in the face”, but then…I backspaced, because you know, the truth is, it wasn’t all of a sudden. There was no epiphany. It was not overnight. It was not that way at all. It was subtle. Pains and scars and bruises and turmoil I never saw because I was blinded by the facade of sin and its pleasures.

But, at the end of it all, the bill came due. My testimony suffered. My heart was broken. My relationships were a mess. My life was in shambles. Everything I had dreamed of doing and being for the Lord was laying in pieces at my feet and I realized what an incredible mess I had made of my life. It was going to take some time before all the outward stuff was mended, but when God saw me coming….HE RAN TO ME!

Goosebumps and tears just typing that! HE ran to ME! Not the other way around. I deserved His refusal. I should have experienced his displeasure. But instead, the moment I turned towards home, He came a running! The story of redemption.

Grace is a beautiful thing. Wrapping his coat around my shoulders, welcoming me back into the fold. Throwing a feast. When I was completely and utterly without, He gave me the ring off his finger. That is grace…..

The prodigal did not think it was possible and neither did I. The prodigal placed himself under the rule of a citizen of a far country and fed pigs, the filthiest of jobs, eating what the pigs ate, because he had nothing left, not even dignity. But when He came back to the father, before uttering a word, before he saw the father, the father saw him, and began to run!

Sometimes our stories involve messes of our own making. Sometimes we bring cost and loss upon ourselves and we foolishly believe we will not be given redemption if we offer full repentance. All we see is all we have done to mess it all up. We are still so inwardly focused.

When grace enters the picture, it is unshattered, remember? It is without fault, perfect, unmarred, untainted, unimpressed by the world or even our own messes. His grace is sufficient and fully available! No matter how much we have messed up.

Now, Paul’s admonition to the Christian is this, do not take advantage of that grace to go out and do as you please knowing it will be available after. If that is your idea, he says you should probably double check your salvation. (Romans 6)

But for those of us, with the testimony of being welcomed back to the fold after walking away, we have this hope! This incredible testimony of redemption to share with others.

For those living away from God, you have this hope, that God is waiting, like the father, watching for your return, and loves you with an everlasting love that cannot be described or measured!

No matter what category you fit into, you have a promise, a hope, a story! Just like the seal of promise when a piece of land was purchased and the deed sealed and signed over to the new owner, the Holy Spirit seals us unto Christ. Just like the seal of adoption finalizes forever the belonging of a child to the adoptees, God has sealed us unto Himself. Nothing and no one can ever pluck us from His hands. It is a story of adoption, redemption, restoration, and belonging.

Only grace could reach that far for a sinner like me! For by grace you are saved and by grace you are redeemed! Not of our own doing, ever!