My child I love you! No matter who you are or where you are today you are never outside of God’s loving embrace. Today God is calling you home to Himself. His reckless love pursues you. No matter how far you may have wandered God’s arms are wide open to you today. He longs to embrace you, bless you, set you free and restore your identity as His son or daughter.
When I set out to live life on my own terms the darkness got a hold of my heart and mind and it wasn’t long before I found myself in great need. It was in that place of brokenness and desperation that I ran toward Jesus and He embraced me with his loving arms. With a reckless love He pursued me, embraced me, blessed me, set me free, cleansed me from my sin and welcomed me into His family as a beloved son.
No matter how far you may have wandered, God wants you to know today that He loves you and will continue to go to any and every length to embrace you with His reckless love and restore you back into His family.
One of the greatest pictures of God’s love in the Bible is found in Luke 15 where Jesus shares three parables that reveal to us the overwhelming, never ending, reckless love of God. A love that chases us down, fights till we’re found (Luke 15:8-10), leaves the 99 (Luke 15:3-7). The revelation of His reckless love climaxes in the final parable known as the Lost Son where Jesus opens our eyes to His redeeming power (Luke 15:11-12).
The Parable of the Lost Son clearly depicts the selfish sinful heart of humanity through the younger son. With an attitude of entitlement the son asks his Father for His inheritance and then squanders it all on wild living. As he indulges himself in the pleasure of sin he quickly finds himself in need and enslaved. The words of Proverbs 14:12 resonate deeply, “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.” In that place of desperation and great need the Lost Son comes to his senses, repents and begins the journey home. But before he even approaches, his father comes running toward him wraps his arms around him and kisses him upon the head. All a clear picture of a sinner in the hands of a loving God. No condemnation, no anger or wrath just compassion and love. The verdict is in: God loves sinners. No matter where you find yourself today God is waiting for you to return to his loving arms, to cleanse you of the guilty stain of sin, to set you free from that which enslaves you and restore your identity as a child of God.
Jesus revelation of the overwhelming never ending reckless love of God goes beyond a loving embrace to true freedom. Jesus opens our eyes to the redemptive work of the cross as He describes that Fathers reckless love.
“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.” (Luke 15:22-24)
The “best robe”, this is a picture of the complete forgiveness of sin and the robe of righteousness that we receive by faith through the redemptive work of the cross. (Romans 3:21-26) The “ring” is a picture of our complete restoration back into the family as a Child of God. (John 1:12-13) The placing of “sandals on his feet” is a picture of the deliverance that Christ works in us through His complete victory on the Cross of Calvary. (Galatians 3:23-29). God embraces and restores all who come to Him.
God is running toward you today! Waiting for you to come to your senses and turn toward Him. He desires to pour out His mercy upon you, forgive you, bless you, cleanse you, set you free from the things that have enslaved you and welcome you into His loving embrace. Are you ready to turn back to God? Are you ready to leave the mess you’ve gotten yourself into? Are you ready to feel the warmth of God’s embrace and receive the His blessing? Are you ready to run into the arms of God’s reckless love and be restored to the family? Stop now and imagine yourself to be that younger son, leave that place of death that sin has lead you into, run toward God and never turn back. Be restored in the name of Jesus!
Pastor Peter
Listen to Message HERE
Listen to Closing Song HERE
gattopeter.wordpress.com 
Somehow, reckless and the almighty God just don’t seem to have a place together. There must be another adjective without the connotation that reckless holds in our culture. Just a thought.
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