Somebody got a cheap edition of the bible...😏😏😏
Let's look at how Jesus teach about repentance, in the Parable of the Lost sheep and the Prodigal Son
“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and
go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found
it, he lays
it on his shoulders,
rejoicing.”
— Luke 15:4–5 NKJV
It does not make sense for any shepherd to leave 99 sheep to find 1 that got lost.Jesus is the only shepherd who would do that.
“go after the one which is lost
until he finds it” — Jesus doesn’t just look for you, He looks for you UNTIL He finds you. He won’t stop until He finds you.
When you got saved, God was the One who found you. You didn’t find Him.
The shepherd could have scolded the sheep. He could have beat the sheep. He could have punished the sheep. But he didn’t.
The shepherd could have put the sheep on his shoulders grudgingly or angrily, but he did it “
rejoicing.”
That’s Jesus’ style. That’s the style of our Good Shepherd. How did the sheep repent here? There was no indication that the sheep was sorry, acknowledged his shepherd etc etc.
As for the story of the prodigal son,
THE FATHER SAW HIM FROM A GREAT WAY OFF.
For the father to have seen his son from a great way off, he must have been looking out for him. God is always looking for you. He is always scanning the horizon for you.
THE FATHER RAN.
The father was likely an elderly man. To run, he would have had to lift up his robe. He laid aside his parental dignity for the sake of his parental love.
The father could have waited for his son to come crawling back to him. He could have waited for him to apologize and beg for forgiveness before even looking at him. He could have forgiven him in a cold way. He could have accepted him home coldly and grudgingly.
But that kind of forgiveness does not satisfy God’s heart. He’s not like that.
He RAN to his son, not even waiting for him to reach the gate.
The way we think of forgiveness is not the way God thinks of it. Our thinking is too small!
THE FATHER EMBRACED HIM.
The father fell on his son’s neck, embracing him. The word “embraced” in Greek is “
epipiptō,” and it’s the same word used in Acts 10:44 when “the Holy Spirit fell upon [
epipiptō] all those who heard the word” of forgiveness of sins that Peter was preaching.
When we hear preaching on forgiveness of sins, when we hear grace, the Holy Spirit loves it. He comes and embraces us into wholeness.
THE FATHER KISSED HIM REPEATEDLY.
The father didn’t just kiss him once. The AMPC version says, “he ran and embraced him and kissed him [fervently].”
The father kissed his son again and again and again and again!
Do you see the heart of God? Do you see the heart of your Father?
Even though the son demanded for his inheritance, essentially saying, “Drop dead, father,” the father still took him back. And he didn’t just take him back, he lavished his love on him.
Can we understand such love? Our thoughts cannot reach God’s thoughts. They’re too high for us.
“And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.’”
— Luke 15:21–22 NKJV
The father ignored his son’s words, “I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” He just commanded that his son be dressed like a son should—with the best robe, with a ring on his finger, and sandals on his feet.
He didn’t say, “You’ll get to be my son again if you redeem yourself. You’re on probation for 3 months.” That would still be giving his son forgiveness. But those thoughts are not the father’s thoughts.