The Father’s Kiss

Years ago, on a Sunday afternoon in New York City, a small band of Christians stood on a busy street singing hymns and offering their testimony to the passersby who would listen. At the edge of the crowd stood a thin, rough-looking man whose appearance suggested his better days were behind him.

“We’re going to pray now,” the man leading the street meeting said. “Do you need a prayer? If so, raise your hand.”

Tom Lucas did just that. “I was without a tooth in my head or a prayer in my heart. I needed help,” he would later say.

Some of the outdoor worshipers spoke with Tom and helped him find a rehabilitation program, where he confronted his addictions to drugs and alcohol, got a set of dentures, and found salvation. For years afterwards, he worked as a substance abuse counselor, helping those in whose path he once trod.

That group is a small representation of the God who loves us, as Jesus demonstrated time and again. Christ explained, “The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). So also, “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).

The parable of the lost son, found in Luke 15, especially expresses the heart of our heavenly Father. The turning point in the story is when the son comes to his senses about the character of his father. “He arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him” (Luke 15:20).

Wealthy men, such as the father in this story, didn’t run to their children in those days. It was too undignified—especially in light of a son who had disgraced the family name. But this father was different. Even when the son was attempting to apologize, the father was showing affection on his returned prodigal. Such is the compassion of our heavenly Father toward

us when we turn to Him.

Apply It:

Who in your community needs a tangible reminder of God’s love? Stretch out a hand of kindness this week to that person.

Dig Deeper:

Mark 5:35–43; John 11:1–45; Romans 2:4

Key Bible Texts

I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance. (Luke 15:7 KJV)