I will arise and go to my father and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against Heaven and before thee. Luke 15:18
Seven times in Scripture we encounter men who uttered the phrase ‘I have sinned’. But the occasion in our text today is different from the others. In Exodus 9:27, we read of Pharaoh speaking as the plague of hail is causing havoc and destruction in Egypt. But his actions proved his repentance was not true. In Numbers 22:34, we read of Baalam uttering these words, and continuing his path of greedy folly. Aachan declared ‘I have sinned’ in Joshua 7:20 but only after he was caught in his sin. The same words are uttered in 1 Samuel 15:24 by an insincere king Saul when challenged by Samuel for his disobedience. In his hopeless despair, Judas Iscariot also uttered these words in Matthew 27:4 in a repentance that came too late. In a more positive light, we find the saint Job uttering these words in repentance that God could fully accept. But in the repentant prodigal in today’s text, we discover the real purpose of repentance, the return to the Father.
All pride is gone from the prodigal as he makes his great decision. No longer will he be the demanding and unappreciative son; he is transformed into an unworthy beggar for kindness that he acknowledges that he does not deserve. His very survival depends on his father’s willingness to show him mercy. Returning to his father is his only option. We can all relate to this prodigal and his decision. We were all in the same position as the Holy Spirit strove with us to bring us to repentance. As unworthy sinners, we realized that the Father’s mercy was our only option.
It was a humbling experience for the prodigal to return to his father. And it was humbling for us to confess that we were wrong and God was right, for us to take sides with God against ourselves. But oh, what blessing the prodigal entered into because he took that humble place. Yes, he received mercy, which permitted him to return to his father’s house. But he also received grace, which spread for him a great feast. It is the same for us, recipients of the mercy of God in rescuing us from the destruction we deserved. But in the grace we received, we entered into a great feast, blessings far beyond what we could ever count or understand.
We will never regret the humble position that we took, nor will we forget that all the blessings that we have received, are receiving, and will receive forever, are undeserved. – Jim MacIntosh