The Prodigal Son

Luke 15:11-31

*Forgiveness and Repentance*

Which is it?

A. The Son's repentance led the Father to forgive

or

B. The Father's forgiveness led the Son to repentance?

Question: When did the Father forgive his wayward Son?
Answer: Long before the Son left home.

Question: When did the Son "come to his senses" and repent of his actions?
Answer: When he thought about his Father while in the pig pen.

And so it is likewise with us and our Heavenly Father. We also have been forgiven long before we leave home, but we need to understand that forgiveness from God is not an entitlement to walk on the "streets of gold" in Heaven, and neither does forgiveness from God automatically qualify us for citizenship in Heaven.

From God's perspective, what good does it do to forgive someone who drank a bottle of deadly poison? Answer: Receiving forgiveness from God for drinking poison is not a cure and it has no value whatever. The person who drank the poison needs an antidote and helpful medical treatment quickly!

In similar fashion, when a person has swallowed Satan's lies about God, receiving forgiveness from God for believing those lies doesn't do anyone any good. The person needs a remedy and a cure which only God can supply: the Truth About God.

 

Forgiveness from God doesn't transform sinners into saints.

 

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