Tuesday, June 20, 2023
Who do you identify with most in the “Parable of the Lost Son”? When I first read this story, I quickly realized that I resonate most with the younger son. As a young adult, I, like many other college students, highly valued the newfound freedom that comes with growing up. I could finally do what I wanted, whenever I wanted to!
However, when the novelty began to wear off, I started to feel somewhat empty and directionless. When the hard times inevitably hit, I felt alone. Who could I lean on when life got difficult? Similar to the lost son, I realized that our Father provides us with everything we need, and freedom apart from him only leads to emptiness and hardship.
By the end of the parable, the lost son had learned what it is like to live with his own perceived freedom instead of the true freedom provided to us through our Heavenly Father. For him specifically, it led to starvation and a sense of loneliness. For us today, it can lead to spiritual starvation and the sense of loneliness that comes when we try to do life apart from God.
Luke 15:13-16
13 A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. 14 About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. 15 He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. 16 The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything.
It feels nice to have freedom, but we must make sure that we use it for good rather than selfish ambition. We must remember that the gift of true freedom comes from God alone. He created boundaries for us to live within and commands to follow so that we do not get lost in the world, drifting away from him. When we value boundless freedom over the life that God has made for us, we fall prisoner to our own worldly desires.
Every day, we must make the choice to intentionally use our freedom the way God intended. Freedom is one of the many gifts that God blesses us with. However, it is a gift that comes with profound responsibility. We can use it productively to grow our relationship with God by following the unique path that he has created us for. Or, we can use it recklessly and without purpose to become a prisoner of our own evil desires and selfish intentions.
We must never forget that no matter how far gone we feel we are, God patiently and graciously waits for each of us to return to him, just as the lost son’s earthly father did. It is never too late to come running home.
Questions:
Why do you think the younger son was so eager to leave home?
What happens when you place perceived freedom over the true freedom that comes from God?
Next Steps:
Join a Group for the Summer Semester to grow with others in your relationship with God.
Read the “Parable of the Lost Son" (Luke 15:11-22) and think about how it relates to your life.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thanks for providing us with the true freedom that comes from you alone. Help us to use this freedom to further your kingdom and not for our own selfish gain. Remind us not to take our freedom for granted—it’s a gift that comes with responsibility. Thank you for your patience and grace. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Series Theme Verse:
Ecclesiastes 9:17
“Better to hear the quiet words of a wise person than the shouts of a foolish king.”