God’s Focus   

Here is a spiritual principle: We cannot exercise love unless we are experiencing grace. You cannot truly love others unless you are convinced that God's love for you is unconditional, based solely on the merit of Christ, not on your performance. Our love, either to God or to others, can only be a response to His love for us.  Jerry Bridges

I don’t know about you, but when I sin I often focus all my time on the sin.  It’s not that the sin isn’t important but often I spend more time beating myself up over the sin instead of spending time dealing with the sinner and understanding what God’s focus is in relation to my sin.     

In the parable of the prodigal son, God’s focus was on the sinner not the sin.  When the son returned he immediately started telling the father how he had sinned against him and heaven.  His main focus was on what he had done wrong.  He acknowledged his unworthiness for the father’s forgiveness and he accepted the fact that the father had every right to reject him.  I am not saying we should not be remorseful for our sin.  I think the problem is we spend so much time focused on the sin that our guilt causes us to not turn to the Father. 

The parable goes on to show how the father’s focus was on the sinner.  He seemed to ignore the son’s explanation.  He immediately went about welcoming the son home and he didn’t just hold a small dinner party.  He held a banquet in the son’s honor. 

The problem with us is we get caught up in the guilt of the sin without understanding that our Heavenly Father already knows our sin.  His focus is on wanting us to return to fellowship and relationship with Him.  In Luke 15:24 the father says, “For this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found”. 

The first emotion Jesus says the father felt when he saw his son coming was compassion.   Not anger, hurt, frustration or indignation but compassion.  The amazing thing is the father didn’t allow his own hurt to get in the way of his ability to identify with the son’s hurt. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, Your love for me, a sinner, is often hard to understand.  I often look at my sin and think, how could you love me when I don’t deserve it.  Help me to understand that your love is all powerful and that you see the hurt in me before I ever acknowledge it is there.  You already know what my sin is yet you forgive me anyway.  There is no greater love than Yours. 

Scripture:   ^“Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Luke 15:10