God’s forgiveness welcomes all sinners who return with a repentant heart, as shown in the parable of the prodigal son. How have you experienced or seen God’s restorative grace?
The question “Can a sinner return?” touches on one of the most profound truths in the Christian faith: the boundless grace of God. Scripture repeatedly assures us that no matter how far someone has strayed, God’s arms are always open for a repentant heart.
In Luke 15, the parable of the prodigal son vividly illustrates God’s love and forgiveness. A wayward son who squandered everything was welcomed back with joy when he returned home. Similarly, Psalm 51:17 reminds us, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”
What are your thoughts? How do you interpret God’s promise of forgiveness and restoration for those who return to Him? Have you witnessed or experienced such a transformation in your life or the life of someone you know?
A young man, growing up, he may have been taken to Church by his parents. For some people, Church may have been a tradition. Dad and Grandad attended. For some, Church may have been a social gathering. Given this was someone, and they fell away, they could still repent and find God. Personally, I was a prodigal son. I was wrong. I sought God, and we fixed me.
Did someone find God? Faith is a knowledgeable dependence. Some Christians, they may have been Faithful Brethern seeking God. Some Christians, they found God, and are in The Spirit of God. Someone who found God, and knew of God’s mercy and grace, someone who had a circumcision of the heart, they could not come back given they fell away. (Hebrews 10:26-29)
Are you familiar with a Black Mass, for example? Every so often, Satanists have liked to try and have a public black mass at Harvard or Oklahoma State or something. The Black Mass came from Catholic Monasteries during the Middle Ages where men and women who had taken vows to God, who had devoted their lives to God, they fell away. There would be no mercy for them. They couldn’t come back.
In general, working to evangelize Pagan Rome, or Evangelize some place like China in 2025, that is different from a Fallen Christianity.
The Cold War has been over since 1990 or so. East Germany, it lost its faith. Given you look at a religious map of Germany, East Germany is nonreligious. The easy answer towards why may be Stalin and the Stasi, the secret police. Russia and Poland bounced back. There may have ended up being generational curses, and other things going on in East Germany. Someone looking to Evanglize there may have to be aware of such things through God, and be careful. There probably was some “Black Mass” Occultism, and other things going on.
Hi,
The parable of the prodigal son is all about that.
(Luke 15:11-32)
The younger son leaves his father’s house, goes to a far country, and wastes his inheritance doing what the KJV calls “riotous living.”
At some point, he ran out of money, and there was a famine, “and he began to be in want.” (v14)
The only work he could find was feeding pigs.
He was so hungry the pig slop started looking good to eat.
Nobody would help him
Then, then he came to himself. (Stubborn, like Jonah)
“I can go back to my father. I am no longer worthy to be his son. But maybe I can work for him as a hired hand.” (My paraphrasing)
So he went back. While he was still far away, the father saw him and “had compassion” and ran to meet him; he hugged him, and kissed him.
The son told the father that he was no longer worthy to be considered a son.
The father told his servants to put a robe on the son, a ring on his finger, shoes on his feet, and prepare a celebration feast.
V 24 - For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to make merry.
Key things about the father:
The father spotted the son returning and recognized him from “a great way off.”
The father was watching for the son’s return.
The son was forgiven before he ask for it.
How do we know?
The father ran to meet him. It was the joy of the father to have his son back.
The father never spoke about what he did
The father dressed the son in fine clothes and threw a welcome back party.
The rest of the parable talks about how the older brother took all the fuss over his brother.
The prodigal son never stopped being the man’s son. Not even sinning against the father could change who he was.
Now draw the parallels.
We do not stop being God’s children because we sin.
God forgives us before we ask.
He runs (spiritually) to meet us while we are afar off (the conviction of the Holy Spirit).
God welcomes us back by restoring the joy of our salvation.
