Welcome to Buoy, a Life in Deeper Water podcast.

Episode 70. We are All Prodigal (pursuing life and the human gain of things)

Hello human.

I have traveled a lot of mental roads trying to answer why people do not know God, glorify God, thank Him, worship Him. Why they do not affirm through their free will that He is their Creator.

I think about this so much because I believe this is the grand canyon of human nature, that it takes a superhuman leap to jump from the not-God to the only-God side of our existence. That the spiritual bridge that affords a person the way, requires the footsteps of free will to get to the other side.

I think about the questions and comments I hear, I read that humans share, that illuminate why they put roadblocks in front of every point of entry into the spiritual life God created for them.

Consider three examples of such comments:

1. Sin is subjective.
2. Repentance is a sign of weakness.
3. Forgiveness, for what?

The truth I bring to this BUOY is through my witness of Jesus in my life. I need to respond to these declarations defying God, embrace the truth within them. As I did this, three questions came to my heart.

Why am I born a sinner?

I think I have always strived to be a good person doing compassionate things. I have been told all my life that I am a good person.

When did I repent for my human condition?

I know the specific time and place I declared my sinful nature and denounced it through Jesus. It was when I had divine foresight as to what my life would be like not-God, or only-God. It was one road, or the other. A clear decision.

What was I asking God to forgive me for?

Because I can’t remember a time, I didn’t love God and want to do the right thing in His eyes.

                                                                                                                          I meant well.

These are questions that hold the weight of the creation. It’s the gravity that anchors the human heart.

So, here’s my closer look.

I was born a sinner.  Genesis chapter 3 tells God’s story of the Fall of Man. Satan questioning God’s authority, goodness, wisdom, plan for creation, and asks for a response from Eve. And Eve asks for a response from Adam. Then God asks Adam for a response. Then blame, and more blame. Followed by the consequences God laid out, that we all live with.

Romans 5:12-14

Death Through Adam, Life Through Christ

12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—

13  To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law.

14  Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.

All of it became the origin of my story. And everyone’s story. Sin is not subjective. It is separation from God. Sin is resolved. Through the resurrection of Jesus.

How about my second question:  When did I repent for my human condition? I repented at age 22. It wasn’t a sign of weakness. It was a sign of strength. Not mine, God’s. That He could take all my free will of the past two decades and shape it into a moment when I said, only-God. He made this enduring commitment to His eternal promise through His Son. Before I was born.  Psalm 139:15 … “when I was woven together in the depths of the earth…”

Repentance is a sign of divine strength.

And my third question: What was I asking God to forgive me for?

When I was about 7 years old, my brother had a badminton set that I really wanted to play with. He was about 11. He went on to be an accomplished tennis player so now I reflect on this knowing more about the importance of it to him at the time. One afternoon I grabbed one of the badminton rackets from his hand and began running around the backyard with it. He chased me down, and when I realized this was my moment of reconciliation, the opportunity to give it back, I took one hard swing against the side of the outside kitchen and split it in two. That moment, when I was sure I was going to get it bad from my brother, is the first time I remember feeling like I had done something evil. I didn’t even hear him yelling, or that he had “frogged” my arm with more vengeance than ever before. I just felt evil.

So, when I repented at 22, I was asking God to forgive me for being a sinner like Adam, like Eve, for being separated from Him by my sin, the sin nature I was born with. His response was sacrificing the life of His beloved Son. Thirty-three years of footsteps always taking the next right step toward the cross, and God’s resurrection of Him back into heaven to sit at His right hand.

Because of this, I am not separated from my Creator.

Futile Thoughts and a Darkened Heart

I repent daily for my thoughts, actions, intent because I do not want to be separated from my Creator. I want to see His creation; I want to see evidence of Him in creation and in my life. I want to be with Him.

Romans 1:19-21

18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.

The Premise for Finding God

The prophet Jeremiah tells us in

Jeremiah 29:13

13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Hebrews 11:3

3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

 

The Human Gain of Things

There is what I call the human gain of things. Paul talks about this path.

Ephesians 2:1-2

1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,

2  in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.

It brings me to a familiar story. The Prodigal Son. He asks for his inheritance so he can travel and have his own life. His father gives it to him, and he goes off and squanders it all. When he has lost everything, he has he realizes he needs to return to his father. When he does, he says:

Luke 15:21

21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

His father rejoices, runs out to meet him with open arms and plans a big celebration. And when asked by the prodigal son’s brother why they are celebrating… out of resentment, that he had been there with his father the whole time, obeying him. His father said, verse 32:

32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

We are All Prodigal.

We are all prodigal. We run off and do life, spending our divine inheritance on earthly things.

But I have a knowing about each of us because I am one of us, human. God has put spiritual longings in our hearts… that we try to use without Him, which at times produces compassion, good things for others, etc. But. The only enduring good, the only enduring life is the one in His Kingdom.

Again.  We are all prodigal. We all have to go however far down the road to come to the place where we want to return to our true home. The prodigal son parable is a powerful story to illuminate what repentance is.

Strong’s says: “metanoia”, to change one’s mind, i.e. to repent, to change one’s mind for better, heartily to amend with abhorrence of one’s past sins

And Vine’s: Repent, Repentance signifies “to change one’s mind or purpose,” always, in the NT, involving a change for the better, an amendment, and primarily “repentance” from sin.

With this it makes sense that the story of the prodigal son starts with verse 10:

Luke 15:10

In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

Rejoicing… like the father who ran to meet his son.

The Human Gain of Things

I have had a compelling life journey so far… family, career, accomplishments, blessings, all of it. On some road between not-God, and only-God. We have longings that we choose to pursue like the prodigal son, through earthly means. What I call the human gain of things.

We are all distracted, selfish, consumed, confused, restless, lost, prideful, arrogant, idol worshipers, and what else? Whatever keeps us spiritually compromised, depleted, paralyzed. Until we are found.

What brings us to repentance? Knowing that we are separated from God. That we have sinned. When we are completely depleted by selfish intent, the human gain of things. When we get to the point in the road when we cannot take one more step in a not-God, maybe-God, kinda-God, partially God life.

Our Heavenly Father is waiting for us to return. He is the One waiting. Only-God.

The Incarnation of Jesus – Fully Human, Fully Divine

I am leaving this BUOY today with a Biblical testimony from those who walked with Jesus on earth. Written about 70 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus.

1 John 1

The Incarnation of the Word of Life

1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our joy complete.

Light and Darkness, Sin and Forgiveness

5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin.

8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

Human nature listens closely to, gets lost in, selfish depravity:

• Questioning whether Jesus did or did not exist.
• Qualifying that He was a great man, perhaps a prophet, but not the Messiah.
• Compromising Jesus as the answer for some, but not others who choose a different path.
• Spiraling relentlessly toward a not-God life.

My heart tells me otherwise.