Faithful Disciples

The Father's Heart: Embracing Those Who Return

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In this episode of Faithful Disciples, we explore the powerful message of the Parable of the Lost Son (Luke 15:11-32). Joe Bernal unpacks how God’s unconditional love is reflected in the father’s response to his son’s return—and how we, as Christians, are called to show the same compassion to those who come back to church. We’ll discuss the challenges of loving others despite our own feelings and the importance of welcoming people into our community with open arms. Tune in for personal reflections, biblical insights, and a heartfelt prayer for renewed hearts and a spirit of love.

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Hello, everyone.

Welcome to another episode of the Faithful Disciples Podcast, where we dive into the Word of God so that we may be challenged, uplifted, and encouraged in our walk with Christ.

I'm your host, Joe Bernal, and today we're going to talk about coming back home.

How should we treat others when they come back home, when they come back to church?

In the Bible, we have a very perfect example of that.

It's a parable that Jesus shared with the people who are listening, and it's called the Parable of the Lost Son.

A lot of you may be familiar with that one, but we're going to do a little play-by-play for it.

And I pray that by the end of this episode that God may renew your heart once more to have a heart for those who are lost, but come back home again.

So let us begin.

Luke 15, verse 11 to 32.

Jesus continued, There was a man who had two sons.

The younger one said to his father, give me my share of the estate.

So he divided his property between them.

Now, the thing about asking your father for your inheritance is that he's still alive.

So it was seen as a very disrespectful thing to say, right?

And his father, he had no obligation to say yes to his son's request, but he did it anyways.

Just in that one verse alone, we get a glimpse of the father's character.

But throughout the entirety of this parable, we start to see more and more and more just how loving this father really is.

So let us move forward.

Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country, and there squandered his wealth in wild living.

And that's the thing, right?

Because sometimes we as Christians, we've been blessed so much by the Lord, whether we know it or not.

And despite that, we walk away from God.

There could be a lot of reasons for why we walk away, whether we don't feel connected because something bad really happened in our lives.

And sometimes it's because the allure of the world is so enticing.

But let's keep moving forward.

Let's see how this story progresses.

After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need.

So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs.

Now, back in those days, right?

It was outlined in the Old Testament that pigs were considered unsanitary animals, unclean.

So to be an Israelite, such a desperate situation where he had to feed pigs, of all things, it goes to illustrate just how severe a situation he was in, how real it was, the famine that this country was experiencing, him being a part as a passerby, really.

It just shows, it illustrates just how much he was in need to be redeemed by God.

So let's move forward.

It says, he longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

When he came to his senses, he said, how many of my father's higher servants have food to spare?

And here I am starving to death.

I will set out and go back to my father and say to him, father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.

I am no longer worthy to be called your son.

Make me like one of your hired servants.

And when we come to our senses, just like the son in this case, right?

When we realized that we made a big, huge mistake, sometimes one of the first things that comes to our minds is, I'm not worthy anymore.

I'm not worthy to be called a son of the most high, or a daughter of the most high, or a child of God really, because I messed up that bad, right?

And that's how the son felt in the situation, that he didn't deserve to come back with the same identity he had before.

But the beautiful thing here is that no powers in heaven and earth can separate us from the love of God.

And we're going to just see just how real that is in just a couple more verses.

So let's keep moving forward.

So he got up and went to his father.

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him.

He ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

Now let's read that again.

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him.

The father, he didn't just happen to see his son from far away.

No, he was waiting for his son to come back home.

And you would think that when his son came back that he'd, you know, go off on him, just really let him have it.

Perhaps one burden with questions like, where were you?

I was worried sick.

What did you waste your inheritance on anyways?

But on the contrary, the word says that the father was filled with compassion for him.

And compassion is when you see, when you take notice of someone in pain and distress, you do whatever you can through relief or suffering, out of love you recognize one's need and you take action to help.

Love with action is compassion.

So let's see how the son responds in this case.

He says, the son said to him, father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.

I am no longer worthy to be called your son.

But the father said to his servants, quick, bring the best robe and put it on him.

Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.

Bring the fattened calf and kill it.

Let's have a feast and celebrate.

For this son of mine was dead and is alive again.

He was lost and is found.

So they began to celebrate.

How beautiful is that?

They got the best robe, put a ring on his finger, sandals on his feet, and then killed the fattened calf to celebrate because his son came back home.

And truth be told, that's a good example of God's character in full swing.

That no matter how much we turn away from him, no matter how long it's been, he's always there to welcome us back with loving arms.

Angels rejoice in heaven when a sinner turns away from sin and turns back to God.

But the thing about this story, it doesn't end there, right?

Because he had an older brother.

And right now we're going to dive into how his older brother reacted to his younger brother being celebrated for coming back home.

So verse 25, it says, meanwhile, the older son was in the field.

When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing.

So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on.

Your brother has come, he replied.

And your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.

The older brother became angry and refused to go in.

So his father went out and pleaded with him.

But he answered his father, look, all of these years, I've been saving for you and never disobeyed your orders.

Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends.

But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him.

My son, the father said, you're always with me and everything I have is yours.

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.

So this older brother, we could characterize him as the loyal brother, right?

But also as the resentful brother because he saw what his brother got for coming back home as a means of, wow, you know what?

My younger brother, he was unfaithful.

He wasn't loyal to our family and to our father.

And we're still throwing this party for him.

But the father, he reminds the older brother that, hey, everything that I have, you know, all you need to do is ask because that's what the word says.

Ask and you shall receive.

Ask and the doors will be opened on behalf of heaven, God.

So right here we have an example of, I guess you could say two opposing sides of sorts when in reality we're all just one body in Christ.

The person who walked away from God and the person who was always faithful.

And truth be told, I kind of see myself in the story, right?

I shared in a previous episode of how earlier this year I turned away from God.

I felt like I wasn't worthy to be called His son anymore, to be a child of the Most High.

But it was through that community that I had with my brothers in Christ, my cell leader, that God's love was able to be poured out onto me, assured that nothing could separate me from the love of God.

And I know what some people are thinking, Joe, you don't get it.

I go every Sunday, I go every Friday.

I go to cell group.

I go to the 144 meetings.

And you're telling me that when someone comes back after turning away from God, from the church that I'm supposed to just welcome them back with loving arms, throw this big party of sorts on their behalf.

I'm not saying that God is.

Much in the way that we know that God loves us through it all, we're also meant to love our people as well.

Our people being the friends, the strangers, the acquaintances, the enemies.

We're called to love everyone because love, as is characterized in 1 Corinthians chapter 13 verses 4 to 7, love is patient.

Love is kind.

It does not envy.

It does not boast.

It is not proud.

It does not dishonor others.

It is not self-seeking.

It is not easily angered.

It keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres.

To truly love, it takes action.

Even when we're not feeling it, even when we feel as if we've been wronged, to love despite all of that, that's what we're called to do.

That's how Jesus loves us.

Because Jesus looked at every single sin that we were ever to commit throughout the entirety of our lives and said, this person is worth it.

I remember when I first got to Barcelona and I started going to the G12 church out there.

I was taking the train and when I got there, they started the service.

They asked, oh, who here is here for the first, second, or third time?

And I was one of the two or three people that raised their hands and the person that was up on the stage was like, oh, okay, you know, like, welcome, welcome to our church.

You're always welcome here and everything, things like that.

I was like, yeah, okay, cool, cool, cool.

Proper protocol, proper protocol.

Very nice, very nice.

And at the end of the service, when it ended, just off of a simple glance, even, you know, a young child could tell that, hey, like, this person is not from this country.

No one really went out of their way to say hi to me, right?

And it's understandable, you know, because I was a foreigner.

So I went out of my way to, you know, scope out the scene, see who I can talk to, who was available.

And I introduced myself, presented myself and then after that, it was a very quick process for me to integrate into the church community, right?

So I don't knock them for it, you know, because at the end of the day, they really are loving people, you know, it's just, they were just caught up in a situation where they didn't really know how to go about it, right?

But the question I have is, why is it that we, as Christians, look at new people that come to our church as if they're foreigners?

Because the thing is, is that there's someone I know who had been going to church for a few months.

One day, I see this person sitting by themselves.

So I go up to the person, I'm like, hey, like, how's it going?

And they were like, hey, you know, it's not going too good, honestly.

I wanted to talk to Pastor Pablo about it, but I don't know how to go about it.

So I did the only thing that I really could do in the moment and I was just like, follow me.

Well, follow me, because I got you covered, don't you worry.

So, you know, it was a long line to speak to our pastor and everything, right?

But, you know, we're just waiting a little bit and then Pastor Pablo, he talks to me and he's like, hey, how's it going?

And I was like, oh, it's going pretty good, you know, like, I have this friend here who really wanted to talk to you.

And he's like, okay, for sure, for sure, you know, and they end up talking, leave it at that.

So I'm like, okay, you know, job well done, right?

But then the next week I see the same person and I go up to them again, they're by themselves.

And I asked them, like, hey, like, how's it going?

And they're like, oh, honestly, you know, I'm feeling a little better, you know, or a lot better actually, because I was able to talk to Pastor Pablo last time.

So like, thank you so much for that, really.

And I was like, hey, like, no problem, no worries.

But then I started realizing that, hey, wait a second, this person, when they come to church, they're by themselves.

You know, I don't really have the luxury of like seeing this person all that often at the church, because, you know, sitting on different sides of the church and everything, yada yada, and they leave pretty quick.

So I asked this person, I was like, hey, like, are you in a cell group by any chance?

And they're like, no, no, no, like, I don't, I don't really know exactly how that works.

And I was confused because this person had been coming to our church for a few months, and nobody really went out of their way to explain to this person what it means to be in a cell group.

So I introduced them to, you know, potential cell leader they could be, they could get in contact with, a cell group that they could be a part of and everything.

And I was thinking, I was like, wait a second, this person had been coming there for a few months, and not once did someone bother to explain this thing to them.

And it hit me like a ton of bricks because something like that, it should never really happen at our church, yet it happened regardless.

And it made me wonder like, how exactly did it get to this point?

When new people come to our church, we basically, we had to be on the lookout, basically, just like the father was in the parable of the lost son.

While he was still a long way off, he ran up to his son and hugged him and kissed him.

And the thing is that sometimes we as Christians, we, when we go to church, we only go up to the people that we know best, the people that we're really friends with, our little groups, quote unquote, right?

But in that process, we forget about the people that barely started to come to church, the folks who maybe left from church for a long time and they decided to come back.

And it's a very disheartening thing because one person, one person alone can't pour out love onto every single person that comes into the building because especially when a church like ours is constantly growing, as the days, as the weeks, as the months go by, people can slip through the cracks.

That is if only a few select people are doing their part to pour out that love onto those that come, right?

Now, I know what some might be thinking that, hey, Joe, like is it really the responsibility of everyone to welcome in those new people, to welcome back with loving arms, everybody that comes back to the church after turning away from God?

And it really is, it really is because that's what love's all about.

Even when it's inconvenient, even when we don't feel like we're up to it, even when I dare say when we're having a bad day, it's still our responsibility to pour our love onto others because love is not contingent upon our feelings, our emotions.

No, it's a choice that we actively have to make every single day.

And if we don't love people, then it really does bring into question if you love God because God is love.

As it says in 1 John chapter 4 verse 8, whoever does not love does not know God because God is love.

Now, I'm going to be honest for a second.

There are people who have decided to not come back to church, who are only watching the online services because when they decided to come back, instead of being met with love, they were met with accusations that the first thing that came out of their mouths was, why weren't you here?

And it pains my heart so much to hear that because much like it was in the parable of the lost son, even the father did not greet his son with the spirit of resentment.

It was with the spirit of love.

The father, the first thing he did wasn't to ask questions that were belittling the other person or to correct whatever the case may be.

There's a time and place to correct, right?

But when someone comes back to the church for the first time in a while, we should be able to greet them with love, to be able to say, hey, it's good to see you again.

We're lucky to have you back with us.

Or at least the spirit of those words, right?

So it is an unacceptable thing that when somebody from your cell group or someone from church that you haven't seen in a long time, when they come back, it is very unacceptable to go to that person and say, why weren't you here?

And then you hear why they weren't there and you tell them, oh, well, that's not a good excuse.

You're supposed to be part of the church.

You're supposed to be one body in Christ.

And that's the thing.

We are one body in Christ.

We're not meant to talk down on other people, to judge other people for why they haven't been coming to church and that sort of thing, right?

Because at the end of the day, it's like, what do you accomplish?

What do you accomplish by judging someone?

Because the biggest reason for why people come to the church besides getting closer to God is because of the community.

We're not meant to do this alone.

Because as Apostle Paul said, not only did he want to encourage others in their walk, but he also wanted to be encouraged in turn.

And when you come back to church and all you get is discouragement, why would somebody want to come back?

It's like, Joe, like, how do you know these things?

And it's because I talk.

I talk to people.

Because here's the other thing that I want to bring up.

And it's this, it's that a lot of the times when you go to a church and you don't have much in the way of social skills, like say you're more on the shy side of things, it leaves you in a very curious predicament, right?

Because you're in a place where we're called to love one another, to be one body in Christ, right?

Yet a lot of people don't make that effort to get to know you on a deeper level or to acknowledge your whatever it is that you're going through dealing with and that sort of thing, right?

And I know, I know, I know this is not go to everyone.

It does not apply to everyone.

But the thing is, is that sometimes we think that inviting people for food to go get some coffee with the group and that sort of thing, as if that's enough.

And I know what some of you might be thinking, Joe, out there in the world, people don't even look at you.

They didn't even say hi.

And I'm inviting people to go get In-N-Out, BJs with the group, Tierra Mia with the group.

So I'm doing pretty good.

I'm doing pretty good, you know, if we're looking at how the world treats us, how the world treats one another, how the world treats strangers, I'm like, okay, yeah, you know, you're doing good compared to the world, right?

But since when did the world become your standard?

Because truth of the matter is, is that Jesus is our standard.

Like, it's a beautiful thing that, yeah, you know, there's progress that's been made, right, in the church community to make people feel more at home, right?

But when people are on the shyer side of things, they slip through the cracks a lot of the time.

And that's why we got to take it to the next level.

When we see new people come to the outings, we have to actually do our part to hear them out, to ask them questions, you know, get to really know them as a person, you know, figure out what they like, their dislikes, their family, to make them feel like they're actually wanted.

I'd say the equivalent of this would be if a guy were to take out a girl on a date, and instead of getting to ask the girl questions about her life, so on and so forth, he just spends the entire night just talking about himself.

Now, for the ladies, like, truthfully, truthfully, like, he could have taken you to the most fancy restaurant, but if that's all he did, right, it's like, okay, that was a bad day.

Now, the male equivalent, imagine this, imagine you're playing a pickup game of basketball at the park, right?

And throughout the entirety of the game, not once did a single person ever pass the ball to you, right?

You may have stolen the ball from the enemy, or the opposing team, rather, a couple of times, and then when you pass it to someone else, still, no one ever passed you the ball.

That's basically the equivalent of when someone new pulls up to, say, a restaurant with the rest of the gang and everything, and no one bothers to speak with them, that no one goes out of their way to actually have a conversation with them, to make them feel as if they're at their own birthday party.

So, truthfully, we do need to step it up, especially with the community that's getting so big, so large.

It's a lot easier to get things in order when there's only 20, 30 people in the congregation, but multiply that by 10, and you have 300.

There are people that slip in and out, of service, and we're none the wiser, and it all boils down to having selfishness in our lives.

Because instead of going to the people who are new, to the folk that have come back after such a long time, we decide to go to where it's comfortable, where it's safe, to our cell group, to our small group of friends at the church, and it just becomes a place where you're just only uplifting yourself, and that's it.

So, this message isn't for the new believers of sorts, the baby Christians, as my church likes to call it, but rather the people who've already been there for a while, the people who already have a firm, solid foundation in Christ and have yet to have that heart for the stranger, the acquaintance, for the person that has different personality traits compared to yours.

And truthfully, I really do feel for these people because I've been that person who's come to church for the first time or the first couple of times, and I didn't know how to integrate myself into the church community when I first got there, right?

And it was quite a different thing because socializing in the church, it was a lot more different than what I was used to in school, in the workforce, but there were people there that went out of their way to talk to me about God, really, and just hear me out.

And the thing is that there's also people who come to our church who are grieving, who are in immense sorrow.

There was this person the other day who had recently lost an important family member in their life, and I remember I had donated for the fundraiser they were doing for the funeral, and this person, when they saw me at church, they said like, oh, thank you, thank you, thank you because my family, this, thank you for this.

And my response was simply, hey, do you think I could pray for you?

And they're like, oh yeah, for sure, of course, you know, and I was able to pray for them in the sanctuary, right?

And it just became that reminder of sorts, what it says in 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 3 to 4, praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

And that's the thing, right?

Because there's also people that come to our church, whether they're new people or people that have been there for a while who are in desperate need of that comfort from that Godly love that we can pour out onto someone else.

It doesn't have to be Bible verses.

It doesn't have to be, hey, don't forget to pray.

Don't forget God can comfort you.

Yeah, yeah, of course, God can comfort us.

When we go into prayer with the Spirit of Thanksgiving, God does provide that peace and hope.

But the thing is, is that we can also serve as vessels to the Holy Spirit to pour out that Godly love onto others.

And it doesn't take much.

It really does not.

Sometimes all it takes is a few moments, a few moments to notice someone in your general vicinity.

Maybe they sat in the same pew as you, or maybe they're on the way to where your friends are at.

Maybe you've seen them a couple of times, or maybe it's the first time you've ever seen them in your life.

And you make that conscious choice, that conscious decision to say, hey, you know what?

I'm going to talk to this person.

I'm going to introduce myself.

Hey, excuse me.

I don't think we met before.

What's your name?

Jack.

Ah, what's a pleasure to meet you, Jack.

My name's Joe. Is this your first time here at the church?

They're like, ah, no, I've actually been here a few times.

And then you're like, oh, okay.

Well, that's lovely.

You know what?

We're lucky to have you here with us.

And every single time you say this to somebody, the smile they have on their face, they're like, oh, wow, thank you.

It's like they feel as if it's a party and they're the birthday boy or the birthday girl.

And then from there, you could take the conversation wherever you want.

Maybe you notice something that they're wearing.

Maybe there's something about them that sticks out to you.

Oh, what's that thing that you got there?

And they're like, oh, this, oh, it's this, this and that.

You may know absolutely nothing about it, but then you start asking questions.

Whoa, that's pretty cool.

Like, how does that work?

What made you get into this sort of thing?

And really it is that simple.

It would be wise.

It would be a beautiful thing if we can keep an eye out, just like the father did for a son that was lost and decided to come back home.

It would be wise for us to keep an eye out for the people who are in grief, for those who have come back after such a long time, for those who are new, to keep an eye out for those people and go into prayer and ask God and the Holy Spirit, what should I do?

How can I pour out love onto this person?

And sometimes all people need is an open ear.

So if you have been one of those people that paid no mind to the strangers, the people who've come back after a long time, then don't worry.

You don't have to stay that way.

If you are willing, there is hope.

We can't ask God to renew our hearts once more, to have a heart for those who are lost, for those who have come back, for those who are searching for answers.

So why don't we go into prayer?

Dear Heavenly Father, I come to you today with utmost gratitude, God, for everything you've done in our lives.

Lord, I'd like to pray for anyone who's listening to this, that you may renew their hearts once more, that you may renew their heart in such a way to have genuine care and affection for those who are lost, for those who are looking for a community.

Please, Lord, remind us by the power of the Holy Spirit that we are meant to love one another just as you have loved us, unconditionally, that no matter what someone else may do, we will love them regardless.

Holy Spirit, may you give us that discernment, that guidance on how to love people best, whether it's to lend an open ear or guide a person to the right place, the right person, or to just spend quality time with them.

Thank you, God, because as vessels to the Holy Spirit, even within the span of a few minutes, we can uplift our brothers and sisters in Christ when they are in grief, when they are in sorrow.

Please, Holy Spirit, may everything that comes from our mouths be holy so that we can do our part as one body in Christ to encourage and uplift one another.

God, please help us so that we may not be like the resentful Son, but more like you, God, to be more Christ-like.

Please, Father, all that is impure in our hearts, please bring it to light, God, so that you may cleanse our hearts once more.

In Jesus' name I pray, Amen