The Father’s Outstretched Arms

The prodigal son. Going home a changed man.  No longer demanding he get what he deserved, but willing to take whatever he could get. How many years had it been? As the boy came around the bend that led to his house, he rehearsed his speech one more time. He turned to open the gate, but the father already had.

“Father I have sinned,” he said. (Luke 15:21).  The two wept.  Words were unnecessary.  Forgiveness had been given.

If there’s a scene that deserves to be framed, it’s the one of the Father’s outstretched hands. His hands call us home. Imagine those hands.  Stretching open like a wide gate, leaving entrance as the only option. He forced His arms so wide apart that it hurt. And to prove that those arms would never fold and those hands would never close, He had them nailed open.

from Six Hours One Friday