When God Comes Looking for You

There are 42 parables of Jesus recorded in the Bible. However, when you consider that Jesus spent the last three years of His life on earth preparing 12 disciples to become spiritual leaders of the church, Jesus told many more, John 21:25. One of the most famous parables is found in Luke 15 where 3 separate stories build upon one another. God goes after a lost sheep, searches for a valuable family heirloom and waits on the front porch for a prodigal son to come home.

Then the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves apronlike girdles. ⁸ And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. ⁹ But the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, Where are you? – Genesis 3:7-9

The first two residents on earth lived in paradise, calling a lush garden watered by tropical springs their home. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before Eve pressed her luck, seeking to go beyond the boundaries set by God in Genesis 2:15-17. Having just one rule to abide by sounds like freedom, but a serpent planted a seed within Eve’s mind that God was holding them back. Justification and rationalization led the way to eat from the forbidden tree.

 He said, I heard the sound of You [walking] in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself. ¹¹ And He said, Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat? ¹² And the man said, The woman whom You gave to be with me—she gave me [fruit] from the tree, and I ate, Genesis 3:10-12.

The moment this couple took their first bite, innocence was lost. Conviction, guilt, and shame consumed each of their souls, causing Adam and Eve to hide from God. This is when God comes looking for you, hoping that you may come to your senses quickly. Yet, rebels often learn the hard way, too proud to be seen in their current condition. If you find yourself slip sliding away, drifting further and further from the Lord, God will use others to gather a search party so like the lost sheep and prodigal son, you too will return soon.

by Jay Mankus