All that I have is yours

"And he said to him,
'Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.'"

If you do not know the story of the Prodigal Son, you will find it in Luke 15:11-32.

Have you ever noticed the special treatment that a new believer or a returning prodigal receives from God? The Father is so happy that they have come to Him and He shows it by giving them the best robe, a ring on their hand and new shoes. He brings in the fatted calf and throws a celebration party. Everybody's happy! Well, not quite everybody.

Sometimes, it seems that the Prodigals gets better treatment than those who have never left. Sometimes, the faithful ones get too busy working in the fields. They might even be working to bring in the harvest. Sometimes they get weary in well-doing. Maybe they are invisible. They work tirelessly day in and day out and nobody notices. Even the Father seems not to notice.

But then, the Prodigal comes home, and whoopdedoo, he's all that and more. And the older son wants to know what all the fuss is about and wonders why no one has ever fussed over him.

The Father did not ignore the feelings of the older son. He went out to him and listened to His son's feelings of injustice. And then He said these wonderful words, "Son, you are always with me and all that I have is yours."

The Father is always interested in restoration.

He waited for the wayward son to come home and ran out to meet him and restored him to sonship and relationship again.

He went out to the older son and reassured him of the relationship that they had together. He reminded him that everything He had was also his.

We may be a prodigal son returning home.

We may be a faithful son who has never stopped working with our Father.

To both of us He says, "All that I have is yours."