by Tim Hall

Some relationships are dear to us. A current advertising campaign for a wireless telephone service asks how much we would pay to stay in touch with those we love. People in the commercial answer by holding up signs that read "A lot", or "Anything in the world". The company then responds with a monthly price that they consider quite reasonable. Their hope is to gain our business by appealing to how we value certain relationships.

Sometimes telephones can't help us. Even if we dialed their number, they wouldn't answer. Something has broken the relationship. Yet the heart of one or both still yearns for the other. What can be done to reconcile the two? How much would they give to again be as one?

Jesus' parable of the prodigal son sheds light on God's esteem of a relationship with us. After the son decided to return home, seeking only to be a servant, the father's heart overflowed with joy. He had the opportunity to reclaim a son that was lost. One mark of that esteem was his order to "bring the fatted calf here and kill it" (Lk. 15:23, NKJV).

Sacrifice of innocent animals was a common feature of God's covenant with Israel. The Hebrew writer summed up the principle: "And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission" (Heb. 9:22). Purification was necessary because the people were guilty of transgressions. When a transgression occurred, blood had to be shed. Without the shedding of blood there could have been no reconciliation of the broken relationship.

Ideally, every sacrifice for sin should have involved reflection. The animal being offered was a thing of value; it was unblemished and healthy (Deut. 17:1), and could bring a good price at the market. But a higher purpose was to be served with this animal. It would be the price of reconciliation, representing the person's desire to restore relationship with the offended Creator. Every sacrifice should have carried that thought.

Thankfully, God is not One who has to be begged to accept our offerings, who couldn't care less if He never saw us again. So strongly did He desire to restore the broken relationship that He made the first and greatest move. Paul marveled at the thought in Romans 5:8: "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." The Father on this occasion did not call for a fatted calf, but for His own Son! That's a statement of how much God loves us.

If Jesus' parable in Luke 15 can be interpreted even more closely, we also learn that the sacrifice of Jesus was made with joy. No, the Father didn't relish the thought of His Son hanging on the cross. But the effects of that sacrifice brought joy, and that's what set in motion the scheme of redemption. It's also what motivated Christ: "... who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Heb. 12:2).

How much does God value the possibility of reestablishing His relationship with us? How much would He be willing to give? See the outstretched arms of Jesus as He suffers on the cross and know that it is "This much!"