God’s love is always open and available to us. But so many of us fail to experience it. Even after years of pursuing our creator we can still find ourselves feeling miles away from God. Still questioning if His love is available. Today we are going to tackle a huge question.
How do I receive God’s love?
Part 2 Here
Spoiler Alert! The answer is surrender.
The best way I can explain this is to walk through the parable of the prodigal son . So grab your Bible and
Read: Luke 15:11-32.
John 15:9 CSB
“As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love.
Let’s focus on Luke 11:13
The heart of the prodigal’s struggle wasn’t just about wasted money—it was about refusing to surrender. Think about it: this son accepted his father’s resources but rejected his father’s wisdom. He insisted on “carving his own path” apart from his father’s protection and care. The Bible shows us how he deliberately put physical distance between himself and his loving father.
The Prodigal son could not receive his fathers love because he refused to remain.
“This distance represents more than geography, it reveals our human tendency to resist God’s authority while still wanting His blessings. We say, ‘I’ll take your gifts, God, but I’ll decide how to use them.'”
Sound familiar?
This is the exact mindset that blocks God’s love from fully reaching us. When we maintain control, even in small areas of our lives, we create barriers to experiencing the depth of love our Father wants to give.
Luke11:14
Eventually, he ends up with nothing. The Bible tells us that a severe famine hit, mirroring our own struggles when we drift away from God’s loving care.
“This kind of famine is everywhere today, showing up as a deep spiritual hunger. It leaves millions craving nourishment, peace, and hope—so what’s the cure? GOD’S LOVE.”
Stop trying to “Become” worthy of God’s Love
Luke 15:20
“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 the young son has experienced the contrast between the shallow, temporary love that the world gives and how his father cared for his servants. He comes to his senses and understands that his father treats his servants well.
At this point in the story, he understands his father to be a good Lord, but not a Beloved Father… at least not yet.”
Here’s what I want you to focus on: He believed the lie that his father’s love was conditional, based on his performance.
“Look carefully at his rehearsed speech in Luke 15:18-19:
‘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.’
He thought he needed to work his way back into a relationship! He was planning to become a servant because he didn’t believe in his father’s love. So he could not see his father’s desire to restore him as a son.”
Perfect Love Casts Out Fear
Scripture directly addresses this exact fear in 1 John 4:18:
“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment.”
The prodigal son’s fear of punishment kept him rehearsing a speech, planning to be a servant. But his father’s perfect love—running to him, embracing him before he could even finish his confession—drove out that fear completely. This is how God’s love works in our lives today.
“But how did the father respond? He ran to his son (something dignified men didn’t do in that culture), embraced him, and interrupted his rehearsed speech before he could even suggest becoming a servant. The father immediately restored him to full sonship with a robe, ring, and sandals—symbols of family position, not servanthood.”
“The son could have returned home at any moment. His fear kept him among the pigs when he could have been enjoying a feast at his father’s table.”
Experiencing God’s Love
Here are some practical steps to take.
1. Surrender
First, we must recognize where we’ve believed the lie that God’s love is conditional. Lay down our Tedency to “ carve our own path.”
2. Repent
Second, we take the courageous step of returning to God with complete honesty about our condition, trusting that His love exceeds our failings.
This invites us to practice a lifestyle of ongoing repentance. Just as the prodigal son finally came to his senses, we too are constantly invited to return to God whenever sin creates distance between us. Whether you accepted Christ this morning or have walked with Him for decades, God’s invitation to repentance remains unchanging.
The beautiful promise in 1 John 1:9 reminds us,
‘If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.’
There’s no expiration date on this promise. Each time we recognize areas in our lives that have turned away from God, we can boldly approach His throne of grace, knowing His arms are always open wide to restore us fully as His beloved children.
3. Worship
Spend time in God’s presence, instead of shrinking away in shame. We finally participate in the celebration He arranges, actively receiving the robe, ring, and feast that symbolize our complete acceptance (Luke 15:20-24).
Casting our cares on Him because He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). Asking Him for wisdom (James 1:5).
Boldly going before His throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16).
All things we can do with confidence because we know that He loves us (1 John 4:16).
Let’s close with this.
Coming home to God isn’t just for those who have wandered far away. Even as believers who love the Lord, we often allow parts of our devotion to drift—perhaps our worship has become routine, our time in His Word sporadic, or our love for others conditional. Jesus invites not just the completely prodigal, but also the partially prodigal parts of our hearts to return fully to Him.
Where have you created distance from God while still living in His house? Perhaps, like the older brother in the parable, you’ve remained physically present but emotionally distant. God is calling each of us to examine the areas where we’ve held back—our finances, our relationships, our private thoughts, our career ambitions—and bring them all under His loving lordship. True fulfillment comes not from compartmentalizing our lives, but from allowing His love to permeate every corner of our existence.
The prodigal son’s journey shows us the battleground between fear and love. Fear kept him in the pigpen; fear scripted his conditional return; fear convinced him he could only be a servant. But the father’s perfect love shattered every fear-based assumption.
This is exactly. what John meant when writing that “perfect love casts out fear.” When we truly comprehend and receive God’s perfect love, our fears of rejection, punishment, and needing to earn acceptance dissolve in His embrace.
Like the prodigal son, have you acted out of fear instead of love, believing that God’s acceptance depended on your performance? However, just as the father in the story, God is always watching the path, ready to receive you with open arms—not because you finally “got it right,” but because of His nature. His perfect love has always been there, ready to dispel fear.
Receiving God’s love isn’t complicated, but it does require surrender. Today, identify one area where fear has convinced you that God’s love is conditional or performance-based.
Maybe it’s in your prayer life, your service, or how you handle failure. Write down this specific fear, then physically cross it out, writing “1 John 4:18” over it.
Take a moment right now to imagine God running toward you, interrupting your rehearsed speech, and embracing you fully. This physical exercise helps retrain your heart to receive what’s already being offered—His perfect, fear-dispelling love.
Reflection Questions:
1. How does the father’s response in the prodigal son story challenge your view of God’s love?
2. In what ways do you try to “earn” God’s love through your performance?
3. What would change in your relationship with God if you truly believed His love for you is unconditional?
4. What specific action will you take this week to actively receive and rest in God’s unconditional love rather than trying to earn it?
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