What is God Really Like?

By Steve Clark

March 19, 2026

Luke 15:20 … his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

Jesus Christ came to earth to show us exactly what God is like. In Luke 15, He shares some stories that paint a portrait of the character and nature of God. The key figure in the parable is the Father. I prefer to call it the Parable of the Loving Father. Jesus is teaching us that God is like the father in this story. It’s not enough to believe in God; you must understand the nature of the God Jesus came to introduce.

 When the younger son came to the father demanding his inheritance, the father would have been wounded.  It would have taken some time to sell some assets, but he granted his request. The son takes the money and runs! The father probably shed many tears, but he still let him go.

That is what our heavenly Father is like. God regrets your rebellion, but He wants your love and service given to Him freely. He allows you to make your own choices even though He knows what the consequences will be.  That is the true nature of God.

Next, we see a God who runs when you return. The wayward son didn’t do so well in the far country. He lived high on the hog for a while, but pretty soon, he was low with the hogs! He left with a pocket full of money but came back dirty and broken.

How does his father receive him? He jumped the stone fence and sprinted out to meet his son! He hugged and kissed him! Remember where his son had been? In a pig pen and he stunk!

What Jesus is telling us is that God runs to meet us when we decide to return to Him. If you have drifted away from God today, you haven’t drifted too far to come back.

Reflection—The Father is standing there, waiting at the gate. That is what God is really like.