Day Thirty-One
When I was about 13, my family headed south for a family wedding in Georgia. I probably wouldn’t remember the road trip itself except there was one incident along the way that has stuck with me ever since.
We were in the parking lot of a hotel along the interstate, and my father had struck up a conversation with a man who was loading his own car up after checking out. My dad was a salesman, and had an easygoing and affable way about himself that drew people in, and before long this gentleman was sharing with my father his harrowing story. As a young man, standing nearby and listening in, I was transfixed, for it turns out his daughter had been kidnapped by a cult and he had no idea where they had taken her. He had quit his job and hit the road, following clue after clue, hint after frustratingly meager hint, in hopes of finding his daughter and bringing her home. He would stop at nothing to bring her home.
This gentleman’s story cemented two things in me: 1) a lifelong curiosity in cults and the way they work, and more importantly 2) the image of a father’s love that would go to any length to rescue a child they loved so dearly. When I became a Christian in college, that story came back to me as a perfect illustration of God’s pursuing love for us: we had been taken captive, dragged off far away from the life we were meant to live, seduced by false promises and lies, and God was willing to go to the most extreme lengths imaginable to bring us back. Jesus himself proclaims this as his mission:
“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”—Luke 19:10 (NIV)
And what is it that has prompted this mission? Love, plain and simple. As John says:
“This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”—1 John 4:10 (NIV)
How can we begin to even imagine so great a love? What words can we use to describe it? Our vocabulary isn’t extensive enough to capture it in its completeness. Paul himself acknowledged this, saying that the love of Jesus “surpasses knowledge” (Eph. 3:19). There are many words and terms available to us, yet the word that sits at the center of today’s song is one that may catch us off guard, and may even cause us to push back:
Reckless
At first glance it may seem an inappropriate word to associate with God. In fact, when the song was first released there were quite a few voices who quickly spoke out in opposition to it. Songwriter Cory Asbury responded to the criticism by referencing the incident in Luke 15 where Jesus is criticized for eating with sinners and tax collectors. Jesus responds by sharing parables of love that goes to great lengths, even putting oneself at risk, to reclaim that which was lost. In the eyes of the world, Asbury says, that kind of love is seen as reckless.
"When I used the phrase 'the reckless love of God,' when we say it, we're not saying that God himself is reckless. He's not crazy. We are, however, saying that the way he loves in many regards is quite so. What I mean is this: He's utterly unconcerned with the consequences of his actions with regard to his own safety, comfort, and well-being....His love doesn't consider himself first. It isn't selfish or self-serving. He doesn't wonder what he'll gain or lose by putting himself on the line."—Cory Asbury (you can listen to him share more about the song here)
Embracing the idea that God’s love is “reckless” is to acknowledge that the kind of love we see in the cross makes no sense from a worldly perspective. In fact, Paul called it “foolishness” (1 Cor. 1:18). But in the context of divine love it is not foolish at all. It is willing to give itself away for the hope that we will respond in kind and return to the one who “paid it all for me.”
There’s no shadow You won’t light up
Mountain You won’t climb up
Coming after me
There’s no wall You won’t kick down
Lie You won’t tear down
Coming after me
Read the rest of the lyrics here.
Questions for Reflection:
1) How do you respond to the word “reckless” being used to describe the love of God? Use your reaction, positive or negative, to start a conversation with God about how you understand his love.
2) Francis Thompson’s famous poem, “The Hound of Heaven,” builds on this imagery of a God who pursues us despite our running from him. The opening lines are haunting:
I fled Him, down the nights and down the days;
I fled Him, down the arches of the years;
I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways
Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears
In your life, how have you known the pursuing love of God, running after you despite your unwillingness to accept it? Is there any way in which you are still running, any reluctance in your spirit to enter into his love fully? Spend time with God offering any hesitancy, and giving thanks for his love that never gives up.
(You can watch a modern adaptation of “The Hound of Heaven” here)
3) Jesus’ parable of the lost sheep is a perfect example of the pursuing love of God. Spend some time reading it and dwelling in it. Perhaps read it out loud. What about this parable speaks to you right now? Do any words or phrases stand out? Why?
“So he told them this parable: ‘Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”—Luke 15:3-7 (NRS)
4) Overwhelming...never-ending…reckless…three words from today’s song used to describe God’s love. What other words come to your mind, maybe even gleaned from other songs/hymns?
5) Read and reflect on these verses. Let them lead you into prayerful worship and gratitude:
“For thus says the Lord God: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.”—Ezekiel 34:11-12 (NRSV)