Words of Reflection
Tomorrow the journey to the cross takes a crucial turn. Events are set in motion on Thursday of Holy Week that lead quickly to Christ’s arrest, torture, and execution. Each of the coming days has a specific event or theme that will guide us in our devotional journey, and if we’re honest they will take us to places that are sad and difficult. We know where the story lands come Sunday morning, but the journey to that day is not an easy one.
From the very beginning of this Lenten journey it has been our prayer that you have been keenly aware of the passionate, pursuing love of God that sits at the heart of what this week is all about. It is love that brought Jesus to earth, and it is love that now brings him to the cross.
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. Songwriter Cory Asbury responded to that concern 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…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
Scripture for Meditation:
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
—Ephesians 3:14-19 (NRSV)
Song: Reckless Love
Before I spoke a word You were singing over me
You have been so so good to me
Before I took a breath You breathed Your life in me
You have been so so kind to meOh the overwhelming never-ending reckless love of God
Oh it chases me down fights 'til I'm found
Leaves the ninety-nine
I couldn't earn it I don't deserve it
Still You give Yourself away
Oh the overwhelming never-ending reckless love of GodWhen I was Your foe still Your love fought for me
You have been so so good to me
When I felt no worth You paid it all for me
You have been so so kind to meOh the overwhelming never-ending reckless love of God
Oh it chases me down fights 'til I'm found
Leaves the ninety-nine
I couldn't earn it I don't deserve it
Still You give Yourself away
Oh the overwhelming never-ending reckless love of GodThere'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 meOh the overwhelming never-ending reckless love of God
Oh it chases me down fights 'til I'm found
Leaves the ninety-nine
I couldn't earn it I don't deserve it
Still You give Yourself away
Oh the overwhelming never-ending reckless love of God
Caleb Culver | Cory Asbury | Ran Jackson
© 2017 Richmond Park Publishing; Bethel Music Publishing; Cory Asbury Publishing; Watershed Worship Publishing
Questions for Contemplation:
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.
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?
What does it mean for you to be “rooted” and “grounded’ in love? Spend some time in prayer asking God to build that foundation of his love into your life in new and deeper ways.