I’m sure you’ve heard the song Reckless Love by Cory Asbury –or at least I hope you have. The first time we sang it at church, I only guessed the name of the song was “Reckless Love” because those two words stood out so strongly to me in the lyrics.
Think about that word: reckless.
The dictionary defines it as utterly unconcerned about the consequences of some action. I don’t know if I could’ve quoted this definition when I heard these words but it’s definitely what came to mind. In other words, I would never tell someone to intentionally put their heart out there knowing fully that it would be rejected.
That would be reckless.
YET this is exactly what God did, didn’t He? Isaiah said he was “despised and rejected” by those he came to save (Isaiah 53:3). We know this is ultimately how he went to the cross. Jesus was hated by his own people. And when he had a chance to walk away, he chose to stay.
This is reckless love.
In one of his parables, Jesus said, “Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal” (John 12:24, MSG).
He obviously knew what he was talking about. Life, love, and everything in between, isn’t it all reckless? Isn’t it all about putting yourself out there not knowing if you’ll be received? BUT as Isaiah continued, “it was our pains he carried— our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us. We thought he brought it on himself, that God was punishing him for his own failures. But it was our sins that did that to him, that ripped and tore and crushed him—our sins! He took the punishment, and that made us whole. Through his bruises we get healed. We’re all like sheep who’ve wandered off and gotten lost. We’ve all done our own thing, gone our own way. And God has piled all our sins, everything we’ve done wrong, on him, on him” (Isaiah 53:3-5, MSG).
It was reckless, yet it was on purpose.
As the song goes on to say:
I couldn’t earn it
I don’t deserve it
Still You give yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
We need to be reminded of these things. No, we didn’t deserve it. No, we can never earn it. BUT that’s what made God’s love reckless, and beautiful.
Just tell Him thank you. Love on Him a little extra today in your gratitude. I know I will be.
