Crazy Love Observations: Chapter 4

So this is where it starts to hurt.

Up to this point, Crazy Love has been insightful and inspiring; however, there always comes a time when truth must be internalized, and we have to honestly ask ourselves if we’re really living the message. Chapter 4 (profile of the lukewarm) brings us to one of those moments.

As we dive into this, let me remind you of the difference between conviction and condemnation. The conviction of the Holy Spirit is sweet—it’s a piercing pain that lances our heart with the knowledge that we’ve blown it and that we need to make a course correction, but there is always sweetness in it. Psalm 19 says that the “fear of the Lord is clean” and it’s true—the conviction that God brings is clean and wholesome, and our spirit longs for it and reaches for it. Condemnation on the other hand is a wet blanket of guilt that saps our energy and threatens to send us on a downward spiral. The Holy Spirit wants to convict us to keep us on course, while simultaneously rolling the guilt and shame of condemnation off of us. So...reject condemnation but embrace conviction as we evaluate our lives in the light of this chapter.

I think what gripped me the most in this chapter was when Francis shared how he had become disillusioned with American Christianity and, consequently, began to evaluate every dimension of his life against the standard of the Bible (instead of the typical patterns and practices of the church). If we were to do the same, I’m sure we would draw the same conclusions: we spend far too much time on trivia, and far too little on treasure. We fret about things that have very little (if no) eternal value, and we are far too easily satisfied with our temporal, natural pleasures. I love the quote he used from C.S. Lewis to reinforce this thought: “If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.”

There were two other points that really stood out to me. First, “lukewarm” Christians have “limits” to their love, their sacrifice, and their devotion to Christ; and, second, “lukewarm” Christians call “radical” what Jesus thinks is merely the norm.

I had the privilege of interviewing Francis for a ministry magazine and he said something to me in that interview that reinforced the heartbeat of this chapter. He said, “everyone thinks that what our church is doing is so special and amazing—but really we’re just trying to do the basics of what we’re called to as Christians.”

What would happen to Grace if we decided to do the same? What would change in us and in our ministries if we decided to really go for it and truly be 21st century, New Testament Christians? What would change in our community? Let’s begin counting the cost of these questions so that this book actually becomes a catalyst for lasting change.

I love you all very, very much, and I love being on this journey with you!
Chris