Extreme and Fanatical or Just In Love With Jesus?
He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Romans 8:32 NKJV
Was the Father being fanatical when He gave us His Son, or was He just in love with us? Is the Father being extreme when He gives us all things or is He just in love with us?
Image © Darrel Tank from GoodSalt.com
In John 12:1-8, a woman comes to Jesus with an extremely expensive bottle of perfume. She anoints Jesus with this costly perfume as an expression of her love and appreciation for the incredible sacrifice Jesus was making for her. She was a sinner, saved by the love of Jesus, and she simply wanted to give all she had for Jesus because Jesus was giving all He had for her.
However, some of the disciples, including Judas, took exception to her gift. They called it a waste of money that could have been used to help the poor. John points out though, that instead of helping the poor, Judas was using the poor fund to help himself. This leads me to a couple of conclusions. Judas called the woman out for being “wasteful” simply because he was not as generous and did not want to look bad.
So how do you make yourself look perfectly balanced while still being selfish? You label the unselfish woman as being fanatical and accuse her of extremism. Do some do this today? Others make reforms in their diet or behavior that we are not willing to make, so to make ourselves look balanced, we have to make the more conscientious person look unbalanced and extreme or fanatical. Pushing them into the far-right category moves us into the perfectly moderate and balanced category.
This woman was not being legalistic, fanatical, extreme, or unbalanced. She was simply in love with Jesus. She was simply giving all she had because Jesus was giving her all He had. This is the natural reaction of all who experience the love of Christ today. Just because someone is making changes that we are not willing to make does not mean that they are unbalanced or extreme fanatics. It could just mean that they love Jesus and want to show their appreciation for His love and sacrifice by making a few sacrifices themselves. That is what love does.
Going back to Judas acting like he was really interested in the poor while only serving himself – how many times have we said, “I wish I was rich so I could give to the poor?” Could we really be saying, “I wish I was rich so I could give to the poor without having to sacrifice?”
Jesus pointed out to Judas that the poor have always been there, and he can help them any time he wants. Likewise, we can help the poor any time we want, if we are willing to sacrifice. Do we really wish we had more money to give to the poor, or do we just wish we had more money so we could give to the poor without it being such a sacrifice?
When the Father gave everything, including His Son, it was a sacrifice. Is there any way we can genuinely respond to such love without also making a real sacrifice?
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Very good and insightful article. Can we ever be extreme or fanatical in our relationship with Jesus? I think not! If anything, the Godhead has that type of love for us. John 3:16 encapsulates the extent of their love for humanity who have done nothing worthy of deserving it. They gave, and agreed to be given, that we would be reconciled to God. To love is to sacrifice, the depth of the sacrifice reveals the depth of the love. Some would even consider God's love for humanity to be prodigious, as the prodigal Father. Thanks for making us think again of how deep the Father's love for us is, while being brought to the realization of how often our love returned is so insignificant, even in it's extravagant moments. He deserves so much more of us. I would have liked to read more.
I have read that since we are sinful and do not know even the extent of our degradation that we are not able to empty ourselves of self. I got this from "Christ's Object Lessons"
"The prayer of the publican was heard because it showed dependence reaching forth to lay hold upon Omnipotence. Self to the publican appeared nothing but shame. Thus it must be seen by all who seek God. By faith—faith that renounces all self-trust—the needy suppliant is to lay hold upon infinite power. COL 159.2
"No outward observances can take the place of simple faith and entire renunciation of self. But no man can empty himself of self. We can only consent for Christ to accomplish the work. Then the language of the soul will be, Lord, take my heart; for I cannot give it. It is Thy property. Keep it pure, for I cannot keep it for Thee. Save me in spite of myself, my weak, unchristlike self. Mold me, fashion me, raise me into a pure and holy atmosphere, where the rich current of Thy love can flow through my soul. COL 159.3
"It is not only at the beginning of the Christian life that this renunciation of self is to be made. At every advance step heavenward it is to be renewed. All our good works are dependent on a power outside of ourselves. Therefore there needs to be a continual reaching out of the heart after God, a continual, earnest, heartbreaking confession of sin and humbling of the soul before Him. Only by constant renunciation of self and dependence on Christ can we walk safely." COL 159.4
Wow. Awesome practical Christian living. Always enjoy your “outside the box “thought process. So much said in your commentary that can be applied now to make a difference in our relationship with the “ unchurched”..
Blessings to you and family as you continue sharing Holy Spirit thoughts as we prepare for Our Lord and Savior’s return.
Much Love.
I am just in love with Jesus.
A couple of thought-provoking questions.
I have a question. Are we so in love with our friends and relitives that we want to go to heaven to meet up with them and neglect to fall in love with Christ? Now I know that is not a fair question, but it sure should make us want to allow Christ to rewire our brain if we fit those shoes.
James LeVos, you found my favorite prayer.
Hmmm... I've contemplated that idea before. It is troublesome, but I wonder if the problem is always that we don't want to fall in love with Jesus. I think for many of us we have flawed pictures of God. We don't long to go to Heaven to meet with Him because in the back of our mind, we aren't sure what He's like and what He thinks of us. But we know what our sweet mother or whoever is like. So we long to see them again.
Now yes, God is so much more wonderful than any human relationship and we might intellectually give assent to that, but really believing it? We need a perception change but that's not always so easy. Patterns are built that are hard to dismantle.
Don't dismiss what I've said quickly. If you've never been there, you might have great difficulty comprehending it, but that doesn't mean it's real.
Now I get the real meaning of sacrifice. So, my prayer all along that "God makes me rich that I may be able to support the less privileged" has always been a prayer of selfishness.
And, look at the woman. She realised Jesus is worth more than any earthly possessions.
you may pray selfishly without knowing. God knows how to answer us because what you ask may separate you from Him.