Is God’s Love Really Reckless?

by Zachary Stout

an article originally published by Always Ready Ministries

The family of God is the choir, and God is their audience.
—Keith Getty—

The singing of songs has been part of corporate worship throughout church history as believers, through the centuries, have gathered together regularly to honor, praise, and worship the one true God. This activity is encouraged in Scripture through both commands and examples.

In Psalm 96 the inspired psalmist wrote,

¹ Sing a new song to the Lord;
let the whole earth sing to the Lord.
² Sing to the Lord, bless his name;
proclaim his salvation from day to day.

Other verses in Psalm 96 also encourage praise, worship, and declarations of God’s greatness; though not specifically through music or singing. Yet Psalm 96 itself is poetry, an art form with which music closely is associated. Additional Old Testament passages that affirm singing include Psalm 30:4; 68:4,32; 92:1; 98:4-5; 100:2; 135:3; 147:7; 149:1; and Isaiah 12:5.

Moreover, the New Testament—not just the Old—explicitly upholds corporate singing: Ephesians 5:18-19 declares, “And don’t get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless living, but be filled by the Spirit: speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music with your heart to the Lord.” Colossians 3:16 echoes this same theme.

Examples

Examples of praise through poetry and/or songs are plentiful in the Bible as well. In Exodus 15:1-21, Moses and the Israelites praised God by singing about the devastation He brought on the Egyptians at the Red Sea. And in 2 Samuel 22, David “spoke the words of this song to the LORD on the day the LORD rescued him from the grasp of all his enemies and from the grasp of Saul.” You’ll find even more examples in 2 Chronicles 29:25-30; Ezra 3:10-11; Nehemiah 12:27-29; Psalm 106:6-12; Mark 14:26; and Acts 16:25.

Music and poetry are important, but not just because they are songs or lyrical verses. They carry words; and words, woven together, convey ideas. As believers, we want to make sure the ideas our songs present about God not only are true but also readily understood to the greatest extent possible.

Throughout the centuries, believers have discussed and debated the importance of the informational content of hymns and songs of praise. Recently this conversation has become even more important because of a new song by Cory Asbury, Caleb Culver, and Ran Jackson titled “Reckless Love.” Apparently, Asbury is the principal composer and lyricist. The song has become wildly popular. You can hear it here, and you’ll find the lyrics here.

Is God’s Love Really Reckless?

A healthy debate has arisen over this song because of its use of the term reckless. Many aspects of the debate are important, but here I’d like to focus on whether or not “Reckless Love” is appropriate for congregational singing. Based primarily, and for some solely, on the song’s use of the word reckless, members of one group contend that the lyrics will confuse and mislead people if they are sung in church. Here are their arguments.

Asbury’s song highlights the “reckless” love of God as seen, ironically, through His faithfulness in giving breath and bestowing His love upon believers. Our life-giving, Creator God is indeed faithful and loving (see Gen 2:7; Isa 42:5; Ex. 34:6-7; Ps 136), but is His love truly reckless? Consider that Paul used a Greek term meaning recklessness or reckless living in Ephesians 5:18-19, which we cited earlier. Drunkenness, Paul wrote, “leads to reckless living.”

It is difficult to imagine being reckless in this sense without also being irresponsible and careless. Reckless implies haphazard decision-making on God’s part. Of course, divine plans are neither haphazard nor reactionary—far from it! (See Eph 1:4-5.) Hebrews 4:3-4 speaks of all God’s acts having been completed before the creation of the world. Put your mind around that for a moment! God is in control of all creation (see Col. 1:15-17). His love is not reckless, nor can it be. Describing God’s love as reckless portrays it in a way that is contrary to Scripture and that could lead believers to a false understanding of who God is and how He relates to men and women, boys and girls. Be forewarned! People with a false understanding of God run the risk of being guilty of idolatry.

These points cannot be lightly dismissed.

Others Say Yes, God’s Love Indeed Is Reckless

But we don’t dismiss them lightly, someone will say. God’s love is reckless, but not at all in a way that is careless, irresponsible, or haphazard. Instead, it is reckless, even according to Scripture! Reading Bible passages that speak of God’s lavish and infinite love, we cannot help but be overwhelmed. We stand in awe when we consider the lengths to which God went to make it possible for us to be forgiven and made right with Him. Thus, from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless. In Romans 5:6-11, Paul wrote about the absurdity of God’s love: Hardly ever “will someone die for a just person—though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die. But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (vv. 7-8). Why would God go to such extreme lengths to redeem, forgive, and restore those who rejected and even crucified Him? Ahh! Because of His reckless love! In 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, contrasted God’s foolishness to human wisdom. Never forget that God’s “foolish” plan of salvation is infinitely wiser than the wisest human strategies and solutions!

You can hear Cory Asbury himself defend his use of the term reckless here.

Where to Land?

It seems that each side has a strong case. How should we respond? Is it right to use this song corporately, in congregational singing? Consider that Christians’ theology is strongly influenced by music; that is, believers describe God and think about God through the lens of the songs they sing and hear. Affirming this, we see that singing a song about God’s “reckless” love could lead some to think wrongly about it. Chances are, not everyone will understand the song’s nuance; that is, seeing divine love as reckless from a human perspective.

In corporate singing, worshipers seek to praise the God of the Bible through songs that enflame their righteous passion. This requires music and messages that portray God accurately. For these reasons, my own personal view is that it would be best to avoid singing “Reckless Love” in a congregational setting. That said, be assured I am not saying Cory Asbury’s song is a bad song or that it is wrong to sing it, to listen to it individually, or to use it in a group setting where it can be fully discussed.

This is not an issue over which to leave your local church. Discuss any concerns you might have with your church’s leadership. Also, talk with fellow believers about congregational songs—any and all of them—to help everyone think biblically about them. A wonderful advantage to “Reckless Love” is that it sparks discussion about the two most important topics in the world—God and His wonderful love!

 

November 11, 2018

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