Love Beyond Reason

Book Review.
Ortberg, John. Love Beyond Reason. Moving God’s love from your head to your heart. Zondervan. 1998.

Comment. Henry.
I never tire of hearing about, reading about, experiencing God’s love. John has given us a resource that presents God’s love in very simple words with powerful illustrations. Such love is very freeing and empowering.

Because of our sinfulness, we are all need of “a love that creates value in what is loved”. (16) Such love we call charity, agape. When we declare that we love God we must understand that we must also love others. It is very encouraging to learn from scripture that God pays attention, ‘turns his face toward us’. In fact he makes his face ‘shine on us’. As we make the effort to do the same to others we must listen to Jesus.
Very few of Jesus’ miracles happened without his personal touch. He was not infected by the diseases of the people he touch but rather they were infected by his healing power. We should be ‘infectious’ as we touch others. God is “the Lord of the second chance”. (76) The lessons that Jesus teaches are sound, e.g. don’t build your house on sand. Contentment comes as we know that we are loved.
Desert experiences of our life are essential to our spiritual growth. “Without grace, life is clumsy, awkward business.” (156) Discipleship (discipline) is basic to peace. Being loved means being chosen. Envy is a product of not being chosen. In the environment of God’s love there is safety. In the hide and seek of life God is IT. By far the greatest demonstration of God’s (unreasonable) love was when he took upon himself the limitations of humanity so that he provides forgiveness and a relationship with himself for all of us.