Extremist love

Our daily bible reading from Every Day with Jesus is taking us through Selwyn Hughes’ exposition on the book of Ephesians, where we learn of God’s extravagant love that sent Jesus to die for us, sinners though we are.  Reading these verses from 2 Ephesians3-7, I could not but help marvel at the extremes to which God goes in His love for us:

v3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind…

v4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

V5  even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ, by grace you have been saved,

v6  and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus,

v7  in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.

When I went over this, I could not but help exclaim, God, you are an extremist God!  When we deserved hell, you not only rescued us from the pit to put us on level ground, you exalted us to be reigning with Christ in heavenly places.  What extravagant love is that, that gives exceedingly abundantly beyond all that we deserve!  It is supreme grace lavished on us.

And this was fittingly born out during our evening service in church when the speaker was invited to celebrate the Jewish passover with the congregation, taking us through the meaning and symbolism of the different elements and rituals.  It graphically illustrated the extent of His sacrifice as the passover lamb that we might have our souls redeemed from the depths and tyranny of sin.

” In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us.” Ephesians 3:7-8