This past weekend, I was invited to appear on Great Day Colorado, a morning show in Denver, to share about my new book, Just Love. The host, Denise Plante, was a fan of The Shack and wanted to know if the message of Just Love is a continuation of the same theme. She had read my new book, and we had a great conversation about how Just Love is the other side of the coin. The Shack and my previous book, He Loves Me, deal with how we each get to experience God’s love.
Just Love builds on that theme by helping people understand how God’s love not only wins us into God’s life but also invites us into the flow of love that shapes every relationship we have. If love just comes into us and we try to hold it there, it will stagnate. Love is not a possession; it is a river. We can’t own it, but we can jump in it and frolic in his delight even as we begin to see others as potential recipients of that same love.
What I have enjoyed most since writing this book with Tobie is how it has reframed God’s purpose throughout human history. Scripture has taken on a new clarity as the themes of love and justice are the bloodstream coursing through the text. We see God’s disdain for injustice, arrogance, and the exploitation of others. Adam and Eve lost life because they reached outside of God to try to find fulfillment. That compromised their relationship with God and each other. God has been working ever since to restore the connection humanity lost.
The connection between the Law of Moses, the power of the Gospel, and the reality of God’s Kingdom in the world today has never made more sense. We aren’t saved just to get into heaven, but we are rescued from the narcissism of flesh by the love of an awesome Father.
The Law told Israel how to honor God and each other in a way that would allow them to live in peace and joy. They couldn’t do it, however, because humanity was too self-focused in its fallenness. Jesus came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill his justice in his people through love. When we connect with God’s love and become one with that love, it will flow through us as we will treat others with the same compassion and justice he gives to us.
That’s why he said if we love others like we’ve been loved, the whole world would know who he is. Love manifested in God’s children would change the world. And yet, we haven’t seen that come to fruition because those who claim to be Christian are often just as self-focused as the world is, even exploiting their faith to take advantage of others.
I’ll be honest, this is quite a shift in thinking for those who have been schooled in traditional views of righteousness and salvation. I love it when I hear that people I know are taking time to process the meaning of this book. They may be hesitant at first, but they are willing to take a hard look and see if these things are so. Tobie and I tried to keep it as simple as we could so that others could grasp what we’re saying and explore it in their own relationship with Jesus. And if you have questions about all of this, feel free to send them to me, and we can tackle them on a future blog or podcast.
This is an even more amazing adventure than I knew it to be. Living loved and loving makes us part of his unfolding kingdom in the world, where God’s love and justice reign. Human justice can only come after the fact, trying to impose punishment or derive recompense from perpetrators. God’s justice works in people before they act in hurtful and harmful ways. By putting us in the place of the other, love will not allow us to do harm or take advantage of someone.
That’s the mark of one who follows Jesus; they love well and treat others with fairness and compassion. Nothing brings greater joy to our Father.
If you haven’t gotten your copy of Just Love yet, you can now order it directly from Lifestream. We finally have books in stock. To celebrate, we’re offering it on sale for $13.99 per book. And, if you want extra books to share with friends or to start a book study, you can get them for $10.00 per book when you order in quantities of five or more.
One last note, this weekend I’ll be in the Minneapolis area with some more former 2x2ers and other friends from the area. If you want to join us, it’s not too late.
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Just Love:
How One Mistranslated Word Distorted the Gospel
by Wayne Jacobsen and Tobie van der Westhuizen
174 pages
Trailview Media
Available now in paperback from Lifestream for $13.99. Or, if you want to order five or more, you can get them for $10.00 each.
Or from Amazon: in Kindle ($10.99), paperback ($16.99), or hardcover ($24.99)
