I was interested in this book after hearing about many youth groups taking it on as a study. Usually I'm not much for what is popular, but after my cousin asked me to read this book along with her, I decided I would check it out. It was much more than I expected it to be.
The thing that I think bothers so many people is that Francis Chan is so straight forward. But the thing is, everything he says comes straight from the Word of God. This was the first thing that I was worried about, that Chan would just use his own opinions. But, really, I don't know what you could disagree with if you are a Bible-believing Christian. More on that later, though.
Chan tells readers about the gloriousness of God, the craziness of His love for us. He reminds us of the things we have forgotten about God. He reminds us that we are seemingly nothing in this huge universe that God has created. He says that we must stop trusting ourselves and trust God alone. Chan pleads with the church to realize that there is no room for lukewarm Christians.
The sad thing about this book is that Christians should know all of this already. Christians should know that God is the Creator of all things, that He is the Savior of our sins, that He loves us relentlessly and immeasurably. Christians should know that they must serve God wholeheartedly, serve others without judgment, and live selflessly. But do we really know that? Do our churches really preach that message? Honestly, I think the majority of them actually praise our lukewarm lives.
The biggest thing I took from this book is that I must stop living lazily, selfishly. I must stop thinking, "Well, I'm certainly a better person than so-and-so." That isn't the point of the life God has called us to live. God has called us to love Him and love others in a genuine way. He has called us to live in the world, not of the world. That's the message of this book, to turn back to what the Bible really says, get off our behinds, and serve God boldly.
Back to the controversy and disagreements over this book. The only thing I found difficult about this is the conviction I faced while reading this. One chapter is titled "Profile of the Lukewarm," and after reading it, I realized I have some work to do. But I will say again, I don't understand how someone can disagree with this unless...unless...he or she is not willing to live out what the Bible says. Some say, "Oh, it's taking the Bible too literally." What does that even mean? Does that mean when the Bible says "clothe the naked" we should say, "Well, no one is really 'naked?'" That is missing the entire point of Scripture.
If this book bothers you, good. If this book makes you feel sick to your stomach about your own lifestyle, good. If this book encourages you to change, good.
The church, the body of Christ, has moved away from real Christianity. Crazy Love is a call to return, to soak up every bit of Scripture, to live recklessly abandoned lives for Christ. How can a person who is striving to live for Christ in all things disagree with that?
