Why is grass inviting for rolling down a hill, while a rock invites a climb?
Why did God give sunrises and sunsets glorious displays of shifting color variations?
Does a centipede need all 100 legs?
Would a lion roar as loudly without his impressive mane?
Why does a fish have many small scales instead of one or two big ones? Or would two big scales on a sea creature just be a clam?
Did God always intend for there to be fish large enough to swallow a rebellious person?
Have you thought about how the feathers of a bird facilitate its flight? Beyond the functional necessity of the feathers, their myriad of colors and head-shapes are not out of necessity, but rather out of God’s extravagant design.
Gratuitous extravagance.
Gratuitous… a big word that encompasses and even bigger meaning. If something is gratuitous, it means that it is above and beyond what is expected or deserved. Louisiana natives may compare it to “lagniappe,” which means a little something extra, like the 13th donut of the baker’s dozen.
Extravagance… the gratuitous beauty with which God created the world is beyond what we might’ve expected or imagined. It is most definitely more than we deserve. The lavish splendor of creation points to a loving Creator who delights in the art of His handiwork.
Gratuitous extravagance.
James, the brother of Jesus, uses two contrasting facets of nature to describe the Father from whom all good gifts originate.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17).
God’s gifts are good. His gifts are sacrificial. His gifts can never be repaid. Many of His gifts are unnecessary, but all His gifts inspire gratitude. And His greatest gift? His love.
Paul attempts to describe God’s love in Ephesians using words like “glorious riches” and “how long and high and deep is the love… that surpasses knowledge.” Some of my favorite verses are at the conclusion of that inept description. They are a benediction and call to action.
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (Eph. 3:20-21)
There is no way that we can repay God for His extravagant gifts. Rather, His gratuitous beauty serves as an invitation to thank and praise Him.
God’s gifts are an invitation, not an obligation.
Do I have to delight in the question of why a giraffe has so many spots? Nope. But I am invited to chuckle along with God, who creatively and carefully designed and delighted in each animal’s unique beauty, each blade of grass, every fish in the sea and myriad of birds of the air.
And when we take a moment to celebrate and express our gratefulness for His gratuitous extravagance, we are redefined by our gratitude and transformed by His beauty and love.
P.S. Special thanks to the Creative Response Sunday morning Bible class at Downtown and to Makoto Fujimura’s book, Art and Faith, for some of the inspiration and vocabulary for this blog post.