“I’m All In”
June 6, 2022
If you were to explain the meaning of the phrase, I’m all in, without consulting the dictionary, you may come up with a definition that states a full commitment to a task, cause, or even a person. And you would be correct. However, there is another definition that you may have never considered. Originally the phase “all in” began as an expression meaning to be in a bad spot, exhausted, worn out, and spent.
Consider these definitions of the phrase—
- To be fully committed to a task or endeavor; to give or be prepared to give all of one’s energy or resources toward something.
- To be completely exhausted, fatigued, spent or worn out.
Whenever I hear someone say, “I’m all in”, my mind immediately goes to the first definition. I think of romantic partners vowing their commitment (like Luke Danes with Lorelai Gilmore in Gilmore Girls). I think of James Holzhauer, a professional sports gambler and Jeopardy champion (Jeopardy James), who became known for making an “all in” hand gesture when he put all his money on the line during the Daily Doubles. His gesture mimicked pushing all his poker chips to the center of the table. I also think of politicians committing to their campaign platforms, everyday people committing to causes, and Christians committing to following Christ, and even beach towns, such as Ocean Grove, NJ, claiming a theme for Summer, 2022. Every time I use my beach tag for Ocean Grove, I am reminded of the phrase, “all in”.
In Matthew 22, we read about how the Pharisees, students and teachers of the Law of Moses, tested Jesus by asking Him to choose one great commandment. The Pharisees had 613 commandments of the law which they distinguished into greater and lesser, and now they were challenging Jesus. However, without any difficulty, Jesus responds by saying,
37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 – Matthew 22:37-40
Whereas “all in” once referred to a scenario in which someone either wins a hand of poker or loses everything in a flash, now it means that a person is generally enthusiastic or fully committed. Going “all in” in poker may often be a bad idea, but in life, especially the Christian life, it is a great idea and actually the only way to boldly live out the greatest commandments.
The first great thing that God demands of us is love, and, therefore, the first great thing we should devote to Him. Our love of God must be sincere, in deed, and not only in word and tongue. We must love Him more than anything else.
Secondly, we must love our neighbor as ourselves. We must love ourselves and honor and esteem our neighbor, which may at times require we deny ourselves. These may mean we have to be willing to be spent for our neighbor, and even lay down our lives for our brothers. Perhaps that’s where the second definition of “all in”, being spent, comes into play.
So, are you “all in” in the sense of the first definition of the phrase? Are you fully committed to obeying the greatest commandments of loving God and loving people?