Hating Sin

HATING SIN

“Ye that love the Lord, hate evil.” - Psalm 97:10

The word, “hate,” is a strong word that's condemned by our society today. In this generation, we've coined phrases like, “a hate group,” “hate speech,” and “hate crimes.” In all fairness, hatred does exist in our culture. There are people who have hatred in their hearts. Yet some of the most hate-filled people are those who preach against hatred.

As a Bible-believing Christian, let me restate what God has said. It is wrong to hate other people. Although I may disagree with the lifestyle of many, it does not mean that I despise them. I may disagree politically with others, but my disagreement does not come from a heart of hatred. Many seek to silence the Christian voice in America. Although I strongly oppose their efforts, I do not hate them. Yes, it is possible to strongly disagree with someone without hating them.

Yet there is something that Christians should hate. We should hate sin. The Psalmist wrote, “Ye that love the Lord, hate evil.” Also, Proverbs 8:13 says, “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.”

There are three powerful reasons why we should hate sin. First of all, we should hate sin because of the destruction it brings on ourselves and others. Secondly, we should hate sin because God hates sin and commands us to do the same. Third, we should hate sin because it cost Jesus His life. Think about it. If you did something foolish or careless that cost someone his life, it would haunt you the rest of your life.

A while back I was watching a Youtube video about a horrific plane crash that cost several people their lives. The cause of the crash was determined to be a mistake by the air traffic controller. The air traffic controller never returned to her job. I assume that the guilt of her mistake made it impossible to return.

You and I are guilty of sin. We are responsible for the death of Jesus. He died because of our sin. When we contemplate this, it should cause us to hate sin more and more.

We should hate sin. The degree of our hatred is closely related to the level of love we have for Jesus. We hate everything that contributed to the death of the One who loves us so much. Furthermore, our hatred of sin is a reflection of the degree of repentance that we are experiencing. Genuine repentance includes a hatred of sin.

Most Christians have an inaccurate view of repentance. We believe that unbelievers need to repent, which is true. But we tend to forget that the Christian life consists of ongoing repentance. Our level of spiritual maturity is often demonstrated by deeper levels of repentance. As we grow in the Lord, we tend to be more selective of the things we permit in our lives. We hate even the speck of sin.

It is one thing to hate the sins of others, but God is calling us to honestly and humbly hate our own sins, to the extent that we never wish to commit them again. That's the work of sanctification that God is doing in our lives.

Yes, it is easy to condemn the sins of others, but we aren't responsible for their sins. We are responsible for our sins. The very sins Jesus died for should never be celebrated, enjoyed or condoned by us.

Quoting from the book of Psalms, the writer of the epistle to the Hebrews referred to Jesus as he wrote, “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.” Jesus loved righteousness and hated sin.

We should do the same.

Loving Others

LOVING OTHERS

“Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” - Matthew 22:39

Humans are very selfish. We tend to think only of ourselves. At our core, we seek after the things that bring us pleasure, protection or promotion. As we grow, parents and teachers instruct us to care about others. We are told to share with other children. Upon careful analysis, we learn that our parents and teachers have a selfish nature themselves. Although they may have good intensions, often they need to practice what they preach to children.

We are selfish beings because of sin. If you really think about it, nearly every sin can be traced to a selfish motive.

On the other hand, Jesus came from heaven to walk among sinful mankind. He healed the sick. He fed the hungry. He preached good news to the poor. Jesus modeled selfless living. He came on a mission of love. He loved those that society rejected. He cared for the hurting. He ministered to the very people that most would look down upon. Ultimately, Jesus died for His enemies.

When He was asked about the two greatest commandments, Jesus did not hesitate to respond that the first commandment was to love God. He added that the second commandment was this: “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”

When a lawyer asked Him to define the term, “neighbor,” Jesus told a story of a man who took a journey. As he traveled, the man was robbed, beaten and left for dead. As Jesus continued the story, a priest happened to come by. He saw the man, but passed him by. Then a Levite traveled the same road. He, too, saw the desperate man but passed by him on the other side. Two religious men had passed the unfortunate man. Even though they saw the man and his need, neither religious man rendered any service.

Then Jesus told how a Samaritan came and saw the poor man's condition. He had compassion on the man, treated his wounds, and took him to an inn so he could recover from his injuries. The Samaritan paid for the man's room and promised to pay for any extra expense. Note the contrast. The religious men showed no compassion and avoided the bleeding man. The Samaritan, a man that the Jews would have found revolting, actually cared for the hurting man and went to great sacrifice to see that the man recovered from his horrific experience. After telling this story, Jesus then posed the question, “Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?” The lawyer responded to Jesus, “He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.”

A neighbor is more than just the person living next door. As Jesus taught in His story, our neighbor is the person we encounter in life. It may be our next-door neighbor. Then again, it may be a stranger.

It is important for us to demonstrate genuine love for a spouse, parents, children and grandchildren. We should love our family. However, our Lord also calls us to love those around us. Those that society has rejected: the poor, the sick and the lonely. James wrote that genuine faith is marked by caring for widows and orphans. It is one thing to visit a family member in the hospital, but it is something else to visit a stranger there.

Jesus went so far as to say that our treatment of others is a reflection of our love for Him. Jesus said that there would come a day in which He would say, “I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” When we help the helpless in the Name of the Lord, the Master sees it as an act of service towards Him.

We are called to love the Lord. Yet we cannot love Him without loving others. John wrote, “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren.” Furthermore, John wrote, “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

I must testify that I am a recipient of God's grace. Like Paul, I can say that I am what I am by the grace of God. Yet I must also confess that the Lord has used many people to invest in my life. Many precious saints have contributed prayers, support, encouragement and help. They did it because they cared. This is probably true of your life as well. Now God calls us to do the same for others.

Let's love others just as God has loved us.

Loving God

 LOVING GOD

“Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” - Matthew 22:37

Our society has gone overboard attaching labels to people they don't agree with. Many of these labels arise from hatred and ignorance. We hear labels like, “homophobic,” “bigot,” and “racist,” used liberally. Such labels are often inaccurate and misapplied.

Even in the church, we have labels to describe those who believe in Jesus. We use labels like, “Christian,” “brother,” “disciple,” or “follower,” to refer to someone who professes faith in Jesus. Yet there is a label that used to be popular that is rarely used these days. We used to describe a believer as, “a person who loves the Lord.” Think about that label. Is this label an accurate description of most church members these days? Do most church members love Jesus?

When John was commanded to write to the church at Ephesus in the book of Revelation, he was led to commend them for many things. In fact, we would be impressed if such a church existed today. Yet the Lord had a word of rebuke for the Ephesian church: “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” Perhaps the reason we no longer say that church members love the Lord today is because there is little evidence that they do love Him.

The real question is this: do YOU love the Lord? Is this reflected by the way you live and talk? Can others honestly refer to you as a person who loves the Lord?

The greatest commandment is to love the Lord. Yet this love is to be more than an outward show. Our love for Jesus should be more than a casual friendship. Jesus said that we should love the Lord, “...with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” This is more than a Sunday affection. It is an all-consuming passion for the King of Kings.

There are many reasons why such love is missing among church members these days. We tend to have a powerful love for Jesus when we are converted, but our love tends to fade as we fail to nourish our affection for Him. Furthermore, unconfessed sin weakens our love. Also, we tend to fellowship with others who also lack such passion, slowly becoming like them. After while, we tend to be rather judgmental about people who love Jesus and even suspicious them. We refer to them as religious fanatics.

Yet we are commanded to love the Lord. We often think that loving the Lord is for serious, mature Christians. However, loving the Lord should be a normal activity of the Christian faith. By the way, If we fail to obey the greatest commandment, wouldn't that be the greatest sin? Just something to think about.

There is a difference between liking the Lord and loving the Lord. You make appreciate what He's done and like many things about God. Yet that is not the same as loving Him. I believe that most church members like the Lord, but few love Him.

We need to get back to loving the Lord. This begins by remembering what He has done for us. Meditate about Calvary for a long time. Think about His incredible love for you. Remember that He not only declared His love for you, He demonstrated it at the cross of Calvary. When we remember His love for us, we begin to love Him in return. That's why John wrote, “... we love him because he first loved us.”

Secondly, we need to spend quality time with Him. To know Him is to love Him. Most people only focus on the blessings and never on the One who gave the blessings. The Bible tells us how Jesus visited two sisters in Bethany. While He was visiting, Martha was busy being a good hostess, but her sister, Mary, sat at Jesus' feet and listened to His word. Many of us are like Martha. We are too busy to enjoy our Lord. We need to be more like Mary. Tune out the world and simply sit at His feet, enjoy His presence, and soak in His teaching.

Third, we need to demonstrate our love for Him through our acts of service and obedience. Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” Many people are involved in church and ministry activities because it is expected of them. The best motive for service should because of our love and appreciation for the Lord.

Yes, it is refreshing to hear others refer to a Christian as, “a man who loves the Lord,” or “a woman who loves Jesus.”

Can this be said of you?

Fearing God

 FEARING GOD

“The fear of the Lord is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.” - Proverbs 8:13

I realize that the subject of fearing God is unpopular. There will be some who will immediately turn away from reading this, simply because of the subject matter. I admit that there are more enjoyable subjects than this. I could write about popular subjects like the love of God or the grace of God. While there is much to say about these subjects, I feel the need to write about fearing the Lord.

Our nation is in such a mess right now. This is due, in part, to the fact that most people do not fear God. In fact, the leaven of sin is rapidly spreading throughout churches because many church members lack the fear of God. If we feared God, would we be quick to create division in the church? Would there be so much pride and arrogance? Would we be so permissive about sinful life styles? Have we decided to exclude the first few chapters of Romans from our Bibles?

During my Bible reading of Romans this morning, I came across the fact that there will come a day in which, “... God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ...” Think about it. Your secrets and mine will be revealed and judged soon by our Lord. Does that make you uncomfortable? God knows about our thoughts of jealously, judgment, greed, lust, anger, hatred and selfishness. He knows these secret thoughts and will one day expose and judge them.

We tend to be very judgmental about the outward sins of others, while practicing secret sins ourselves. God knows the secret sins. While God will judge the public sins, He will also judge the secret sins. Like David, we should pray, “Cleanse thou me of secret faults.”

The fear of God is like a guardrail on a curvy, dangerous road. Guardrails are set in place for our protection. The fear of God keeps us from lawlessness. Fearing God motivates us to hate and avoid evil.

What kept Joseph from an adulterous affair with Potiphar's wife? It was the fear of God. Joseph said, “... how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” If Joseph had committed adultery, he would have sinned against Potiphar, Potiphar's wife and his own body. But Joseph knew that, most of all, it would have been a sin against God Himself.

It would be horrible to leave this world while engaged in sin, wouldn't it? Yet many professing believers have no problem with fornication and adultery. Others think it is acceptable to lie or cheat. They live as if God isn't watching. They act as if there will be no consequences for their sins. The fear of God is missing from their lives.

Many act as if God is a grandfather-type person in heaven. They believe that, when we sin, God simply pats us on the head says, “try to do better next time.” These people believe in forgiveness without repentance. They believe in love, but not chastisement. But Hebrews 10:31 says, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

I know that someone will argue that we should love God instead of fear Him. Actually, we should do both.

When I was growing up, I loved my earthly father … and I feared him, too. I loved and respected my father. Yet my fear of his punishment kept me from going far away from his rules. When he provided correction, it was done with love. He didn't want me to become unruly and ruin my life. He knew how to practice tough love.

Even though my earthly father loved me, my heavenly Father loves me more. Because He loves me, He provides discipline when I need it. I love my heavenly Father, but I also fear His discipline. I don't want to hurt or offend Him. I don't want to disappoint Him. I have found that His discipline can be severe, yet needed. He loves me too much to let me self-destruct with sin.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Let us be wise and walk in the fear of God.

Fear and Love

 FEAR AND LOVE

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” - Proverbs 9:10

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” - Matthew 22:37

Franklin D. Roosevelt became President of the United States in 1933. He defeated incumbent Herbert Hoover in a landslide election in late 1932. Voters blamed Hoover and his policies for the economic crisis they were facing. The crisis, known as the Great Depression, had put many people out of work. Families were struggling to survive. It was difficult for men to provide for their own families.

During his inauguration speech, Roosevelt tried to calm Americans by famously saying, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Fear is a powerful emotion. So is love.

The words, “fear,” and “love,” don't seem to go together. In fact, 1 John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love." We must understand this verse in context. Overall, God's people should be loving, not fearful. Yet it is wrong to make this a blanket statement. There is a place for fear and love in the life of a believer.

With all due respect, FDR was not accurate in saying, “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” More than once, the Bible says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” There was a time when a Christian man was referred to as a “God-fearing man.” Where are such men today?

As Christians, we should fear and love God. Both are important. Many sermons have been preached about loving God, but these days it is rare to hear a sermon about fearing God. Briefly, I want to explain why it is important to love God … and fear Him.

First of all, the fear of God should motivate us to avoid evil. America is in a mess today because people don't fear God. As I already mentioned, many pulpits are silent about the subject of fearing God. As a result, many believers have an unbalanced view of God. Most Christians believe God to be loving, but they really don't think about such things as God's holiness and righteousness. When Isaiah saw the Lord in His holiness, he responded, “Woe is me!” In Revelation chapter 1, when John saw the glorified Son of God, he fell at his feet. Our God is an awesome God.

At one time, I taught that the fearing God is showing reverence to Him. While there is truth to that, it goes much deeper. We should fear God because He is mighty, holy and perfect. If we saw God's awesome power on display, we would be awe-struck. Yes, we should show reverence to Him, but there should be a healthy fear of His power. Also, we should be aware of His hatred of sin. God takes sin seriously, and so should we. It is one thing to hate sin in Hollywood or Capitol Hill, but what we need to hate most is our own sin. Realizing that there are serious consequences to sin, we should fear God. As Christians, we believe that Jesus took our sins upon Himself when He died on the cross. We believe that He paid the penalty for our sins. That is true. Yet the cross should be a reminder of how serious God treats sin. If sin is so bad that Jesus had to suffer such an awful death, why should we treat it so lightly? Rather than being careless, calloused or even calculating with sin, we should hate and forsake sin because we fear God.

Secondly, we should have a love for God. Our fear of God should motivate us to avoid evil, but our love for God should motivate us live in righteousness. We love God because He first loved us. As we consider His amazing love, it stirs us to love Him. He cared for us in spite of our unworthiness. He cared so much that He gave heaven's best for us. Jesus demonstrated His love toward us when He died on the cross, paying for our sins. He paid a debt He didn't owe because we had a debt we couldn't pay. Because of His incredible love for us, we love Him in return.

Our love for Him motivates us to serve. We work for the Lord because we love Him. Our spiritual activity is motivated by our love for God. While our fear of God keeps us from the things we shouldn't do, love prompts us to do the things we should do. When we love God, we also love His children. In fact, when we love the Lord, we also love the things that He loves.

Yes, as Christians, we should love God. At the same time, we should fear Him. We should be God-loving, God-fearing followers of Jesus.

Does this describe you?