As you probably have guessed, it’s spring in Alabama. Everything is blooming and the temperatures, for the most part, are pleasant and warm. As I sit and look out while I write, almost everything in nature seems to give me an illustration of a Biblical principle. I was reading this morning in John 15, where Jesus is talking to his followers and telling them that if the world hated Him, the world would hate them also.
Hatred is like a weed that springs up, if left unattended, it will choke out the plants that are lovely and fragrant. Hatred left unattended, will grow stronger and stronger just like that weed that seems to have a root that runs across the entire flower bed. Hate starts deep within the heart and usually doesn’t show itself until it is embedded and ready to grow furiously. You can snip off the top, pull and get some of the roots, but it is very hard to conquer because its roots run very deep.
John 15:18 “If the world hates you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.”
The consolation He gave them concerning the hatred they were experiencing was that the world hated Him first. According to this passage, we should not be surprised when Christians are hated and persecuted. We go against everything the world system stands for.
John 15:19 “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.”
We are not of this world. Once Christ has entered our hearts He becomes our Master and Ruler. We live by a different set of standards. Christians seek to please Christ, those that are not Christians seek to please themselves. Self-gratification and self-preservation, have become their gods. The righteousness that covers us through Christ is a reproach to them. Anything that would cause them to feel discomfort must be eliminated from their lives. Therefore, guilt is pushed to the side. I’ve had people say to me when I would be counseling them about a situation, “Are you trying to make me feel guilty?” My answer usually would be no, the feeling is not coming from me, you feel guilty because you are guilty!
The world hates Christians because we have been chosen out and set apart. We are different, and they can’t understand. When someone is different and not understood it usually creates conflict. Oh, the populist would not say that it hates Christians, but the evidence is there. On every front, we are attacked. We Christians, speak of Biblical truths and we are told we are bigots and unloving. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is love that warns a person their house is on fire. Love offers them an opportunity to escape the destruction of the fire. That’s what Christians are doing when we speak the truth in love.
We should not be surprised when we hear of Christians persecuted simply because they proclaim the name of Christ. They are like those who crucified Jesus. They did not understand the magnitude of what they were doing. That’s why in Luke 23:34 Jesus said: “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”
When we are hated it’s actually a good thing. It means we are letting our light shine in a dark world. If you blend in and you don’t experience conflict, there is something wrong with your testimony. You should be living so differently that they notice a difference.
As Christians, we are to hate sin and not the sinner. That’s what God does. The greatest way to extinguish the fire of hate, is to pour on the rain of love. We can love them, but not their sin. Our goal is to pull them from the fire through love. To love this way, you must pray for them daily. You must be committed to a relationship with them.
There will always be weeds of hate as long as the world exists, but Christ is the answer to those deep-rooted weeds. We can allow those weeds to choke the love out of us by yielding to the flesh, or we can put our roots so deep in truth, that we are strong enough to handle weeds God’s way. Though we are hated for righteousness’ sake, we are to press forward and seek to direct a hater into a relationship with Christ, where they can become a lover, not a hater.
