Hate

This week is the week that all the "lovebirds" come out to express and proclaim their love for one another with cards, flowers, candy and all the other stuff that goes along with it.  Valentine's Day.  Ugh...for us single people, it's what we call "singles reminder day."  Last year, I preached about how much I can't stand the commercialization of love, etc., kind of like the commercialization of Christmas.

This year, I thought I'd take a moment to talk about the exact opposite of love: hate.  We live in a world that is so full of hatred and strife, and I don't think anyone can argue that point.  Every time you turn on the radio, television, look at the internet, we're bombarded with all the things that hate brings about.  Husbands beating wifes, children killing parents, parents killing children, students beating and killing students, and so many other things that I don't want to dwell on.  Our world is filled with people who hate one another for numerous reasons.  The color of their skin, the religion they choose to follow, their sexual orientation, their gender, their height, their weight....it seems as though we almost look for things to hate and despise other people for.

The Bible tells us that hate is not of God, God is love!  Does God hate sin, absolutely without any question, God hates sin.  But the great thing about God is that He LOVES US in spite of our sin!  That's love.  God tells us that we're to love our neighbor as we love ourselves and in this day and age where we live in a world that tells us that the most important person around is good ole number one, if we loved each other the way we loved ourselves, the majority of our problems would be solved. 

There are so many people "hating" in the name of the Lord and I want to encourage each of you to not let those people drive you away from God.  That's not God speaking, that's some person running their mouth, that's all there is to it.  No matter who you are, what you are, where you are, where you think you're going, what you've done, what you've said, GOD LOVES YOU!  Many people teach us to hate other people for so many reasons.  God tells us to love because love covers a mutlitude of sins. 

The more I think about it, I'm afraid that some christians have become nothing more than a self proclaimed religious KKK.  I know that statement will not set well with some, and I'm not saying that it is all of christianity, because I know it's not, but there are a lot of people who claim to be christians yet the message they proclaim doesn't line up with God's word.  We as people, even christian people, take God's word and we try to manipulate it to suit what we think is right or wrong.  I learned some time ago that it's not up to me to try and judge what's right or wrong, it's just up to me to keep on loving.  Hate stirs up strife and many people wonder why there are so many problems in their churches, and why people aren't coming to church, maybe it's because they have enough hatred and strife going on in their life that they don't want to add to it by joining a church that has the same thing going on.  The KKK did all they could to segregate people based on religion and race and it seems many church going christians are doing the same thing the KKK did.  That's not of God and shame on any of us who fall into that category.  The apostle Paul said "I become all things to all men that I might win some."  He didn't do that by stirring up hatred and strife, he did it by showing the love of God.

This Valentine's Day, I think it'd be good for all of us, whether you claim to be religious or not, to love more than ever before.  Love can solve so many indifferences.  Love can solve so many disagreements.  Love can solve so many hurts and pains.  Let's be more like Jesus and love.  Jesus came not to condemn the world, but to save the world from sin.  Nails didn't hold Christ to the cross...yes, nails were used to inflict unimaginable pain on Him, but love is what held Him to that cross.

Instead of spending a bunch of money on temporary things that will be forgotten in a few days this Valentine's season, why not spread the love of God and that will out last any other gift you can give. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish but have everlasting life."