Hate among God's children
Romans 12:9-10 9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another.
The foundation of the Christian faith is that God; who sent His Son to die on the cross, is the God of love and righteousness. It is the underlying theme of every action Jesus took, every moment of His life here on Earth, yet so many Christians miss the mark when it comes to showing love for "sinners". Some Christians have escalated to the level of hatred of those they perceive as "evil" and "sinful." There is no greater example of this hatred in Christianity than Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas. An institution that sullies the world's opinion of Christianity by its blatantly ungodly and hateful behavior.
Members of this church protest funerals of service men and women bearing signs which proclaim "Pray for more dead soldiers" and "God Hates Fags and Fag Enablers!" Clearly, it does not need to be explained why either statement is unbiblical or perhaps it does since Westboro Baptist Church has a rather large congregation and is not the only church with such radical views.
First, let me start by saying that Christians in general are not a hateful group of people. As an "orthodox" Christian, I believe homosexuality is a sin. The Bible specifies it as a sin and I will not question the Word of God. However, I also remember what the Bible says about sin in Romans 3:22-24 22 This righteousness is given through faith in[a] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." It is important to note two factors in this verse. The first, no one is free from sin. Second, all are capable of justification if they accept Christ as their Savior. Another point that is not specified in this verse but in my opinion has always been implied, is that God does not separate sin in the way man does. Note that this verse says "and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." It does not say "homosexuals need not apply!" (I only use homosexuals because the heart of Westboro's hate mongering is attached to this specific sin).
Now, back to the topic that brought me to write this post. What does God think of Christians treating homosexuals with such hate? Well, as the verse I originally quoted implies, God wants us to treat others with love without bigotry. Clearly Westboro Baptist Church's behavior demonstrates a deep seeded bigotry toward homosexuals. Additionally if we look back to Jesus' words when he lived here on Earth, you will see that sinners are who he came to save...once again all sinners! Look to Jesus' words in Matthew 9: 12 12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’[a] For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
So, if Biblical evidence points to God loving all sinners, regardless of the sin, where do some Christians get the idea that hating someone based on their sin is okay. In my mind, the answer is clear. The same sin nature that makes anyone sin. Yes, I believe that Christians, or anyone, who treats another person hatefully, is in fact committing sin themselves. And there is more Biblical evidence to support this opinion than there is to support hate mongering. I point specifically to Romans 13:8 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. If this verse is to be taken literally (and it should be) it means that to treat someone hatefully fails to fulfill God's law and to do so is sin.
Some who are reading this blog may ask: "So we just let people live in sin and don't do or say anything?" Of course not! As Christians to sit idly by and let sin exist unchecked is also sin. However, what we must do is stop using hate! Try instead to use love and let God do the rest!
The foundation of the Christian faith is that God; who sent His Son to die on the cross, is the God of love and righteousness. It is the underlying theme of every action Jesus took, every moment of His life here on Earth, yet so many Christians miss the mark when it comes to showing love for "sinners". Some Christians have escalated to the level of hatred of those they perceive as "evil" and "sinful." There is no greater example of this hatred in Christianity than Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas. An institution that sullies the world's opinion of Christianity by its blatantly ungodly and hateful behavior.
Members of this church protest funerals of service men and women bearing signs which proclaim "Pray for more dead soldiers" and "God Hates Fags and Fag Enablers!" Clearly, it does not need to be explained why either statement is unbiblical or perhaps it does since Westboro Baptist Church has a rather large congregation and is not the only church with such radical views.
First, let me start by saying that Christians in general are not a hateful group of people. As an "orthodox" Christian, I believe homosexuality is a sin. The Bible specifies it as a sin and I will not question the Word of God. However, I also remember what the Bible says about sin in Romans 3:22-24 22 This righteousness is given through faith in[a] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." It is important to note two factors in this verse. The first, no one is free from sin. Second, all are capable of justification if they accept Christ as their Savior. Another point that is not specified in this verse but in my opinion has always been implied, is that God does not separate sin in the way man does. Note that this verse says "and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." It does not say "homosexuals need not apply!" (I only use homosexuals because the heart of Westboro's hate mongering is attached to this specific sin).
Now, back to the topic that brought me to write this post. What does God think of Christians treating homosexuals with such hate? Well, as the verse I originally quoted implies, God wants us to treat others with love without bigotry. Clearly Westboro Baptist Church's behavior demonstrates a deep seeded bigotry toward homosexuals. Additionally if we look back to Jesus' words when he lived here on Earth, you will see that sinners are who he came to save...once again all sinners! Look to Jesus' words in Matthew 9: 12 12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’[a] For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
So, if Biblical evidence points to God loving all sinners, regardless of the sin, where do some Christians get the idea that hating someone based on their sin is okay. In my mind, the answer is clear. The same sin nature that makes anyone sin. Yes, I believe that Christians, or anyone, who treats another person hatefully, is in fact committing sin themselves. And there is more Biblical evidence to support this opinion than there is to support hate mongering. I point specifically to Romans 13:8 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. If this verse is to be taken literally (and it should be) it means that to treat someone hatefully fails to fulfill God's law and to do so is sin.
Some who are reading this blog may ask: "So we just let people live in sin and don't do or say anything?" Of course not! As Christians to sit idly by and let sin exist unchecked is also sin. However, what we must do is stop using hate! Try instead to use love and let God do the rest!
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