hatred

Heart Check

Valerie Cullers 10 Comments

“Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.” 1 John 3:15

When I first read these words in the Bible, I thought they were a bit harsh. If you hate someone, you are a murderer? But I have reflected on these words a lot in the last ten days.

I was deeply saddened by the murder of Charlie Kirk. Let me tell you, I didn’t know who the man was. I had heard his name mentioned a few times, but that’s it. What saddened me was that he was killed because of his political and religious beliefs. I was also distressed by some of the reactions to his murder.

It seems to me there are not too many steps between hatred and murder. When we begin to hate someone, we naturally devalue them in our hearts. Their life matters little to us as we allow that hatred to grow and overtake us. Most of the time, we don’t murder them with a gun, but we can certainly assassinate their character with our words. We look at one person killing another and think, “I would never do that.”

But what is the real truth? Once we begin to hate someone, our heart begins to rot. We may think we are justified when we hate another person or group of people but the Lord doesn’t see it that way. He sees hatred for what it is, the antithesis of who He is and who He wants us to be.

Jesus told us, “to love our enemies” and “to pray for them who persecute you.” It is only love that will break the bondage of hatred in our hearts. As we pray for those we disagree with or have hurt us, we begin to see them for the flawed human beings they are. Their value goes up in our eyes. We also begin to see ourselves for the flawed humans we are.

Let us all do a “heart check.” Do we hate anyone or any group of people? If so, let’s ask the Lord to help us change our attitude. We can hate the things people do or say, but we are not supposed to hate them. We want God’s spirit (eternal life) abiding in us. And surprisingly, it is our willingness to pray for them that will usher in God’s grace and free our hearts from the bondage of hatred.

Photo by Mohamedgado15. Courtesy of Pixabay.

Contagion

Valerie Cullers 14 Comments

When I first saw the images of the attack on Israel, the first thing I thought was, “Hatred.” Yes, hatred is the contagion that drives these acts of violence. I have since watched the protests against Israel, many were carrying signs and slogans with horrible sayings on them against the Jewish people. Again, I thought, “Hatred.”

You see, every murder, every act of violence, every war springs from evil within the human heart. The motivation could be hatred, jealousy or greed but all of these acts spring from emotions hiding in the heart. In the case of the Israeli – Hamas War being conducted now, hatred is at the center of it all. People are taught to hate from the time they are little, and hatred pervades some people like a sick evil.

Like every other contagion, hatred is easy to assimilate into our bodies and souls. It is natural to pick up an offense and let it fester in our souls until it spews out of our mouths in some form of a derogatory comment. As a believer in Jesus Christ, I must fight the temptation to pick up this hatred in any form it comes to me. It could be in the aerosol of a newscast or in the germ of an article I read in the news.

I’ve thought a lot about what Jesus would have me do in relation to this conflict. Yes, I can choose sides, but I must choose not to hate. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5: 43-45.

How do I do this? I can pray for mercy on the non-military population. I can pray that innocent civilians will not get hurt. I can pray for aid to reach those who need it. There are lots of things I can pray for those I believe are in the wrong. I can pray for a lasting peace and an end to hostilities. I can pray for good leadership. The list goes on. And most importantly, I can pray that the contagion of hate will not permeate my own heart and soul.

Image by Astral Ember. Courtesy of PIxabay.