Hated Without A Cause
While many people say they try to live by the statement: “Love for All, Hatred for None”, we also see that in many ways we all fail to live up to this standard. And while we may not consider ourselves to be racist or prejudiced, our actions portray the opposite. We should want to do what is right and we should treat others fairly. But then, we turn around and others treat us in the wrong way, and we see an imbalance or double standard being applied, and we return the same treatment towards them. This is a vicious cycle that is a bane upon our society.
Prejudice and hatred of others comes from the fear that you have to accept something different. Blacks, whites and browns all exhibit different cultural backgrounds that the other races may be uncomfortable with. You might be afraid that if you treat someone rightly, others will make fun of you. “Remember The Titans” was an excellent movie that demonstrates my point.
Prejudice and hatred of others is a learned trait. This is not a natural thing for any man to do. All have to be taught to hate others. It is because they are different, or come from different backgrounds. But for most people, it is because of fear that has been put inside them by others. Fear of them causing you harm or fear of them making you change your ways.
Do you think the Germans loved the Jews during the Holocaust? No, they had been taught to hate the Jews for many years before they started killing them. This was a propaganda effort that spread worldwide. Any Jew can tell you the horror stories, because had people been loving of them, they would not have done these horrible things to them. I fear that another holocaust may come about someday, and the next time it will be Christians that are treated so badly. Our media and entertainment influences are already speaking so much evil of Christians that before long many will learn to hate them just as much as Jews were hated so many years ago.
God hates evil, but not without a cause. God hates evil because evil takes people away from God. You have heard it said that we should “hate the sin, but not the sinner”. That is what the Bible teaches us to do. But more than that, the Bible actually tells us to show love to sinners. Not the type of love that is accepting of evil behavior, but the type of love that seeks the better welfare of the person. To share the gospel message of hope in Jesus Christ is what everyone needs, and those who respond to the gospel message by obedience are granted salvation from their sins, and the hope of eternal life in heaven.
Satan is the adversary. Satan was, is, and always will be against God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Satan also hates good, and those who practice good. Jesus did nothing but good and lived His life in complete obedience to God, yet the scripture says that He was hated without a cause (or reason). John 15:24-25.
Jesus also told His followers that they would be hated for His Names sake. And perhaps a reason that few people actually seek to serve God is the fact that people do not like to be hated. They are spineless that do not stand up for God and endure what this world has thrown their direction. Satan works overtime to distract us from obedience and righteousness. Satan uses his tools of discouragement, and fear to keep people out of heaven. If you want to go to heaven when you die, you must overcome this fear. And yes, you may have to take a stand and you may put yourself in harm’s way, but your reward would be great. Will you allow us to show you the benefits of serving God and Christ in the way they have taught through the words of the Bible?
We know that God is not willing that any perish (2 Peter 3:9). You must believe that Jesus is the Son of God and died on the cross for your sins. (Acts 8:37). You must repent of your sins (Luke 13:3), you must confess Jesus as Lord (Matthew 10:32) and you must be baptized for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38; 22:16). Then you must remain faithful and continue learning how to serve God(2 Peter 3:18). Let us help you on your spiritual journey. May God bless you in your study of His word.
You are invited to come worship with us at the Eastside Church of Christ in Ranger. We are at the corner of Strawn Rd and Young St. We meet Sunday at 9:45 for class and 10:45 for worship and 5:00pm for worship. We also have bible study on Wednesday evening at 7:00.

By Carey Scott via the Ranger Times 8/7/2011

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