A Time To Love And A Time To Hate

“There are six things The Lord hates, seven that are detestable to Him.” Proverbs 6:16

Psalm 11:5 tells us that “God’s soul hates the wicked.” Ever thought about that? God has the capacity to hate; to find things, even people’s behaviour, detestable.

In modern, western, society, especially in the Church, I think there is sometimes a pressure for us to lose the extremes of true love and hate, and replace it with a bland, politically correct, mind numbing politeness. We neither love nor hate; we tolerate, nod and remain silent. We avoid offering true and full opinions for fear of offence. We shuffle along hoping to avoid the extremes we were actually designed to express.

Yet God is far more extreme; and that’s OK! He loves. He hates. He gushes, gets hot tempered. He gets jealous for us, passionate even. He dances, hugs, shouts, turns over tables, lets “zeal consume Him” (yes, I have scriptures for all of those). It’s part of being fully alive.

Perhaps today is a day to be really like our God. Make today a day to truly LOVE. Decide that it’s OK to openly honour a leader and show your support without feeling smarmy. It’s OK to write a friend a card, or an encouragement on their social media page. We may even use the “L” word – (I “Love” you).  Today is the day to be wide-eyed about creation. To shed a tear over a movie (C’mon guys!). To shout or dance a little in worship to God. To do something wildly generous to someone who doesn’t deserve it. It’s a day to love.

I do believe it’s healthier to spend more time loving than hating; and we must avoid the extremes of becoming self righteous or judgmental – but to be truly godly, we must also make it a day to HATE!

Let’s hate slander, and sometimes even tell the slanderer to stop, without fear of their funny looks! Let’s detest sexual sin, drunkenness, stealing or gossip, and tell others we don’t approve, when we need to. Let’s detest human trafficking; complain to the shop that places “adult” material in a child’s view; firmly stand our ground in our desire for biblical morality.

There are times to let out the fact that we really, really don’t like some things about society, and stop bottling, ignoring and shuffling by like the masses, all for the British sake of “not causing a fuss!” Some days, it’s a day to hate like God hates.

It just might change the world in which we live.

Action Point: Take some moments today to ask yourself if there are areas of your life where you are too passive. Are you failing to fully express love to those around you? Are you too accepting of people being manipulative of you, rude to you or even abusive of you? Being a Christian doesn’t mean you necessarily have to tolerate that. Also, are you too accepting of your own sin? Passivity regarding what the Bible calls as sin, will also make you weak. Finally, is there something God has called you to do to change society that you are avoiding because of potential persecution? The world cannot be shaped unless we speak up!

Pray and ask God for clarity, grace and truth – and the boldness to be all God has called you to be!

I declare today that I walk in the fear of the Lord, choosing what pleases Him and turning away from what He hates. I renounce pride, deceit, and wicked thoughts. I will not entertain a haughty spirit, a lying tongue, or a heart that plots evil. I will not allow my hands to do harm or my feet to run toward wrongdoing. I silence any voice that stirs up division and reject false witness in every form.

I declare that my heart is pure, my mind is clean, and my words are truthful. “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer” (Psalm 19:14).

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THE CHURCH HAS LEFT THE BUILDING
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Saturday 24th May 2025

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