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| Hatred (Photo credit: dton23) |
...the wicked slander me
and tell lies about me.
3 They surround me with hateful words
and fight against me for no reason.
4 I love them, but they try to destroy me with accusations even as I am praying for them!
5 They repay evil for good,
and hatred for my love.
Psalm 109:2-5
New Living Translation (NLT)
No one purposely sets out in life to be hated. The act of hating can take a tremendous physical and mental toll on those who are engaged in the action. Likewise for the one who is hated. A goal that I strive for is to neither hate nor be hated, but I'm certain that there are those out there who hate the things that I cherish and believe in. If those haters could directly connect me to my loves and beliefs then they would probably hate me specifically.
Many who call themselves Christians try to make an effort to be loved by all. They try to adapt their Christian beliefs to be a big house where everyone is welcome to live no matter what beliefs they may have. Much modern Christianity adopts a doctrine of acceptance of all things--an open door for all believers no matter what it is they believe.
The Church should not be trying to conform itself to meet the world's approval. Christians should accept that there are times when they will be hated for the things they believe. To be hated does not feel good. Just remember when it does happen--Jesus suffered through the ultimate hatred so that we can have eternal life with Him in paradise.
Better to suffer for a while in this life than to suffer for eternity.
Blessed are you when people hate you,
when they exclude you and insult you
and reject your name as evil,
because of the Son of Man.
Luke 6:22
New International Version (NIV)
So many of us want to protect our hearts from the pain and confusion of others even disliking us that we compromise and back down when we should stand firm. Thanks for the post, Arlee!
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