Over the last six weeks we’ve been talking about God’s love. God’s love is a topic that is fundamental to our faith. The well-known John 3:16 stresses the importance of God’s love: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” God’s love for us is what prompted Him to give us Jesus so that we might be saved. As Christians we are to “1 . . . be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us (Ephesians 5:1-2).”
In addition to imitating God and loving like Him, Romans 12:9 tells us to “abhor (or hate) what is evil.” The word translated abhor or hate is apostugeo and means to “dislike, abhor, or have a horror of.” In other words, we are to have such an incredible aversion to what is evil that we have absolutely nothing to do with it. Instead, the rest of Romans 12:9 tells us to “cling to what is good.”
What is it that God considers evil? What does God hate? In Proverbs 6:16-19 we are told: “16 These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: 17 A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.” This list of seven things is not all that God hates.
In Malachi 2:16 we are told that God hates divorce. While it is true that God allowed for divorce under certain circumstances in Deuteronomy 24:1-4, marriage for life was always God’s plan (Matthew 19:4-6). God hates both physical and spiritual broken families.
God also hates idolatry. God tells us through positive statements in Exodus 20:1-5 to worship Him and not to worship anyone or anything other than Him. In Deuteronomy 12:31, in reference to those who worship false gods, we are told: “31 You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.” God hates the worship of other “gods.” Deuteronomy 16:22 makes it more clear, “22 You shall not set up a sacred pillar, which the Lord your God hates.” God hates idolatry. There is only One God and to worship any other thing or person as God is hated by God.
We often summarize God’s love as a sacrificial choice for our benefit. God’s hate might be best summarized as His repulsion to anything sinful. Psalm 45:7 clearly tells us that God “loves righteousness and hates wickedness.” We know that our sin separates us from our Holy God (Isaiah 59:2). This is because sin is the complete opposite of holiness and God is completely holy. Sin is destructive, it harms us, others, and disconnects us from God. God loves us and therefore hates the disconnect that sin creates. God’s love is creative, it benefits us, others, and connects us to Him. This is why, out of love, God has given us Jesus to reconnect us, to reconcile us, and to restore us to a right relationship with Him.
God is love (1 John 4:8) and God has demonstrated His love (Romans 5:8) and we are to love Him and others in return (Mark 12:30-31). God is not hate, but He hates sin. Hating sin does not mean that we hate the sinner. Contrarily, God loves us in spite of our sin and calls upon Christians to help those struggling with sin to overcome it. Galatians 6:1-2 says it this way: “1 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”
We are to love like God loves. Any hate that we have must imitate God’s hate. Our hate is to never be directed at another soul because God loves them just like He loves us. Instead, if we are to hate anything, it is sin.
