Haters


Shane Sanchez
I was doing my daily devotion yesterday and came across a passage of scripture that gave me new perspective.

John 15:18-27

I really like the way The Message titles this passage, "Hated By The World". To me this is incredible. It sums up Jesus entire time on this Earth. When he arrived in the manager he was hated by Herod and when he was nailed to the cross it was due to the Pharisees hate. Even today Jesus is hated by those that see Christianity as stupidity.

In this passage, the part that stuck with me the most is that Jesus says "servants don't get better treatment than their masters" (v. 20). He is letting the disciples know that life is not going to be easy just because they are following the Son of God. He is basically telling them that no matter what they do, people will hate them.

I think as Christians in todays world we have to gain perspective on this teaching. No matter how many mouths we feed, people we clothe, and kids we get off the streets; the world will inevitably hate us. There will always be someone who calls us "close-minded" and "radical". We have to understand that this is the world we live in. There will be those who love and care for us as the church, but there will also be those who are out to silence our voice. We have to love those who love us and love those who hate us. We don't need to start revolts, picket people, and boycott stores to stand up against sin. We need to love those that don't know Christ and stay close to those who do. We need to voice our opinions in public arenas and take a stand with the lawmakers of this nation. We don't need to be pushovers but at the same time we don't need to become like those who hate us.

If you take anything from this take this:

The world will hate us, but we should never hate the world. Love the world and pray for it. Treat it as though it's always on the brink of a revival of Christ. Don't forget that "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son..."

Don't Hate,
Shane
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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

good post!!!

Jan 26, 2009, 3:40:00 PM

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