Hate is a Strong Word

A friend recently told me about a small child whose mother was Caucasian and whose father was Mexican. The child was with the mother in a store when a man nearby told the young boy with him (likely his son) horrible things about the girl. They had never seen the girl before. His comments were based completely on the assumptions he made because of her Hispanic features. He was teaching the boy to hate someone he did not know – a child like himself who was too young to have done anything to deserve another’s hatred.

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.” John 15:18 Hate is a strong word. Hatred often leads to killing. Indeed, that is what happened. Jesus was killed out of hatred. What about him did they hate? If I follow this Jesus will they hate me too?

“As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” John 15:19 I don’t belong to the world. People tend to fear what they do not understand and that fear can turn to hate. People also hate those who by living well make them look bad. That is what happened among those who hated Jesus. “If I had not come and spoken out to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates me hates my Father as well. If I had not done among them what no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have seen these miracles, and yet they have hated both me and my Father.” John 15:22-24 Jesus spoke to them about the Father’s love for them. He did miracles to back up what he was saying about himself and his Father. Yet, they chose to not believe in what they saw much less what they heard.

I’m not aware of a lot of people walking around hating me. I run into a snag here and there, but nothing too serious. But then, I do notice that as I grow more and more in faith and as I see God working in me and through me, there are some who pull back or just simply don’t know what to do with me. I wouldn’t call it hate, but rather ‘distancing’. But the really amazing thing is that while some distance themselves from me, others are drawn to the Father through me. They literally show up on my doorstep just needing God’s love to touch them, to hug them, to reassure them that they are not alone in their struggle. It is so exciting to see them relax and absorb God’s peace as we pray together.

Somehow, I don’t worry too much about the hate. There is a peace that comes with hanging out with the Father. There is a confidence that says, “I don’t need to worry about what those who hate will do.” There is a joy deep inside that no amount of hate coming from the outside can destroy. And something that I learned from my Teacher – I need to love those who hate me. Jesus loves them too. “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing,” he said from the cross.