I want to ask for your forgiveness before going any further. I was reading something this morning, something that troubled me deeply. The feeling I had was like when I scratched my dads classic car just as it was returned from the auto detailers. Needless to say he was not very happy with me. Or the time my sister took a swing at me and I caught a handful of tassels on her Buffalo Springfield jacket which came off as she pulled away which resulted in my eye turning black.
Family members, friends and random people can do terrible things that can cause us to hate. I hate my local electricity provider who turns our power off at the slightest breeze then prints a full page ad in the local paper reminding me “its for my own good!” There is nothing better then to have all my food in my refrigerator go bad, electronic appliances fried and not to mention rambling around in the dark where I inadvertently catch my toe on the corner of a wall.
No there are plenty of things to hate, crave and lust after in this world. Gossip is alive and well in our prayer meetings. We seem to be our worst enemies by causing strife and judging one another which is very damaging to unity. We always look for faults in one another then finding ways to encourage. Let’s read what the good book says about six things He hates.
Found in the Bible are six things the Lord of Heaven hates. I wonder if He worries about his power being turned off, fights with siblings or any of our waywardness. He can’t make a rock so large He can’t lift it or break a promise or even do anything remotely wrong like we can.
“There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.”
That is some kind of list. We don’t want to be found guilty or our names on that list but the fact is our nation has shed innocent blood. How many abortions have been performed through our history. In some cases the most dangerous place for an unborn baby is in their mother’s womb.
Can you picture these unborn children alive, thriving one moment then slumped motionless in a cold, stainless steel clinic tray? The Lord says He hates that.
We will all have tears to shed when we get to Heaven. Some of us will meet people we have killed in a drunken rage, a baby who was aborted, or people we have hated for no reason. All the money in the world will not save or comfort us then. I have heard people proudly say “Oh, the homeless want to be homeless, don’t feed them your just encouraging their behavior” Even one local mayor passed legislation to make it illegal to feed the homeless in our public parks.
Can you see how our world is growing colder? When bad is good and good is bad. Many churches are too busy pouring money into building projects then pouring their lives and resources. Into building temporary housing for the homeless. Church groups are creating islands of worship but rarely leave those islands in search of the lost and hurting.
How many church splits will it take until pride is kicked out the door of our churches? How many babies must die before we close down these clinics in a peaceable way? How many more mayors will we elect until we find one who wants to build infrastructure for the homeless. Shame on us, it is time to use our vote to change these evil forces. It’s time for Christians to repent. It is time for an awakening.
Ask for a list of expenses from your church secretary, that is not too much to ask? Then you can see how your money is being spent. Because you want your tithe to go to an organization that is pouring their resources into the lost and hurting. One day your church building will burn in the fire of God’s judgement. One day you will not have a bank account on earth but you will have already sent your heavenly reward ahead of you to eternity.
So I was reading this morning about six things the Lord hates. However, I discovered love is the cure, kindness the oil of healing and that our relationships are the only thing we will take into eternity. There is one thing God loves and that is when we pour out love on others!