Love-Hate Relationships

SYNOPSIS: What is there in this present world that is fundamentally holy and thoroughly fair? Not much! For sure, you can find pockets of righteousness and justice here and there, but the prevailing forces of this present world are anything but. Everywhere you look—the media, the courts, the economy, the entertainment industry, the academy—most of what you see is unrighteous and unfair. Now the scary thing is, we are continually and strategically pounded with the systemic evil of this world that we start to become immune to it. It is highly likely that the daily barrage of unrighteousness and unfairness has brought us to the point of not even seeing it anymore—and if we do see it, we’re not even bothered by it. That is scary, sad … and wrong! That has got to change! It is time to embrace a love-hate relationship with our current situation.

Moments with God // Psalm 97:11-12

Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.

If you love the Lord, then you’ve got to hate! Hate evil, that is.

I realize this is a bit complicated, but it is impossible to love God with all your heart and, at the same time, mindlessly embrace the values of this fallen world. Those are not my rules; they are God’s. God actually calls you to hate this fallen world’s values. You see, the very foundation of God’s rule over both the larger universe and the smaller world of your life is righteousness and justice: “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.”  (Psalm 97:2). In other words, from the center to the circumference of God’s being, he is holy and fair.

So, tell me, what is there in this present world that is fundamentally holy and thoroughly fair? Not much! Sure, you can find pockets of righteousness and justice here and there, but the prevailing forces are anything but. Everywhere you look—in the media, the courts, the economy, the entertainment industry, the academy, and unfortunately, too often, in the church—most of what you see is unrighteous and unfair.

Now, the scary thing is that we are continually and strategically pounded with the systemic evil of this world to the point we become immune to it. It is highly likely that the daily barrage of unrighteousness and unfairness has brought us to the point of not even seeing it anymore—and if we do see it, we’re no longer bothered by it. That is scary, sad … and sinful!

That has got to change! It is time to embrace a love-hate relationship with our current situation. We belong to a righteous and just God, whom we are called to love wholeheartedly. But our love for God requires us to hate this unrighteous and unfair world in which we live for the time being.

So, it is high time we change how we think about this present world—which is nothing more than our temporary residence. The Apostle Paul’s call for the transformation of our worldview is long overdue. In Romans 12:2, Paul issues this critical challenge:

Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (The Message)

A passionate love-hate relationship is called for. It will be a little risky to hate what is going on in your world. (By the way, and I think this goes without saying, while we are to hate the world, we are to love the lost.)

In fact, you will be hated back by the very world you hate—that is understandable—so get comfortable with it. But here’s the deal: God has promised to guard your life, deliver you to a better place (“You who love the Lord, hate evil! He protects the lives of his godly people and rescues them from the power of the wicked” Psalm 97:10), shine his favor upon you, and fill your heart with joy (“Light shines on the godly, and joy on those whose hearts are right” Psalm 97:11) if you throw in with him.

Love God—hate evil! That’s what I’m going with!