When Christians Hate

If there is one thing that saddens me more than any other these days it is observing Christian hate. As I watch the flow of social media, I am depressed when I see Christians at the least insulting and at the worst slandering people they don't agree with. Before you read any further, let me clarify a couple things. I am not saying you can't make judgments about someone's policies or actions. Jesus said we know people by their fruit and we do. I am also not saying that we shouldn't take a stand on truth. We should. I'm not writing about taking a stance and arguing it cogently or combating lies with truth. I'm writing about the descent into angry pettiness.

Why are so many Christians so angry these days? Not all are. I think many Christians are very nice people that love others, even those they disagree with. But there are definitely some that seem to have rooted their identity in hating people they don't agree with. I see it in articles and websites, on social media sites and on TV. It is pervasive in our culture today.

What does this anger look like? These Christians seem to feel the need to jump on every aspect of a person and denigrate him. There is an assumption that this person they disagree with has no redeeming qualities and isn't worthy of kindness or love. Some make up taunting, juvenile names for the person they disagree with. Some, not content with going after the person, insult his spouse and children. But the worst thing of all? This is often done under the guise of "saving Christianity," as if God won't be able to stand against falsehood and needs us to do the insulting and undermining of a person's life and character to expose untruth. And sadly, I have found that Christians that do this are also ready and willing to take a lie about the person they disagree with and run with it, just because they don't like the person so much they'll believe anything about him.

Why does this make me sad? Because it isn't Christ to the world. Because if I weren't a Christian and I saw the petty attacks and the outrageous anger that come from some Christians, I'd probably pass on the Christian God, too. I am lucky that I have been a part of the body for a long time so that I know not all Christians are like this.

So why am I writing this? Because all Christians should be evaluating the way we approach those we disagree with. First, we should evaluate the way we relate to people we disagree with. We should ask: "Do my actions reveal I hate this person?" Because if we've done any of the pettiness above, we are hating. If so, we need to pray that we can live out Jesus' words, "But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44). We should go to our knees in prayer, not go on social media with a clever hate-name and a tirade of spewing anger. Second, we should evaluate our words and attitudes. Peter admonishes us to, "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander" (1 Peter 3:15-16). People aren't going to be ashamed of their slander when we slander them back. We need to ask ourselves, "Are my words and actions done with gentleness and respect?" If not, we need to change. And finally, we should ask "Am I overreacting?" Sometimes we get so embroiled in our hate that we turn molehills into mountains. We hate everything about a person we disagree with and we huff and stomp any time anything positive is said or revealed about that person. Are we making a person worse than he really is? C. S. Lewis wisely wrote,

"Suppose one reads a story of filthy atrocities in the paper. Then suppose that something turns up suggesting that the story might not be quite true, or not quite so bad as it was made out. Is one's first feeling, 'Thank God, even they aren't quite so bad as that,' or is it a feeling of disappointment, and even a determination to cling to the first story for the sheer pleasure of thinking your enemies are as bad as possible? If it is the second then it is, I am afraid, the first step in a process which, if followed to the end, will make us into devils. You see, one is beginning to wish that black was a little blacker. If we give that wish its head, later on we shall wish to see grey as black, and then to see white itself as black. Finally we shall insist on seeing everything -- God and our friends and ourselves included -- as bad, and not be able to stop doing it: we shall be fixed for ever in a universe of pure hatred."

Christians are not meant to exist in a universe of pure hatred. If every time you see a certain person and hatred springs up in you, it is time to evaluate the state of your words and heart.

Jesus said Christians would be known by their love (John 13:35). If so, then we cannot turn disagreement into petty and hurtful insult. The world needs to see gentleness and respect towards those we consider enemies and hearts of love and prayer. That will draw the world to God, not the hypocrisy of Christian hate.

Resurrected

John Donne is my favorite poet. I offered his poem "Crucifying" from La Corona for Good Friday. The poem I share today is personal: It links Jesus' resurrection to our own. What joy we have and will have on Resurrection Day!

La Corona: Resurrection
by John Donne

Moist with one drop of Thy blood, my dry soul
Shall—though she now be in extreme degree 
Too stony hard, and yet too fleshly—be 
Freed by that drop, from being starved, hard or foul, 
And life by this death abled shall control 
Death, whom Thy death slew ; nor shall to me 
Fear of first or last death bring misery, 
If in thy life-book my name thou enroll. 
Flesh in that long sleep is not putrified, 
But made that there, of which, and for which it was ; 
Nor can by other means be glorified. 
May then sin's sleep and death soon from me pass, 
That waked from both, I again risen may 
Salute the last and everlasting day.

Crucified

La Corona: Crucifying

by John Donne

By miracles exceeding power of man,
He faith in some, envy in some begat, 
For, what weak spirits admire, ambitious hate: 
In both affections many to Him ran. 
But O! the worst are most, they will and can, 
Alas! and do, unto th' Immaculate, 
Whose creature Fate is, now prescribe a fate, 
Measuring self-life's infinity to span, 
Nay to an inch. Lo! where condemned He 
Bears His own cross, with pain, yet by and by 
When it bears him, He must bear more and die. 
Now Thou art lifted up, draw me to Thee, 
And at Thy death giving such liberal dole, 
Moist with one drop of Thy blood my dry soul.

Happy Epiphany: The Wise Men and Their Gifts

At our home, we keep Christmas decorations out until January 6th, which is when Epiphany usually falls. Epiphany is a Christian holiday that is emphasized more in Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican churches, but I think it has value for all Christians.  The Greek term epiphaneia means "to manifest or reveal."  On Epiphany, Christians remember how Jesus Christ's deity was manifested.  As such, churches may discuss Jesus' baptism, where his deity was declared or miracles that revealed his deity.  Celebrated twelve days after Christmas, some churches commemorate the visit of the Wise Men and recognize Jesus' arrival for all nations.

This year I am including my daughter in the event and for that reason I am focusing on the concrete wise men story from the Bible. (To see exactly what I am going to do, check out this post on my other blog). I did a little research on the wise men and their gifts so I could talk to my daughter about them. I wanted to answer the question, "So, why is the story of the wise men significant?"

The Bible doesn't directly tell us why the wise men matter. But I think there are definitely hints concerning the reason these men showed up. First, the wise men were "from the East." This means they probably came from Persia. This explains why they might be interested in a prophecy from the Hebrew Bible. Approximately 500 years before Jesus' birth, Daniel had served in the Persian court as a high official. Daniel had prophesied the coming of an anointed ruler in Israel. For whatever reason, these wise men connected the Hebrew prophecy with a stellar event, a bright star appearing in the sky. They left their home and traveled around 800 miles to find this ruler that would be born. To me it is significant that not only Jews sought Christ. The wise men were Gentiles. For this reason, Epiphany has celebrated the fact that Jesus came for all peoples, not just the Israelite nation. In the movie The Nativity Story, Mary says "He is for all men." It's a good statement in the movie because I believe it is pointing to the truth that Jesus is the Savior of all.

Are the gifts the wise men bring significant? Well, just like the wise men themselves, the Bible doesn't directly assign any meaning to the gifts. Over the years, various people have suggested various symbolic meanings. I think at the least we can talk about how these gifts were used in the time of Christ. Gold, of course, was valuable, and used to decorate the homes and palaces of the rich as well as temples for the gods. If the wise men were seeking a king, it makes sense they would bring gold. Practically, this gift of gold would be useful to Mary and Joseph when they fled to Egypt. To me, the wise men's gift of gold is acknowledgement that they are coming to find someone valuable who deserves a costly gift appropriate to his station. Ironic considering he appears to be born of poor parentage and is placed in a manger.

Frankincense is a resin that is fragrant when burned. Exodus mentions frankincense being burned to God. Did the wise men know about this? Possibly if they had more than Daniel's prophecy to study. If so, maybe they understood that bringing this gift would point to the deity or divine involvement in the birth of this child. Or perhaps they thought this aromatic gift also appropriate for a king. Whatever their reason, Jesus is presented with frankincense just as God is in the tabernacle and temple. He is not just a child, but God in a man.

Myrrh is also a resin and aromatic. It was used in purification rituals, in embalming and also added to medicinal drinks. It is listed as an ingredient in Exodus as well as part of the anointing oil used to purify the tabernacle, to make it holy. This then could point to Jesus again as divine and perhaps as one who purifies. But myrrh makes another appearance in Jesus' life. Mark 15:23 mentions that the drink Jesus is given at his crucifixion is wine mixed with myrrh. He refuses to drink it, however, not allowing a lessening of pain on the cross. Combine this with the fact that myrrh may have been used in his embalming after he had died and myrrh seems to point to the fact that Jesus came to die.

It is not clear if the wise men meant their gifts to symbolize anything more than appropriate gifts for a king, gold and anointing incense. However, whether they meant to or not, we living in the future can look back to the past and see that the way these gifts were used holds significance for us who understand the impact and purpose of Jesus' life on earth. Taken together, the gifts of the wise men make a statement that is the crux of the celebration of Epiphany: Jesus is a ruler, a prince of heaven, God himself in a man, who came to sacrifice his life for all men. This is a truth and joy to celebrate!

Advent: Immanuel

"But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,

'Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife,

because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, 

because he will save his people from their sins.'

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:  

'The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son,

and they will call him Immanuel'--which means, 'God with us.'"

Matthew 1:20-23

For the last day of advent, I chose my favorite title for Jesus: Immanuel, God with us. The Isaiah passage I have written about on previous days is quite broad in its scope as the context of the passage is Messiah coming in triumph and restoring his people. But this term, Immanuel, is so beautifully intimate. God in a man, coming down to be with us physically. Such a thing is almost too breathtaking to attempt any meaningful statement. This truth gives me hope and joy and excitement and comfort and strength. Jesus walked among us, God here, a human, sharing our strengths and burdens. He made plain the love and justice and grace and mercy of our God. He submitted himself to the worst of deaths to tackle our root problem: sin. He triumphed and brought us hope that we can be more than the sinful leanings of our heart, that we can be redeemed and brought back to God. How can I adequately express what this means to me? How deep my heart beats with these truths?

And then to make his coming more profound--he is Immanuel even now. He said he is with us always. We are not orphans. He speaks to us through the Spirit. He walks with us step by step. We are guided by what he has said and done in his Word. Every day of my life he is available to me. He is here right now, right beside me. What hope and joy in this!

Remember today that your Immanuel is with you. He came and walked physically among us and he walks still in our lives. He is available to all who call on him, who submit to his heart and his will. Praise the Lord, Our Savior, for the child born who is God with Us!

Advent: Prince of Peace

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, 

and the government will be on his shoulders. 

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, 

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Isaiah 9:6

 

The last title applied to the child born for us in Isaiah 9 is usually translated "Prince of Peace." This title is the most interesting to me because it has the most depth. To say "Prince of Peace" is so simple in English; the Hebrew meaning is far richer. The Hebrew term translated as "prince" in English is actually much broader, meaning someone who rules or is in charge of something. It is not limited to royalty. The term for "peace" is one most people know: shalom. Shalom, though it contains the idea of peace, means far more. It includes the ideas of prosperity, harmony, well-being, security, completeness. Thus a better translation might be "ruler in charge of shalom."

How does this deeper meaning affect my view of Christ? When I've heard the phrase "Prince of Peace" before, I've thought more along the lines of Christ being passive--that he is peace because one of his attributes is peace. And that is true to an extent. But the idea of him being in charge of peace makes him an active participant in peace. He is not just peace in himself; he controls peace and makes peace happen. He is the ruler over my prosperity, harmony, well-being, security and completeness. I look to him as the source of shalom. This phrase fixes my eyes on the one who holds shalom in his grasp and is able to work it in my life. It reminds me that I am dependent on my Savior.

This Christmas, remember to look to your "Prince of Peace." Pray to him and thank him and petition him, for he is both the embodiment and the manager of peace in your life. Without the child born to us, peace is but a fleeting vision and temporary illusion. With him, peace has come to reign in our world and our hearts.

Advent: Everlasting Father

"For to us a child is born, 

to us a son is given, 

and the government will be on his shoulders. 

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, 

Mighty God, Everlasting Father..."

Isaiah 9:6

The child born for us, the wonderful counselor and mighty God, is also everlasting father. Everlasting is eternal, continuous, for all time and before. He has always existed and will continue to exist. I am also reminded of Hebrews 13:8: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." What assurance there is in the reminder that our savior is forever utterly trustworthy and reliable.

"Everlasting" describes the next term: Father. Such a beautiful word to apply to Jesus. God is described as father all throughout the Old and New Testaments. God as father guides and protects and loves. He is faithful to his children. Thus the phrase "Everlasting Father" holds a double sense of loyalty. The everlasting son is always existent, completely reliable, a faithful father. The Everlasting Father is complete assurance of never being abandoned.

Whatever you are facing, whatever this season holds, you are not set adrift. The child born for you is always present. He will not leave you or forsake you. He cares for you as a loving father, protecting and guiding. Remember no matter what that you will always matter to him and he will always care for you.