1 John 4:8
But if a person isn’t loving and kind, it shows that he doesn’t know God—for God is love.
The
Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by
permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois
60188. All rights reserved.
My friend Michael shared a
link on Facebook to a devotional blog written for the United Church of
Christ website by Matthew Laney, Senior Minister of Asylum Hill
Congregational Church, UCC, in Hartford, Connecticut. The title of this
post is “Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin?*”…and Laney notes that he has
never been a fan of this phrase. He adds that this comment has been
used frequently in reference to members of the LGBTQ community.
But
lately, Laney has found himself making (or thinking) the same comment
with regard to fellow “Christians” who want to disrespect and
discriminate against others. Have a brother or sister in Christ who is
vocal about a certain person or group of people? “Love the sinner…hate
the sin.” Know someone who “is truly a good person”…AND a bigot? “Love
the sinner…hate the sin.” Sit on a pew with someone who sings praises
to God every Sunday and then rants at the coffee shop all week about
this leader or issue or another (with off-color, hate-filled jokes
included)? “Love the sinner…hate his/her sin.”
Laney says that
he came to the conclusion that this sentiment…”always struck me as a way
to feign love for someone right before kicking them in the teeth!” He
suggests that instead, we try to “do what Jesus did…love the sinner and
love the sinner some more - and pray the prayer He prayed: ‘Father,
forgive them for they know not what they do.’”
I’ll be honest…I
have spent the better part of a day trying to create a mental list of
Christians in my personal “circle” who consistently operate in the love
of Christ…whose tone is never critical or condescending…and I’ve come up
with a terribly short list - and I’m not sure I could even put myself
on it! Why is this? I believe it’s because we are human…and
sinners…and none of us is perfect. But I DID come up with a list of
people I know and love who demonstrate Jesus’ love and acceptance of
others pretty consistently…people who I know without any doubt have the
goal of loving the sinner – and then loving him/her some more. And as
the old gospel hymn says, “Oh, LORD, I want to be in that number!”
Let’s
make this the day that we truly begin to “walk the walk” that lines up
with our “talk.” Let’s show others how much we love God by only
speaking kindly…with love, acceptance, grace and mercy. Let’s
demonstrate with every breath and movement that we have fully committed
our hearts and lives to Jesus Christ…that we acknowledge that we are ALL
sinners in some way – and our job is not to judge another in any
way/shape/form. Let’s ask God to forgive ALL sinners…even those whose
“sin” is that of deriding or rejecting others. Let’s remove the phrase,
“love the sinner, hate the sin” from our vocabulary…and our daily
living. If we truly know God and love Him, this should be a
no-brainer. Are you with me?
©2015 Debbie Robus
* http://www.ucc.org/daily_devotional_love_the_sinner_hate_the_sin
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