Friday, January 2, 2015

God doesn't hate 'fags'

Today I want to post something a little odd.  One of my biggest pet peeves is people who misrepresent God in very public ways.  It breaks my heart that so many people are getting a very wrong idea about who God is and because of that they're missing out on the greatest relationship they could ever have.  One of the biggest offenders in this area is those who picket with "God hates fags" signs.  This makes me so angry!  I know it isn't true, but I decided to do a search of the words "God hates" and see what I could find in the Bible.  Just for kicks.

I did find a few things. I'll just lump them all together.  This is everything that came up in a computer search on biblegateway.com...
God hates: sacrificing children in the fire, setting up altars to false gods, people who love violence, Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, new moon festivals, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that run rapidly to evil, A false witness who utters lies, one who spreads strife among brothers, divorce, and Esau. (if you want all the references, just ask, I don't feel like typing all that out at the moment - they're all OT except the Esau one)

Anyone see homosexuals in that list? I don't.  I see a list of things that if we're honest with ourselves, we've all done at least a couple of.  I can pretty much guarantee that EVERYONE has lied at some point.  The thing is, with the exception of Esau, (and I don't claim to understand why he's named on this list) these things God hates are all actions that cause harm.  Really, that is what sin is.  God didn't set up a list of stupid meaningless rules to keep us down, He gave us guardrails to keep us from getting hurt.  He loves His children, every last one of us.  How many of you parents like seeing your kids get hurt?  I hope that no one does.  God hates things that hurt His kids.  He's a good Papa and He loves us all very much.  

As I've written about before, I think that people only sin because they are either wounded or believing a lie.  I believe sin is a deceitful thing that is attacking us.  That is the bottom line of what God hates.  He hates this thing that is out to destroy His kids.  If you've done things on this list, it does NOT mean God hates you.  I don't want anyone reading this to take up shame, that is not the response I'm looking for.  I do think we should all be mindful of the things God warns us about.  I personally do not enjoy pain, so I will listen to His guidance.  I'm not perfect, I still fall into the trap, but I strive to do better and better as the years go by.  That's all we can do, and only with Jesus' help.  

I would add that I bet God also hates the harm caused by these people and their picket signs.  I apologize to anyone who has been hurt by seeing these signs.  These people are misled and NOT displaying the heart of the Jesus I know.  He really is good and He loves you very much.