Christian in Name Only? Your Enemies Reveal the Truth
Standards of Christian Living – Part VI
When Hate Is Taught as Scripture
Recently, I watched a Facebook video interview of a Baptist pastor who said he hates homosexuals and claimed that the Bible says to hate them. He went on to say that while he loves even his enemies, he hates gays with a passion, describing them as violent predators who should be destroyed. To support his claim, he quoted Psalm 5, where, speaking of God, it says:
“…You hate all workers of iniquity.
You shall destroy those who speak falsehood…”
— verse 5–6
I am not defending a homosexual lifestyle, because the Bible expressly condemns it as sinful. However, it seems clear that he is either unfamiliar with, or willfully ignores, this passage:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
— John 3:16
God hates sin—including the sin of homosexuality—but He does not hate people, and He has not commanded us to hate anyone. And even if God did hate, He is God; there is no Scripture that instructs us to do the same.
In fact, the apostle John says:
“If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”
— 1 John 4:20
In the video, the interviewer pointed this Scripture out. The pastor responded by saying it applies only to brothers in the faith. By that logic, since the verse says “brother,” he would also be free to hate women. I’m being sarcastic. In this context, brother clearly refers to all humanity.
There were other statements he made that were based on an incomplete or incorrect understanding of Scripture. He frequently cited the Old Testament as the foundation for his beliefs. This is a pastor who clearly does not understand that Jesus now requires us to go beyond some of the things commanded under the old covenant (the Old Testament).
It seems that he may be wearing a mask and does not truly understand what it means to be a Christian.
Revisiting the Standard: Love Your Neighbor, Not Hate Your Enemy
This brings us to the final post in this series—Standards of Christian Living. Here, I conclude by unpacking Matthew 5:43–48.
“You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.”
— verse 43
Notice two things. First, the statement “You shall love your neighbor” comes from Leviticus 19:18. Second, “hate your enemy” was never commanded by God. That phrase came from what, in Jesus’s time, was known as the traditions of the elders (Matthew 15:2).
These traditions were additions to the Mosaic Law, developed by the Pharisees and scribes. They were based on interpretations of the law that were often incorrect. Jesus rejected such traditions—like the one that taught a man should donate to the synagogue, as Corban, what he should have given to his parents (Mark 7:9–13).
Jesus Raises the Standard
Then Jesus raised the standard again—just as we have seen Him do throughout this series—by saying:
“But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.”
— verse 44
Please note that most other popular translations, such as ESV, NIV, and NLT, do not include the bless and do good phrases, but Luke’s account does (Luke 6:27–28).
Jesus calls us to a higher life. He gives four clear instructions:
Love our enemies
Bless those who curse us
Do good to those who hate us
Pray for those who persecute or spite us
Then He adds:
“…that you may be sons of your Father in heaven…”
— verse 45
This is how we demonstrate that we are sons and daughters of God. It is not the labels we give ourselves or our claim to be Christians, but what we actually do. These are the divine metrics.
You are not a genuine Christian if you hate anyone, curse them, wish bad things to happen to them, do bad things to them, or refuse to pray for them. If you do any of these but believe you’re a Christian, you are lying to yourself.
God Doesn’t Discriminate
Next, Jesus introduced a concept that would have been considered radical in His time—and one that many societies still struggle to grasp today. He said:
“For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”
— verse 45
Jesus is saying that God does not discriminate. He provides sun and rain equally to the good and the evil, the just and the unjust. Discrimination, by definition, is treating people unfairly based on characteristics such as ethnicity, nationality, skin color, and similar distinctions.
To make His point clear to His audience, Jesus highlighted some common ways people discriminate:
“For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so?”
— verses 46–47
We discriminate against those who are not like us, who do not look like us, or who do not belong to our group. We also discriminate against people we deem unworthy of our love or respect—just as much of society in Jesus’s day viewed tax collectors. Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman in John chapter 4 also shows that Jews discriminated against Samaritans, viewing them as religiously impure and morally inferior. Jesus is making it clear that this is not God’s character. And if we are truly God’s people, He calls us to reflect that character by refusing to live this way.
There’s a Reward For Doing
Some of these are very tough calls. Anyone who says otherwise is lying or deceiving themselves. Knowing this, Jesus offers us an incentive by hinting that there is a reward for doing these things:
“…what reward have you?…”
— verse 46
Jesus is saying that God rewards us when we live this way. He then concludes by saying:
“Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
— verse 48
We often think of perfection as being without fault or completely sinless. No. Jesus shows us that perfection, in this context, means doing what God has commanded us to do.
We can never match God’s perfection, but when we obey what He says, Jesus declares that we are perfect like Him.
Attitude Towards Enemies Reveals You
I often notice in crime stories that when relatives or friends of victims are asked whether the victim had any enemies, they respond, “everyone loved them.” But that isn’t true. In fact, Jesus said “a man’s enemies will be those of his own household” — Matthew 10:36. Jesus, the perfect and sinless Son of God, had enemies.
So the fact that you will have enemies is a given—there will always be someone who doesn’t like you. How you respond to that reality, however, is another matter. If you have ever wondered whether you are a true Christian, examine your attitude toward—and your treatment of—your enemies. That will reveal whether you are or not. Jesus said of His enemies, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” — Luke 23:34.
This post concludes the series, and I hope you’ve been inspired to move forward and become a better person. To access the previous teachings of this series, please click below:
Part III: God Deals With the World As Is
Part IV: What is Your Promise Worth?
Part V: Violence is a Weapon of the Weak