Hating evil...

“ 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. ” (Psalm 97:10)


At our school, we've engaged in some professional reading and discussions. The following is an excerpt from my response to a discussion thread:

"I am more concerned about how violently political Christians have become" - written by one of my colleagues

"Wow. I'm totally on the other side of the fence. I feel as though we Christians are more apathetic than anything. The western world Christians are laissez-faire to the point of unconsciousness.

The world I have grown up in isn't - in my opinion - the victim of religious in-fighting or social violence, rather it's been eroded by lack of action. The people who call the shots are listening to the squeaky wheels who are not representing Godly principles."

I truly believe that we in the western world are typically an apathetic, comfortable bunch of pseudo-Christians. The usual qualification that not all North Americans fit this bill, but it is a pretty accurate character sketch.

I love the Lord... but do I truly hate evil? I've inserted an image from the riots in reaction to a cartoon which lampooned the prophet Muhammad. In the eyes of these people, evil has been done. Any depiction of Muhammad is considered blasphemous. As a result, there is outrage and even violence. Is this what we're being asked to do when we, (the church), are faced with evil?

If we read on, we see that there's more to the verse. "...for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. ” I believe that we are asked to put our trust in the Lord; that He will guard us and deliver us. Just as Jesus suffered and did nothing to defend Himself, so should we trust in Him to see justice done in His time.

So where is the balance? On one hand, we have the comatose Christian who prefers the warm blanket of grace; on the other, the radical, aggressive wrath of Muslim rioters who take matters into their own hands. I suppose there is room for debate as to which of the two is closer to God's plan for our lives, but that's not the point in this discussion. I feel convicted that I do not hate sin like I should.