"He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now."
1 John 2:9
This is a good reminder. Sometimes we get into conflict with other people for one reason or another. And when they aren't close to us and we likely aren't going to see them again, sometimes we can be tempted to think it is okay, or when people are far away from anything we know, or members of some group that we think is a threat or something we disagree with, we can justify labeling or hating members of that group. But hating anyone, as it says, takes us into darkness. It's true that people participate in actions and have beliefs that we can't agree with. And many people sin seemingly without remorse. But hatred, even of people that have specifically harmed us or our loved ones, still leads only to darkness. God doesn't want us to welcome abusive relationships, or embrace the idea of terrorism, for sure, but if we hate even abusers or terrorists, we endanger our own souls.
So, how do we let go of that emotion, especially when it is very personal, and very strong? Not saying I have all the answers, but I know that with God, it can be done. He *is* love, and he can teach it to us, and change our hearts, if we pray and are willing to work to change. Today, let's work to stay in the light, and resist letting hatred taint our hearts.
1 John 2:9
This is a good reminder. Sometimes we get into conflict with other people for one reason or another. And when they aren't close to us and we likely aren't going to see them again, sometimes we can be tempted to think it is okay, or when people are far away from anything we know, or members of some group that we think is a threat or something we disagree with, we can justify labeling or hating members of that group. But hating anyone, as it says, takes us into darkness. It's true that people participate in actions and have beliefs that we can't agree with. And many people sin seemingly without remorse. But hatred, even of people that have specifically harmed us or our loved ones, still leads only to darkness. God doesn't want us to welcome abusive relationships, or embrace the idea of terrorism, for sure, but if we hate even abusers or terrorists, we endanger our own souls.
So, how do we let go of that emotion, especially when it is very personal, and very strong? Not saying I have all the answers, but I know that with God, it can be done. He *is* love, and he can teach it to us, and change our hearts, if we pray and are willing to work to change. Today, let's work to stay in the light, and resist letting hatred taint our hearts.
No comments:
Post a Comment