Tag Archives: loving God

The Battle of Love and Hate

21 Wednesday Aug 2019

Posted by in Devotionals, Psalm 97, Psalms

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Reading: Psalm 97
(Verses 8-12)
Zion hears and rejoices
and the villages of Judah are glad
because of your judgments, LORD.
For you, LORD, are the Most High over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
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.
Light shines on the righteous
and joy on the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous,
and praise his holy name (NIV).

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Light shines on the righteous and joy on the upright in heart — photo by David Kitz

Reflection
Love and hate are two extremes—two opposites. Almost always we see love as a good thing, something to be encouraged or applauded, while hate is regarded as a universally negative emotion. But is this a correct view of love and hate?

The addict may love his crack cocaine pipe, but is that a good or wholesome kind of love? Strange as it may seem, the battered wife may love her abusive husband and yet feel locked into that relationship despite its toxic or even deadly consequences. Is that a healthy kind of love? Of course not, but the addict and the abused partner both use the term love when they describe the object of their affection.

Similarly hate—that polar opposite emotion—is universally viewed as negative. Is it wrong to hate injustice, murder or pedophilia? Of course not. Hate is the right emotional response when we see these things taking place. The devastating consequences of sin and criminal wrongdoing are repulsive. Seeing such harmful conduct should prompt us to hate those actions.

In today’s reading from Psalm 97, we see a different perspective on love and hate. 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.

Are you loving God and hating evil? All too often we see there are those in this world who love evil and hate God. Why do they hate God? Could it be because the LORD expects—no requires—better from them, and they thinking they know better, have gone their own selfish way?

Note that we are commanded to hate evil. We are not commanded to hate evildoers. God in His great mercy may yet redeem the evildoer. It is by God’s grace that we ourselves are not caught up in evil, so wisdom urges us not to be haughty. We do well to focus on loving the LORD. We can draw encouragement from these words: Light shines on the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.

Response: LORD God, teach me to identify and hate evil when I see it. I want your light to shine on me, so I can walk in the path you have set out for me. Let my love for you grow day by day. Amen.

Your Turn: Are you loving the LORD and hating evil? Do you get caught up in hating the evildoer?

The Brutal Honesty in the Psalms

29 Wednesday May 2019

Posted by in Devotionals, Psalm 74, Psalms

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Reading: Psalm 73
(Verses 21-28)
When my heart was grieved
and my spirit embittered,
I was senseless and ignorant;
I was a brute beast before you.
Yet I am always with you;
you hold me by my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will take me into glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.
Those who are far from you will perish;
you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
But as for me, it is good to be near God.
I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge;
I will tell of all your deeds (NIV).

2015-05-12 L. Kranz

Trillium on the forest floor — photo courtesy of Liz Kranz

Reflection
I love the brutal honesty of the psalmist. I always like to think I am the smartest one in the room, but the truth is I am very capable of wrong-headed thinking. And wrong thinking often leads to hurtful words or unwise actions. Take a moment to consider the psalmist’s confession: When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.

That’s brutal honesty. Are we that honest with God when our reasoning goes off the straight and narrow rails? Or do we justify our thoughts and blame God or others when we are ticked off?

We need to come into God’s sanctuary to have our hearts and minds tuned into the LORD’s thinking. The LORD reminds us that He knows the big picture. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9).

When we are in God’s presence, we can have our affections adjusted. All too often I have my priorities all messed up. What about you? The amazing truth about God is that He loves us despite our mess ups. The psalmist knows the power of that love. Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.

What a patient, loving God we serve! This should become our humble confession: Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Response: LORD God, I want to have your perspective. I want to see as you see. Set my thoughts on the right path. Remind me to take time to be with you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. Amen.

Your Turn: How do you get your affections in tune with God? What steps do you need to take?

Like a Fleeting Shadow

02 Saturday Mar 2019

Posted by in Bible, Psalm 144, Psalms

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I will praise Him!

IMG_20180629_1750359[3581]

Columns at the gateway to the Acropolis in Athens — photo by David Kitz

Of David.

Praise be to the LORD my Rock,
    who trains my hands for war,
    my fingers for battle.
He is my loving God and my fortress,
    my stronghold and my deliverer,
my shield, in whom I take refuge,
    who subdues peoples under me.

LORD, what are human beings that you care for them,
    mere mortals that you think of them?
They are like a breath;
    their days are like a fleeting shadow.

(Psalm 144:1-4, NIV)

Loving the LORD and Hating Evil

03 Monday Oct 2016

Posted by in Psalm 97, Psalms

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Reading:                                         Psalm 97

Verses 8-12

Zion hears and rejoices
and the villages of Judah are glad
because of your judgments, LORD.
For you, LORD, are the Most High over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
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.
Light shines on the righteous
and joy on the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous,
and praise his holy name (NIV).

Reflection

Love and hate are two extremes—two opposites. Almost always we see love as a good thing, something to be encouraged or applauded, while hate is regarded as a universally negative emotion. But is this a correct view of love and hate?

img_20160425_160842

Light shines on the path of life — photo by David Kitz

The addict may love his crack cocaine pipe, but is that a good or wholesome kind of love? Strange as it may seem, the battered wife may love her abusive husband and yet feel locked into that relationship despite its toxic or even deadly consequences. Is that a healthy kind of love? Of course not, but the addict and the abused partner both use the term love when they describe the object of their affection.

Similarly hate—that polar opposite emotion—is universally viewed as negative. Is it wrong to hate injustice, murder or pedophilia? Of course not. Hate is the right emotional response when we see these things taking place. The devastating consequences of sin and criminal wrongdoing are repulsive. Seeing such harmful conduct should prompt us to hate those actions.

In today’s reading from Psalm 97, we see a different perspective on love and hate. 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.

Are you loving God and hating evil? All too often we see there are those in this world who love evil and hate God. Why do they hate God? Could it be because the LORD expects—no requires—better from them, and they thinking they know better, have gone their own selfish way?

Note that we are commanded to hate evil. We are not commanded to hate evildoers. God in His great mercy may yet redeem the evildoer. It is by God’s grace that we ourselves are not caught up in evil, so wisdom urges us not to be haughty. We do well if we focus on loving the LORD. We can draw encouragement from these words: Light shines on the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.

Response: LORD God, teach me to identify and hate evil when I see it. I want your light to shine on me, so I can walk in the path you have set out for me. Let my love for you grow day by day. Amen.

Your Turn: Are you loving the LORD and hating evil? Do you get caught up in hating the evildoer?