HATED on Account of My Name

Mark 10:21 states “Come, take up the cross, and follow Me.”

Gal 4:16 “Have I therefore become your enemy by telling you the truth?”

The question that's been on my heart lately has been, "How do we handle 'hate' when it comes to us from the “world” that we are supposed to love?  When we love them enough to tell them the truth, we end up accused of being unloving.   Have you suffered real hatred formed against you? Hate by the world is that of despising God's children, and is rooted in evil. Hate seeks to steal, kill and destroy. Have you heard of “hate crimes”? Killing Jesus was a “hate crime”. Killing the Jews was a “hate crime”. Racism spawns “hate crimes”. Men who hate women beat them and some even kill them, and vise versa. One thing’s for sure, the cost of evangelism is that we will be hated by the world.

We need to remember that we are in the world, but not of it. John 15:19 states, “If you were of the world, the world would love [phileo] its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.” The god of this world is Satan who was given this dominion for a measured amount of time. Satan hates God; therefore, he hates God’s children, and those who are his hate God and His children, too.

Since John 15:19 used the word 'phileo', I'd like to share what this Greek word for 'love' means: to be a friend to (fond of [an individual or object]), i.e. have affection for (denoting personal attachment, as a matter of sentiment or feeling; while agapao [v. form of the noun agape] is wider, embracing espec, the judgment and the deliberate assent of the will as a matter of principle, duty and propriety: the two thus stand related very much: the former [phileo] being chiefly of the heart and the latter [agapao] of the head; phileo is spec. to kiss (as a mark of tenderness):- kiss, love.

Did you get that? Agape is of the head (decision); Phileo is of the heart. Keep this is your mind and heart as you continue reading.

John 3:16 tells us that "God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." And, while we are told to love our enemies (Mat 5:43-45), we are not to be friends with the world (James 4:4).

The word “enemies” in the New Testament is the Greek word echthros (ekh-thros’); from a primitive echtho (to hate); hateful (passive odious, or act hostile); usually as a noun, an adversary (especially Satan):-enemy, foe.

The word “love” applicable in the above passages is agapao [the verb form of the noun agape]: (ag-ap-ah’-o); perh. from agan (much) to love (in social or moral sense (be-) love (-ed). As shown above in the latter part of the definition of phileo, this is wider, embracing especially the judgment and the deliberate assent of the will as a matter of principle, duty and propriety; a matter of the mind.

This type of love is found in John 15:12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.”

God loves with agape love. It is a demonstrative love. Look at Rom 5:8 "But God demonstrates His own love [agape] toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." It is impossible for one to love with agape love, if they don't know God.

Phileo, while it is related to agape, goes a step further. It includes an element of the heart ~ that of friendship. John 15:13-14 gives us an example of the connection: “Greater love [agape] has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you.” Those who don't know God cannot walk in agape love. Look at 2 Thess 2:10 “…and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love [agape] of the truth so as to be saved.” Well, who is the Truth? Jesus Christ (John 14:6).

Some think that, since God is love (which He is), He will not judge anyone; nor should His children. This is not truth. In fact, His love was so great for us that it cost Him His very life to save you and me because He is just and righteous and just. Surely, Rom 8:38-39 tell us, "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." What does it mean to be 'in Christ Jesus our Lord'? It means to be born again.

Look at John 15:9-10 "Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love."

What are those commandments?

Mat 22:36-39: "'You shall love [agapao] the Lord your God with all your heart [indicating phileo], and with all your soul, and with all your mind [indicating agape].' This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, 'You shall love [agapao] your neighbor as yourself.'"

In fact, 1 John 4:8 states, "The one who does not love [agapao] does not know God, for God is love [agape]."  Think about it; if you keep the second commandment without keeping the first, you are not 'in Christ'. Likewise, if you keep the first commandment without keeping the second, you are not 'in Christ'.

There's got to be more to it, considering John 17:9: "I [Jesus] ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours.”

Agape love is commanded of us. God demonstrated His agape love toward us. We demonstrate that agape love toward Him and to everyone. He is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34) and we must not be either. When we abide in Him and His love abides in us, we not only become the 'friend' of God through loving [agapao] Him, we then experience phileo love with our brethren in Christ.

1 John 4:7 confirms this: "Beloved, let us love [agapao] one another, for love [agape] is from God; and everyone who loves [agapao] is born of God and knows God."

In order to abide in His love, we must first love [agapao] God. Afterall, we love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). Again, John 15:14 states, "You are My friends, if you do what I command you."  The balance of the matter, however, is found in James 4:4 "You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship [philia - from phileo] with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." WOW. Remember John 15:19: "If you were of the world, the world would love [phileo] its own, but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you."

When we become a friend of God, we are also friends with those who love Him. As with phileo, the love of the brethren is the Greek word philadelphia (fil-ad-el’-fee-ah); fraternal affection:-brotherly love (kindness), love of the brethren. 1 John 3:13-14 states, “Do not marvel, brethren, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death.”

Following are pertinent scriptures that identify the hatred that comes from the world and why:

Mat 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.”

Mat 10:22 “And you will be hated by all on account of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved. But whenever they persecute you in this city, flee to the next; for truly I say to you, you shall not finish going through the cities of Israel, until the Son of Man comes.”

Mat 13:25-30 “But while men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares also among the wheat, and went away. But when the wheat sprang up and bore grain, then the tares became evident also. And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ And the slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘No; lest while you are gathering up the tares, you may root up the wheat with them. Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.”

Mat 13:39 “…and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels.”

Mat 24:9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations on account of My name.”

Luke 1:70-71 “As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old—‘Salvation FROM OUR ENEMIES, And FROM THE HAND OF ALL WHO HATE US;”

Luke 1:74-75 “To grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.”

Luke 6:22 “Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and cast insults at you, and spurn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.”

Luke 10:19 “Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall injure you.”

Luke 19:27 “But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them in my presence.”

Luke 21:17-19 “…and you will be hated by all on account of My name. Yet not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives.”

John 3:20 “For everyone that does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.”

John 7:7 “The world cannot hate you; but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil.”

John 12:25 “He who loves his life loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal.”

John 15:18-24 “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also.” Verse 25 “…THEY HATED ME WITHOUT A CAUSE.”

• Now, compare the truth of John 14:18-24 with Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me." Do you think the world would treat Christ any different now than when He first came to this world and spoke and did everything His Father showed Him? Likewise, if His Spirit lives in us and through us, we need to understand what it means that the world will hate "us", when indeed it hates "Christ in us".

Acts 13:9-10 “But Saul, who was also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fixed his gaze upon him, and said, ‘You who are full of all deceit and fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to make crooked the straight ways of the Lord?”

Rom 1:30 “…haters of God…” vs 32 “…that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.”

Phil 3:18 “For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.”

1 John 3:13 "Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you."

Enemies are not friends; they are foes. They do not love God or the “brethren”. Because they are enemies of the cross, they are also our enemies. They are the children of their father, the devil. John 8:44 “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”  They do not abide in the agape love of God.

The Word instructs us in Mat 7:6 “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.”

The Apostle Paul told Timothy in 1 Tim 6:20-21 "O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called 'knowledge'--which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you."

We know that God loves the world, but can He love and HATE at the same time? Why do we struggle so with the oppression to “love” those that “hate” us and are at emnity with Jesus, our Lord? Yes, we are to pray for those who persecute us (Mat 5:44), but appropriate love is now clarified in this study. Let’s look at a few scriptures that show that indeed God HATES, and likewise does not condemn us when we hate what He hates.

Pro 3:34 "Though He scoffs at the scoffers, Yet He gives grace to the afflicted."

Rom 12:9 "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good."

Heb 1:9 "You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy."

Rev 2:6 [God to the church in Ephesus] “Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.”

About our enemies

1. They come and sow tares among the wheat (try to keep us from growing and flourishing).

2. They hate Jesus, who is the light.

3. They love their life.

4. They do not know God and hate Him.

5. They not only practice the things worthy of death, but also give hearty approval to those who do the same.

6. They make crooked the ways of the Lord.

7. They are enemies of the cross of Christ, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.

8. They have friendship (agape/phileo) with the world, which makes them an enemy of Christ.

9. They do not abide in the love (agape) of God.

Enemies of God’s Children

1. They hate us without a cause.

2. They ostracize us, and cast insults at us, and spurn our names as evil.

3. They trample that which is holy and will tear us to pieces (if we give them anything holy).

4. It is their desire to deliver us to tribulation and kill us.

5. They persecute us.

6. They do not abide in the love (agape) of God.

The fate of our enemies

1. The two final witnesses will exercise power to devour, kill, and bring plagues on them.

2. Like tares, they will be bound in bundles and burned up (Hell).

3. Because they do not love the “brethren” (God’s children), they abide in death.

4. They are slain in His presence.

5. Their end is DESTRUCTION.

6. They do not abide in the love (agape) of God.

God’s Promises to His Children

1. We will have salvation from our enemies and from the hands of all who hate us.

2. We will be delivered from the hands of our enemies.

3. He has given us authority.

4. Not a hair of our heads will perish.

5. He has anointed us with the oil of gladness above our companions.

6. Be glad and joyful; we are blessed because our reward is great in heaven.

7. Do not marvel.

8. Do not give what is holy to dogs or cast our pearls before swine.

9. Endure to the end and we will gain our lives.

10. Flee to the next city when we are persecuted.

11. If we hate this life, we will keep it to life eternal.

12. We now abide and will forever abide in the love (agape and phileo) of God! 

The Love Chapter is found in 1 Corinthians 13. It is important, however, to walk in the boundary of love, in that we are not to embrace the world and its ways as a friend would do. Consider again the words of the Apostle Paul in Gal 4:16 "So have I become your enemy by telling you the truth?" You certainly aren't responsible for becoming the 'enemy' of the world. The world is your enemy, when they do "not receive the love [agape] of the truth so as to be saved" (2 Thes 2:10).

What is the purpose in loving our enemies? Rom 12:20-21 tells us: “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head".  Agape love demonstrates God's love to them, in hopes that they will respond to Him and choose to follow Him.  Likewise, we are to love our brethren in the Lord as shown in Mat 25:34-40: “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’

Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.”