I read an op-ed yesterday that truly sickened me. It was written by a local religious columnist who is – to be kind – a bit of a nutjob. His latest work of literary art is so troublesome, I will not reproduce it or link to it, but I couldn’t let it slide without comment.
I am often shocked by some of the opinions other followers of Christ have. A few months ago, I was shocked when some people from my church confessed they found it difficult to see non-Christians as having the same value as believers. This viewpoint shocked and grieved me, because it didn’t reflect Christ.
The op-ed was along similar lines, as the struggle my friends mentioned, only the writer didn’t see his perspective as a struggle, and had amplified it to some form of Xenophobia against non-Christians. The message of his scholarly work is that God doesn’t just hate sin, but he has it out for sinners. In fact, Christians should pay no attention to non-Christians because in God’s economy they are a “type of worthless goat or rodent.”
How did we get here? How is it that some who claim the name of Christ can totally ignore the dignity God has bestowed on all men from the beginning. We are created in God’s image and we all have worth. In fact, the Bible points out that our acts of righteousness are worthless, because they come from impure motives.
The message of the Bible isn’t about some being worth more than others. Paul teaches that because of Christ there is neither Jew nor Gentile, male nor female, slave nor master. We are told by Jesus Himself to love not just one another, but to love others. We are also told to go one further and love our enemies. When Jesus forgave His captors on the cross, He showed love for His enemies. That is not a God who hates people. It is a God who hates sin with a passion and has compassion for sinners. As His followers, we would do well to love in the same manner.