~ When I Hate ~
Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2011 12:23 am 1 John 2:1-11
1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.
8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.
9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now.
10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.
11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.
Whoever hates another believer... walks in the darkness, and does not know the way to go, because the darkness has brought on blindness. 1 John2:11
Whilw praying about abuse in my childhood, I felt intense hatred for those who had hurt me. Then I felt guilt - believing that as a Christian I'm not supposed to hate. Later when I came across the boave passage from 1 John, I became even more convinced that if I hate, I'm walking in darkness.
In time I came to understand this differently. The feelin of hatred is neutral, as all feelings are. And feeling hatred as the memories of past abuse surfaced is neutral. It's what I do with those feelings that matters. Do I dwell on the hatred? Do I hold a grudge or grow bitter? All I wanted in my heart was to be like Christ. I realized then that if I didn't ask God to help me let go of those memories of abuse and forgive those who had hurt me, I would be walking in darkness.
I struggled a long time with my feelings of hatred, rage, and bitterness before I could give them to the Lord. But eventually I realized that hating others hurt only me, not them. When I relinquished these feelings, God's Spirit mended my soul and replaced my hatred with love for others.
Prayer: Dear Father, heal our hearts. Help us to give up hatred and bitterness and to forgive those who have hurt us. Amen.
Prayer Focus of Day: Survivors of Childhood Abuse.
Thought for the Day: If you are a survivor of abuse, find some resources for help, online or through a pastor or counselor.
Story shared by: W. Viola (CA)
Source: Upper Room Daily Devotional: 11/15/11
1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.
8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.
9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now.
10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.
11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.
Whoever hates another believer... walks in the darkness, and does not know the way to go, because the darkness has brought on blindness. 1 John2:11
Whilw praying about abuse in my childhood, I felt intense hatred for those who had hurt me. Then I felt guilt - believing that as a Christian I'm not supposed to hate. Later when I came across the boave passage from 1 John, I became even more convinced that if I hate, I'm walking in darkness.
In time I came to understand this differently. The feelin of hatred is neutral, as all feelings are. And feeling hatred as the memories of past abuse surfaced is neutral. It's what I do with those feelings that matters. Do I dwell on the hatred? Do I hold a grudge or grow bitter? All I wanted in my heart was to be like Christ. I realized then that if I didn't ask God to help me let go of those memories of abuse and forgive those who had hurt me, I would be walking in darkness.
I struggled a long time with my feelings of hatred, rage, and bitterness before I could give them to the Lord. But eventually I realized that hating others hurt only me, not them. When I relinquished these feelings, God's Spirit mended my soul and replaced my hatred with love for others.
Prayer: Dear Father, heal our hearts. Help us to give up hatred and bitterness and to forgive those who have hurt us. Amen.
Prayer Focus of Day: Survivors of Childhood Abuse.
Thought for the Day: If you are a survivor of abuse, find some resources for help, online or through a pastor or counselor.
Story shared by: W. Viola (CA)
Source: Upper Room Daily Devotional: 11/15/11
Lani