Hate Sin!

Mike Johnson

The Bible has a great deal to say about the subject of hate. People typically think that Christians are not supposed to hate, and generally, this is true. However, the Bible teaches that Christians are to hate sin! Many passages speak about hating evil or sin. Romans 12:9 says that we are to “abhor” (or hate) that which is evil. Consider some verses from the Psalms:

• 119:163-“I hate and abhor lying, But I love Your law.” 
• 119:128-“Therefore all Your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right; I hate every false way.”   
• 97:10- says, “You who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.” (Do you love the Lord? If you do, you will hate evil.)

What was the attitude of Jesus toward sin? Hebrews 1:9 tells us that he “loved righteousness” and “hated iniquity.” Also, the powerful and stern rebuke of the Pharisees by Jesus in Matthew 23 makes his attitude of disgust toward sin very plain.

We live in an evil world. Sin is all around us. If we are not careful, we can become complacent about it. We can get so accustomed to seeing sin portrayed in such a positive light that it ceases to bother us. 

One place that we can see much sin and immorality is in our own home on our TV set. Programs picture sin as acceptable and commonplace. If people are not careful, their attitudes will slowly start to change toward sin, and they will begin to see it as not such a bad thing. A steady diet of sin and immorality on television can undoubtedly affect our thinking and, eventually, our actions. We must be careful about the kind of television programs we watch and the kind we allow our children to view.

Those who hate sin do not have a “passive” attitude toward it. They are disturbed about it in their own lives and the lives of others. We must be careful and never lose our view of disgust toward sin. An adage says, “As first, we oppose, then we tolerate, then we endorse or embrace.” Let us make sure that we keep ourselves from this digressive process.