This verse struck me...
1 John 3:15 (King James Version)15Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
1 John 3:15 (Amplified Bible)15Anyone who hates (abominates, detests) his brother [in Christ] is [at heart] a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding ([a]persevering) within him.
I think this verse is extremely powerful. At the heart I believe this verse states even thinking an evil thought or keeping an evil thought concerning another Christian in your heart is enough to cause a loss of eternal life. This fits perfectly with Matthew 22...
Matthew 22:34-40 (King James Version)
34But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.
35Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
36Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
38This is the first and great commandment.
39And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
40On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
This verse clearly states that our love, the opposite of hate, of others is the second most important thing we are commanded to do, next only to our love of God. For this reason we are required to love those in Christ even if they hurt us deeply. It is not just for them, that they may be given grace in Christ through us, but also for our own salvation. Do we really love all Christians as we love ourselves? Are we in hatred of anyone? In our mind? In our heart? The opposite of love (agape / giving) is hate (taking from someone or not putting them first). Hate is sin. This is why it is able to separate us from God and cause a loss of eternal life.
Any thoughts?
Thank you for letting me share.
I agree with the sentiment.. that we should love our neighbor as our self. I think both texts clearly support this. I was struck by your statement: “Do we really love all Christians as we love ourselves? “ I wonder if this was a mistype or If you feel that the neighbor is referring only to other followers of Christ. For my part, I see it as referring to all others… but that I know everyone does not share that view.
ReplyDeleteD
Thanks Dave~
ReplyDeleteNo that was intentional. I believe it is also intentional in the Word as well.
"Anyone who hates (abominates, detests) his brother [in Christ] is [at heart] a murderer"
The Amplified pulls this from the Greek. I believe God has put this in there so we would be able to defend ourselves from nonbelievers who wish to do us harm. If someone is attacking my family, raping my wife, etc. I believe God allows me to defend them. Even to the extent of taking their life if needed. A "brother in Christ" would not do these things.
Any thoughts?
Thanks for your honest response… I appreciate your view point, but for me personally, I have a very different view. I feel pretty strongly that Christ means our neighbor to be any other human being. I think that the good Samaritan, the 1 leper who returns to praise him, the woman at the well and many other stories to me tell me that it does not matter who you are, God is open to you, and loves you, and the kingdom is available to you.
ReplyDeleteI also find it really difficult to try and make an judgment of who is a Christian and who is not a Christian. This is amplified for me as I struggle with my own failures at being a Christian. Do I qualify as a Christian even if I do not practice what Christ preaches, is it possible to identify anyone as a Christian when Peter himself denied the lord?
Lastly, I have not looked into the Greek translation of Paul’s verse, but I am willing to accept that this is accurate. Even so, it does not mean that only Christians are not murderers… not sure how to explain my thinking here, but for example if a lawyers says if Dave Hoover killed Ben Krause, he is a murderer. That statement would does not state that if Ben Krause is alive, Dave Hoover is not a murderer. Because I very well could have killed Mark Geier, and would still be a murderer. Not sure if you follow me on this one… tough to explain.
Lastly, I see your point about your interpretation helps to determine when is violence justified. Your explanation makes a lot of sense as a means for deciding when it appropriate not to turn the other cheek, and I will be the first to admit, I don’t have an answer on that one. But for now, this falls in the bucket of a great mystery for me, and is something I really struggle with. Even though I think the war in Afghanistan is justified, I struggle with what Christ would do.
Thanks for the dialogue Benjamin, even though you and I have very different beliefs it is great for me in my journey.
Dave
Dave~
ReplyDeleteI think it is so important that we as Christian men have these types of conversations. I truly believe they are healthy and vital to the growth of any Christian. The Word says …
Proverbs 27:17 (King James Version)
17Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.
Every human beings made is God’s image, we all have a different piece of the puzzle. For this reason we all have different things we can contribute to and learn from each other.
I believe that we are closer to being on the same page than on might think. I believe that we are called to love EVERYONE whenever possible. I believe we are required to forgive even those that have wounded us in the most vicious and damaging way. With that being said I do believe that in many ways we are called to treat Christians differently than non-Christians. Matthew says…
Matthew 7:6 (King James Version)
6Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
I believe this is talking about believers and nonbelievers. In many ways we are like children. There is only so much we can be given at a time. Example, You would not let a child play with a loaded gun. This is the same way God views us. Different Christians are at different levels.
Hebrews 5:12-14 (King James Version)
12For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
13For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
14But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
I believe that we are given the ability to discern.
Luke 6:43-46 (King James Version)
43For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
44For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes.
45A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.
46And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
We can tell if those around us are Christians. We are to love all even if they are not. Yes, even Christians can produce bad or evil fruit. Satan can tangle the truth into lies in all of us if we open the door. To be saved is to accept Christ. That’s it. Just that simple. The one great FREE gift.
With all that being said I believe that there are times when we are required to resist Satan.
Ephesians 6:12 (King James Version)
12For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
James 4:7 (King James Version)
7Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Our family under attack is an extreme case. I believe that we are no longer called in this instance to see it as the flesh and blood of the person, but rather the spirit of satan acting through them. We must resist that and love our family. Once that war is over and our family is safe we can move on to forgiveness and redemption.
This is a complex issue. The best I can come up with is that we are to always love the man, but not the spirit inside the man. This is often difficult to separate.
Thank you for sharpening me.