The Global Atheist Convention is coming to Melbourne in March.  The theme is “The Rise of Atheism” and amongst the long list of speakers is world-renowned author Richard Dawkins whose book The God Delusion has been an international best seller.

I read The God Delusion a year or two ago and Dawkins makes some very good points.  However, his stated purpose in writing the book did not work on me – “If this book works as I intend, religious readers who open it will be atheists when they put it down” (Page 5).  It didn’t work because I used to be an atheist and, for the past 32 years, I have been a Christian.  I feel that I have a certain qualification to compare the two and Christianity comes up trumps every time!

The fact is that even the staunchest atheist cannot say unequivocally that there is no God – because no one knows everything.  Maybe God exists outside their knowledge.  The truth of this was recognized in the British atheist advertising campaign of early 2009 that stated, “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” Note the word “probably.”  I appreciate their honesty!

And now the Atheist Foundation of Australia is starting its own advertising campaign proclaiming “Atheism – celebrate reason.”  It’s an interesting statement.  Is it reasonable to state there is no God?  In The God Delusion,  Dawkins quotes Douglas Adams, the staunch atheist best known as the author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.  Adams says, “Isn’t it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?”  It’s a cute saying but it is flawed because a garden is only beautiful if it has someone who not only designed and made it in the first place but also has someone to maintain it.  I don’t believe in fairies, but I do believe the Universe had a designer and a maker, and I believe that Divine Being also gave the human race the responsibility to maintain it.  Sometimes we do well; other times we don’t.

After reading The God Delusion I picked up another book, this time by a former skeptic turned Christian believer.  Ron Williams, a Sydney lawyer-turned-author who came to faith in Christ via parenthood, prodigious reading and a life-changing illness, wrote God Actually.  This book is the written record of his search for truth, and some amazing truth is recorded in it.  For example:

“The first remarkable thing about [the Big Bang] is the rate at which it happens … if the expansion rate were any faster, the matter in the Universe would not have aggregated into galaxies, stars and planets; if the rate were any slower, the Universe would have collapsed back into itself within the time required for stars to have created carbon.  In either case the conditions for life would not exist.”

“Consider another phenomenon: the relative sizes of the sun and the moon, and their respective distances from the earth.  The diameter of the sun is about 400 times the diameter of the moon.  However, the sun is about 400 times further away from the earth than the moon is.  This means that…during a solar eclipse the Sun is almost exactly obscured by the moon.”

“Think of an experience from your childhood.  Something you remember clearly, something you can see, feel, maybe even smell, as if you were really there.  After all, you really were there at the time, weren’t you?  How else would you remember it?  But here is the bombshell, you weren’t there.  Not a single atom that is in your body today was there when that event took place.”

If you are searching for truth and meaning in life I encourage you to read God Actually.  It may help you to celebrate reason and to know that there probably is a God so that you can stop worrying and really enjoy your life.  After all, that’s why Jesus came to earth (John 10:10).

Recently Sacred Heart Mission Chief Executive Michael Perusco asked Opposition Leader Tony Abbott whether a government under his direction would continue with the Rudd government’s goal of halving homelessness by 2020. His answer was no.

In justifying his stance, Abbott quoted from the Gospel of Matthew: ”The poor will always be with us,” and referred to the fact there is little a government can do for people who choose to be homeless.

I believe that Tony Abbott is very committed to his Catholic faith, but I wonder at the wisdom of a politician quoting Scripture to reinforce reasons for political policy – especially when the Scripture quoted is obviously misunderstood and in reality, teaches the opposite truth.

Jesus’ statement, “The poor you will always have with you …” (Matthew 26:11) was spoken by him to his disciples who were questioning why Mary had just poured an entire jar of very expensive perfume on his head. This jar of ointment was worth more than a year’s wages. It was an extravagant act which some of the disciples thought was over the top. Jesus disagreed. That’s when he made the comment “The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.” In other words, you won’t always have the opportunity to do good to me because I’m not going to be around; but there will always be poor people whom you can help. Jesus is not teaching inaction towards the poor – he’s teaching just the opposite.

Jesus’ statement in Matthew’s gospel is a quotation from the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy 15:11: “There will always be poor people in the land.” Reading this verse in context reveals that the Bible is encouraging us not to be hardhearted or tightfisted toward the poor, but rather to be openhanded and freely lend whatever their needs. This passage also encourages us to give generously to the poor and do so without a grudging heart. “There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land.” This is one of over 2000 references in the Bible on the responsibility of those who have to help those who have not. The Bible teaches action to alleviate poverty, not inaction because there will always be poor people.

People become homeless for all sorts of reasons including mental illness, domestic violence and neglect. Right now there are over 100,000 homeless people in Australia – over half of these are under 25. Political posturing or misquoting the Bible won’t fix this problem. It will take a concerted effort on the part of all sides of politics along with churches, charities and social welfare organizations all working together to make a difference to those who, for various reasons, find themselves homeless, poor or underprivileged. Let’s not look for reasons to do nothing to help them!

 

If God is all-powerful why doesn’t he stop evil and suffering in the world?  This question is best answered by one of Jesus’ famous stories:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'”

This story teaches that there will come a time when all evil will be uprooted from the world.  In the meantime, suffering can actually be of benefit.  For instance, suffering can wake people up to their need for God.  In his book, “The problem with pain” CS Lewis wrote: “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains; it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world…”

Suffering can also bring amazing things out of our lives.  There is something I have noticed time and time again, that people who respond to great suffering with a good attitude actually develop the most amazing character and invariably do incredible things.  Think how the song Amazing Grace has touched millions of people – and still does today.  And yet that hymn was written out of great adversity.  Smith Wigglesworth once wrote, “Great faith is the product of great fights.  Great testimonies are the outcome of great tests.  Great triumphs can only come after great trials.”

At the end of time all evil – and the suffering that results – is going to be uprooted from the world.  There was no suffering in God’s original created order, and there will be no suffering when God creates a new heaven and a new earth.

Gavin Reid, the Bishop of Maidstone, tells of a boy in his congregation, who shattered his back falling down the stairs at the age of one and had consequently been in and out of the hospital.  When Gavin interviewed him in church the boy remarked, “God is fair.”  Gavin stopped him and asked, “How old are you?”  The boy replied, “Seventeen.”  “How many years have you spent in the hospital?”  The boy answered, “Thirteen years.”  He was asked, “Do you think that is fair?”  He replied, “God’s got all of eternity to make it up to me!”

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him…”

The problem of suffering is the subject of the most frequently raised question concerning the Christian faith: “If there’s a loving God why is there so much suffering in the world?”

Suffering is something that touches everyone.  From large-scale events such as wars and natural disasters to suffering on an individual level like bereavement, sickness, broken relationships, involuntary singleness, depression, loneliness, poverty, persecution, rejection, and disappointment.  Suffering can come in an endless variety of forms and no human being is immune from it – not even Christians.

But what causes suffering?  Many people blame God because He claims ultimate control in the world and so He has the power to change all things.  Blame is nothing new.  The first humans excelled at it.  Adam blamed both his wife and God – “The woman YOU put here with me.”  Eve blamed the devil and hence started a popular Christian pastime!  No one took personal responsibility and little has changed.

The main cause of suffering though has more to do with us, not God.  People doing bad things, or not doing good things, causes most suffering.

People doing bad things cause about 95% of suffering in this world.  Watch the television news sometime and note the amount of suffering that results in this way.  People are the main cause of suffering, not God.  There is a propensity for evil in all of us.  If God decided to get rid of all evil in the world He would have to destroy the entire human race!  The Bible records that things got so bad in times gone by that God did take this kind of drastic action – with Noah’s Flood and Sodom & Gomorrah.  God has also made a promise that this level of judgment would not occur again until the final judgment.  Until that time suffering will be a part of the human experience.

In 1998 I read a challenging quote from the United Nations.  It said that if everyone in the developed world gave the cost of a cappuccino each week to combat world poverty, there would be no poverty.  How amazing is that?  $4 a week could eradicate world poverty.  Obviously, that has not happened and so we must conclude that most people in the wealthier nations don’t even give $4 a week to help others – a sad indictment indeed.

There are lots of great things being done around the world that are making a massive difference to those who are suffering, but there needs to be more.  As Edmund Burke once said, “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”

Ultimately suffering is an alien intrusion into God’s world.  Jesus fought against suffering wherever He came across it.  He fed the hungry, healed the sick and preached Good News.  He calls his people to do the same: to love and be compassionate to those who are suffering, not condemning.  To rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn (Romans 12:15), and to help relieve human suffering whenever we have the opportunity.

Ever met a judgmental Christian?  You probably have, there are plenty around – people who are ready to point out something that is wrong in someone else’s life, making the person feel put down, excluded, and marginalized.  It baffles me as to why some people feel that they have a right to judge others when Jesus taught on several occasions “Do not judge” (Luke 6:37; Matthew 7:1).  It doesn’t get any clearer than that, does it?

Christians are to assess things according to the Word of God but we must never condemn people with the Word.  We need to express God’s truth without being judgmental and condemning.  We can feel strongly about something but we must never be arrogant or lacking in compassion.

Next time you’re tempted to be judgmental ask yourself:

  • What is my reason for wanting to correct or judge?
  • Is it for their benefit or to satisfy my pride and self-righteousness?
  • Am I more focused on condemning people than helping them?
  • Is love for them my motivating force?

“Love endures long and is patient and kind…it is not arrogant and inflated with pride; it is not rude…it is not self-seeking.  Love…is ever ready to believe the best of every person…” (1 Corinthians 13:4-6AMP)

And remember, Jesus doesn’t judge people.  He said, “I did not come to judge the world, but to save it” (John 12:47).  And so if we are like Jesus, we won’t judge people either: “Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” (Romans 14:4)

The Bible asks a great question in James 4:12, “who are you to judge your neighbour?”  Nowhere are we told to judge our neighbour.  Quite the contrary, we are instructed to love our neighbour as we love ourselves.

God sees us as less than perfect and responds to us with grace and not judgment!  Should we do any less for others?

In the book Unchristian, David Kinnaman states:

“Many outsiders … believe Christians have a right (even an obligation) to pursue political involvement, but they disagree with our methods and our attitudes.  They say we seem to be pursuing an agenda that benefits only ourselves; they assert that we expect too much out of politics; they question whether we are motivated by our economic status rather than faith perspectives when we support conservative politics; they claim we act and say things in an unchristian manner; they wonder whether Jesus would use political power as we do; and they are concerned that we overpower the voices of other groups.”

There is no doubt that the church is often seen as politically conservative.  That is, if you’re a real Christian you’ll vote for and support the Right rather than the Left. Christians get blindsided when they think the Right can do no wrong.  The truth is that sometimes the Right is right and sometimes the Right is wrong.  Sometimes the Left is right and sometimes the Left is wrong.

The church is also seen as politically negative – we are always anti.  We are anti-abortion, anti-gay marriage, anti-euthanasia and so on.  But we are often perceived as being “anti from a distance” without compassionately listening to people’s stories or engaging with them.

The solution to these perceptions is learning to engage in the right ways.  We need to Think, Act and Pray (TAP).

Kinnaman also believes “Christians should be known as engaged, informed, and on the leading edge, offering a sophisticated response to issues.”  I would agree. We are not called to Christianize our country – we cannot legislate faith.  Faith has to be a choice of the heart.  We are called to evangelize not Christianize!  The problem exists that sometimes our attitudes and opinions only serve to drive a wedge between us and people who God loves and Jesus died for.

The Bible calls us to act mercifully and respectfully in what we say and how we say it, especially towards those whose opinion differs from our own.  Consider James 2:12-13; Romans 14:1, 1 Corinthians 10:33, Gal 5:22-23, Col 3:12; and 1 Peter 3:15).

I believe it is vital to have a separation between church and state.  Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place” (see John 18:36 and Matthew 22:21).  Throughout history, whenever church and state have meddled with each other, the outcome has never been good.

Lastly, the church is called to pray for all those in authority in a nation, instead of complaining about and criticizing them (1 Timothy 2:1-4; Exodus 22:28).  A good rule to live by is “If you can see it, it’s not the enemy” (Ephesians 6:12). Our leaders are not the enemy, they are men and women who invariably work hard and make great sacrifices because they love their country.  Make a choice to make their job easier rather than a burden.

 

It’s time for the church to face facts.  The fact that many people’s perception of the church is that it’s too sheltered, boring, unintelligent and out of touch with reality.

This perception has come because of an unnecessary and unbiblical separation of the church from the world.  The perception is that the church is like a club that only certain people – good people – can join. How wrong this is.

The church is also seen as being separate from the supernatural world and therefore lacking in spiritual vitality.  During many of my teenage years, I had a fascination with the spirit world but didn’t see any spiritual life in the church or those who called themselves Christian.

There is also a perception that the church doesn’t encourage curiosity and questions and that Christianity doesn’t make sense and is not relevant to life.  It’s like “come to Jesus and cut off your head!”  Strange when you consider John 1:1 which says, “In the beginning was the Word (Logos = logic), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” I know we can’t understand everything about God, but the Christian message is the most logical and simple message; even a child can understand it!

The solution to this perception is a revolution where we engage with the world in the same way Jesus did – radical identification and radical difference.  Jesus radically identified with people – and not just the “good” people.  This was totally out of character for religious leaders of his day and the religious establishment was vicious to him as a result.  This didn’t stop Jesus from mixing and mingling with the up-and-out and the down-and-out because, as he said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17)  He realized there was no impact without contact.  The church is the salt of the earth, but to be truly effective, we need to get out of the shaker!

The flipside of this is a radical difference.  Jesus was accused of being a glutton and a drunkard, but he was neither.  He was holy and blameless. He mixed with the people of the world but He didn’t compromise with the world.  We would do well to follow His example.

Mark Metzger summarizes this succinctly: “Being salt and light demands two things: we practice purity in the midst of a fallen world and yet we live in proximity to this fallen world.  If you don’t hold up both truths in tension, you invariably become useless and separated from the world God loves.  For example, if you only practice purity apart from proximity to the culture, you inevitably become pietistic, separatist, and conceited.  If you live in close proximity to the culture without also living in a holy manner, you become indistinguishable from fallen culture and useless in God’s Kingdom.” (Fine Tuning Tensions within Culture: The Art of being Salt and Light).

Jesus put it this way: “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.”

Christians are accused of being too focused on getting converts and likened to telemarketers according to research conducted by David Kinnaman for the Barna Foundation.

While it horrifies me to think that Christians are seen to pester, in response to this criticism I would say, “Yes, I am out to convert people to Jesus because I believe He is the way and the truth and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him” (See John 14:6).

I believe people need to come to a point of personally accepting what Jesus Christ has done for them through His death and resurrection.  I believe that apart from Jesus people go to an eternity that is separated from God.  I believe that God’s will is for no one to perish but for everyone to come to repentance.  I believe God wants everyone to experience His abundant life now and eternal life forever.  On the basis of these beliefs, I share my faith in Jesus with others.  I tell people what He has done for me.  I tell them that He loves them too and wants the very best for them now and forever.

The problem, however, is the approach of some Christians to this task so that people feel targeted rather than befriended – a love with hooks.  In the book Unchristian, David Kinnaman says, “While we’re trying to convey the most important message in human history – that Jesus offers a new life through faith in him – something gets lost in translation … rather than being genuinely interested in people for their friendship, we often seem like spiritual headhunters.”

The solution to this perception is developing genuine relationships.  It is vitally important for Christians to demonstrate genuine interest and care towards others – love without hooks!  Listen to what the apostle Paul says about this: “Just as I myself strive to please [to accommodate myself to the opinions, desires, and interests of others, adapting myself to] all men in everything I do, not aiming at or considering my own profit and advantage, but that of the many in order that they may be saved.”  The word “please” literally means, “to seek to be agreeable.”  There is no room for obnoxious Bible-bashing in real Christianity!

Check out these words of wisdom:  “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” (1 Peter 3:15-16).  “The Lord’s servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone … Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth…” – gentleness, respect, kindness.  Now that’s refreshing!

Being a real Christian means that you will develop genuine relationships with others whereby they may be influenced (over the process of time) and transformed by Jesus who lives in and through you!  But if people never embrace your faith – never stop embracing them, because real Christianity is genuine!

 

One reason for the “hypocrite” tag is the way in which the Christian message has been promoted and taught over the years – predominantly as a religion of rules and regulations that even Christians can’t live up to.  People then measure us by our own standards – which we don’t fully keep – and then label us as hypocrites.  Jesus spoke about this: “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.  So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.” (Matthew 23:2-3)

There is an underlying belief, even amongst many Christians, that one can be saved by being and doing good – that is, by keeping the Ten Commandments.  But what does the New Testament say about the Ten Commandments?

In 2 Corinthians 3, the apostle Paul refers to them as “the ministry that brought death” and “the ministry that condemns men.”  Why?  The Law was never meant to be a way of salvation.  It was introduced in order to make us aware that, in our own efforts, we cannot attain the standard of God’s perfection.  Paul puts it this way, “Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.” (Romans 7:9).  That’s why he refers to the Law as “the ministry that brought death.”

The Law is like the black cloth that jewellers use to display their gems.  The black shows up the beauty and value of the gem in the same way that the blackness of the Law shows up the beauty and value of God’s grace.  The church was never meant to preach the Law as a standard for the world to follow – we don’t even live up to it ourselves, and this leads to accusations of hypocrisy

In his book Unchristian, David Kinnaman says, “Christians believe the primary reason outsiders have rejected Christ is that they cannot handle the rigorous standards of following Christ.  The unchristian faith – hypocritical, judgmental and full of empty moral striving – is what Paul warned his readers about.”  (See Galatians 3:3; 5:1, 13-15)

No one can live up to the “Christian image” of being good and not sinning. As a result because of the “wrong message” many Christians feel the need to project an image of “having it all together.  It’s at this point that hypocrisy is perceived.

The solution is radical transparency.  The Bible teaches that we will not attain perfection in this life.  We need to be honest and transparent about this.  God calls us to be authentic people – the real deal – not pretending to be something that we’re not:  “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8)

Does your life point people to a life in Christ that bursts with the freedom to love, restoration, purity and transparency?  Or are you burying people under the weight of a self-righteous life?

I love the way Leo Tolstoy articulates this: “Attack me, I do this myself, but attack me rather than the path I follow and which I point out to anyone who asks me where I think it lies.  If I know the way home and am walking along it drunkenly, is it any less the right way because I am staggering from side to side?”

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“Why are there so many hypocrites in the church?”  This is an often-heard question and impression that people outside the church have of Christians.  So, what is a Hypocrite?

The word was originally used by Greek and Roman actors who would use large masks and pretend to be something they were not.  The word came to be used by people who were externally religious but internally insincere.  Hypocrites care more about appearance than truth.  They’re more concerned with reputation than reality.

Of course, hypocrisy is nothing new.  Jesus scathingly denounced the religious hypocrites of his day and encouraged people to be sincere in their faith and pure in their motives.  Have a read of Matthew 23:1-36 to see the extent of Jesus’ anger towards religious hypocrites whom He viewed as “Whitewashed tombs full of dead men’s bones.”

There are still religious hypocrites around today.  I was turned off Christianity and became an atheist during my teenage years partly because of the hypocrisy I saw in one of my mate’s families, as well as at a Church of England Grammar School I attended.  If you have been turned off Christianity because of hypocrisy then allow me to apologize to you on their behalf.

People are genuinely disappointed when those who call themselves Christian don’t live up to the message they preach.  Some people who have sincerely sought truth have been turned away from the Christian faith because of hypocrisy.

Others use it as an excuse: “I won’t become a Christian because there are too many hypocrites in the church!”  I love motivational speaker Zig Ziglar’s response to this: “Why not?  We can handle another one!”

Why are there hypocrites in the Church?

– Because there are hypocritical people in all walks of life.
– Because there will always be counterfeits of the real thing.  For example, you’ll never find a counterfeit $7 note because there is no such thing as a $7 note.  The fact that there are counterfeit Christians around means there must be the real thing as well – that’s good news!
– Because some people call themselves Christian but they are really not.  They go to church, wear a cross, have a sticker on their car, and carry a big black Bible but they’ve never had a life-changing encounter with Jesus!
– Because some people have a wrong understanding of what a Christian really is.  Some have an enormous expectation that Christians need to be perfect.

But the reality is Christians are not perfect; they’re still under construction.  In fact, the first step to becoming a Christian is to acknowledge to yourself and to God that you cannot make it in your own strength.  The Bible says we all fall short of God’s standard of perfection – we all miss the mark (Romans 3:23).  That’s why we need God’s grace.  That’s what being a Christian is all about.

Why are there so many hypocrites in the church?  I have a better question for you:  Are you going to allow a hypocrite to deny you from having a life-changing relationship with your creator?  The fact is, if a hypocrite is standing between you and God, the hypocrite is closer to God than you are!

According to Melbourne’s Herald Sun Newspaper (Saturday, October 3, 2009) “Australians are in danger of succumbing to “compassion fatigue” with multiple disasters leaving charities in critical need.”  The paper went on to quote UNICEF Australia spokesman Martin Thomas who said “there is certainly always a great danger of compassion fatigue…when we have seen disaster after disaster.”

Compassion fatigue is apparently what sets in when there have been too many disasters and we all get fed up with having to dig deep again and again to help alleviate human suffering. Of course, such a condition could only be named and blamed in a self-indulgent, prosperous western nation such as ours. “I’m so sorry, I’d love to help out but I’m suffering too – from compassion fatigue” – give me a break!

In a country where the poorest person is still in the top 8% of the world’s wealthy, we are in danger of committing the sin of Sodom.  The prophet Ezekiel had this to say about this former city: “Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy” (Ezekiel 16:49). It’s a fascinating verse especially as much of the church think that Sodom was destroyed because it was full of gay people. Ezekiel reveals that God’s anger burned against the people of this city because they had plenty of time and plenty of resources (just like us) but they didn’t give a rip about those in need – the poor dears suffered from compassion fatigue – and paid the ultimate price!

I’m told there are over 2000 references in the Bible to the responsibility of those who have to help those who have not. Obviously, this is a major topic on the mind of God. And we better get used to it because Jesus prophesied that there would be an increase of natural disasters leading up to His Second Coming (see Matthew 24:7).  This prophecy is highly concerning, but at the same time, it offers a wonderful opportunity for we Christians to demonstrate our counter cultural hearts.  So, “let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers” (Galatians 6:9-10).

If I hear someone say one more time, “Well, we’ve just got to love the sinner and hate the sin” – I’m gonna scream! Christians quote this like it’s a Bible verse – right next to “God helps those who help themselves” and “cleanliness is next to godliness!”  But where is it in the Bible?  The Book of Hezekiah?  Paul’s letter to the Deuteronomy’s? Each section of this statement is true – God does love sinners and hates sin. But here’s the problem, as a collective statement it’s not true.

The real problem with “Love the sinner; hate the sin” is that it is rarely meant. It is really just a Christian-sounding platitude aimed at people whose behaviour we really struggle with; people whose sin we really hate and people that, if we were brutally honest, we don’t really love. This statement just salves our conscience and makes us feel like we’re being Christian when we are really displaying unchristian attitudes towards others.

Of course, the only way we can really know if we love the sinner is by spending time with them and helping them when they’re in need. How do we really feel about the drug addict with needle scars and missing teeth? What is our real attitude towards the homeless person who hasn’t bathed or changed their clothes for days or weeks? Do we really love the gay man or woman at work (or in our family) or do we merely tolerate them? Do we pretend to love people but then say derogatory things about them behind their back? We only know the true nature of our heart when we are confronted by someone we struggle with.  And let’s be honest about our struggles rather than hide behind “love the sinner; hate the sin.”

Another reason why this saying is so wrong is that often the sinner and the sin are inseparable. In other words, someone’s behaviour often defines him or her as a person so when we say we “hate the sin” what the person hears is “I hate you.” The Bible talks about loving the person – “For God so loved the world!” (John 3:16).

The statement “Love your neighbour as yourself” is found nine times in the Bible – divine emphasis for a reason.  In Galatians 5:14 the apostle Paul says that this truth sums up the entire law.  In James 2:8 this command is called “The Royal Law.”  Jesus illustrated how we are to love our neighbour as ourselves by telling the story of The Good Samaritan.  Samaritans were hated and despised by Jews in Jesus’ day. The Samaritans were half-cast Jews because they had intermarried with Gentiles.  They were viewed as worse than gentiles – the lowest of the low, the greatest sinners.  Jesus could not have found a more powerful illustration to prove His point. He didn’t teach “Love the sinner; hate the sin.”  He taught “Love the person like they were you.”  May this challenge us to the core of our faith!