Dan’s Bible Fellowship Class

When the kids were coming up I’d hear them say from time to time, “I hate this” or “I hate that.”  I taught them that we don’t “hate” in our family, so they shouldn’t use that word.  I’ve just always thought that “hate” was such a strong emotion that it should not be easily spent.

This morning, as I ready Proverbs 11:20, I thought about what God hates.  I wondered what does God really “hate”.  Of course, it’s obvious that God hates sin.  Do I hate sin?  What would that, i.e. my hatred for sin look like?

Proverbs 11:20 states it like this:  “Those who are of a perverse heart are an abomination to the LORD, But the blameless in their ways are His delight.”  So here it’s easily seen that if a person has a “perverse heart” then God finds him to be an abomination.  (Of course, notwithstanding that, God still reaches out to him with the gift of Jesus, so that his heart would be changed in an instant and his eternity re-written.)  I looked back a few chapters to Chapter 6 to see what God said about what he considers an abomination.    God actually says he hates these things:

Proverbs 6:16-19:

These six things the LORD hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:  A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.

1.  A proud look. This is a pride that says, “Look at me”, “look at what I’ve done”, rather than saying “look at Him” or “look what He has done for me.”  This proud look says, “It’s all about me.”  Therefore it denies that, “It’s all about Him (Jesus).”

2.  A lying tongue. Enough said.  How many people do you know that you can say, “If she said it, I can absolutely take it to the bank.”  Sometimes I think that the first lie that is told from the witness stand in court is when the witness takes the oath.

3.  Hands that shed innocent blood. We turn on the news every night and we see over and over again, those who kill take lives as if the life means nothing.  Every life is precious to Him who gave His Son.

4.  A heart that devises wicked plans. Proverbs 11:20 talks about a perverse heart.  Wickedness and righteousness cannot cohabitate the same body.

5.  Feet that are swift in running to evil.  These last four are all connected.  Have you noticed how much effort is expended in causing trouble rather than building people up?

6.  A false witness who speaks lies.  Perhaps this is a restatement of No. 2.  Or perhaps God is talking about someone who is lying “about” another.  One who has become a “false witness.”  No. 2 is likely a lie about you; about something you’ve done or will do.  No. 6 is a lie about another’s actions or person.  God hates both.

7.  This is an abomination to God: One who sows discord among brethren.  Because the church (the body of believers) is supposed to be different than the general population, it is an abomination for a believer to sew discord among other believers.  I’ve heard it said that the church is its on worse enemy.  That’s not God’s plan.  In fact, it is an abomination to God.

So what is God telling me here?

First, He says, “Look at the things that I absolutely hate.”  Take note of them.  If I hate them, then you should hate them.

Second, I’ve got to be on constant guard in my daily living to be sure that the “grays” of decision making don’t put me into one of the seven above.

I need to go back and re-read those.