Love and hate are seen as the two most powerful emotions that humans can experience. You've probably heard the phrase "there is a thin line between love and hate" at some point. This means that the difference between loving someone and hating them can sometimes be a little more unclear than many would like to admit. Perhaps the reason love and hatred are so closely connected is that the two emotions have many of the same components. Both love and hate express intense emotions. Love and hate in a relationship are directed at another person. Because your love is so precisely-focused on someone close to you, you tend to expect your love to be reciprocated. No one else can satisfy that desire. So, when they don't love you the way you love them, your disappointment can quickly turn to hate. When you have feelings of love or hate, those emotions can take over your life. Literally, when you are happy in love, sometimes you can't eat or sleep in the same vein, when you are unhappy in love, you lose your appetite and you are unable to rest.
Love and hate seem like opposites. When it comes to love, particularly romantic love, few ever experience this sensation, and when they do, it feels magical. There are people you're attracted to, people you like, but few who you love, I mean really love. Meanwhile, hate is the opposite. Very few people want to say that they hate someone because it's such a strong word. There are people you dislike, people you don't care for, but people you hate? It's only reserved for those who are the worst. Some don't believe you should hate anybody. Hatred is a feeling that can be both Godly and sinful depending on what it is that is causing us to hate. The Bible speaks of loving God and hating evil. The more we become like Christ and understand the love of God, the more we will hate hypocrisy, godlessness, and evil of the world. However, we are also warned over and over in the Bible of how hatred and bitterness can destroy us. God tells us in Scripture that hate is a heart issue and that someone who hates a brother is a murderer! (1 John 3:15) We are encouraged to love one another, keep short records of wrongs, and forgive others, not harboring bitterness or anger in our hearts. The word of God instructs us to LOVE our enemies.
Luke 6:27-30 The Message (MSG)
“To you who are ready for the truth, I say this: Love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer for that person. If someone slaps you in the face, stand there and take it. If someone grabs your shirt, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. If someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously." My god-father Bishop James Nelson, Sr. often told us, if someone did us wrong, pay them, buy them a gift. Understanding that hate can grow and spread like cancer, but LOVE breeds LOVE. So, if you are faced with a situation to Love or to Hate, I pray that you will always choose Love. "Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love makes up for many of your faults."
1 Peter 4:8 Living Bible (TLB)
Let Love Prevail.
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