The world hates you
1 John 3v13
10th February 2023
1 John 3v13
Don't be surprised my brothers if the world hates you.
There are exactly two kingdoms in this universe: the kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness. There's no third kingdom. And in this passage, John uses the phrase "The world" to mean the kingdom of darkness, that which is opposed to God. Either you're on God's side, or you're against God. There is no middle ground. Don't be surprised if some of those who are opposed to God hate you.
It is true that many non-Christians don't hate you. Some non-Christians are God-fearing people. They respect God (or the idea of God) and they accept - to some extent - that God has the right to tell us what is right and wrong. They know the way the world works is not good. Some non-Christians are seeking God at this moment. Some are finding Him, and so escaping from the kingdom of darkness into God's kingdom, from the world into the church. They're changing sides.
But many non-Christians hate the very idea of God, and will oppose us. Some, who would like to believe that what they like to do is not immoral, hate the Bible, and so they hate the God of the Bible, and the people who believe the Bible - us.
Don't be surprised if those who want to make up rules for themselves hate those who want to obey the Scriptures. Don't be surprised if those who help society to shape itself according to its own ideas hate those who stand up for what God says is right. If Cain killed his brother because his brother was blessed by God and he wasn't (verse 12 and Genesis, Chapter 4) what will the world do to us?
We know that the Christians who live in this country get off pretty lightly but around the world, Christians are imprisoned, tortured and killed for believing in Jesus. Why does the world hate us? The same reason that Cain hated Abel.
We have righteousness imputed from God. We have the Holy Spirit. We have Christian consciences. We seek to obey Scripture. And the world hates all that because the world wants to do things its own way.
Paul understood this, and wrote:
2 Timothy 3v12
In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be
persecuted.
But that doesn't give us the right to keep our heads down, and choose to withdraw from the world. We're called to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28v19).
Remember that John wrote, "Sin is lawlessness" (verse 4). You and I must stand up for God's law. I hope we do it gently, kindly and respectfully, but some people will hate you because you speak up for what is right. You understand that it's God who gets to determine what is right. It's His writ that runs in our hearts (Jeremiah 31v33) in our lives and on our tongues.
Or, at least, it should be.