LOVE VS. HATE

 

A Civil War of the Heart

 

by Yashah Ben-Y'shua

 

 

As we all know, certain factions among the Hebrew Israelite-aware have put forward the idea that YAH is not ALL love, but possesses hate as well. Obviously and understandably, this controversial position has caused great division and stirred intense debate within the community at-large.

As always beloved, as with all things under the sun; coming to terms with anger and hatred must be accomplished within a BALANCED approach!

 

For example, it is written, "...if any man say I love YAH and hates his brother, he is a liar..." (1 Yehochanan [John] 14:20). Surely, love of the brethren is the outstanding identifying trait of the faithful remnant of Yisrael in Messiah/Christ...

 

The very Messiah Himself made this crystal clear, saying, "A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another." (Yehochanan) [John] 13:34,35). No doubt.

And yet it is also written, "ABHOR (utterly detest) that which is evil... " (Rom. 12:9). In Christ, is this intense hatred not a divine tool - a CRITICAL motivating factor in our war against the forces of darkness?

After all, Y'shua become IRATE at the irreverence of the money changers in the temple! 

Is it not written that our meek and gentle Savior made a 'whip' and physically drove them out? And Tehillim [Psalms] 2, for example, tells us that even YAH Himself, concerning the enemies of Yisrael, shall "...speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure."

 

The truth is, the opposite of love is not hate - it's FEAR. Our Father Himself actually acknowledges His own hate (for he that sows discord among brethren, as an example) - and yet He is not only in possession of love, He IS love!

 

And thus profoundly, there is hate within love... Sélah.

Clearly, love and hate can and must co-exist simultaneously within a mature citizen of the Kingdom! After all, if one has no strong hatred for evil - even for that which is yet in ones own flesh - he will lack the motivation to overcome it, and will simply learn to "adjust." YAH forbid!!

But as it is written, there is no FEAR in love - but PERFECT love casts out fear! And obviously, while unconsecrated hatred can be both physically and psychologically crippling; FEAR is the REAL threat - the truly destructive emotion we must root out and destroy!

Finally brethren, we're living in an utterly untoward generation...

We as the faithful remnant must no longer deny the inevitable anger and hatred experienced by us ALL, in the face of injustice - even as a well-meaning attempt to please our Father! We must learn to sanctify our justifiable anger and hatred in Ruakh Ha Qodesh (the Holy or Set Apart Spirit) - a kind of Divine anger management, if you will - rather than continuing to follow an undoable, unscriptural, and hypocritical doctrine of men...

As it is written, "Be angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath." (Eph. 4:26). Ahmein.

 

Hear O Yisrael - Let us no longer allow anger and hatred to fester in our hearts until our lives are toxic with bitterness before YAH. But rather, let us purge ourselves from the old leaven, that we may be a sweet savor unto our ABBA in heaven - and to our precious brothers and sisters, who are after all, our very companions in tribulation!

 

Shalom Aleichem!