Obviously, I am writing this question being very qualified in the area of Sin. Please, I do not think for a moment that you, the reader, also share any claim to ultimate perfection. I have written elsewhere about the Biblical definition of Sin. I am keenly aware that some of us have justified what is displeasing to the Lord by minimizing what we personally struggle with. For some of us, we have totally disqualified ourselves from any form of grace due to our sins. But does God really hate Sin as much as we think, or are we simply exaggerating His displeasure? Scripture seems to be clear;
“For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. You destroy those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.” (Psalm 5:4-6).
There almost seems to be a progression to God’s hatred of sinful people. A passage from the Prophet Hosea (9:15) states;
“Every evil of theirs is in Gilgal; there I began to hate them. Because of the wickedness of their deeds I will drive them out of my house. I will love them no more; all their princes are rebels.”.
Clearly, there seems to be an agony of God’s displeasure. There is almost the idea that God, in His perfection, cannot stay connected to those that are absorbed by their sin intending to keep at it. Tolerance! we cry; God needs to be more tolerant of us! On the above-mentioned scripture, the Pulpit Commentary says;
“Gilgal had been the scene of many mercies; there the rite of circumcision, the seal of the Abrahamic covenant, after its omission dining the sojourn in the wilderness, was renewed; there the Passover, also intermitted from its second observance at Sinai, was kept; there the twelve memorial stones had been set up; there the Captain of the host of the Lord had appeared to Joshua, reassuring him of Divine protection; there the tabernacle had stood before its removal to Shiloh; yet that very place – a place of such blessing and solemn covenanting-had become the scene of idolatry and iniquity.”
Gilgal, where God’s Grace shone, became the very place where His grace and fatherhood were trampled. Imagine that, that which was once a signet of blessing now becomes a sign of the curse. God announces judgment upon His beloved people; he begins to abhor them. They become more fallen while God is present among them. And God ultimately rejects them because of their persistent stubbornness. They clearly perceive God’s goodness as a weakness; they clearly see their freedom as an opportunity to sneak in what they lust for. And so, the process of Sin is established in the camp, and God moves slowly but surely to the backend of their priority list. God is just the distant father figure that they relate to when they seem to look for advice or protection when they are in need or need something for their own gain. Sounds familiar? This is the road to sacrilege, the path to disdain. The small compromises that seem to bring us to places of unrest. Yes, Sin, what we have chosen to separate us from our Father. One website explains that;
“God hates sin because it is the very antithesis of His nature. The psalmist describes God’s hatred of sin this way: “For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; no evil dwells with You” (Psalm 5:4). God hates sin because He is holy; holiness is the most exalted of all His attributes (Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 4:8). His holiness totally saturates His being. His holiness epitomizes His moral perfection and His absolute freedom from blemish of any kind (Psalm 89:35; 92:15; Romans 9:14).”[1]
Sin is then to choose self and reject God. Sin is the denial of God’s very self. God hates sin not because He is intolerant, but because sin is the separation of man’s intentions and will from God. Sin mares us and leaves us empty. Sin is the epitome of the self-made man. Void of any form of goodness. Sin is a rebellion against our Father. Sin is a man trying to live separate from that which keeps him alive. Sin is a struggle against the best our Father has to offer. Does God still hate Sin? Oh Yes, He does! He hates it because it destroys us.
Selah.
Sources:
Leave A Comment