Together # 54
A Together of Battle
A Together of Battle
Together Hate Evil and Defeat It
copyright by Dick Wulf, 2018
Search for and destroy wickedness. Pursue battle at the gates of hell, not merely at the drawbridge of your own castle. Receive holy scars with honor.
Ps 97:10; Amos 5:15; Rom 12:9; 1 Peter 2:1
Christians are to hate evil, not just dislike it. And, whenever possible, they are to work together to defeat it.
In the Old Testament is written this command: ‘Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is. Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts.” That is Amos, Chapter 5, verses 14 and 15. After Jesus died for us and rose to life again, the Apostle Paul wrote to us in Romans 12:9: “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.”
Hatred of evil is the way to keep from doing evil. To hate evil is to detest it and want to have nothing personally to do with it. As God’s people, we need to keep eliminating one evil after another that resides within our spirits. Also, as God’s people, we are to oppose evil in society.
While we often must be around evil, our attitude and emotions can hate it. We are called to hate the evil, but not the evil doer. Hatred as an act is a sin. Hatred as an attitude of intolerance of evil that prevents us from going along with it is something altogether different. We are never to judge the evil doer, which is God’s privilege, not ours. Separating the evil from the one who does it is very difficult. Fortunately, we are not instructed to not be angry with the evil doer. In fact, whenever possible, we are to do what we can to stop those who do evil.
Let’s use greed to explore what it means for Christians to hate evil because the love of money is the root of so many evils.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
1 Tim 6:10a
1 Tim 6:10a
For example, because bending the truth to achieve a sale is “just a part of life” is no excuse for not hating it – we must have nothing to do with such behavior. “Accepting” that greed drives many people’s actions must not mean that we “agree” with it.
Whenever placed in a position by God to defeat greed, we should want to take action. Having nothing to do with evil means being separate from it and, yet, fighting it if we can. If we have a friend who is in the grip of greed, we can only hesitate to take action if we are not yet strong enough to resist it. And, then, only when we have guidance from the Holy Spirit and other Christians on how to help our friend trapped by greed.
It is extremely valuable to grow in the ability to hate and defeat evil together with those Christians closest to us. With them we can not only help each other hate the evil around us, but, sometimes work together to defeat it.
We especially need those we trust to get rid of the evil inside of us. Evil thoughts, evil attitudes and evil actions can come all too easily from the old selves in us. If we hate evil, then we have to look inside of ourselves and see what specific evil comes to mind that lives within us. Our hatred of that evil will fuel our goal to rid ourselves of that malevolence.
Hating greed means not envying those whose greed has gotten them fortune. We can’t say, “That isn’t right” and wish at the same time that we had the fruits of deceit and greed. We should have such abhorrence of greed whenever we see it in ourselves that we confess it to God and our closest Christian friends. Then we must ask the Holy Spirit as well as those in our Christian Inner Circles to help us purge ourselves of that greed.
Since we can hardly do anything for God without one another’s help, hating wickedness is something that Christians must do together. It should be obvious that an individual Christian cannot truly hate evil in many cases without the help of his or her closest Christian friends and relatives. As friends do things together and talk about a variety of subjects, they have ample opportunity to express the attitude of hate for the evils that come to their attention. Family members must help one another grow in hatred of evil if children are to avoid the influences of evil at school and with non-Christian playmates. And, husbands and wives are the first responders for each other as they are daily assaulted by evil and tempted to do evil.
Back to “greed” as our example.
In the smaller relationships of Christian friendship groups, Christian families, and Christian marriages, greed will be exposed and can be effectively battled. From off-hand comments to out-and-out desires, we can identify in one another greed and the things produced by greed. We have the trust and earned the right by past selfless love to bring these to light and correction. If we challenged each other to identify one aspect of greed living within our thoughts, emotions or actions every month, it probably would not be too difficult. Thus together we could hate greed and be freed from disappointing desire.
Whenever placed in a position by God to defeat greed, we should want to take action. Having nothing to do with evil means being separate from it and, yet, fighting it if we can. If we have a friend who is in the grip of greed, we can only hesitate to take action if we are not yet strong enough to resist it. And, then, only when we have guidance from the Holy Spirit and other Christians on how to help our friend trapped by greed.
It is extremely valuable to grow in the ability to hate and defeat evil together with those Christians closest to us. With them we can not only help each other hate the evil around us, but, sometimes work together to defeat it.
We especially need those we trust to get rid of the evil inside of us. Evil thoughts, evil attitudes and evil actions can come all too easily from the old selves in us. If we hate evil, then we have to look inside of ourselves and see what specific evil comes to mind that lives within us. Our hatred of that evil will fuel our goal to rid ourselves of that malevolence.
Hating greed means not envying those whose greed has gotten them fortune. We can’t say, “That isn’t right” and wish at the same time that we had the fruits of deceit and greed. We should have such abhorrence of greed whenever we see it in ourselves that we confess it to God and our closest Christian friends. Then we must ask the Holy Spirit as well as those in our Christian Inner Circles to help us purge ourselves of that greed.
Since we can hardly do anything for God without one another’s help, hating wickedness is something that Christians must do together. It should be obvious that an individual Christian cannot truly hate evil in many cases without the help of his or her closest Christian friends and relatives. As friends do things together and talk about a variety of subjects, they have ample opportunity to express the attitude of hate for the evils that come to their attention. Family members must help one another grow in hatred of evil if children are to avoid the influences of evil at school and with non-Christian playmates. And, husbands and wives are the first responders for each other as they are daily assaulted by evil and tempted to do evil.
Back to “greed” as our example.
In the smaller relationships of Christian friendship groups, Christian families, and Christian marriages, greed will be exposed and can be effectively battled. From off-hand comments to out-and-out desires, we can identify in one another greed and the things produced by greed. We have the trust and earned the right by past selfless love to bring these to light and correction. If we challenged each other to identify one aspect of greed living within our thoughts, emotions or actions every month, it probably would not be too difficult. Thus together we could hate greed and be freed from disappointing desire.
Seek good, not evil, that you may live.
Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you,
just as you say he is.
Hate evil, love good;
maintain justice in the courts.
Amos 5:14-15
Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you,
just as you say he is.
Hate evil, love good;
maintain justice in the courts.
Amos 5:14-15
We can lovingly point out that acquiring anything God does not give is unwise and disloyal. Acquiring things in legitimately honorable ways may be getting them by God’s gift, but through greed those things are gained in cooperation with the devil. Progress starts by friends, family members or spouses helping identify greed and aiding a confession. Then, if more help is needed, friends, family members or the spouse can bring in other forms of help, including other believers from our Christian Inner Circles.
There are more reasons that hating evil must be done together and not alone. Hatred is a strong emotion that requires Christians to keep it from progressing from being like God’s hatred to hateful actions that are sin. There is the wrong kind of hatred coming from the old self. It is the kind of hatred that exhibits itself in hatred of the evil doer, ungodly violence, defeat of evil by some other kind of evil, or an obnoxious show of disgust or disagreement.
We need to help one another make certain that our hatred is of the evil people do, not the people who do evil. Even if we were to have to kill someone as the only way to prevent murder and rape, God forbid, we are not allowed to hate or judge that person. This is usually so difficult as to require the help of others who follow Christ carefully. And it needs us all to remember that Satan is the source of all evil.
Hatred of an evil is often what gives us determination and energy to do something to stop it or repair its damage. When action can be taken, we need each other to see that we do not avoid the responsibility to act. Hatred of an evil is almost always the motivating force to push us to face and destroy it.
There are more reasons that hating evil must be done together and not alone. Hatred is a strong emotion that requires Christians to keep it from progressing from being like God’s hatred to hateful actions that are sin. There is the wrong kind of hatred coming from the old self. It is the kind of hatred that exhibits itself in hatred of the evil doer, ungodly violence, defeat of evil by some other kind of evil, or an obnoxious show of disgust or disagreement.
We need to help one another make certain that our hatred is of the evil people do, not the people who do evil. Even if we were to have to kill someone as the only way to prevent murder and rape, God forbid, we are not allowed to hate or judge that person. This is usually so difficult as to require the help of others who follow Christ carefully. And it needs us all to remember that Satan is the source of all evil.
Hatred of an evil is often what gives us determination and energy to do something to stop it or repair its damage. When action can be taken, we need each other to see that we do not avoid the responsibility to act. Hatred of an evil is almost always the motivating force to push us to face and destroy it.
“Hatred , as an emotional reaction to persons, and particularly as a reaction that spills over into antagonistic acts, is wrong for believers. Hatred, as a value judgment that guides us to have no contact with that which is wrong, is another matter entirely.” [Expository Dictionary of Bible Words, by Lawrence O. Richards, Regency Referent Library, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1985. Note: this is an excellent book for any serious student of the Bible.]
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Opportunity to Become More and More Like Jesus Christ
Jessica’s sister Angie lived a wild life before accepting Christ as her Savior. Recently Angie asked Jessica to help her turn from a lot of the evil things she participated in.
Jessica excitedly explained that this was a fantastic opportunity, not only for Angie to leave her past life behind, but for herself also to change to be more like Jesus. They agreed that together they would work at growing to hate the things Angie was involved in that hurt her and others as well. Jessica explained that hating something meant to separate from it, which was exactly what Angie wanted to do. One of the things Angie wanted to turn away from was leading men on. Therefore, Jessica began many discussions about the evil that giving false hope to men could cause. They kept talking until it was evident that Angie began to hate such insincere manipulation and the hurt it caused. Angie was thrilled when she became like Jesus and treated men she met with respect. |
God hates all evils, many of them specifically mentioned in Scripture. If God hates evil and Jesus is the exact representation of God, then Jesus hates evil. Having nothing to do with evil is to be like Jesus.
To be like Jesus, we will want to hate all evil that comes to our attention, listening to which of them He wants us to do something about. Jesus pointed out evil, and we can do the same. Certainly, He prayed about them, and we can do the same. Sometimes He reversed evil’s effects, and sometimes we can do the same.
Jesus died on the cross to rescue us from evil. Before we accepted Christ as our Savior, we were trapped by sin. No matter how moral and ethical we were, sin and evil still separated us from God. We could not be absolutely pure and gain entrance into God’s kingdom. And, so, Jesus freed us from the grips of evil. And to become like Him deep down in our spirits, we, too, must free ourselves and others from evil. We cannot look at another Christian’s bad situation caused by evil and not do whatever it is that we are capable of doing to be of help. We need to hate evil’s grip on those in our Christian Inner Circles, those relationships where we bear more responsibility because God has put us together, and act in prayer and other helpful actions.
Jesus spoke out against the legalism and traditions set up by the Jewish religious leaders because He knew that they were harmful. The religious things people were forced to do by social pressure and Jewish law were heavy burdens placed on otherwise difficult life. We, too, can stand against any ritualistic burdens of Christian legalism and Christian culture that weighs down our friends and family members.
To become continually more and more like Jesus in hating evil and attacking sin, let’s pray every day against some evil we encounter, some evil we learn about from the news media, or some evil we read about in our Bibles. Let’s keep ourselves from being complacent about evil.
Opportunity to Worship God
To be like Jesus, we will want to hate all evil that comes to our attention, listening to which of them He wants us to do something about. Jesus pointed out evil, and we can do the same. Certainly, He prayed about them, and we can do the same. Sometimes He reversed evil’s effects, and sometimes we can do the same.
Jesus died on the cross to rescue us from evil. Before we accepted Christ as our Savior, we were trapped by sin. No matter how moral and ethical we were, sin and evil still separated us from God. We could not be absolutely pure and gain entrance into God’s kingdom. And, so, Jesus freed us from the grips of evil. And to become like Him deep down in our spirits, we, too, must free ourselves and others from evil. We cannot look at another Christian’s bad situation caused by evil and not do whatever it is that we are capable of doing to be of help. We need to hate evil’s grip on those in our Christian Inner Circles, those relationships where we bear more responsibility because God has put us together, and act in prayer and other helpful actions.
Jesus spoke out against the legalism and traditions set up by the Jewish religious leaders because He knew that they were harmful. The religious things people were forced to do by social pressure and Jewish law were heavy burdens placed on otherwise difficult life. We, too, can stand against any ritualistic burdens of Christian legalism and Christian culture that weighs down our friends and family members.
To become continually more and more like Jesus in hating evil and attacking sin, let’s pray every day against some evil we encounter, some evil we learn about from the news media, or some evil we read about in our Bibles. Let’s keep ourselves from being complacent about evil.
Opportunity to Worship God
Walt is a single parent with 3 kids, all under the age of 12. His wife died two years ago. He is a great father, always wanting what is best for his kids. He especially pays attention to teaching them about God. Lately, he has been trying to help them understand God’s holiness.
Walt has been asking the kids to list things that are evil. The family has discussed many things the children have identified as bad, such as bullying and stealing. They help one another understand why these bad things are evil. Walt teaches them to have the strong negative feeling of hatred, or very great dislike, for each evil thing. At the same time he helps the kids to be compassionate for the kids who do the bad things and not hate them, but just hate what they do. This is a complicated lesson, but one that needs to be taught carefully. Walt explains that some kids doing bad things do not have the Holy Spirit’s help because they are not believers in Jesus. He also explains that those who are Christians are not yet letting God help them to become the new person they can be – and that is also sad. Walt helps his children know for sure that God does not do each specific evil discussed. Here is how Walt teaches God’s holiness. God is the opposite of a bully. God doesn’t steal. God is pure good. Each time a child understands a specific evil and hates it because it is not like God, a very valuable act of worship occurs. |
God has no evil in Him. He is absolutely holy and pure. He cannot be a part of anything evil.
Hating evil is recognizing and adopting God’s purity and exalts God in lifestyle worship. Indifference or tolerating evil with no mental resistance and prayer against it is an abomination that dishonors God. If we want to hold God in high esteem, not just say we do, we will hate evil.
So, when we do not hate evil and separate ourselves from it, we are doing the opposite of honoring God and worshiping Him. To worship God is to reflect back to Himself His own character. And, that is purity from evil – holiness!
Scripture points out a few of the things God hates. These include things easy to hate like child sacrifice (Deut 12), sacred stones (Deut 16), haughty eyes (Proverbs 6), and hands that shed innocent blood (Proverbs 6). And then there is a lying tongue, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers (5 more from Proverbs 6), divorce, and a man covering himself with violence (last 2 from Malachi).
If we want to stand with God in His purity, we will seek out evil to stand against it in whatever way we can. And, we want to especially hate those things that will cause God to hate our worship.
Hating evil is recognizing and adopting God’s purity and exalts God in lifestyle worship. Indifference or tolerating evil with no mental resistance and prayer against it is an abomination that dishonors God. If we want to hold God in high esteem, not just say we do, we will hate evil.
So, when we do not hate evil and separate ourselves from it, we are doing the opposite of honoring God and worshiping Him. To worship God is to reflect back to Himself His own character. And, that is purity from evil – holiness!
Scripture points out a few of the things God hates. These include things easy to hate like child sacrifice (Deut 12), sacred stones (Deut 16), haughty eyes (Proverbs 6), and hands that shed innocent blood (Proverbs 6). And then there is a lying tongue, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers (5 more from Proverbs 6), divorce, and a man covering himself with violence (last 2 from Malachi).
If we want to stand with God in His purity, we will seek out evil to stand against it in whatever way we can. And, we want to especially hate those things that will cause God to hate our worship.
“The Bible tells us that God also hates hypocritical worship offered by those whose lifestyles show that his moral standards have been ignored. (Isa 1:13-15; Amos 5:21)” [Lawrence O. Richards, Expository Dictionary of Bible Words, page 325, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1985.]
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Since hating evil is distancing ourselves from sin mentally and emotionally, it produces holiness. We worship God by keeping ourselves as pure as we can to honor him. If we yield to the indwelling Holy Spirit, He will help our spirits, our deepest selves, repel at what is dark. Deep down inside we are children of light and hate the dark things.
Tolerance of evil may be hidden from discovery in larger church fellowships. However, in Christian friendships, family interactions and marital relationships even small evils can be spotted. That is why hating evil must be done within our Christian Inner Circles helped by our Christian friends, Christian family members, and Christian marriage partners.
To love God sincerely, we need to hate evil and cling to what is good. To make sure we grow in loving God sincerely, we need each other’s help to hate evil and hold on to what is good.
Tolerance of evil may be hidden from discovery in larger church fellowships. However, in Christian friendships, family interactions and marital relationships even small evils can be spotted. That is why hating evil must be done within our Christian Inner Circles helped by our Christian friends, Christian family members, and Christian marriage partners.
To love God sincerely, we need to hate evil and cling to what is good. To make sure we grow in loving God sincerely, we need each other’s help to hate evil and hold on to what is good.
Love must be sincere.
Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
Romans 12:9
Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
Romans 12:9
Hating and defeating evil is a reflection of God’s victorious opposition to sin. So, when together we go out to fight big battles with evil, we honor God and act like Him. When friends, families, and couples pursue holiness together, there will be significant growth in worship of God through the hatred of evil.
How Used in Battle to Defeat Evil and Satan
How Used in Battle to Defeat Evil and Satan
Bob and Gloria live in a small neighborhood where a few neighbors have sown dissension and spread false rumors. They hate the evil that has hurt so many of their friends. They recognize in their conversation and prayers that God is not destructive and ask Him what they might do to defeat what is happening. They hope that they can glorify God by undoing the unneighborliness fostered by the devil.
Working together, Bob and Gloria invite households, one by one, to their home for a meal. They openly discuss with the adults the evil in neighbor relations. They ask each adult to join them in making the neighborhood friendlier. They explain that they serve God and that Jesus, who saved them from insecurity and the need to be better than others, has told them that making the neighborhood safer through better relationships is needed. They ask what the neighbors think of such things as a Neighborhood Watch group where people watch out for one another’s home and belongings. Furthermore, Bob and Gloria realize that it is their hatred of evil and disgust of what was going on that helped them see a vision of God’s purity. |
Christians are commanded not only to feel great disgust for anything contrary to God, but also to go out as an army to defeat it.
Jesus came to defeat evil.
Jesus came to defeat evil.
The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.
1 John 3:8
1 John 3:8
He also does this through us today.
I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.
Matt 16:18
Matt 16:18
Part of glorifying God is attacking the gates of hell and defeating evil. Hating evil means being separate from it and having nothing to do with it. So, approaching evil and defeating it is best done by those who by hatred and disinterest are insulated from it’s power.
This battle with evil through hatred of it should not be done alone. We need the protection of other Christians hating and battling evil by our side. Christian friends, families and marriages need to battle evil as groups that hate evil, are separated from its power, and can watch each other’s back. In Scripture there is no clear example of Satan attacking two Christians together. It seems the devil does his most damaging work against Christians when they are alone.
Let’s talk a little more about finding evil inside of us and hating it. All of us have a bunch of things in us that are not purely good. So, we have work to do to find those things and begin to hate that they are part of our spirits. We want to spend our lives identifying one evil in us to hate and defeat after another. If we have jealousy, greed, self-centeredness, lack of desire for godliness, to name a few, we want to first grow to hate them and then use that hatred to defeat them and, in doing so, purify our spirits a little more.
Of course, to hate sin that resides in us, we need to be comfortable, at least in our own minds, that we are not perfect. Claiming that we do not have or do an evil is forbidden. Listen to what the Apostle John wrote in his first letter. 1 John 1:8-10 reads, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.”
We should want to be like the psalmist who said in Psalm 139:23 & 24: “Explore me, O God, and know the real me. Dig deeply and discover who I am. Put me to the test and watch how I handle the strain. Examine me to see if there is an evil bone in me, and guide me down Your path forever.” (That is from the Voice translation of the Bible.)
It is entirely safe for someone who has accepted Jesus Christ as her or his Savior to admit an evil in her or his life. That is what Jesus died for. It is part of what is called the “old self” that existed before we came to salvation in Jesus. It died when Jesus died on the cross and rose again. We have a “new self” that lives now. The “old self” is dead but still in us, and it is our job to clean house and get rid of it. We believers claim what is said in Galatians 2:20: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.”
When you and I find evil inside of ourselves, we need to know that is not who we are. We are to be dead to sin and evil and cast it out. Whatever evil we have found, does not belong in us, and with the help of the Holy Spirit we can simply disclaim it and act on it no longer. We have a new self that can do the opposite of whatever evil we have discovered.
For example, if we find ourselves lying, we need to hate that we have lied, but not hate ourselves. Let’s only hate that we lie and tell ourselves that lying is not a part of us any longer. Then let’s live in line with our redeemed spirit, not the old self that was there before we were changed by God and belonged to Him. We are new in Jesus Christ.
This battle with evil through hatred of it should not be done alone. We need the protection of other Christians hating and battling evil by our side. Christian friends, families and marriages need to battle evil as groups that hate evil, are separated from its power, and can watch each other’s back. In Scripture there is no clear example of Satan attacking two Christians together. It seems the devil does his most damaging work against Christians when they are alone.
Let’s talk a little more about finding evil inside of us and hating it. All of us have a bunch of things in us that are not purely good. So, we have work to do to find those things and begin to hate that they are part of our spirits. We want to spend our lives identifying one evil in us to hate and defeat after another. If we have jealousy, greed, self-centeredness, lack of desire for godliness, to name a few, we want to first grow to hate them and then use that hatred to defeat them and, in doing so, purify our spirits a little more.
Of course, to hate sin that resides in us, we need to be comfortable, at least in our own minds, that we are not perfect. Claiming that we do not have or do an evil is forbidden. Listen to what the Apostle John wrote in his first letter. 1 John 1:8-10 reads, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.”
We should want to be like the psalmist who said in Psalm 139:23 & 24: “Explore me, O God, and know the real me. Dig deeply and discover who I am. Put me to the test and watch how I handle the strain. Examine me to see if there is an evil bone in me, and guide me down Your path forever.” (That is from the Voice translation of the Bible.)
It is entirely safe for someone who has accepted Jesus Christ as her or his Savior to admit an evil in her or his life. That is what Jesus died for. It is part of what is called the “old self” that existed before we came to salvation in Jesus. It died when Jesus died on the cross and rose again. We have a “new self” that lives now. The “old self” is dead but still in us, and it is our job to clean house and get rid of it. We believers claim what is said in Galatians 2:20: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.”
When you and I find evil inside of ourselves, we need to know that is not who we are. We are to be dead to sin and evil and cast it out. Whatever evil we have found, does not belong in us, and with the help of the Holy Spirit we can simply disclaim it and act on it no longer. We have a new self that can do the opposite of whatever evil we have discovered.
For example, if we find ourselves lying, we need to hate that we have lied, but not hate ourselves. Let’s only hate that we lie and tell ourselves that lying is not a part of us any longer. Then let’s live in line with our redeemed spirit, not the old self that was there before we were changed by God and belonged to Him. We are new in Jesus Christ.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Eph 2:8-10
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We are to take responsibility for the safety of those in our inner circles. Evil is not to overcome any one of us. If we realize that we don’t need to be negative about the evils that still live within us, then we can give one another permission to point out evils we do not yet hate. This can happen in biblically inspired relationships between believers, where sincere love builds trust and transparency.
When we hate evil and defeat it in one another, this makes us powerful to go out and hate and defeat evil in the world. God’s people, even when they might not be able to do much, are to hate anything that is abominable to the Lord.
Just praying against those evils is great warfare. But, there will be times that the power of God’s love in us will eradicate some local evil such as family discord, child abuse, substance abuse, and unbelief.
Hating evil and defeating it is to walk away from a safe and comfortable life. We want to get to the point in our dedication to God that we suffer because we hate and fight evil. How humiliating it should be if we enter heaven with no scars from battling dragons.
Here’s an example of battling evil in the world. Office politics can be brutal. Someone always gets hurt. Therefore, two or three Christians at work can take their friendship to the Christian Olympic level. Instead of just enjoying one another and sharing Scripture and prayer, they can go further and determine to be conscious of Jesus in their midst. They will surely realize that Jesus yearns for each of them to distance herself or himself from any office behavior that does not build others up.
These “friends committed to Jesus” will first help one another stop any of their own cooperation with destructive office politics. They might have to help one of them know how to extricate himself or herself from gossip. They might have to help another friend stop pointing out to the boss other people’s faults with the motivation of getting a promotion through politics rather than superior performance and God’s favor.
Once a few months have gone by with this Christian office friendship being purified out of disgust of and hatred for the evil in office politics, they are ready to be used of God. They listen for ways Jesus wants them to act together to battle the office politics of others that makes the work environment so unsafe for some. Be assured that Jesus will have them battling the evil of office politics for months.
We need to hate evil on two battle fronts, ourselves and the world. There is daily battle to do in both places.
How in the Sinful Environment this Together Prepares Us for Heaven
When we hate evil and defeat it in one another, this makes us powerful to go out and hate and defeat evil in the world. God’s people, even when they might not be able to do much, are to hate anything that is abominable to the Lord.
Just praying against those evils is great warfare. But, there will be times that the power of God’s love in us will eradicate some local evil such as family discord, child abuse, substance abuse, and unbelief.
Hating evil and defeating it is to walk away from a safe and comfortable life. We want to get to the point in our dedication to God that we suffer because we hate and fight evil. How humiliating it should be if we enter heaven with no scars from battling dragons.
Here’s an example of battling evil in the world. Office politics can be brutal. Someone always gets hurt. Therefore, two or three Christians at work can take their friendship to the Christian Olympic level. Instead of just enjoying one another and sharing Scripture and prayer, they can go further and determine to be conscious of Jesus in their midst. They will surely realize that Jesus yearns for each of them to distance herself or himself from any office behavior that does not build others up.
These “friends committed to Jesus” will first help one another stop any of their own cooperation with destructive office politics. They might have to help one of them know how to extricate himself or herself from gossip. They might have to help another friend stop pointing out to the boss other people’s faults with the motivation of getting a promotion through politics rather than superior performance and God’s favor.
Once a few months have gone by with this Christian office friendship being purified out of disgust of and hatred for the evil in office politics, they are ready to be used of God. They listen for ways Jesus wants them to act together to battle the office politics of others that makes the work environment so unsafe for some. Be assured that Jesus will have them battling the evil of office politics for months.
We need to hate evil on two battle fronts, ourselves and the world. There is daily battle to do in both places.
How in the Sinful Environment this Together Prepares Us for Heaven
Paul and Fred belong to a group that watches football together. Everyone is Christian, but Paul and Fred are more aware than the others that Jesus is watching the games with them.
When Paul and Fred had lunch last August before the weekly football gatherings were to begin, they talked about their discomfort with some of the behavior during the games. They had come to realize that such behavior went far beyond just not being very good Christian behavior. Some of it downright insulted the Lord. They knew this because they, more than the others, had a good grasp of God’s holiness – His absolute separation from anything unloving or even slightly wrong. And, they were concerned because Jesus was invisibly in the room. Sometimes the guys made disrespectful comments about people on the screen. Sometimes they seemed to wish ill will for football players of the opposing team. But, Paul and Fred wondered if they were being too critical. Was Christian toleration called for? Or was it more important to guard God’s honor? Half way through their burgers Fred remembered Philippians 4:8. |
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true,
whatever is noble, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable
—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--
think about such things.”
whatever is noble, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable
—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--
think about such things.”
Eventually they realized that all of them watching football were missing a unique opportunity in that particular setting to become more like Jesus, even the more so because the Lord was there in the room to help them.
The first football game arrived! Filled with anticipation, the men gathered an hour early to get the grill going. While standing around in the late summer sun, Fred broached the subject: “Hey guys, Paul and I want to suggest something.” The men went on to make a firm conviction to help one another hate even the “little evils” that sprouted from their old selves. They would begin to point out to one another why some of the things they said were not holy. They would try to remember that even when watching football they were called to be separated from sin. Then it came to Jackson that if they learned to hate the wrong things they did, they would not only be becoming more like Jesus, but they would be preparing themselves to more clearly see God’s purity. “Surely,” he commented, “we will enter heaven with more ability to appreciate God. We want that. Right?” |
Hating evil is extremely valuable as preparation for the best experience in heaven. First and foremost, the more fiercely we hate evil, the more we will be amazed at God’s purity. Second, hating evil will determine the extent to which we realize and appreciate its wonderful absence in heaven – and the welcome peace that results.
First, let’s look at preparing ourselves for heaven by discovering with amazement God’s holiness and purity.
We can only grasp God’s holiness and separation from evil by hating evil ourselves and being separate from it. No one is pure and without sin and evil except God. Since purity is the absence of evil, we want to help one another hate evil to get glimpses of God’s amazing holiness.
In heaven we will be unable to grow in hatred of evil because there will be no evil there. Whatever sensitivity to God’s purity and holiness that comes from hating evil in the midst of it will have to be developed here and now. God’s holiness can really stand out in the midst of evil. Such vivid contrast will be absent in heaven.
We should want to have our friends, family and spouse help us hate evil in this sinful culture. There is something precious to be lost for all eternity if we do not.
It is like almost weightless pennies and heavy, old-time silver dollars. On one side of the coin is hatred of evil and on the other side is understanding of God’s purity and holiness. We start out with a penny in our pocket, a quite small hatred of evil in light of the huge amount of evil in our world. We have only a penny’s worth of appreciation for God’s purity and holiness. His separation from evil is limited by our restricted understanding and hatred of evil.
But, as we develop our hatred of evil and separate ourselves from it, we find we have a quarter in our pocket. Surely, we want a silver dollar eventually, don’t we? We want to grow in our ability to hate evil and have greater and greater appreciation for God’s purity.
Now let’s look at preparing ourselves for heaven so that when we go there we will experience greater peace because of evil’s absence.
Normally we pay little attention to the smell of fresh air. But, walk by a sewage treatment plant. Then when sufficiently away from the horrible stink, we will notice the fresh air and really appreciate it. It takes smelling the rotten fragrance to appreciate its absence.
Most of us will not appreciate the absence of prostitution in heaven or the absence of organized crime bullying. But, those redeemed citizens of heaven who were once sex slaves will rejoice in the absence of sexual bondage. And, those forced to pay mobsters for protection of their businesses will rejoice in its absence in heaven.
Each of us, if we pay attention now to the evil around us rather than protecting ourselves through avoidance or indifference, will jump for joy at the absence of those evil things in heaven.
There are advantages to paying attention to the evil in the world and taking the time to hate it – not the evil doers but the evil itself. Then we can (1) make sure we detest evil, (2) pray against evil, (3) perhaps do something about evil, (4) be amazed at God’s total purity without evil, and (5) later in heaven enjoy evil’s absence.
To prepare for heaven by hating more and more evil, acknowledge the evil you see around you and proclaim to yourself and to God in prayer that you hate it. Then, pray against it. And keep praying against it.
When you watch or read the news, you will find many evils to pray against. When you can, pray specifically. If a certain drug cartel is mentioned, pray against drug producers and dealers, but also pray against the specific drug cartel mentioned. When shopping and you see an incident of inadequate or even horrible parenting, pray for that parent, but also pray against the evil of poor parenting. Here is an example of hating evil but not the people doing it. Pray for the parent out of love, but also hate poor parenting in the world and pray against it.
Once in a while you will see some evil in the world around you that you, most likely with others, can do something about. You might not be able to work toward a solution to drug cartels, but you very well might be able to befriend someone overwhelmed with parenting and doing a poor job of it. Then you can help that parent learn more loving and effective ways to raise children.
To accelerate this preparation for heaven by hating more and more specific evils, consult those in your Christian Inner Circle who you can trust not to judge you or gossip. Ask them to watch for any evil in you that you might not see. Give them permission, not to lecture you or speak down to you, but to simply suggest that you might want to look at and pray about something in your behavior that doesn’t quite look right to them.
Does this sound too hard to do? Just remember the unending rewards for doing this once you die and go to heaven. You might be embarrassed until you grow in humility and are okay with seeing that part of you that you want to get rid of – or should want to get rid of. The advantage is becoming more like God, growing a little bit more holy and pure of sin.
Hopefully your trusted Christian friends and relatives will see your example and extend an invitation for you to suggest they look at some of their behavior to see if they are unrighteous. The gain for them is a closer relationship with God. The gain for you is the joy of giving to God your friend or relative with a little bit more purity that will honor Him.
We need to use hatred as determination and energy to pray, and, if possible, do something to stop evil or repair its damage. When action can be taken, we need each other to see that we do not avoid the responsibility. Stopping evil is almost always too big a thing to be done alone.
How this Together Can Make it Really Good in Heaven
First, let’s look at preparing ourselves for heaven by discovering with amazement God’s holiness and purity.
We can only grasp God’s holiness and separation from evil by hating evil ourselves and being separate from it. No one is pure and without sin and evil except God. Since purity is the absence of evil, we want to help one another hate evil to get glimpses of God’s amazing holiness.
In heaven we will be unable to grow in hatred of evil because there will be no evil there. Whatever sensitivity to God’s purity and holiness that comes from hating evil in the midst of it will have to be developed here and now. God’s holiness can really stand out in the midst of evil. Such vivid contrast will be absent in heaven.
We should want to have our friends, family and spouse help us hate evil in this sinful culture. There is something precious to be lost for all eternity if we do not.
It is like almost weightless pennies and heavy, old-time silver dollars. On one side of the coin is hatred of evil and on the other side is understanding of God’s purity and holiness. We start out with a penny in our pocket, a quite small hatred of evil in light of the huge amount of evil in our world. We have only a penny’s worth of appreciation for God’s purity and holiness. His separation from evil is limited by our restricted understanding and hatred of evil.
But, as we develop our hatred of evil and separate ourselves from it, we find we have a quarter in our pocket. Surely, we want a silver dollar eventually, don’t we? We want to grow in our ability to hate evil and have greater and greater appreciation for God’s purity.
Now let’s look at preparing ourselves for heaven so that when we go there we will experience greater peace because of evil’s absence.
Normally we pay little attention to the smell of fresh air. But, walk by a sewage treatment plant. Then when sufficiently away from the horrible stink, we will notice the fresh air and really appreciate it. It takes smelling the rotten fragrance to appreciate its absence.
Most of us will not appreciate the absence of prostitution in heaven or the absence of organized crime bullying. But, those redeemed citizens of heaven who were once sex slaves will rejoice in the absence of sexual bondage. And, those forced to pay mobsters for protection of their businesses will rejoice in its absence in heaven.
Each of us, if we pay attention now to the evil around us rather than protecting ourselves through avoidance or indifference, will jump for joy at the absence of those evil things in heaven.
There are advantages to paying attention to the evil in the world and taking the time to hate it – not the evil doers but the evil itself. Then we can (1) make sure we detest evil, (2) pray against evil, (3) perhaps do something about evil, (4) be amazed at God’s total purity without evil, and (5) later in heaven enjoy evil’s absence.
To prepare for heaven by hating more and more evil, acknowledge the evil you see around you and proclaim to yourself and to God in prayer that you hate it. Then, pray against it. And keep praying against it.
When you watch or read the news, you will find many evils to pray against. When you can, pray specifically. If a certain drug cartel is mentioned, pray against drug producers and dealers, but also pray against the specific drug cartel mentioned. When shopping and you see an incident of inadequate or even horrible parenting, pray for that parent, but also pray against the evil of poor parenting. Here is an example of hating evil but not the people doing it. Pray for the parent out of love, but also hate poor parenting in the world and pray against it.
Once in a while you will see some evil in the world around you that you, most likely with others, can do something about. You might not be able to work toward a solution to drug cartels, but you very well might be able to befriend someone overwhelmed with parenting and doing a poor job of it. Then you can help that parent learn more loving and effective ways to raise children.
To accelerate this preparation for heaven by hating more and more specific evils, consult those in your Christian Inner Circle who you can trust not to judge you or gossip. Ask them to watch for any evil in you that you might not see. Give them permission, not to lecture you or speak down to you, but to simply suggest that you might want to look at and pray about something in your behavior that doesn’t quite look right to them.
Does this sound too hard to do? Just remember the unending rewards for doing this once you die and go to heaven. You might be embarrassed until you grow in humility and are okay with seeing that part of you that you want to get rid of – or should want to get rid of. The advantage is becoming more like God, growing a little bit more holy and pure of sin.
Hopefully your trusted Christian friends and relatives will see your example and extend an invitation for you to suggest they look at some of their behavior to see if they are unrighteous. The gain for them is a closer relationship with God. The gain for you is the joy of giving to God your friend or relative with a little bit more purity that will honor Him.
We need to use hatred as determination and energy to pray, and, if possible, do something to stop evil or repair its damage. When action can be taken, we need each other to see that we do not avoid the responsibility. Stopping evil is almost always too big a thing to be done alone.
How this Together Can Make it Really Good in Heaven
Melinda truly enjoys heaven. There are so many songs and poems of praise about God’s holiness there. While some are about God’s general purity, many others praise specific aspects of God’s purity. Melinda learns that the more detailed praise songs have to be written by those who learned of God’s specific purities by hating the contrasting evils in the sinful environment of life before death.
As just one example of thousands of specific aspects of God’s pure holiness, some hymns and praise choruses point out God’s pure loving care for people. These were written by those who before death hated so very clearly the evils of neglect and self-centeredness. These worship songs teach others in heaven something of God’s holiness that they missed first-hand before death but can still somewhat understand from history. Melinda in her life before death truly hated indifference to people. So she feels these praise songs rather than just understands them. |
How very wonderful it is going to be in heaven without sin and evil. All of us will rejoice at the absence of evil in heaven when we get there. However, how many evils we recognize gone will depend on how many evils we paid attention to and hated before death.
This difference between citizens in heaven will be like two of us going into an absolutely clean restaurant to eat a fancy meal. One of us has only eaten in fairly clean restaurants previously and does not pay all that much attention to the exceptional cleanliness. The other one of us has not had so much money before and could only eat in restaurants that were at best tidy and at worst short-staffed and downright unclean. This one will appreciate the cleanliness of the finer restaurant a whole lot more. Needless to say, the highly clean restaurant will be a far more exciting experience for the one of us who had been in eating establishments that were unclean.
The more evils we hated before going to heaven will sensitize us to the purity of heaven because we will see that so many evil things are absent. Thus, the peace and safety of heaven will be more vivid and appreciated the more we experienced and hated evil in our lives prior to death.
Suppose that a Christian in business makes small false claims about a product he is selling. He does not hate such false witness because “everyone does it.” He thinks that telling the whole truth would prevent his making adequate income for his legitimate needs or even his unnecessary wants. Because he feels it is okay that everyone is telling lies, he prevents himself from being able to value the holiness of truth. When in heaven, this man will be not notice the purity of truth as much as someone who hated “little white lies”.
Of course, everyone will be content in heaven, as discontent is a sin and will not be there. But, as in most benefits of obedience now, the gain in heaven is a matter of degree. Those who were greedy will not be so aware of how wonderful is the absence of greed in heaven and will end up with less contentment for all eternity. But, those who hated greed in themselves and society before death will have magnified their eternal quality of life in heaven with higher contentment forever.
It helps to appreciate something good by having come in contact with its horrible counterpart. For example, hating dissension among people will make the unending peacefulness in heaven especially wonderful. Those believers who tolerated or even encouraged gossiping and backbiting before death will not appreciate the peacefulness of heaven to the same high degree.
Think of all the things that will be so much better in heaven because there is no evil. As children of light, conscious hatred of the things of the dark world now will give us so much more joy in eternal life.
Opportunity for a Closer Relationship with God through Eternity
This difference between citizens in heaven will be like two of us going into an absolutely clean restaurant to eat a fancy meal. One of us has only eaten in fairly clean restaurants previously and does not pay all that much attention to the exceptional cleanliness. The other one of us has not had so much money before and could only eat in restaurants that were at best tidy and at worst short-staffed and downright unclean. This one will appreciate the cleanliness of the finer restaurant a whole lot more. Needless to say, the highly clean restaurant will be a far more exciting experience for the one of us who had been in eating establishments that were unclean.
The more evils we hated before going to heaven will sensitize us to the purity of heaven because we will see that so many evil things are absent. Thus, the peace and safety of heaven will be more vivid and appreciated the more we experienced and hated evil in our lives prior to death.
Suppose that a Christian in business makes small false claims about a product he is selling. He does not hate such false witness because “everyone does it.” He thinks that telling the whole truth would prevent his making adequate income for his legitimate needs or even his unnecessary wants. Because he feels it is okay that everyone is telling lies, he prevents himself from being able to value the holiness of truth. When in heaven, this man will be not notice the purity of truth as much as someone who hated “little white lies”.
Of course, everyone will be content in heaven, as discontent is a sin and will not be there. But, as in most benefits of obedience now, the gain in heaven is a matter of degree. Those who were greedy will not be so aware of how wonderful is the absence of greed in heaven and will end up with less contentment for all eternity. But, those who hated greed in themselves and society before death will have magnified their eternal quality of life in heaven with higher contentment forever.
It helps to appreciate something good by having come in contact with its horrible counterpart. For example, hating dissension among people will make the unending peacefulness in heaven especially wonderful. Those believers who tolerated or even encouraged gossiping and backbiting before death will not appreciate the peacefulness of heaven to the same high degree.
Think of all the things that will be so much better in heaven because there is no evil. As children of light, conscious hatred of the things of the dark world now will give us so much more joy in eternal life.
Opportunity for a Closer Relationship with God through Eternity
In heaven Jesus appears in our fellowship. After his warm, loving greeting, He mentions how wonderful is the generosity of God. Those of us who entered heaven having hated greed, stinginess, and indifference to the needs of others experience an immediate connection with our Lord. Those who before being liberated by death only thought such things were wrong but did not develop hatred for them have different expressions on their faces. The difference seems like when people come to a meeting and those who have closer relationships get warmer greetings.
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The more fiercely we hate evil, the more we will be amazed at God’s purity and open up a closer relationship with Him for all eternity. And, pay attention to this: It is unlikely that we will be able to hate evil in heaven. There will be no evil there! So, this opportunity to gain a closer relationship with God through hating evil more and more must be done this side of our death.
Holiness is tremendously important! God can have nothing to do with evil and sin. But, He can connect with our level of holiness, or absence of evil. When our spirits connect to God who is Spirit, each of us will commune with God wherever there is purity in our spirit. It is like that God is absolutely pure on a thousand things and one of us has hated evil so as to be pure on 500 things. That person will have 50% communion with God in heaven. Yes, the 50% of evil that the person still tolerates or employs has been covered by Jesus’ blood, so there is no punishment, that does not close the gap. Sin has been covered by Jesus, but purity of spirit has not developed. There is still only 50% connection with God in heaven.
Of course, this concept has some flaws. Who can really know the mind of God and all the things about Him? However, this does make the case for active pursuit of hating evil and purifying our thoughts, feelings and actions.
Hatred of evil covers many bad things opposite of God’s extraordinary purity. By hating specific evils we can discover an unlimited number of amazing aspects of God’s holiness. Each “righteous hatred” we develop changes our spirits to touch God and His holiness. This enhances our lives now and later in heaven. But, the opportunity to join God in His holiness with relationship to sin and evil must happen now in the environment of evil.
People are often drawn together by a common dislike. Those who dislike spinach find an affinity with each other. How much more of a bond there will be in heaven when we can have shared hatred of various evils with our God.
Imagine walking along a street in heaven and Jesus remembers out loud how he hated the lies of the leaders in Jerusalem. If you lied often in life before death, even though forgiven and forgotten, you will have very little connection with Jesus on that walk. You won’t be sad because in heaven pain has disappeared, but you just might be like a deer in the headlights with no empathy with Jesus’ comments.
On the other hand if you had hated lying to the point of being as truthful as you could be, and if you helped other Christians not bend the truth for their own benefit, you and Jesus will connect well on that little jaunt on heaven’s byways. There will not be any lying in heaven, but you and Jesus will connect because at one time you both resisted and hated it.
When we help another of God’s people stop doing a specific evil, God appreciates that we have helped Him have a closer relationship with that Christian. In the process of our hating that evil that is in our friend or relative, we gain God’s appreciation. When we get to heaven, we will be more thankful for the absence of evil in heaven, and our sense of peace will be wonderful.
Praise & Prayer Regarding this Together
Lord of All, I and those in my Christian Inner Circle will need Your help to grow our spirits to hate evil more. Help us to yield to the work of the Holy Spirit for all of us to give You more glory in the way we detest evil.
Please help us all to become more like Jesus and hate evil and want nothing to do with it. We need Your help to notice evil and, as Jesus rescued us from evil, recognize if anyone needs to be rescued by us. Also, help us to see any other kind of evil that You want us to take a stand against.
May our lives worship You more because we, like You, hate evil in all of its forms. Examine us and help us to see and destroy any evil in ourselves. We want our spirits to be as separate from evil as can be while physically we live surrounded by evil and take our stand against it.
Make us strong in Your power to defeat the devil by countering some evil daily. Help us to work with You to turn anyone in our Christian Inner Circles from fear of Satan. We want Your involvement as we not only hate evil in the world, but also that which is in each of us. Enable us to not be resistant to finding our own evil. Help us eliminate it little by little in order to honor You and humiliate the devil.
Amazing Lord, we all want to go to heaven and be exceptionally relieved by the peace that comes with the absence of evil. We want to be thrilled with the peace of heaven when we get there.
Holiness is tremendously important! God can have nothing to do with evil and sin. But, He can connect with our level of holiness, or absence of evil. When our spirits connect to God who is Spirit, each of us will commune with God wherever there is purity in our spirit. It is like that God is absolutely pure on a thousand things and one of us has hated evil so as to be pure on 500 things. That person will have 50% communion with God in heaven. Yes, the 50% of evil that the person still tolerates or employs has been covered by Jesus’ blood, so there is no punishment, that does not close the gap. Sin has been covered by Jesus, but purity of spirit has not developed. There is still only 50% connection with God in heaven.
Of course, this concept has some flaws. Who can really know the mind of God and all the things about Him? However, this does make the case for active pursuit of hating evil and purifying our thoughts, feelings and actions.
Hatred of evil covers many bad things opposite of God’s extraordinary purity. By hating specific evils we can discover an unlimited number of amazing aspects of God’s holiness. Each “righteous hatred” we develop changes our spirits to touch God and His holiness. This enhances our lives now and later in heaven. But, the opportunity to join God in His holiness with relationship to sin and evil must happen now in the environment of evil.
People are often drawn together by a common dislike. Those who dislike spinach find an affinity with each other. How much more of a bond there will be in heaven when we can have shared hatred of various evils with our God.
Imagine walking along a street in heaven and Jesus remembers out loud how he hated the lies of the leaders in Jerusalem. If you lied often in life before death, even though forgiven and forgotten, you will have very little connection with Jesus on that walk. You won’t be sad because in heaven pain has disappeared, but you just might be like a deer in the headlights with no empathy with Jesus’ comments.
On the other hand if you had hated lying to the point of being as truthful as you could be, and if you helped other Christians not bend the truth for their own benefit, you and Jesus will connect well on that little jaunt on heaven’s byways. There will not be any lying in heaven, but you and Jesus will connect because at one time you both resisted and hated it.
When we help another of God’s people stop doing a specific evil, God appreciates that we have helped Him have a closer relationship with that Christian. In the process of our hating that evil that is in our friend or relative, we gain God’s appreciation. When we get to heaven, we will be more thankful for the absence of evil in heaven, and our sense of peace will be wonderful.
Praise & Prayer Regarding this Together
Lord of All, I and those in my Christian Inner Circle will need Your help to grow our spirits to hate evil more. Help us to yield to the work of the Holy Spirit for all of us to give You more glory in the way we detest evil.
Please help us all to become more like Jesus and hate evil and want nothing to do with it. We need Your help to notice evil and, as Jesus rescued us from evil, recognize if anyone needs to be rescued by us. Also, help us to see any other kind of evil that You want us to take a stand against.
May our lives worship You more because we, like You, hate evil in all of its forms. Examine us and help us to see and destroy any evil in ourselves. We want our spirits to be as separate from evil as can be while physically we live surrounded by evil and take our stand against it.
Make us strong in Your power to defeat the devil by countering some evil daily. Help us to work with You to turn anyone in our Christian Inner Circles from fear of Satan. We want Your involvement as we not only hate evil in the world, but also that which is in each of us. Enable us to not be resistant to finding our own evil. Help us eliminate it little by little in order to honor You and humiliate the devil.
Amazing Lord, we all want to go to heaven and be exceptionally relieved by the peace that comes with the absence of evil. We want to be thrilled with the peace of heaven when we get there.
Ever increasing practice of the Togethers of Scripture will (1) create in you the loving essence of Jesus, (2) give Jesus the kind of love He requested, (3) provide you with the most significant spiritual lifestyle which is attainable only through Christian community, (4) offer significant worship to God by reflecting his own character back to him through your behavior, and (5) bring God’s kingdom to earth as asked for in the Lord’s Prayer. And for heaven, such growing obedience to Scripture now will later (6) qualify you for a more responsible place of service as reward in heaven, and, (7) most important of all, give you greater empathy with God for a closer relationship with Him for all of eternity.