Romans 12:9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.

Everyone, even ‘non-religious’ people agree that the defining aspect of being ‘Christian’ ought to be love.  But everyone also has their own idea of what LOVE should look like.  The Bible defines love for us in 1 Corinthians 13, and since God is love (1 john 4:8) we can look at Jesus the express image of the Father, and see LOVE demonstrated.

However, in all of this, scripture does NOT define love as accepting or tolerating what is evil.

In this scripture in Romans, The Apostle Paul tells us to ABHOR evil.  What is evil?  Many people would limit such a strong word to terrible tragedies, murders, and violence.  But to God, there is nothing ‘wrong’ that is not evil.  Why?  Because it ALL comes from the devil and it is all meant to steal, kill, and destroy in one respect or another!  Whether it is a vicious act, an unkind word, or personal behavior, if it does not align itself with the truth of God’s Word, what is right, then it is evil.

The Word for evil (Poneros) simply means hurtful in effect, influence, bad, and especially morally.  The Apostle Paul says to abhor evil, and cling to what is good.

What does it mean then to ABHOR?

The word used in the book of Romans is the Greek word Apostugeó and means to have an aversion or repugnance to something.

Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil.  (1 John 3:8)

If we don’t hate the things that oppose the one we love, then it is not God’s kind of love. If we don’t hate evil, then our love for God is hypocritical. It has become customary in our society to conceal our real feelings behind a hypocritical mask. Although we should be tactful and not purposely say things to offend people, there is a time and a place for speaking the truth, even if it isn’t popular.

It is impossible to truly love someone with God’s kind of love without hating anything that comes against that person. We love the person, but not the evil.

Are you willing and committed to what God says is evil in His sight?  The Bible is clear on what is evil.

Behaving like a Christian is to love people and to abhor evil.  If Jesus came to do away with that which came from the devil, then as His ambassadors filled with the Spirit of God himself, shouldn’t we as Christians also abhor what is evil?   We should shun and avoid it at all costs.  Our tolerance level for sin and evil should not be dictated by society, but by the kingdom of God!  So we love those who practice these things, but we emphatically guard our hearts from it, and do not tolerate it in our lives, our family or in whatever we cling to.