Love the Sinner

Hate the sin, love the sinner. How many times have you heard that? Do you believe it? I know it's hard to do. We live in a world full of people who say,  "I hate....." The listed things are usually a person and not the sin. This is not living according to what the Bible says, which is:

Don't just pretend that you love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Romans 12:9-10

Do you know people who are sinning? Why, yes you do. No, not your neighbor, friend, etc.... Look in the mirror. You are a sinner. Too many people are so busy looking at what others are doing, they often miss their own sins. Matthew 7 talks about this:

Judge not, that you not be judged. For with the judgment you pronounce, you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, "Let me take the speck out of your eye," when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.

You see, we are all sinners. Every. Single. One. Of. Us. None of us have the right to judge others, because we all have our own logs to deal with. The only one who can judge us is blameless. He came to earth to take on our sins because we could not, and quite possibly would not, deal with them ourselves. He was sinless. He was perfect. We are not. We will struggle to love the sinner, but He loved us, in spite of our sins. He knew that we were unable to stop sinning, and He chose to love us anyway.

How dare we not do this simple thing? Love the sinner. Love everyone. Even those we judge not worthy. In His eyes, we are all worthy of love. He proved this by dying on the cross, for ALL of our sins: lust (porn, adultery, sexuality), gluttony (overeating), greed (love of money and possessions), sloth (laziness), wrath (rage, war), envy, and pride. NONE of us have the right to judge. Not one.

So.... love each other. Don't just pretend. Really love them. Do what God told us to do!!!