“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
Devotion:
One of the most frustrating things in life is trying to live with someone who has different expectations than we do. The difficult thing is, many times, our expectations are unspoken. We go around stepping on each other’s toes when, in reality, we never knew how much something meant to someone else. Thankfully, God has not left us to wonder about what matters to Him. He comes right out in clear terms and expresses His heart to us.
I don’t think it is a surprise to us to see that God doesn’t delight in wickedness. It makes sense that God, who is the essence of good, cannot join Himself with what is evil. But the problem is how that implicates us. After all, the Bible is very clear that we are all sinners and that we have evil hearts. So when Psalm 5 says this about God, “you hate all evildoers,” it must give us pause.
We are used to the old saying, “God hates the sin, but loves the sinner,” but here God’s word says something different. God’s word actually says that God hates the sinner. And that catches us by surprise.
What if the depth of God’s love is actually greater than we first realized? Could it be that we see God’s love for us more deeply when we see the depths of who we truly are? Yes, this is the magnitude of God’s grace and love: that He chooses to love that which He hates. When God loves sinners, He isn’t just loving that which is difficult or unappealing; He is loving that which is completely opposed to Him. So let’s not soften what the Bible says, because when we realize how much our sin is naturally repulsive to God, it actually makes His choosing to love us all that much more amazing. The only song we can sing is, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.”
Prayer:
Lord, teach us to love what You love and to hate what You hate. Most especially, teach us to hate whatever is in us that is opposed to You. We so desperately want to live life Your way and to walk in Your good paths.
But Lord, we must confess that our hearts are evil. So often we go against Your will and Your design for our lives. Sadly, we walk in pride and lie to You, ourselves, and others.
Yet, even as we confess, we are drawn to see Your amazing love. How can it be that You would love what You should naturally hate? How can it be that You would set Your heart upon that which is repulsive to You? All we can do is stand back in amazement at Your grace. It actually doesn’t even make sense to us because it is so different from how we operate.
Guide us to see the depth of Your love. Fill our hearts with the wonder of Your mercy. Captivate us by how wonderful You are. In Jesus’ name, we worship and pray. Amen.
