Meeting Hate with Quiet Love
Monday’s Verse:
From Leviticus 19:17-18 ESV
“You shall not hate your brother in your heart. You shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.”
Hate seems satisfying in the moment. It wells up quickly, seizes our attention, and demands that we do something. Scripture is unambiguous. Hate has no home in the heart of the Lord’s redeemed. God commands something more difficult and much better. He commands us to “deal honestly” with one another, to speak the truth where it is necessary, and to refuse the effortless allure of bitterness.
Leviticus links the command directly to who God is. “I am the Lord.” Love for neighbor is not an option. It is the natural result of belonging to a God who shows mercy to the undeserving. When we forget this, anger weighs heavily on our hearts, and we become susceptible to the call of vengeance. When we remember, we recognize that every person around us stands in the exact need of grace that we do.
In a world of shouting and suspicion, the Christian witness is simple. We meet hate with quiet love. We address wrong without letting it poison our hearts. We pray for our enemies. And we trust that God works through faithful perseverance as much as through courageous action.
Prayer
. Amen.
Prayers
A Prayer for Today:
Almighty God, drive hatred out of my heart. Teach me to speak truth with gentleness and to love my neighbor as myself. Make me quick to forgive and slow to judge. Let your mercy guide my words and actions today. Amen.
Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Luther’s Morning Prayer:
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.
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