WHY AM I HATED?

WHY AM I HATED?

Some of the Most Hated Men in the Bible

NOAH

2 Peter 2:5

“And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;”

Noah was a man who was hated by his neighbors. Noah preached to his neighbors that it was going to rain. Imagine Noah preaching to the people of his day, "It is going to rain. And when it rains it is going to pour. And when it pours it is going to flood. And when the floods come, it is definitely going to bring mudslides. And when the mudslides come down from the mountains, more rain will follow until the earth is consumed by water." Noah would have continued his train of thought by warning them of impending doom. He would have told his neighbors that the flood will be so great that it will kill them and their families unless they repented and pleaded for God's mercy. Noah's preaching would have stirred them up like a hornet's nest being bothered by a thrown rock. Many would have ridiculed him while others would have been steamed with hatred.

Noah's preaching was based on the word of God:

Genesis 6

12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.

13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

Genesis 6:7

“And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.”

The WORDS OF GOD would have infuriated the people who listened to Noah. Who was Noah to say that they deserve death? Some might have thought that the gods of this world loved them so much that this fear monger Noah was telling them lies. Others might have thought that God was incapable of punishment. "We are not perfect," they might have said to each other, "but our gods are GODS of Love."

It was grace that made Noah the most hated man in his day. He not only pleaded for God's mercy but relied upon the grace of God. The Bible says,

Genesis 6:8

“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”

Grace is unmerited favor. Grace teaches us that even though we deserve His wrath we should trust in Him and rely upon His mercy.

Titus 2

11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,

12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

JOHN THE BAPTIST

While John the Baptist was doing his work, he spoke and addressed some Pharisees and Sadducees with words that seemed to be cruel:

Luke 3:7

“Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of him, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”

Matthew 3:7

“But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”

In other words, John the Baptist thought there were those not worthy to be saved, especially those of the religious persuasions. There are many that preach the Word of God in error and lead many astray into the pit of Hell. Should these kinds of teachers be instructed in the ways of life? According to John the Baptist, the religious teachers of his day were generation of vipers or snakes that should not have been warned. John was interested as to who warned them. It was certainly not himself.

John the Baptist gave the Pharisees and Sadducees this warning:

Matthew 3:10

“And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.”

We see the same thing going on with the leaders of our day that act like they are disciples of Jesus but their fruit proves otherwise. John went on to say that an axe is laid on the root of the trees. If the tree proves to be false or corrupt it will be thrown into the fire. Many religious leaders today are so mixed up that they preach love instead of judgment. They believe the love of God will save all sinners without the grace of God.

John the Baptist offended many people. He spoke on sin while others of his day kept silenced. He offended King Herod and those of the king's family that they conspired against him and cut off his head.

Mark 6:27

“And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison,”

Very few religious people today will say a word about sin; they are afraid in losing friends. John the Baptist had no qualms about speaking the truth no matter if it lost him his head. Truth meant more to John the Baptist than his own life.

Matthew 11:11

“Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist…"

JESUS CHRIST

Jesus said many things that offended and angered people. He spoke one day of a tower that fell and killed many people:

Luke 13:4

“Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?”

We still have people today who think they are better than those who die in tragic disasters. They seem to forget the verse in Romans:

Romans 3:23

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”

The reason why many are saved from calamity is NOT that they are sinless but that they dwell in grace.

Hebrews 4:16

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Jesus set the people straight about sudden tragedy:

Luke 13:5

“I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”

Jesus no doubt angered many people listening to His words of POWER. He said that they could expect just as many bad things like the fallen tower of Siloam if they don't repent. Bad things do happen to those who do not repent. The unrepentant are like those trapped in a spider web that cannot move and escape from the approaching spider.

I could go on and on about Jesus. He spoke on many things that angered a lot of people. He spoke on a literal Hell, where their fire is not quenched.

Mark 9:44

“Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.”

He spoke on hypocrites:

Matthew 6:2

“Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.”

He spoke badly against the religious leaders of his day:

Matthew 23:27

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.”

He caused a physical disturbance at the Temple of God.

Matthew 21:12

“And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,”

Jesus spoke against lustful sex that many today cannot live without, whether married or not.

Matthew 5:28

“But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.”

Jesus was against homosexuality and same sex marriage; He taught that a wife was a woman, not another man:

Matthew 5:31

“It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:”

Jesus preached that sexual relations will be done away with.

Matthew 22:30

“For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.”

Sexual relations will end and so will marriage. True marriage is when a man is married to a women:

“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”

Many today who live for sex will hate Jesus' words of sexual chastity and a future world without sex. I doubt if many loved Jesus in His day and certainly the world would hate him today.

John 15:18

“If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.”

THE TWO WITNESSES

The two witnesses to come will not be kind to the unrepentant sinners of their day. The hardened ones will have great distress due to the two witnesses. The two appear not in gay clothing but in sackcloth. They were not sent to celebrate life but to enact judgments:

Revelation 11:6

“These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.”

They will be hated so much that God had to give them special abilities to ward off evil:

Revelation 11:5

“And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.”

When their testimony is complete the Beast of Revelation will kill them. They will be so hated that their dead bodies will be thrown in the streets:

Revelation 11

7 And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

8 And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

9 And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.

PARTY TIME

People always find time for a party. When the two witnesses are murdered, the people of the kingdom of Satan will rejoice and have a party:

Revelation 11:10

“And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.”

They are not only happy that the prophets of God are dead but they make a Christmas like celebration out of their deaths. They send gifts to one another. Gifts make most people happy. The death of the two men of God will cause many to be elated with indescribable joy.

The two witnesses will be the most hated in the future to come. Will many of you that are left behind enjoy the celebration of the two dead witnesses? I hope not, but only you, can decide your destiny. Will you choose Heaven or Hell?

THE MODERN DAY SAINT

How should we behave in this modern age? Many who are on Facebook love to see the thumbs up icon below their posts that represents "LIKE." They live to be appreciated and loved. They want to be happy and feel good about themselves as they enjoy the world around them.

Galatians 1:10

“For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.”

John 12:43

“For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.”

Ephesians 6:6

“Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;”

I have joined the ranks of the watchmen. We watch and alarm the people of God

Isaiah 62:6

“I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,”

Joel 2:1

“Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;”

We might seem angry and harsh at times, but our mission is clear. We must alarm the people of God to depart from iniquity and watch with us. God is doing a great work in our land before the terrible days of the LORD.

Joel 2:11

“And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?”

This is not the time to speak words of comfort and ease but words of action in our fight against sin. We must put off sin, preach on sin, and then give the remedy for sin and destruction. We can all do something in this fight. We must awake before it is too late.

If you are hated for Jesus' sake then you are doing the right thing. Jesus said,

Mark 13:13

“And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.”

Luke 6:22

“Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.”

Being hated is a badge of honor. Being loved by "God Haters" is a disgrace.

Peace and love unto the true brethren of Jesus Christ. AMEN LARRY ZORO