I'm sure everyone has heard this popular phrase:"God loves the sinner but hates the sin." I want to take a deeper look at this phrase since it's not written in the scripture word for word, thus exposing itself to criticism. Before jumping to any conclusions, please read to the end and if you disagree, I would love to know your thoughts! The fact that God hates sin is a fact and a settled matter, so we won't touch that part; but what does God really think about the sinner? I want to take a look at some brief arguments for why He might hate the sinner, and why He might love the sinner and then have us draw a conclusion.
God hates the sinner
For those who say that God loves the sinner, I'd like to ask: What does God love ABOUT the sinner? Is it his deeds? The fact that deep inside he's a good person? That he's a human? Does God love his rebellion? His thoughts? Desires? Anything?? ("the sinner" is going to be a "he" for argument's sake). If we look at scripture, in Psalms, Proverbs, Revelations, we see multiple verses stating that God hates the sinners' deeds, thoughts, worship, actions, lying tongue, wicked plans, etc. Furthermore, in Psalm 11:5 we read, "but His soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence." I think wicked and sinner are synonyms in the Bible, so it's pretty obvious from scripture that there is nothing to be admired about a sinner, even from God's point of view! Another problem with saying, "God loves the sinner but hates the sin" is that we somehow separate the sinner from their sin. I haven't found any evidence in scripture where God separates those. This saying, in a way, makes the sinner look like a good person except for the sin part. A sinner, by definition, is in full, 100% rebellion toward God Himself, and in the second chapter of 2 Peter, we read about all the judgment and wrath of God toward the sinner. As mere humans, we do not see the sinner for what he really is to God; we sugarcoat it, separate the sinner from the sin, and look past all the transgressions and think that God sees it exactly the same way.
God loves the sinner
Anyone who has ever been on missions or preached the gospel knows that it takes a lot of love and compassion toward people in order to do it effectively. Jesus was accused of hanging out with sinners, and His response was, "It is not those who are healthy that need a doctor, but those who are sick." This means that He saw all of their problems, issues, rebellion, wickedness, and still sat down to eat with them for the purpose of reaching them and showing them His love! In Romans 5:8 we read "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus knew full well that not everyone would come to repentance nor believe in His sacrifice, but He did it anyway. He died while we were still very far from Him, and all in order to prove His love. I know many people look at this verse in the way of Him dying for the elect, but I actually think that those perspectives take a bit away from His love. John 3:16 says "...He so loved the world...." There is nothing that can take away from the immeasurable amount of love that Jesus showed toward us in His sacrifice for us! John writes that "God IS love." Not only is He capable of loving, He Himself is love and the definition of love. We are simply not capable of loving like God loves; we theorize about His love but still cannot fully comprehend it.
God's actual love
So can we say that God loves or hates the sinner? The Bible as a whole does not explicitly say either of those, and my honest opinion is that the saying "God loves the sinner but Hates the sin" does not do God justice. We are all sinners, every single one of us, and we remain so unless we accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and are born again into a new life in Him. Here is where God's love is even greater than we might have thought– God truly is disgusted with sin and the sinner, and (to paraphrase Paul) no one would die for a bad person. Jesus did not die for the sinner because He loved the sinner; while making His way to Golgotha, He was still God– 100% opposed to the sinner, 100% disgusted with the sinner, and 100% knowing the just damnation that awaits the sinner. Verse 8 states that "Jesus died for us while we were still sinners,"and in the previous verse, Paul explains that no one would die for a bad person. It would have been a little bit easier for God to die for someone who had a tiny bit of good in them; it would have been a little easier for Him if He already had feelings for us in our condition. But verse 8 reveals God's love exponentially more– Only the inexplainable love of God would lead Him to be in torment at the cross for people who were in complete rebellion toward Him and He in damnation toward them.
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