Hate of the World

John 15:18-25

Verse 19  If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own.  As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.  That is why the world hates you.

    Jesus had another important thing for His disciples to know about what was coming.  They may have become accustomed to Jesus being the hated one but they were about to find out they were soon going to be the target of all those same attacks.  Because they didn’t yet understand that was going to heaven and not just another location they didn’t see the harm they would soon find themselves in.

    Peter was one of the most zealous of the disciples and Jesus had just told him in front of the others how he was going to deny the Lord 3 times before the next morning.  If Peter was going to have a hard time standing strong there was no doubt the rest would as well.  These men had not lived lives of controversy prior to their time with Jesus and were going to get a crash course on how cruel their fellow countrymen could be.

    They knew the Romans as the enemy even though they had seen firsthand how the religious leaders went after Jesus and His teachings.  What these men would learn in the next year would be the people they thought were their enemies were not the real enemies.  The Jews had been waiting for the Messiah because they thought He would come and take over, removing all non-Jewish rulers and reestablishing the true nation of Israel.  The thing the people didn’t realize was it was the Jewish leaders who were keeping from knowing their Messiah.

    While the disciples may have understood the Messiah in the same light originally they had spent the last few years learning He really was the Promised One and He wasn’t there to take over the world but to point people to the God of heaven.  God had wanted to be the ruler of His people since the beginning but they were always too busy wanting to be like the other nations.  It was this sin of putting other nations ahead of God which had them under Roman rule.

    The enemy of God’s kingdom hadn’t changed and his tactics of trying to draw God’s people away from Him didn’t change.  Whether it was the gods of Egypt, Canaan or their own religious leaders they were being drawn away from the One True God.  That’s why the Jews hated Jesus and why they would hate His followers.  The religious leaders would prove their lack of commitment to God by chasing the believers in Jesus everywhere to discredit them and turn others against them all in the name of hate.

Making It Personal

    Have you ever felt hated because of your relationship with Jesus?  How did you react?  Do you live in a way which would make the enemy hate you?

Making It Personal Kids

    Has anyone been mean to you because of how much they hate Jesus?  How did that make you feel?  Do you love Jesus in a way others know you love Him?

Closing Prayer

    Father, it is so easy for us to take it personal when others hate us because of our belief in and relationship with You.  Help us remember they are really just showing their hate for You and Your holiness.  In Jesus’ name, amen.