When the War is Still On
Do We Hate Sin? Or Do We Hate God?
God wants His people to understand that He still sees sin that we have not repented of (that we have not turned away from to follow Him) and He still hates it (not the people, but the sin). He wants us to realize that He hates the doctrines of lawlessness (hyper-grace, counterfeit grace) that have caused His people to live in compromise with the world, insulting His Spirit of grace and believing He has no problem with it (Heb 1:1-9 ; 10:26-31, Rev 2 , II Cor 6:14-7:1, etc.). He wants us to realize that living in “friendship” with the world and its ways truly is hatred (enmity) toward Him (Jms 4:4). It is spiritual adultery in His eyes. We can shout the victory all day long that “if God is for us who can be against us?” but He wants us to also understand that if He is ‘against us’ who can be for us? He says when we are living in “friendship” and spiritual adultery with the world, we have become as His enemies and He literally sets Himself against us. Though we may profess that under the New Covenant “the war is over,” when we’re living in spiritual adultery with the world, the Lord says the war is on. (I Cor 9:24-10:22, Eph 5:1-17, Col 3:5-6, I Thess 4:1-8, Jms 4:4-10, Rev 2-3)
For be sure of this: that no person practicing sexual vice or impurity in thought or in life, or one who is covetous [who has lustful desire for the property of others and is greedy for gain]—for he [in effect] is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one delude and deceive you with empty excuses and groundless arguments [for these sins], for through these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of rebellion and disobedience. So do not associate or be sharers with them. Eph 5:6-7 AMP (read 4:17-5:18)
So kill (deaden, deprive of power) the evil desire lurking in your members [those animal impulses and all that is earthly in you that is employed in sin]: sexual vice, impurity, sensual appetites, unholy desires, and all greed and covetousness, for that is idolatry (the deifying of self and other created things instead of God). It is on account of these [very sins] that the [holy] anger of God is ever coming upon the sons of disobedience (those who are obstinately opposed to the divine will)…. Colossians 3:5-6 AMP (read all Col 3)
In both passages the Greek translated that God’s wrath “comes” or “is ever coming” is the present indicative Greek verb form. This is not future wrath at the final judgment, but an ongoing present fact ~ although through the full counsel of the Word we understand that God is extraordinarily longsuffering, reaching out to us over and over to give us plenty of warning and time to repent.
In His jealous love for His bride, He will oppose and fight against our waywardness. We can rebuke the devil all day long, but it will be to no avail if God is the One opposing us. Yet even in opposing and fighting against us in our spiritual adultery, He is ultimately still for us. His love and grace compel Him to do this in order to bring us back to genuine repentance and restoration in our relationship with Him so that we will not be lost and utterly destroyed with the rest of the world. (I Cor 5; 11:31-32)