God Hates?!?

From a recent query:

Hello Jim, how are things?

Just had a Q for you. I recently stumbled upon the Godhatesfags.com website. It brought up a single point that I couldn't automatically dispute. It quoted a verse from romans (9:13), which my footnote said was from the first chapter of Malachi.... "..the Lord says. 'Yet I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated..'" The idea that God could hate someone is new to me...Any thoughts?

Generally we deal with these as hyperbole - Jesus says, "Unless a man hates his father and mother for may sake ..." We would say that God is looking for preeminent position in our lives, that in comparison, our love for him makes all other relationships pale not that we are supposed to hate our parents. That would fly in the face on "Honor your father and mother."

As far as Esau goes, his descendants occupied the area called Edom and they are mentioned many times as a stubborn and rebellious race. Look at the last sentence of Ezekiel 35:15. What is God's purpose in bringing them down?

Ezekiel 35:15
"As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel because it was desolate, so I will do to you You will be a desolation, O Mount Seir, and all Edom, all of it. Then they will know that I am the LORD."'

God does not hate "fags". He hates their rebellion as any father hates rebellion in his children. It does not diminish his love for us as individuals. What He desperately wants is a reconciled relationship - that is not possible in rebellion. We are "brought low" so that we will know He is Lord.

One of the toughest concepts of love is understanding that true love does not allow someone to continue to harm them self or others. It does not stand idly by as someone self destructs. We talk of "enabling" and it's detrimental effects on our emotional and social well being and possibly our physical well being in the sense of various forms of self abuse, yet we expect people to "accept" and "support" us in our stupidity. Love does not say, "It's okay for you to hurt yourself if that is what you really want."

All sexual sins are deep and wound at a fundamental level. God does not hate the homosexual any more or less than the fornicator. Or the idolater, witch, liar, thief or gossip for that matter.

Those are my thoughts.