Why do Christians hate me?

Why do Christians hate me?

As a Christ-follower or maybe even someone who isn’t a Christ-follower do you ever feel like “Christians” or people who claim to know Christ and follow Him hate you?

                     

I am going to a public University for the first time since I was in the fourth grade and it is one of the most eye-opening and rewarding things I have been a part of. Eye-opening in the way that I am no longer the majority with being a Christ-follower and how overwhelming it can be to be around so many people who are lost in life. Rewarding in the way that I have never been so challenged in my faith and more confident to share my faith in my life.

I get opportunities to share the gospel with a non-believer nearly every day. It is the coolest thing to get to share Jesus’s love with people who may have never felt Jesus’s love before in their lives. I think first of all having so many people around me with so many questions has held me accountable in my relationship with Christ and helped me stay grounded in Scripture and being in continual communication with Jesus all day. I have understood the reality that we all need Jesus and I have become passionate in the pursuit of knowing Him personally and sharing with others what God is teaching me in my life.

Here is the tough part, though. I am lonely most times because of my decision to commit my life fully to Jesus. Not only that, but I have been made fun of, judged, and my “intelligence” has been questioned by classmates or peers because I believe in a higher being that is not physically seen. In one of my classes we talk about controversial topics every class period and every student shares their opinions or shares something. EVERY TIME. Here is what I’ve learned about my classmates. They are all very smart and even if they really aren’t I think they do a great job of giving the perception to others that they know what they’re talking about. They are critics on EVERYTHING. I have learned so much about their worldviews and their perspectives on just about every issue that is going on in our current society. I know I have upset some of my classmates because of my ability to see positives or good things in situations that seem so bitter and terrible. Some days it is so hard to not just stand up and say YOU ARE WRONG. Here are just a couple of examples.

                   

                                      

Example one: Ok, first of all… rewind back to junior year of high school at Prestonwood Christian Academy (The best high school in the world no bias) I was in an Apologetics class, which my teacher, Mr. Lee, said would be the most important class of my lifetime. He ain’t wrong!! Apologetics is basically defending your Christian faith (and proving all the other religions or non-religions wrong… yes you read that correctly). I remember some of the things we learned that people would ACTUALLY say and me thinking “there is no way in heck that people actually say this or believe that”. Ok well news flash, people really do say or believe those things and it is crazy to me. BUT YET IM THE CRAZY ONE?!?! Ok, so… apparently people really do believe truth is relative. This is a problem for a Christ-follower who believes there is only ONE truth ONE way to eternal life, which is through Jesus Christ. I actually had about twenty classmates convinced that “truth is relative, whatever is true for you, may not be true for me.” Woah, wait what did you just say? Is that not a self-defeating statement? Is what you just said relative? Is that true for you or both of us? If it doesn’t meet its very own standard we have no reason to believe it because of its self-contradictory nature. I could totally go on with a whole apologetics lesson, but I want to talk more about why people feel judged or condemned by the church or people to claim to be Christ-followers.

Example two: One of my current classmates told a story about how she was hurt by a classmate in high school. She said she went to a very conservative high school with the majority being 80% white people. Then after her whole story she said “But you know how white Christians are, they tend to see the worst in things.” In that moment it felt like a person had punched me in my stomach and I was out of breath. I don’t think it was more of me being offended really, but more of how sad it was to hear that. Yes, it was a hasty generalization and obviously that’s not true, but that is how she feels. In that moment I didn’t feel the need to stand up and shout at her or be defensive, but rather I wanted to hug her and apologize for whoever she was hurt by. I feel her pain. Spiritual abuse is a real thing and I have experienced it. I think this is something that Christ-followers need to keep in mind, is that we are called to love and to be loved. If you love Jesus and you truly know Jesus, you can’t help but to do that. If you claim to be a Christian and feel bitterness and quick to be defensive towards hasty generalizations, then maybe you should check yourself. I didn’t feel insecure or offended in the moment I heard that statement, although it was funny seeing all the faces turn towards me to see my reaction. I felt hurt, but more hurt for her and for my peers. Why do they feel so strongly against Jesus? Because we are all broken people, and someone may have used their faith as an excuse to hurt someone else. It happens. I think it needs to be clear to be said that Christians aren’t people who claim to be perfect (although there are plenty of self-righteous people that I know), but rather Christ-followers are people who are broken and sinners and admit that they need Jesus to save them from their own sin. There is no difference between myself and any other non-Christ-follower other than the fact that I have made the decision to choose Jesus to be the Savior of my life instead of living an empty life trying to do it on my own. I don’t earn any super power and magically not sin or do wrong because of that decision, but because of my love for Jesus I decide not to do the things I may have once done or the things I know are wrong, because I know they are not pleasing to God. I hope that makes sense, but truly it’s like when you are in a relationship, you don’t do nice things for the other because you have to in order to gain something or in order to keep away from getting in trouble, but rather you want to do those things for them because you love them. That also doesn’t mean you don’t mess up or never make bad decisions while being a Christ-follower, because it is our sinful nature to do so, but it does mean you admit your wrongs and allow Jesus to change your heart.

   

I want to challenge any Christ-follower who is reading this to do what you were called to do, which is to love people as Christ loved you. You are a sinner just like all the rest of us, so take yourself down from that pedestal in your mind and humble yourself. If you don’t, you will be in a dramatic way, and I am telling you that you really don’t want that. You will be exposed in your hidden sin and you will be called out for your insincerity. I also want to encourage any non-Christ-follower who may be reading this, that you are deeply loved and known by your Creator and I think it is important to contemplate what happens after you die on earth. Where are you going? What will happen? Do you even know? Can you even imagine yourself not existing? If you haven’t thought about that, you need to, because it is a very real thing and it is the most important thing about your soul.

                       

“No Favorites”
 1.     Anyone can believe. God does not show favoritism. Matthew 28:18. Jesus did not come to die for traditions, he came to die for people for relationships with us. We are called to go into the world and change it with His spirit and not be of the world. Prayer is the birthplace of God-sized visions in our life. What is my purpose? Who am I supposed to reach? Ask God in prayer.
2.   Anyone can belong. You can belong before you believe. You can come to church and be apart before you believe. To truly belong somewhere, people are searching for it everywhere. God won’t leave you orphans, you are the sons and daughters of God. Anyone can have a seat at the table of God. There’s no room for pride when you truly understand grace. God offers hospitality for all humanity by establishing a home for all. People don’t need to know everything about doctrine and the Bible in order to belong. God’s presence is just as real in church as it is in other places. God wants to operate and move where you are. Acts 10:34-35. Who has God sent us to? Habits can be really hard to break; we need to be intentional to breaking habits if they’re keeping us from inviting people to sit at the table of Jesus.
3.     Anyone can become. Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is to just listen to people’s life stories and what is going on in their lives. If you are reaching out to Jesus and seeking out to Jesus, you are making progress. The church looks the most like Jesus when we welcome people in and not shut people out. Where there is a breakdown there will be a breakthrough.

                                          

Personal prayers from this past week:

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” Psalms 139:23-24 NLT

2 Thessalonians 3:

Pray that the Lord’s message and the gospel will spread rapidly and that people would hear it just as you heard it.

Pray that you’d be rescued from evil and wicked ways or people, not everyone is a believer.

Be confident that you can continue to do God’s will for your life and don’t stray away from that.

Ask God to lead your heart into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patience endurance of Jesus Christ.

Stay away from “believers” who live an idle life. Surround yourself in a community of people passionate for Jesus.

“Those unwilling to work won’t get to eat.”

Stay out of other people’s business.

Don’t get tired of doing good.

Don’t think of them as enemies, but warn them as you would a brother or sister.  


The more we know and understand the Bible, the more we know who God is and what He wants for us. It might seem overwhelming at first, but with consistency and good teachers, you will quickly learn what God intends for you.