April, 2025 – The Day I learned an Invaluable Lesson

Years ago, all teachers in the large inner-city school where I taught were required to step into the hallway between classes while students were passing.  The teachers would glance at each other and give a faint smile, or nod.  I did the same –- all except for the teacher at the very end of the long hallway.  You see, he was of an alternative lifestyle – and I had learned as most Christians had to hate the sinner as well as the sin.

I am not sure where the popular expression “Hate the sin, love the sinner” ever came from. It may have come from a writing by Augustine.  His Letter 211 (c. 424), in which he says, Cum dilectione hominum et odio vitiorum translates basically to “With love for mankind and hatred of sins.”

Learning the Biblical expression of the (borrowed) information above, was a game changer for me.  ‘Hate the sin, love the sinner’ is not in the Bible.  Jesus does teach us in the Gospels, in a variety of ways, to love one another – and, He also frequently admonishes us against sin.  I was raised in the day where some sins were far worse than others – and in particular, the sin of homosexuality.  I could quote a number of verses the Scriptures gives us against same sex sin (and other sins of a sexual nature), but I won’t (except for one – I Corinthians 6.9).  I take this route because many Evangelicals have done a 180 concerning the subject and would feel the need to argue with me.  That’s not where I’m coming from in this writing.

Back to the fellow at the end of the school hallway.  Let’s suppose that the return of Jesus Christ to ‘rapture’ His followers before the Tribulation is so — or even mid-trib, if that’s where you are coming from . . .   More than likely he was not even looking my way, but nonetheless, I made sure I didn’t smile at him.   All of a sudden one day, I felt the Lord whisper to my heart, and my thinking became, “What if he were not a Christian – and the ‘rapture’ did happen and I ‘disappeared’ – would he ever at one time think, “and she was a Christian??!!  I want no part of that!!”   I was broken – tears flowed.  God had moved in my heart to ‘hate the sin, but love the sinner’!  (With love for mankind, and hatred of sins.)  After that experience, from time to time, I would have a female student who felt comfortable in sharing with me that she was ashamed, embarrassed, and disappointed in herself in living the ‘gay’ lifestyle – and wanted help.  I truly loved these students, but just not that in which they were involved.  One girl who came to talk with me (and I don’t know if it was from her Catholic upbringing), knew from Scripture that her relationship with another girl was ‘an abomination to the Lord’.  Her words! Imagine!

For over three and a half years, I volunteered (worked!) at a Rescue Mission.  One evening as I was sitting at the piano getting ready to do some worship music with the ‘guests’ when a fairly obviously ‘gay’ young woman came into the group.  She was a beautiful young woman trying way too hard to look like a man.  I smiled at her – and she kept walking towards me.  I asked her to have a seat beside the piano on the steps of the little platform – and she did.  The first thing she said to me was, “Most people (indicating Christians) don’t want to talk to me.”  Once again my heart broke – for her.  When I asked her, ‘Why not’, she just said, “You know”.  We did talk at – length.  I thought since she was homeless, she would be back at the mission, but I never saw her again after that.  I loved her! – just not her sin.  Hopefully in her encounter with me, she learned that there were followers of Christ to whom she could turn.

I can remember not liking uncles who smoke and/or drank – or ones in the family who divorced.  I’m sorry that I was raised in mentality in a day and age that embraced that.  I know that when I have been at my worst, I have needed ‘love’ more than ever – didn’t think I did, but I did.  Let’s ‘get it’ Christians.  Study God’s Word – see first-hand what He has to say to us.  Luke 6:32 says (my version) ‘if you love those who are so easy to love, big deal.  Even sinners do that.’   I’m so glad the Lord had me step ‘outside the box’ and see what the Scripture really teaches.  If God could unconditionally love me, then who am I to not do the same?   Jesus gave His life for all!