“What do you mean, we hate our Christian brothers?  We don’t hate people outside the church, and we most certainly don’t hate those in the church.  To say that we hate other people in the church is insane. ”  This is the attitude of billions  of people who attend church services every Sunday, celebrate Christmas, New Years and Easter, belong to different churches with different doctrines and different names, believe in such things as a secret rapture, the existence of a Trinity and entrance into heaven or hell immediately at death, who celebrate their savior’s death on Friday and his resurrection on Sunday, abstain from spiritual works, reject the Law, interpret the Holy Bible and blame Adam for their sins.

What these people do not realize is that the belief in and practice of even ONE of the doctrines and customs listed above is Biblical proof that they hate their church brethren.  As is always the case, I will provide Scriptural documentation to prove what I have written.

In the Apostle John’s second letter to one of the churches of his day, which he refers to as “the elect lady and her children,” he beseeches them to “love one another.  And THIS IS LOVE–WE WALK IN OBEDIENCE TO CHRIST’S COMMANDMENTS” as He has commanded us to do (vss 5,6).  In verse 7 John explained that by obeying God and Christ one “declared” Them (proclaimed their greatness and glory) for all to see while shedding Their light upon all those who witnessed it in their followers.  In a recent series I wrote in detail concerning verse 7 so I will not address it in depth at this time.  Read the series titled Declaring the Father and the Son.  Key Word–Declaring.  In verse 8 John tells the people to be vigilant in their walk (words, thoughts and deeds), making sure that they are walking as Christ walked (1 Jn. 2:6).  In verse 9 he defines sinning as not abiding in (obeying) THE DOCTRINE OF CHRIST.  He noted that those (in the church) who abide in (obey) Christ’s doctrine (Gospel) have both the Father and the Son as their guiding and empowering Godhead.  To the contrary, those who do not live the doctrine of Christ have neither the Father nor the Son.  Read Luke 10:16 to learn what Jesus says about not believing and obeying (abiding in) the words of true, Spirit-empowered ministers who, like their Master, speak only the Father’s Words.  In verse 10 the apostle warns them (and us) not to tolerate any minister who does not preach this (Law/commandment-obeying) doctrine, for to allow such a person into one’s house is to participate in his evil doings.  I do not allow ministers or witnesses into my home when spiritual matters are the focus of their visit, knowing that they will not be upholding God’s Law/commandments.

Now let us focus on the matter of church people hating other church people.  Such hatred mutual and is not recognized as  hatred because people do not know, or do not believe God’s Word.  Knowing only church doctrine, they are totally isolated from the Truth of God as presented in His Holy Gospel.  This is the scenario that caused the martyrdom of some of God’s prophets, Jesus Christ, His apostles and millions of others in more modern times during the Catholic Inquisition.

In 1 John 2:9,10 we find words that are summarily dismissed by all but a minutely few church people because they do not know what sin is from God’s perspective.  In His eyes all of the heathen theological principles, beliefs and activities mentioned in the first paragraph are sins, most of which were borrowed from Babylonian heathenistic religions and have become foundational precepts upon which the Catholic/Protestant Church System stands today.  Read Simon of Samaria: The Legacy.  Key work–Samaria.

In 1 John 2:9,11 we find these words: “He that says he is in the light (is living right) and HATES HIS BROTHER is in darkness even now (and in 2022).  Note that John is writing to church people.  He is not asking if there were church people who hated their church brethren, he is telling them that some in the church did hate them.  Today the proportion of church members who hate their fellow parishioners is 100%.  Such people are unwittingly living in darkness (sin).  “He that hates his brother is in darkness and walks (lives) in darkness and DOES NOT KNOW IT.  His darkness has blinded him so that he does not know that he hates his church brethren.”  In verse 10 John states: “He that LOVES HIS BROTHER abides in the light (obeys God’s Word) and there is no sin in him.”

In a series titled Keepers of the Brethren (key word–Brethren) I explain what John meant by the above statement.  We are indeed our brother’s keeper in the sense that, as a general rule, everyone in a church body is aware of how other members walk/live.  Everyone knows who is obedient to God and who is not, who walks the Scriptural line and who does not.  Whether consciously or subconsciously, we take cues from our fellow church members.  They shed forth the “light” of the deity they obey, whether God or Satan.  Those whose “christian walk” is shrouded in sin (darkness) are leading their brethren astray, which, in God’s view, reveals that they “hate” their brethren.  Those who walk in God’s light are leading their brethren toward holiness, thereby revealing that they love them.  In this most important sense we are indeed our brother’s spiritual keeper.

The Lord, through the Apostle John, is telling church people who continue to sin (“sinners saved by grace”) that they are displaying hatred for their fellow churchmates and, as Jesus said in Luke 10:16, proving that they despise both Him and His Father.  It is for this reason that Jesus had a special description of the darkness in which sinning church members live.  He said that their darkness is “GREAT” (extremely vile) because it is put forth as His light.  Those who look to church sinners for God’s “light” are led astray by their dark walk.  And in that 99.99% of church people are self-professed sinners, evidence of the deadly effectiveness of those who walk in “great darkness” is undeniable.  Simply notice how many people head for their citadels of darkness every Sun god day–Sunday.  This proves that Jesus was right when He prophesied that few would enter His door leading to holiness, but many would enter Satan’s door leading to darkness (Mat. 7:13,14).  A recent study reported that there are 7.6 billion religious people on earth, 2.4 billion of whom claim to be of the Christian faith.  How many of those 2.4 billion believe God’s Word, obey it and thereby walk in His “light?”  If the Holy Bible can be believed, God’s true, obedient church numbers less than 100,000 world-wide.  Don’t think so?  Question: How many people do you know or know about who honor God by rejecting the beliefs and practices listed in the first paragraph of this posting?  I rest my case.  L.J.