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Begin wherever your curiosity leads. The studies will be here when you’re ready. When I shared my first Matthew study on Facebook today, I mentioned that I planned to post daily, though I might not share every post on Facebook. As I continue setting up this blog, I’ve realized that what matters most to me is making my past studies available for anyone who wants to explore them. For now, I’ll be adding posts to my heart’s content as I work through those studies. Some days that may mean one post; other days it may mean several. I’ll continue reading through and preparing each one before sharing it. There is no need to keep up with everything as it appears. This blog is becoming a place you can browse at your own pace—begin with a book, a question, or a study that interests you, and follow from there. The Bible Books page gathers studies by book, while Study Threads helps connect topics that travel through more than one book. The labels on individual posts also bring related material to...
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74. Ten Commandments: When Hatred Claims to Serve God

God’s Image Study • Commandment 6: You Shall Not Murder

In our previous post, we examined John’s statement that the one who hates his brother is a murderer. The statement does not require that the brother first be physically killed. John connects the absence of love with remaining in death. Read 1 John 3:14–15.

Jesus’ words in John 15–16 bring another important detail into view: someone can oppose those serving God while believing that the opposition itself serves God.

Love commanded, hatred encountered

Jesus commands his disciples to love one another. He then describes the world’s hatred toward them, explaining that they have been chosen out of the world. The hatred they encounter follows the hatred directed toward him. Read John 15:12–19.

Verse 20 moves from hatred to persecution. The Greek verb is διώκω — diōkō, used here for persecuting. Jesus tells his disciples to expect the treatment he received. Read John 15:20 and its Greek wording.

He also identifies the relationship being rejected: those persecuting them do not know the One who sent him. Hatred toward the Son reaches toward the Father also. Read John 15:21–24.

Jesus connects this with the written word:

“THEY HATED ME WITHOUT CAUSE.”

— John 15:25, LSB, excerpt

That wording points back to hatred without cause in Psalm 35:19 and Psalm 69:4.

Believing that killing serves God

John 16 continues the warning. Jesus speaks of his disciples being expelled from the synagogue and of people killing them while believing they are offering service to God. Read John 16:1–2.

The verb for killing here is ἀποκτείνω — apokteinō. Persecuting and killing are distinct words, yet Jesus places these actions within the same warning about the opposition his disciples will face. Examine John 16:2 in Greek.

Notice the explanation he gives: these people have not known the Father or him. Their conviction that they serve God does not establish that they know Him. Read John 16:3–4.

Love cannot be replaced by a religious claim

This brings us back to 1 Corinthians 13:1–3. Speech, knowledge, faith, and even costly acts do not make love unnecessary. Paul examines them all in relation to love. Read 1 Corinthians 13:1–3.

The question therefore reaches beyond what we claim to defend: Does our treatment of another person follow the love we have been commanded to practice?

Threads to Follow

  • Testimony amid opposition: Jesus speaks of the Spirit of truth and his disciples bearing witness. Follow this into our examination of witnesses. John 15:26–27.

  • Resistance and persecution: Examine Stephen’s words concerning resistance to the Holy Spirit and the persecution of those sent. Acts 7:51–60.

  • Love expressed in action: Keep practical care beside every claim to love. 1 John 3:16–18.

The books were opened…

🌿 By Maria Emilia

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