Here is an excerpt from the 'Love' Bible study where Ray discusses this to a greater degree.
http://forums.bible-truths.com/index.php/topic,3719.0.html -----
Now you say, 'God loves everybody the same.'
Rom 9:13 As it is written, "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated."
Now, there the Greek can mean to love less by comparison. But it’s a quotation from Malachi 1:2, and in the Hebrew it means hated... get it?
Proverbs 6:16 These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
v. 17 A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
v. 18 A heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
v. 19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
“These six things does the Lord hate,” and then it list a proud look and a lying tongue and so on. But then He says, “a false witness” and that’s a person. A false witness is a person that speaks lies and he that sows discord among the brethren. Those are people that do that. But He doesn’t hate, like we hate, because He doesn’t have a carnal mind and we do. When we hate, we hate with our carnal mind. God has no carnal mind, so you can’t draw the same analogy.
When I say I want to do something with the strength of my right hand, you know how limited that is. I can pick up one of these 5 gal. water bottles and that’s about what I can pick up.
But when God says, I’m going to do something by the strength of His right hand, are we even in the same universe? No. Well, if you can see that, why can’t you see it then, when He talks about things that appear to be human emotion like anger, My fury, wrath, and all of that.
So we have contrast here now. There are 2 verses that could be at variances with one another.
Esau I hated... I hate a false witness, I hate those who sow discord among the brethren. But “for God so loved the world,” wait a minute does that include Esau? Does that include the false witness or the one that sowed discord among the brethren? I thought He just said He hated them, now He says He loves them. Is this a contradiction?
We’re getting into some deep stuff here. So is that a contradiction, I hate Esau? I love him so much that I gave My own Son for him. What is that? Is that a contradiction? No, it’s really not. But you do have to understand it.
We’ve stepped out of Sunday School now, and we’re going to a little higher level. You can have this agapao love, for something you hate. What? Yes you can. Proof? God does. He hated Esau, He hates a false witness... He hates people. He doesn’t just hate false witnesses, He hates a false witness, that’s a person, you see.
The Christian world would have you believe, He loves the world sooo much. But the Concordance version has it right.
John 3:16 For thus God love
s the world…
Not how much He love
d the world, although it was a lot, but that is not what the word said. It does not say, for God loved the world so much, no. It says this is how He loved the world, that’s what it means. He didn’t so love the world, He thus loved the world, in this way and this manner. Now in what manner did He agape the world?
John 3:16 ...He gave His only begotten Son...
Okay. But if you say, God so loved the world, then you are insinuating He has phileo love for the world, right. That He has this affectionate, endearment of friendship with the world, because He so loved the world. NO!
This is the manner He loved them, He loved them with this agapao love, which has the benefit and future of humanity at heart. Nowhere does it say, God phileo loves the world, or any sinner in the world, mark that. This is too deep for the world, they can’t accept this, the same way they can’t accept that God created evil and uses it often. But we have to deal with what scripture says or you might as well fall under the condemnation of the verses that says, “Because you despise this Word,” (Isa 30:12; Jere 23:17), if you won’t believe what it says.
Granted there is a couple of places that is not translated right, but not that many. That’s why I use the KJV. Even though it has eternal punishment, and there is no such thing as eternal punishment, there is eonian chastisement, two totally different things. Eonian, age lasting chastisement or correction to make you better, is a whole lot different than torture the hell out of you, for all eternality, in fire. I mean these are not two same thoughts, they’re totally antithesis towards one another.
So this is the manner in which God loves the world, with agapao love. A love that is undeserved, they’re not reciprocating. Let me give you another example of agapao love, not phileo love. Agapao love is when they crucified Christ, and He was dying, He prayed to His Father and said;
Luke 23:34 Father forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.
Now that’s agape love. Father these people are blind and deceived, oh they’re fools, and they’re hypocrites, blind fools as they called the Pharisees in Matt 23, none the less. Then as it was such a strong condemnation, on the one hand, on the other hand, He says Father forgive them. Is this a contradiction? No, it’s not. It’s the way God is and we need to be like God.
We can love our neighbor, with an agape love, we don’t need to fellowship, hobnob with them or become part of what they are, in any way, shape or form. When God says, love your enemies... If it said you would have to phileo your enemies, then I would just have to take my 9 pages of notes here, tear them up, throw them away. Close the Bible and say, I have not a clue as to what this thing about love is, not a clue.
But I have checked it out for many, many hours now, and I understand that the Bible does not contradict in this area. God - Jesus Christ, never said you have heard, them of old say, you should hate your enemies. First of all, God never taught to hate your enemies. Well, where did they hear that of old? About five times in the book of Psalms, by David, who went to his death bed hating his enemies, telling his son to kill them and make it bloody. That was King David, not God. But people read the Psalms and so you heard it said. Yes, you did hear it said, but not of God.
But Christ said, but I say unto you, love your enemies - agapao your enemies. Can you love your enemies and hate them at the same time? You say, 'no you can’t, that’s a contradiction.' Well, let’s think about that for a second. Could God hate Esau and love him a the same time? Not only could He, the Bible tells us that, and it shows that He did. He shows more favor to Jacob then He did for Esau. Yet you can find some pretty strong promises and blessings (even though He said I hate Esau), you can find blessings on Esau in the Bible I can show you them.
God said, I hate liars and people that cause discord and everything, yet I gave My own Son for the world. Why? Because I agapao them. God thinks beyond their couple of three score and ten years of hate and criminality. I look beyond that, and I see their future - agapao. Maybe we need to learn to do that too, if we’re going to be like God... right?
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mercy, mercy and peace
Kat