Haters Gonna Hate

(Titus 1:15-16 – Haters gonna hate)

I’m not normally someone who quotes lyrics from hip hop music, but today it will be an exception. The original origin seems to be a bit blurry, but the phrase “Haters gonna hate” has certainly appeared in the works of such artists as 3LW, Jesse Braham, and Taylor Swift.

The phrase has moved out of the vernacular of hip hop and into the mainstream, as is evidenced by it being used by Taylor Swift in her hit song, “Shake it Off.”

Regardless, it is a good analogy for the scripture I am looking at today. The phrase taken at face value goes to the heart of these verses in Titus.

Finding good in evil

The scripture I am looking at today says the following.

15 To the pure all things are pure, but to the corrupt and unbelieving nothing is pure; their very minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 They profess to know God, but they deny him by their deeds; they are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good deed. (Titus 1:15-16)

To those who seek God, all things are good. Christians who seek the Lord can find the good in all things because they understand that whatever happens, it is the will of God.

To take an example, consider the COVID crisis that is still amongst us. Look at the turmoil it caused throughout the whole world. Many died, many fell ill and have long term effects from the virus, and many were just made sick.

Add to this the protests and the furore over vaccinations, the misinformation in many places, anti-vaxers who took over the streets in many cities across the world, and it’s hard to see where the good is in the whole situation.

But the people of God who understand such things recognise that this pestilence is part of a broader range of signs that were ordained by God in prophecy two thousand years ago. Add to this the increase in deaths from earthquakes, the increase in wars, and the increase in other natural disasters, and we see the plan of God unfolding before our eyes.

All of these things were preordained and they have to happen in the lead up to Christ’s return. Understanding this then we take heart and comfort knowing that Christ is to return soon, and that God is in control. And that is good.

Haters Gonna Hate

The converse to this is those who do not understand these things and look for someone to blame. And I am not just talking about non-Christians. There are many in the church who are in the same boat, and when you read the scripture quoted above you will notice it is addressed to people in the church, but they have no knowledge of God or His ways.

They claim to know God but deny Him by their words and deeds. They show their lack of understanding in that they oppose what God has done or is doing, and oppose those who do know.

There are many Christians who have prayed fervently for God to stop COVID. They do not realise that it is His will for this disease to spread and do the damage it is doing. They also pray that the earthquakes will end, that the wars will cease, and so on. And yet all of these are required to happen as prophesied by Jesus in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21.

There is no point in asking the Lord to stop His signs. Instead we ought to pray that they come quickly and that the Lord keeps His people safe as these disasters unfold.

Those who oppose the will of God are haters, and like leopards that can’t change their spots, so too haters gonna hate. They can’t do any different. It is their way to hate. It is ingrained into them as part of their DNA because they are thinking and behaving according to the passions of their flesh.

Overcoming

We cannot change who we are, and these haters cannot change themselves.

But Jesus Christ is able to change everyone. He has the power to turn a person around from be a hater to one who is born of God and learns to walk in the love of God.

It is the only way a person can change. The work of transformation from a hater to a child of God being born again and being changed into the image of God, is by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The phrase “Haters gonna hate” suggests that change is not possible. But in Christ it is possible.

The pathway to change begins with repentance and the desire to change, then learning how to follow Jesus and walk in His ways. Change is possible and there are many examples of people who have turned about 180 degrees when they came to Christ.

The Apostle Paul was the greatest opponent of the Christian faith until his conversion on the Damascus Road. He turned from someone who persecuted the early church, imprisoning Christians and having them punished, to become the greatest advocate of the faith he once tried to destroy. Paul was mightily used by God to instruct the early church and to explain how the gospel of salvation and the New Covenant worked, and we are still learning from Him today.

Another example was in the life of John Newton, the man who wrote the most famous hymn of all: Amazing Grace. In his early life he was a seafarer and a slave trader. He considered slavery to be an honourable profession and an easy way to make money. His conversion occurred when the ship he was captaining nearly foundered in a storm, and he was moved by God. He later worked with William Wilberforce to abolish slavery. He helped Wilberforce found the Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade, more commonly called the Anti-Slavery Society.

Haters gonna hate does not mean that they cannot change. It is a better thing when these haters, like Paul and Newton do change, for their lives and their work have inspired countless people to find Christ for themselves.

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