07/06/2026
IT IS NOT ENOUGH TO LOVE RIGHTEOUSNESS; YOU MUST HATE INIQUITY
Many believers love righteousness.
They admire holiness.
They celebrate purity.
They rejoice when holiness is preached.
They shout "Amen" when sin is condemned.
But loving righteousness alone is not enough.
You must also hate iniquity.
The Bible says concerning our Lord Jesus Christ:
"Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity..." — Hebrews 1:9
Notice the divine balance.
Jesus did not merely love righteousness; He hated iniquity.
Many Christians have embraced the first half of the verse while ignoring the second.
They love prayer, but they do not hate sin.
They love the presence of God, but they do not hate compromise.
They love revival, but they still entertain secret lusts.
They love the Word, but they still make peace with disobedience.
They want the crown, but they refuse the cross.
They want the power of God, but they do not want to separate from the things that grieve Him.
A man who truly loves light will naturally hate darkness.
A man who genuinely loves truth will despise falsehood.
A man who sincerely loves God will develop a holy hatred for everything that opposes Him.
Yet many believers are trying to walk with God while carrying the very things that nailed Christ to the cross.
They cry during worship but laugh with sin afterward.
They kneel before God in prayer but bow before temptation in secret.
They are passionate for God on Sunday and comfortable with iniquity on Monday.
Their hearts are divided.
Their affections are mixed.
Their loyalty is shared.
They are not fully in the world, yet they are not completely separated unto God.
But God is not seeking admirers of righteousness.
He is seeking lovers of righteousness who hate evil.
The problem with many Christians is not that they have no desire for God.
The problem is that they have not developed a hatred for the things that separate them from God.
Until sin becomes bitter, holiness will never become beautiful.
Until iniquity becomes disgusting, righteousness will never become your lifestyle.
The closer a man comes to God, the more uncomfortable he becomes with sin.
The more Isaiah saw God's holiness, the more aware he became of his uncleanness.
The more Joseph loved God, the more he hated the thought of offending Him.
The more Christ was revealed in the believer, the more the believer separates himself from the spirit of this age.
Do not measure your spirituality merely by how much you love righteousness.
Ask yourself another question:
How much do I hate iniquity?
Do I hate the gossip I still entertain?
Do I hate the bitterness I still justify?
Do I hate the lust I still excuse?
Do I hate the pride I still protect?
Do I hate the compromise I secretly practice?
For the evidence of true love for God is not merely a passion for righteousness but a growing hatred for everything that opposes His nature.
The church does not need more people who admire holiness.
The church needs men and women who have declared war against sin.
People who would rather lose popularity than lose God's presence.
People who would rather suffer with Christ than enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.
People who can say with all sincerity:
"Lord, I do not only love what You love; I hate what You hate."
May God raise a generation that not only pursues righteousness but also hates iniquity.
Because it is not enough to love righteousness.
You must hate iniquity.
— Emmanuel Jesutola
Lead Evangelist, God Said Media