Seven Things That God Loves

Seven Things That God Loves!

How God Calls Us

Chapter 12 Preview: A careful study of the things that God hates will also reveal the things that He loves! The closer a person comes to hating the things that God hates, the closer that person’s mind is to becoming like God! Righteousness and wickedness are exact opposites—as far apart as the east is from the west. Anyone who has sufficient love, as demonstrated in the following seven points will ultimately come to know and love God (but perhaps by a different route than you suppose).

Psalms 45:7 You LOVE righteousness and HATE wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness more than your companions.

Proverbs 10:2 Treasures of wickedness profit nothing, but righteousness delivers from death

Proverbs 11:5 The righteousness of the blameless will direct his way aright, but the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.

Proverbs 12:3 A man is not established by wickedness, but the root of the righteous cannot be moved.

Proverbs 13:6 Righteousness guards him whose way is blameless, but wickedness overthrows the sinner.

Proverbs 14:32 The wicked is banished in his wickedness, but the righteous has a refuge in his death.

The Psalms and Proverbs provide incredible insight into God’s thoughts concerning what kind of people He wants to add to His very family—information scarcely found in the historic books or the prophetic books or even in the gospel accounts concerning Jesus’ life and parables. The Proverbs of Solomon reveal a great deal about why God works with the wise but allows the wicked to perish. Proverbs 5 helps set the stage for Proverbs 6, which contains the focal text of this chapter.

Proverbs 5:1-22 My son, pay attention to my wisdom; lend your ear to my understanding, 2 that you may preserve discretion, and your lips may keep knowledge ... 21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He ponders all his paths. 22 HIS OWN iniquities entrap the wicked man, and he is caught in the cords of his sin.

You cant put the blame on Satan because he is only serving as an X-ray machine that brings to light what lies within. Exposure to Satan’s sick mind tests a person’s immunity to evil.

Proverbs 1:23 He shall die for lack of “instruction” , [Literally: discipline, chastening or correction] and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

People may have been well instructed but “shall die for lack of” paying “attention”! There is an important point that God made in this statement. He is carefully watching even “the wicked man” to see what he will do with his life, “and He ponders ALL his paths” !

Proverbs 15: The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.

The fantastic “corollary” (something proved as a side effect) of the following seven abominations illustrates the very factors that make us worth saving!

Proverbs 6:12-19 A worthless person, a wicked man, walks with a perverse mouth; he winks with his eyes, he shuffles his feet, he points with his fingers; perversity is in his heart, he devises evil continually, he sows discord. Therefore his calamity shall come suddenly; suddenly he shall be broken without remedy. These six things the Lord HATES, yes, SEVEN are an ABOMINATION to Him: (1) A proud look, (2) a lying tongue, (3) hands that shed innocent blood, (4) a heart that devises wicked plans, (5) feet that are swift in running to evil, (6) a false witness who speaks lies, (7) and one who sows discord among brethren.

Here is a list of the things that God finds to be abominable! Let’s look at them one at a time.

ABOMINATION #1: “A proud look”: Actually, God hates the mind that is located just behind that smirky look on the face! God will not save an arrogant person; a Satan look alike!

Ezekiel 28:15,17 You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you ... 17 Your heart was ‘lifted up’ [arrogant, proud] because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor ....

Arrogance can just as easily come from thinking that your superior talent, wisdom, intelligence, wealth, or charisma (real or imagined), makes you more worthy than your neighbor. Most of this is due to the luck of the draw! Others are arrogant simply because they were born with the “right” skin color or are associated the “right” religious corporation. God will be able to eventually save some of these people, after their pride is smashed, but they will compete with a handicap. Of course if you do have a gift from God, view it as such.

Psalms 10:4 The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.

Psalms 31:23 Oh, love the Lord, all you His Saints (off site). For the Lord preserves the faithful, and fully repays the proud person.

Psalms 94:2 Rise up, O Judge of the earth; render punishment to the proud.

Psalms 101:5 Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy; the one who has a haughty look and a proud heart, Him I will not endure.

Psalms 119:21 You rebuke the proud—the cursed, who stray from Your commandments.

Proverbs 16:5 Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord; though they join forces, none will go unpunished.

Isaiah 2:12 For the day of the Lord of hosts shall come upon everything proud and lofty, upon everything lifted up—and it shall be brought low ....

Isaiah 13:11 I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will halt the arrogance of the proud, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.

On the Great Judgment Day when Jesus returns to judge the earth the wicked will be burned up.

Malachi 4:1 For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, and all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, that will leave them neither root nor branch.

This passage from Daniel reveals the timing of Judgment Day despite a bit of poor rendering.

Daniel 12:1-4 At that time Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, every one who is found written in the book. 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.

1 Peter 5:5 Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for God resists the PROUD, but gives grace to the HUMBLE.

You have heard the politically correct statement that “God loves the sinner but hates the sins”. That isnt exactly helpful because you cant be separated from your sins unless you repent of them. The love extended to a sinner only extends far enough to offer them an opportunity to repent. Salvation is not as complicated as it might appear but it is virtually never taught in accordance with all of the pertinent scriptures

Psalms 138:6 Though the Lord is on high, yet He regards the lowly; but the proud He knows from afar.

ABOMINATION #2: “a lying tongue”: God said that all liars would end up in the lake of fire. He would seldom if ever call someone who is an habitual liar. God may call someone who still has this strike against them, so long as there is a degree of loathing of the behavior present for Him to work with. The reason that a compulsory liar makes no waves on a polygraph test is because he has seared his conscience with a hot iron! God said that He chose Israel because He thought that they would not lie!

Isaiah 63:8-10 ... surely they are My people, children who will NOT LIE. So He became their SAVIOR! 9 In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the angel of His presence saved them; in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; and He bore them and carried them all the days of old. 10 But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; so He turned Himself against them as an enemy, and He fought against them.

God hates lies so much that it is not even possible for Him to do it. Yes, there are some things that are impossible for God. Some day we will be that way too.

Hebrews 6:18 ... that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us.

Notice the special emphasis on liars!

Revelation 21:8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and ALL liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

I believe that the timing of this statement is quite relevant. This bold and unequivocal statement is for the time in history when all excuses will be nullified; after God has shown humanity powerful signs and wonders and destroyed Satan. Still, God doesnt mince words about whom He does not want to save. The last couple of chapters of Revelation are virtually the end of the story for liars. What else needs to be said?

ABOMINATION #3: “hands that shed innocent blood”: We might wonder why murder is in third position. Perhaps these seven abominations are in order of the difficulty involved in repenting of them, that is, the degree of difficulty needed to repent! A ruthless murderer might acknowledge his evil sooner than a liar. No one on death row says “kill me, I lied” (Commandment #6)

Matthew 5:21 You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment’.

Matthew 19:16-22 Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” He said to Him, “Which ones?” Jesus said, “You shall not murder” , “You shall not commit adultery” , “You shall not steal” , “You shall not bear false witness” , “Honor your father and your mother” , and, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself”.

Romans 13:9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery” , “You shall not murder” , “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, are ALL summed up in this saying, namely, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.”

Again, where are the first four commandments? Can ignorance of these be excused? It is apparent that God can determine the relative character of individuals without our even having any specific knowledge about Him. All that God needs to evaluate our spiritual potential is to sit back and watch how we treat one another!

ABOMINATION #4: “a heart that devises wicked plans”: While King David continually thought on God’s law, the wicked will, with just as much zeal, think in terms of satisfying their own selfish desires. These people may not let their thoughts turn into actions or they might vicariously relish seeing the people of the next category carry out their plots, possibly not wanting to risk personal harm. An entrepreneurial wicked man would both devise evil plans and perform them himself. These are the worldly wise.

In a similar way, righteousness is relative. Sometimes the righteous are only a little better than the wicked.

1 Peter 4:18 ... If the righteous one is scarcely saved, where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?

Notice that God told Israel that they were being given the promised land—NOT because they were righteousness but because the original inhabitants were so wicked:

Deuteronomy 9:5 Not for your righteousness, or for the uprightness of your heart, do you go in to possess their land; but for the wickedness of these nations [Yehovah’] your God does drive them out from before you, and that He may establish the word which [Yehovah] swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. WEB

Psalms 5:4 For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, nor shall evil dwell with You.

Psalms 7:9 Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just; for the righteous God tests the hearts and minds! [of everyone]

Psalms 36:4 He devises wickedness on his bed; he sets himself in a way that is not good; he does not abhor evil.

The wicked, by definition, “does not abhor evil.” A guilty conscience is an indication that rehabilitation is still possible.

Proverbs 21:10 The soul of the wicked desires evil; his neighbor finds no favor in his eyes.

Ecclesiastes 8:8 No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit, and no one has power in the day of death. There is no release from that war, and wickedness will not deliver those who are given to it.

The wicked will not “retain the spirit” that they were entrusted with.

ABOMINATION #5: “feet that are swift in running to evil”: These are people who probably do not spend much time thinking about evil schemes because they are to busy enjoying whatever evil things that happen to come their way. These are the peons who are sought out by those with the “wicked plans”.

Genesis 8:21 And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done.

Proverbs 10:23 To do evil is like sport to a fool, but a man of understanding has wisdom.

Proverbs 11:19 As righteousness leads to life, so he who pursues evil pursues it to his own death.

Proverbs 13:19 A desire accomplished is sweet to the soul, but it is an abomination to fools to depart from evil.

ABOMINATION #6: “a false witness who speaks lies”: Perhaps this evil is the one that caused Solomon to, at least poetically, ponder whether to count six or seven abominations. Habitual liars occupy abomination number two and would lie about anything, honesty not even being considered as an option. On the other hand, abomination number six—liars would reserve their lies for more strategic times to enhance their credibility. These liars lie specifically to hurt other people. (Commandment #9)

Deuteronomy 19: 14-21 You shall not remove your neighbor’s landmark, which the men of old have set, in your inheritance which you will inherit in the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess. 15 One witness shall not rise against a man concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits; by the mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established. 16 If a false witness rises against any man to testify against him of wrongdoing, 17 then both men in the controversy shall stand before the Lord, before the priests and the judges who serve in those days. 18 And the judges shall make careful inquiry, and indeed, if the witness is a false witness, who has testified falsely against his brother, 19 then you shall do to him as he thought to have done to his brother; so you shall put away the evil from among you. 20 Those who remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil in the midst of you. 21 Your eyes shall not pity; life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

ABOMINATION #7: “one who sows discord among brethren”: Everyone, except for that guy stuck out on a deserted island, has “brothers”. Brethren are not necessarily spiritual brethren, in fact that would be particularly abominable because they would be as Judas. There are a variety of possible motives that could cause one to sow discord, but all of the motives are abominable. It would be better had they never drawn the breath of life.

Again, the point not to be overlooked is that all of these abominations pertain to interpersonal relationships! It would be very difficult, if not impossible, to perform these evils if you were alone on a deserted island! None of these abominations are directly related to breaking one of the first four of the Ten Commandments! The first four of the ten commandments would logically be the most important, pertaining to our relationship with God, so why is a relationship with God not found anywhere on the list of abominations? The answer is that these are seven standards that God measures everyone by, the unconverted as well as us, prior to our calling—one standard for all. Understanding these things is not reserved for the spiritually aware. God installs a basic sense of fairness into every conscience. Humanity understands that we alone, as creatures of the earth, are aware of our existence. God revealed that there is a common “spirit in man”. “For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He ponders all his paths.” God considers every person before selecting prospective Sons of God.

It is important to point out that of those people whom God decides He may be able to convert—knowledge of the first four commandments must eventually become part of a higher standard of acceptance. If you remain loyal to these ten points of love then you have achieved the minimum standard!

The seven abominations are listed in the context of keeping all six of the commandments pertaining to human relationships, because they illustrate the exact opposite behavior and thought pattern:

Proverbs 6:20-33 My son, keep your father’s commandment, and dont forsake your mother’s teaching. [Commandment #5] 21 Bind them continually on your heart. Tie them around your neck. 22 When you walk, it will lead you. When you sleep, it will watch over you. When you awake, it will talk with you. 23 For the commandment is a lamp, and the law is light ... 30 Men dont despise a thief, if he steals to satisfy himself when he is hungry: 31 but if he is found, he shall restore seven times. He shall give all the wealth of his house. [Commandment #8] 32 He who commits adultery with a woman is void of understanding. He who does it destroys his own soul. [Commandment #7] 33 He will get wounds and dishonor. His reproach will not be wiped away. WEB

Proverbs 8:12-13 I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge and discretion. The fear of the Lord is to HATE EVIL; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate.

THE OPPOSITE OF EVIL

Here are the COROLLARY principles resulting from these seven abominations. The exact opposite of these evils illustrate the very things that God loves!

Rather than being haughty:

1) People who capture the affection of God will tend to have more humility. Certainly we can acquire more humility, but the people whom God will desire to share the first four commandments with, by the stage in their life when they are called, will have acquired an uncommon degree of humility. Some will have to experience the sorrows associated with evil, others skip that step and learn by observing the mistakes of others, rather than by personal experience.

Rather than being liars:

2) Honesty will be an identifying sign among the special people whom God calls. This is a truly rare virtue.

Rather than being murderers we must agonize over such things:

3) God highly regards those who “sigh and cry” over the slaughter and suffering of innocent people, whose blood has soaked the earth beginning with the very first family. We must long for a change in the world or we will not participate in that change. We must love the lives and seek the well being of all of those who will some day be in the family of God.

Rather than making wicked plans:

4) God loves a heart that devises virtuous plans. All day long, the meditation of our minds should be on doing everything that we set out to do, in a manner that considers the needs of other people as much as our own needs. We had to understand this before God considered calling us.

Rather than seeking out evil:

5) God seeks to call, (or in the case of unenlightened “gentiles” to “excuse”—Romans 2: 14, John 15:22) those whose feet are swift in running away from evil! God cannot create an effective son out of a self centered person. Job was about as good as we come:

Job 2:3 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause.

Yet it took a real beating for Job to move to the next level:

Job 42:5-6 I had heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. 6 Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.

More good vs evil:

Psalms 34: 14 Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

Psalms 97:10 You who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.

Psalms 37:27 Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell forevermore.

Psalms 97:10 You who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.

Proverbs 8:13 The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate.

6) God will save* those people who would not speak even the truth, if that truth would unnecessarily harm an individual thus elevating the “righteousness” of the storyteller. The person whom God is seeking would not even consider being a false witness to harm someone.

* No one is saved yet, but we “shall be saved”.

7) God will save people who endeavor to sow harmony among his brethren. God wants unselfish team players! Loyalty is the first virtue that Satan lost once vanity set in.

So why does God call a few, revealing some of His very objectives to them? On numerous occasions I have heard from the pulpit and from conversations the statement: “The first question I want to ask God in the resurrection is—why did you call me?” The answer is that Jesus is selecting prospective Sons of God based on love! God is love, which means that everything He does is based on love. Our calling is based entirely upon our capacity to love Him in return. Initially, God determines this solely based on how we love our fellow man.

At this point you might think that the following quotation of Jesus makes the point as far as your fellow disciples are concerned:

Matthew 25:40 ... inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers, you did it to me. WEB

Actually this verse is being applied to non believers on Judgment Day as they are being shown great mercy! Interpersonal relationships as expressed in the last six of the Ten Commandments are the very criteria that God uses to judge His uninformed children by on Judgment Day, but that astonishing truth is explained in The Called, the Culled, and the Excused.

Showing love to our brothers is far more important for Disciples. If a supposedly converted person will not show love to commandment keeping “brothers” then God is not in that person’s life! Not belonging to the same corporate group is not remotely an excuse.

God looks solely on our thought processes to select us! God is not influenced by our ethnic background, our physical beauty, our age or our bank account, as humans are. If you hate evil enough—then you will also love the way of love enough for God to greatly desire you. There are no secret virtues that God did not mention in His word that He uses as criteria in judging us, nor are there any special combinations of character traits that put us over the hurdle. The standard is simply this: Do you love your fellow man? If you truly love your neighbor then there is absolutely no doubt that you will love God when He reveals Himself to you! Love, as defined in the points written in stone, by God, is all that God needs to select His Sons!

James 4:7-8 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

However understanding what God wants in an eternal relationship is only academic if you are not willing to grow in love. If at any point you think that you are close enough to God that no more growth in the relationship is necessary, then your salvation is in jeopardy! If, after you review this list, you begin to praise yourself, then you may not be on the list!

Many people that I know believe that God will give the wicked a chance to repent in a future judgment period. For a complete review of every scripture dealing with the wicked see: The Fate of the Wicked.

Proverbs 14:32 The WICKED is banished in his wickedness, BUT [by contrast] the righteous has a refuge in his death.

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