Love the sinner...

You've all heard it; maybe even said it --

Love the sinner. Hate the sin.

I want to give you a new mantra. It's similar, but shorter.
It goes like this:

Love the sinner.

That's it. No hate involved. Just -- Love the sinner, period.

The problem I see with adding the "Hate the sin" part is that the only thing anybody really feels is the hate.

And for all of my Bible believing friends, here's something else -- we are not condemned because of our sin. If we are all sinners (and you believe that we are) and people are condemned for their sin, then it stands to reason that we are condemned along with everybody else in the world.

At this point it would be fair to ask -- "So, John, if we are not condemned because of sin, why are we condemned?"

I'll defer to Jesus on this question. He says (beginning with the often quoted John 3:16):

16 “For God so loved the world,[i] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 

If you are truly concerned for their salvation, stop showing them their sin and start showing them Jesus. If Jesus didn't come to condemn them, then neither is it our place nor purpose to condemn them -- nor their sin (remember that beam in the eye thing?). Our purpose is to point them to Jesus, ...with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. (1 Peter 3:15-16).  

So, how about it?
Can we drop the hate part?
I think it's a good plan.

God loves you.
Jesus died for you.

Questions?

John <><