Doesn’t the Bible Say We Should “Hate Our Enemies”?

Some Christians have wondered about passages like Psalm 139:21–22, where David writes: "Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD?... I hate them with complete hatred; I count them my enemies."

At first glance, this seems to contradict Jesus' command to "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matt. 5:44). In fact, it likely contributed to the common teaching in Jesus' day, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy" (Matt. 5:43). Yet a closer look shows these passages are not at odds.

Pastor Jeff Moorehead 6/11/26 Pastor Jeff Moorehead 6/11/26

Don’t Misrepresent

I am not trying to be political (though I faithfully vote, pray about election choices, try to be a good citizen), but I am guessing that by now, most, if not all of you have heard the name James Talarico in the news. He is a member of the Texas House of Representatives and is running in a highly publicized race to be a U.S. Senator from Texas as the Democratic nominee.

Pastor Jeff Moorehead 5/28/26 Pastor Jeff Moorehead 5/28/26

Liberated Living

One of the many blessings we have as followers of Christ is freedom. As Christians and Americans, we get to celebrate two kinds of freedom: one as a political nation (“with liberty and justice for all”; freedom of religion, of speech, of the press, to peaceably assemble, to petition the government for redress of grievances, from unreasonable search and seizure, etc.), but the greater freedom is as a holy nation (God’s people in the church—1 Peter 2:9).

Pastor Jeff Moorehead 5/21/26 Pastor Jeff Moorehead 5/21/26

I Don’t Do

Over the years in ministry, I've heard a number of people say things like "I really don't want to serve in the nursery" or one gal I remember said "I don't do children's ministry." Yes, we have all been gifted uniquely and differently and can find ourselves in a different season of life, but it is God's clear design for His church to function at its best when everyone finds a place to serve the needs of the body.

Pastor Jeff Moorehead 5/7/26 Pastor Jeff Moorehead 5/7/26

Are You Able to Do the 10 Things?

I have received the Baptist Press email for years. It is the official news service of the Southern Baptist Convention and the largest religious news agency in the U.S. It provides daily news, features, and opinions regarding Southern Baptist missions, ministry, and evangelical concerns globally. One of its features is a daily cartoon by Pastor Joe McKeever, who pastored churches for 60 years, was a missions leader, and is a cartoonist.

Pastor Caleb Kim 4/23/26 Pastor Caleb Kim 4/23/26

Life and Judgement

On Sunday, our passage led us to consider Jesus’ words about “Life and Judgment.” Not only does Jesus speak more about judgment and hell than anyone else in Scripture, but nearly every time He speaks about heaven, judgment is part of the conversation.

Pastor Caleb Kim 2/5/26 Pastor Caleb Kim 2/5/26

The Crisis Beneath the Crisis

Recently I was doing some research on what is often called “mental health” in the United States. I don’t love that term, mostly because it’s so broad that it can mean almost anything, but the data behind it is difficult to ignore.

Pastor Jeff Moorehead 1/22/26 Pastor Jeff Moorehead 1/22/26

Work On Your Hate Life

I’m sure the title of this note sounds a bit odd, if not outrageous. But I would submit to you that God commands us to hate and we don’t often think about it. He said, “Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good” (Romans 12:9).

To state the obvious about how most human minds and emotions work, it is easy to hate the evil that others do, but it is much harder to hate the evil we do. In fact, we often play it down and call our evil a weak moment or just a mistake, or worst of all, “I’m only human.”

Pastor Jeff Moorehead 1/8/26 Pastor Jeff Moorehead 1/8/26

Do Your Best

Mediocrity seems to be the norm these days. Let’s do enough just to get by at home, at work, in relationships, and even in our walk with God. But while mediocrity may suffice for those living only for the moment, it is totally incompatible with a life devoted to the eternal.