Who's the Hater?

So people keep calling Bible-believing Christians haters.  They say we hate people not like us.  Let me make a few clarifications.

1) Westboro Baptist Church do not count as Bible-believing.  In fact, Peter warned about them in the Bible.  2 Peter 3:15-16 (NIV) "Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16 He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction."  They don't speak for us, because they are "ignorant and unstable."

2) There is an old saying in the Christian Church: "Love the sinner; hate the sin."  If I truly believe the Bible, (that all people are sinners (Romans 3:23), that God loves everyone (John 3:16) and sent his Son Jesus to take the punishment for our sin (Romans 6:23), that we are all equally guilt (James 2:10), and God wants to save everyone (2 Peter 3:9),) then I have a responsibility.  If we all either have to accept God's forgiveness by changing our ways and being obedient to him, or we have to suffer the punishment for our sins.  We are all the same.  One person described the way we Christians should be as "One beggar telling another beggar where to find bread."  Others have described it as throwing a life preserver to a drowning man.  This is our job, to love our fellow sinners enough to storm the very gates of hell itself to tell them of the same chance for rescue that we have.

The reason I point these things out is because I'm sick of being falsely labled.  But I also have something else to ask.

Are WE the ones that hate?

My sister was recently attacked for taking her infant daughter to get lunch and take it to "Dada."  Why was she attacked?  The lunch was chicken.  She was called ever foul thing these people could think of.  They should be embarrassed at their behavior.  And all just because her baby missed her daddy.

But the reason I particularly write this today is because of the news yesterday.  In our nation's capital, a man walked into a Christian organization and opened fire.  Why?  Because of their stance on family values. 

A few in the media are defending the man, who is likely to be charged with domestic terrorism.  They're calling this Christian organization a "hate group."

I'm sorry, but who had the gun?  Who was the one trying to kill people?  Why are THEY being accused of hate?  It seems to any reasonable person that the gunman is the hater. 

Here's an idea.  Instead of trying to defend his actions to support a political agenda, why not just call him a madman and be done with it.