"Liver and Broccoli"

Mark 13:13 HCSB

“And you will be hated by everyone because of My name. But the one who endures to the end will be delivered.”

Growing up in the 1950’s I learned to hate liver. I vividly recall the stench of the “hated” bile-producing organ when Mom was cooking it up. She would stink up the whole house with that vile meal selection. When I complained I was told, “There are two options for dinner... take it or leave it.”

Even as a kid, I knew liver has no business in a frying pan. It should remain where it belonged (in a cow) doing what it was supposed to do (processing cow toxins), not feeding humans. ‘Hate’ is a strong word, but to say I “hated” liver was an understatement. Why? “Because” it tastes bad and, according to Dr. Oz, it’s bad for you.[1]

I never made my kids eat liver, but I did push vegetables. Like most parents, I heard “I hate broccoli” more than once. I usually responded with, “You’re lucky I don’t feed you liver like my mother did. Then you’d really have something to whine about.”

Why do kids hate broccoli? Because they think it tastes bad, especially compared to other food options like pasta with butter, warm dinner rolls, and ice cream. Liver earned the hatred it gets. It tastes bad and is bad for you. Broccoli, on the other hand, got a bum rap. It may taste bad to some, but it’s certainly good for you.

Jesus promised, “You will be hated... because of My name.” Christians are “hated,” but not always for the right reasons. Religious hypocrites, insensitive Bible-thumpers, and wacky Jesus cults earn the hatred they get, just like liver. But not all Christ-followers miss the mark. Some sincerely “desire to live godly in Christ Jesus” but, according to the Bible, these believers too “will be hated” and “persecuted” (2nd Timothy 3.12). Hatred is a form of persecution. 

Some kids hate broccoli for all the wrong reasons. If you “desire to live” for Christ, you too “will be hated” for no good reason. Jesus guaranteed it. 
______________________

[1] "While liver is actually a good source of nutrients, it has too many toxins for me to recommend (there's a sewer's amount of toxins in one ounce of foie gras).

"Why? Because the chemicals that the liver can't transform, it stores as your toxic waste dump. Those bad PCBs that the cow munched or bird pecked on? They're stored in the liver, as is some of virtually every other toxin those animals were ever exposed to."

Dr. Mehmet Oz, Director, Cardiovascular Inst., New York, http://www.sharecare.com/question/is-eating-liver-healthy.