Hate problem or heart problem?

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“Hate speech” is a headline, a talking point and a personal attack if I have an inferior argument. Hate speech and hatred are at the core of everything from violence in schools to assassinations. Hate exists. Evil exists. But hate speech is not what the media, leftists and radical alphabet mafia claim. Speech is not the problem; hate is.

Is it hate speech if I espouse an idea that does not align with current “norms?” Is it hate speech to quote the Bible on the value of human life, sexuality or how you treat a horse? (Yes, that’s in there.) Is it hate speech if my informed position opposes yours? There was a time when debate was a championed value. Now, it’s “hate speech,” and you can be killed for it.

Killed? C’mon Alex. People aren’t killed for speech. No, it’s far worse. You can be killed for just being —being a Christian, Jew, or someone who believes human biology is dimorphic. 

Hate speech, as defined by those who shout it loudest, is not hatefulness in the speaker; it’s words that stirfeelings of hate in the hearers. Your speech caused my violent hatred. I’m not responsible for my actions; you are. Hate speech, not by definition but by application, is anything that awakens hate in the hearer. 

Are words violence, or are violent actions violence? If speech is a form of violence, a violent response is acceptable. If words are violence, or I feel triggered, my violently expressed hatefulness becomes “self-defense.” 

Real hate is a heart issue. Jesus explained in Luke 6:45: If good is inside you, good leaks out. If evil is inside, evil leaks out. But a dangerous new definition has emerged. Hate speech is not what a hateful speaker says, but what enrages me. Hate speech is what makes me hate you, even though I’m the one setting fires and screaming “Death to Israel! Death to America!” If I hate your words, what you said is hate speech. 

If a marriage counselor hears, “She makes me feel angry…” they break in: “Except for physical abuse, no one can make you feel. Your reactions to speech, threats, or actual violence are your responsibility.”

If you’re a radical seeking a reason, living out the current definition of hate speech, when people you hate are murdered or maimed, it’s justified. They had it coming. Their words justify painting swastikas on their house … or engraving shell casings. 

What if I quote the Bible (or the Quran) that condemns sodomy? If speech is violence, the problem is not that deeds are inherently wrong, but that I dared to say so. It’s not about hate; it’s about truth-speakers, and THE Truth (John 14:6). God, the Lawgiver, determined some things are wrong. Because they can’t reach God, they stab or beat those who repeat His words, as Jesus said they would: “They will hate you because they hated Me”(John 15:18). 

Changing the definition of words is regressive: “You cannot say…” becomes “You cannot think.” If it’s hatespeech to express a deeply held religious belief, it’s only a small step to criminalize thinking it. (Insert favorite Orwell quote) Globalists believe they must impose their beliefs because they are more enlightened. No dissent allowed. 

The term “hate speech” was invented to silence informed opinions, historical precedents, and clear logic. With no valid counterarguments (facts are stubborn things), truth tellers became the problem. We’re hateful forcountering failed logic or racist for detailing the degradation of Democrat-run cities. I’m a (fake-word)-a-phobe if I state the history of Socialism. 

What is the logical progression of believing speech-is-violence-murder-is-not? A vengeful society run by radicals with rifles and microphones. Where does that lead? More riots, and more funerals. If you’re a Christian or any truth-speaker, your words, not their deeds, caused it. They can hate and kill, because you must be silenced.

When words are weapons but carbines are not, it’s alarming. When the MSM blames the dead and defends the killers, it’s revealing. When the real victim is dead and the killer is “a victim,” it confirms the adage: Ideas have consequences. Bad ideas have body counts.

Wouldn’t it be great if people had hearts of kindness, goodness and self-control? Paul wrote, “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22). If we want those attributes, they’re available. 

What’s in your heart will eventually leak out. Is it toxic or healing? America’s problem is not a bullet problem. It’s not a problem that killing those who oppose you will solve. Read the history of any nation that tried that approach. The dictators who filled the void were a million dead bodies worse. We have a heart problem, and only one Heart Surgeon can cure it. 

This article was origingally published on townhall.com on October 19, 2025.

Alex McFarland

Alex has preached in over 2,200 churches throughout North America and numerous more internationally. He also speaks at Christian events, conferences, debates, and other venues to teach biblical truths and preach the gospel.

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