"For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek (Gentile), for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For 'whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved'." Romans 10: 12-13
There is obviously a huge racial divide that is occurring once again in our country, with groups like Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter and the war on Police standing on the forefront of our media and in our cities. Violence and protests are happening weekly, even daily in some places. I've attempted to avoid this topic, because it is distinctly controversial due to the emotional reactions on both sides of the argument. Nevertheless, with something so prominent in the world, it's hard to avoid it for long.
Regardless of our personal feelings on the racism spectrum, as I personally feel that true racism is confined to a smaller portion of our people than the media would have us believe, I want to take this strictly from a Biblical perspective. Let's see what God has to say on the subject. All throughout the Bible, despite the distinctions between the tribes and people from particular cities, God only cites two discriminant races: Jews and Gentiles (anyone not a Jew). The Jews were the chosen people of God, and the the bloodline chosen for the Messiah that would eventually redeem the world from the fall into sin, and the Gentiles were everyone else.
Even Jesus maintained these distinctions in many of His early teachings, like when He encountered the SyroPhoenician woman in Tyre and Sidon and told her that He was there to fill the "children" first (presumably the Jews) (Mark 7: 24-30). But because of her faith, He freed her daughter anyway. Jesus came for the Jew first, then for the Gentile (all over Paul's epistles). But the most of the Jews, especially the religious leaders, rejected Him, so as He wept over Jerusalem at the Triumphal Entry (Luke 19: 41-44), He declared a blindness over them and began the times of the Gentiles. But even before that event, He began to tear down those distinctions with many of His interactions and parables involving the Samaritans, when He made even the "dogs" appear better than the religious elite because of compassion and mercy for others (Luke 10: 25-37). This is where He defines the word neighbor in "love your neighbor."
Because of Jesus, God's gracious sacrifice on our behalf, there is no more distinction. "For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek (Gentile), for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For 'whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved'" (Romans 10: 12-13). The only barrier that exists now is those who choose to receive that gracious gift and those who do not. We are all God's children now, because of God's grace. I've always like the definition of grace: God's Riches At Christ's Expense. Jesus died the same for all of us so we could all be brothers and sisters in Him and heirs to the throne of God. It's time that we begin to see each other as God sees us, as His creation in His image, and stop defining each other by our own human barriers. Imagine the change that could be made if we focused on showing the world Jesus rather than the differences in our skin.
Father God, dissolve the divisions in Your people and help us come together as the unified body of Christ to make a stand for You. Satan's biggest accomplishment in this world is the division of the Church, and race is simply another barrier that he has placed to keep us from being full strength for the Kingdom. Help us bring our focus back to You, and put Satan back under our heels where he belongs. In Jesus' name, Amen!
There is obviously a huge racial divide that is occurring once again in our country, with groups like Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter and the war on Police standing on the forefront of our media and in our cities. Violence and protests are happening weekly, even daily in some places. I've attempted to avoid this topic, because it is distinctly controversial due to the emotional reactions on both sides of the argument. Nevertheless, with something so prominent in the world, it's hard to avoid it for long.
Regardless of our personal feelings on the racism spectrum, as I personally feel that true racism is confined to a smaller portion of our people than the media would have us believe, I want to take this strictly from a Biblical perspective. Let's see what God has to say on the subject. All throughout the Bible, despite the distinctions between the tribes and people from particular cities, God only cites two discriminant races: Jews and Gentiles (anyone not a Jew). The Jews were the chosen people of God, and the the bloodline chosen for the Messiah that would eventually redeem the world from the fall into sin, and the Gentiles were everyone else.
Even Jesus maintained these distinctions in many of His early teachings, like when He encountered the SyroPhoenician woman in Tyre and Sidon and told her that He was there to fill the "children" first (presumably the Jews) (Mark 7: 24-30). But because of her faith, He freed her daughter anyway. Jesus came for the Jew first, then for the Gentile (all over Paul's epistles). But the most of the Jews, especially the religious leaders, rejected Him, so as He wept over Jerusalem at the Triumphal Entry (Luke 19: 41-44), He declared a blindness over them and began the times of the Gentiles. But even before that event, He began to tear down those distinctions with many of His interactions and parables involving the Samaritans, when He made even the "dogs" appear better than the religious elite because of compassion and mercy for others (Luke 10: 25-37). This is where He defines the word neighbor in "love your neighbor."
Because of Jesus, God's gracious sacrifice on our behalf, there is no more distinction. "For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek (Gentile), for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For 'whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved'" (Romans 10: 12-13). The only barrier that exists now is those who choose to receive that gracious gift and those who do not. We are all God's children now, because of God's grace. I've always like the definition of grace: God's Riches At Christ's Expense. Jesus died the same for all of us so we could all be brothers and sisters in Him and heirs to the throne of God. It's time that we begin to see each other as God sees us, as His creation in His image, and stop defining each other by our own human barriers. Imagine the change that could be made if we focused on showing the world Jesus rather than the differences in our skin.
Father God, dissolve the divisions in Your people and help us come together as the unified body of Christ to make a stand for You. Satan's biggest accomplishment in this world is the division of the Church, and race is simply another barrier that he has placed to keep us from being full strength for the Kingdom. Help us bring our focus back to You, and put Satan back under our heels where he belongs. In Jesus' name, Amen!
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