The first thing that we need to
realize in talking about “racism” is that the Bible is clear that there really
is only one race and that is the human race. According to Acts 17:26, And He made from one man every nation of
mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling
place. We all have the same ancestry in Noah and, through him, ultimately
Adam. There is less than 0.2 genetic difference between any of us. All of us,
regardless of the color of our skin, are part of a common humanity, and in
racism, when someone is treated differently due to the shade of their skin, we
forget just that. There are different ethnicities but only one race. Actually,
it is wrong of us to even speak of being different colors. The truth of the
matter is that we all are of the same color. We are just different shades of
the color brown (not merely “black” or “white”). Some of us have darker skin
tones and others of us lighter due to the amount of a thing called melanin in
our skin. So, we really are not that different after all and all of us could be
said to be “a person of color” then. This of course does not diminish any
important and unique differences among us, but I don’t see those being necessarily
related to the color of one’s skin. Every person is an individual designed and
created by our all-wise God and of great worth and value since he or she bears
His image and should be treated as such. The shade of one’s skin doesn’t make a
difference in that.
The issue with racism is the sin of
partiality that James addresses in chapter 2 verses 1-7 of his letter where we
are called to show no partiality as you
hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory (v. 1). The
Greek word used here literally means “to judge according to face” and it
prohibits treating anyone differently due to any external feature of theirs,
whether that would be how they dress, their social status, or the color of
their skin. Whenever we have made a presumption about someone on the basis of
the shade of their skin and treat them differently than others, we have fallen
prey to this sin. And it must be stressed that none of us are immune to this.
We should not think that we ourselves cannot be guilty of racism (and that is
true regardless of how light or dark your skin may be). Keep in mind that it is
believers that James writes this to. He addresses them as my brothers indicating their kinship in Christ. That they are all
part of His family. Just as easy it can be to give someone preferable treatment
due to their social status because they appear to be better off than another,
we can do the same thing on account of the shade of their skin. We must keep
our hearts in check in regard to this and seek to love our neighbor, no matter
what he or she may look like.
And finally, we need to realize that the
answer to the sin of racism is the same answer for each and every sin that
plagues mankind; the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. No amount of protesting
and rioting can bring us together. No new laws that would be legislated can do
so. Joining a movement ultimately will not make any lasting difference. God
alone has the power to break down any barriers that divide us and He has done
so for those in the church through the Lord Jesus Christ. It is only through
Jesus Christ that reconciliation between two warring parties can ever happen.
When someone is reconciled to God through receiving Christ’s salvific work on
the cross in repentance and through faith in Him, they are also reconciled to
those who, by grace, are their brothers and sisters in Christ, regardless of
who they are and what they look like. This is Paul’s point in Ephesians 2:11-22
when he talks about how, through the means of the cross reconciling believing
Gentiles and Jews to God, they are brought together into one body where those
who once were hostile to one another now are one in Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made us
both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by
abolishing the law of commandments expressed in the ordinances, that He might
create in Himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might
reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the
hostility (vv. 14-16).
So,
if we want to see an end to the hostility between different ethnicities today,
then we need to direct people back to the cross where we find ourselves all
standing on level ground, all of us regardless of ethnicity or skin color being
in the same boat of being a sinner in need of a Savior. And to Christ who
through His death on the cross reconciles the believing repentant sinner to God
and then in turn to those in Christ as part of His Church. It is only in Him do
have any hope to bring about an end to the things that currently divide us. Are
we telling people the gospel and calling them to be reconciled to God which
will lead to their reconciliation with others? May God grant us the grace to do
so even more!
Love
in Christ,
Pastor
Lee
