8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," you do well;
9 but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
10 For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.
In other words, we are not to think ourselves, or our group of people, as superior to others. We are called not to be exclusive, but to go into the world and be - well, inclusive, which is a word that has a far different meaning for people of faith than what the world would teach. We are not to be prideful or puffed up, but to be humble, understanding, firm in our convictions but driven by compassion. We can enthusiastically embrace the concept that Christ died for all, and wants to bring all into a relationship with Himself.
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Jesus came to die for all, despite a person's ethnic or cultural background, and it's important that we
recognize others in the Spirit. Galatians 3 says:
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
The pulse of race relations in America is a complex and important subject, and the Barna Group has recently released some data on race in our nation that can give some insight into the church's response to race-related issues.
First of all, the survey establishes that yes, there is still a problem. According to the survey summary, the vast majority of adults - 84% - agree there is a lot of anger and hostility between ethnic and racial groups in America. No matter the age group, region, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or faith segment, the vast majority among each group believe there is tension among racial and ethnic groups in this country. And, by an 87 to 82 percent margin, more whites believe that than blacks.
The survey questions also zeroed in on the concept of "racism," described as, "...prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior.” Regarding a question about whether racism is a "problem of the past, not the present," evangelicals were almost twice as likely than the general population to agree strongly with that description (13% compared to all adults at 7%). Conservatives were three times more likely to strongly agree with that statement (at 12% vs. 4% for those identifying as liberals).
There was also a question about the "Black Lives Matter" movement. 27% of all adults said they support the message of that movement, with Millennials most likely to support the message, at 45%, and that support decreases with age. Evangelicals and Republicans are significantly less likely than the general population to support the movement (13% of evangelicals and 7% of Republicans compared to 27% of all adults; with 43% of Democrats saying they support the message).
So, can the church play a part in dealing with race-related issues? 73% of Americans agree with the statement, “Christian churches play an important role in racial reconciliation” The summary indicates that the older are person is, the more hopeful he or she is about the Christian church’s role in reconciliation. Not surprisingly, evangelicals are the most hopeful group with a staggering 94 percent who believe Christian churches play an important role in racial reconciliation.
Brooke Hempell, vice president of research at Barna Group, in explaining what the research means, says, “If you’re a white, evangelical, Republican, you are less likely to think race is a problem, but more likely to think you are a victim of reverse racism. You are also less convinced that people of color are socially disadvantaged. Yet these same groups believe the church plays an important role in reconciliation. This dilemma demonstrates that those supposedly most equipped for reconciliation do not see the need for it."
Hempell says, "History—and Jesus’ example—has shown that reconciliation comes from stepping out of our place of comfort and actively pursuing healing for those in need. We must do the same, if we really believe all lives matter.”
These are definitely some eye-opening statistics, and can be challenging for the church today. On The Meeting House program, I have examined some issues relative to race relations, and I wanted to explore some thoughts relative to this Barna research.
First of all, the Bible is not silent regarding how we are to treat one another. Jesus said that the Great Commandment was to love God wholeheartedly and the love our neighbor as ourselves. If we are in love with Jesus, as we claim to be, His love will shape the way we view people who are different than we are. We talk about color-blindness, and that's critical, but we cannot be blind to the struggle that others have experienced or who are experiencing.
But, that has to go beyond an outward demonstration of unity to an inward declaration of a willingness to walk with our brothers and sisters in Christ, and that will involve embracing the pain and discomfort that they have experienced. We talk about unity because the Bible talks about it, but we can seek the Lord to find ways where we can gain a greater understanding of one another, to confront our fears and prejudices, and seek to build true harmony in the Spirit.
I am grateful for the way that, as local leaders pointed out in a recent interview, the Montgomery church community was involved in helping to ease tension in light of an incident in the capital city. That can be an indicator that while there are spiritual forces that can lead to division, there are greater forces, consistent with the Spirit of God, that can bring healing and understanding. By admitting and addressing the barriers, we can work toward Godly unity.
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