This past Sunday, I preached on The Gospel and Racial Injustice. It’s not the first time we’ve looked at the issue of race and racism in America and it won’t be the last. I lament that we must still address the issue of racism in America. I wish we didn’t need to, but we do. In this post I’d like to begin a conversation revolving around some of the points I made in the sermon and also introduce a few others. I’d love to hear back from you regarding your thoughts, concerns, worries, and fears. In our conversation, let’s be respectful and honoring, but honest and clear.
Racism is sin – This fact is basic and fundamental, but that’s why it should be said with clarity. In our conversations and interactions with people in our circles of influence, let us never equivocate on this. To elevate one race above another is sin. To treat someone differently because of their skin color is sin. To act, speak, or even think of a group of people disparagingly because of their ethnicity is a sin. Racism denies that all humans are created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27) and that all are descended from Adam (Acts 17:24-26). The only way to rightly understand the existence of racism in the world is to view it through the lens of the Fall when man chose to disobey God and turn from His ways.
Racism is a primarily gospel issue not a social issue – Because it is a sin issue, it is a gospel issue. The gospel is the Good News of Jesus Christ that can be summarized in the following way:
Creation: A holy God created all things and it was good.
Fall: Man sinned against God, bringing a curse upon what was once good.
Redemption: God sent His Son Jesus to be a sacrifice to break the curse of sin.
Restoration: God is making all things new and will one day bring an end to all sin.
Since Jesus came to rescue us from sin’s penalty, sin’s power, and sin’s presence, our only and best hope to address the sin of racism is the gospel of Jesus Christ. To the world, racism is a social and political issue, but we know that it is ultimately a gospel issue.
We must pursue gospel-centered solutions – If racism is a gospel issue, then our pursuit of solutions must be gospel-centered. To the degree that gospel change involves and requires social and political change, we should actively pursue those changes, but not at the expense of a central focus on the gospel. This will help give boundaries to our actions and pursuits. For an obvious example, the eighth commandment is “thou shall not steal”(Ex. 20:15). Looting is stealing, and therefore we must reject looting as a means of pursuing change. Similarly, Jesus’ command to “turn the other cheek” (Matt 5:38-40) should cause us to reject the use of violence in pursuing change.
We’ve come a long way, but we’ve got a long ways to go – We shouldn’t deny the reality that the battle for racial justice and equity in our country has made significant strides over the last four centuries (including precolonial America to present day), but neither should we be content with where we are today. Racism still exists in America today in many forms, and as long as it does, we should not rest from standing against it. Any advances that have been made against racism in America were made by previous generations who recognized the evil of their day and refused to be silent and idle. Racism may be packaged differently today that it was 400, 200, 100, or even 50 years ago, but it is fundamentally the same evil. Will we be silent and idle in the face of the evil of our day?
White people are not the best arbiters of whether systemic racism exists – I can read books and articles on racism, or learn facts and statistics, but I will never know what it’s like to be black in America. I do not (and cannot) have an experiential understanding of the unique challenges of raising black boys and girls in 21st century America. For me to outright reject that systemic racism exists in our policies, structures, and systems of authority displays a rather unseemly arrogance that flatly denies the real life experiences of black people. I’ve sat across the table from black pastors who have shared stories with me that make me weep for them and their families. It would be unkind at best (and pridefully arrogant at worst) for me to then say, “yeah, but the statistics say you’re not experiencing that”. My best course of action at that point is to be quite and listen, and hopefully learn. (James 1:19,20).
Generalizations are never helpful and usually shut down dialogue – If I say that I believe some police officers are unfairly targeting black citizens with an unjustified use of force, that doesn’t mean that I hate the police and are against them. Conversely, if I say that I support the police, that doesn’t mean that I don’t care about the concerns of black people who experience unjust interactions with them. If I admit that the lives of black people matter, this doesn’t mean that I affirm an organization that espouses unbiblical and unchristian beliefs and values. When we generalize and categorize one another, we’re only buying into the kind of identity politics that our government often models and the media often celebrates. As Christians, we must do better. Let us speak with clarity but listen with even greater clarity. Let us not make assumptions about someone’s beliefs, values, and motives, but rather seek to understand who they are, what they are saying, and why they are saying it. Christlike charity demands we not speak or respond in generalizations.
This is just the beginning of a conversation. There is much more to be said, and must more I plan to say. But I’d also love to hear some thoughts from you. Let’s keep the conversation going; this is just a start.
Written by Ken Rucker