Welcome. Today we’re going to be talking about racism, and how it is against the commands that God has laid out in the Bible. This is even more relevant now that Barack Obama has been elected as the 44th President of the United States. It is now the time to let go of the hatred.

I am not commenting on Obama, the elections, or politics in general. I frankly did not support either candidate. It is a fact that the election has brought race back to the forefront of the collective American mind. It has affected so much that people voted for or against the candidates due purely to race. This is quite a sad fact.

You see, racism must die. That is the hard fact about the matter. If you hate due to skin color, shame on you. That is not a civil thing to do, that’s not a fruitful thing to do, and it is absolutely against the Bible. There is no longer any place in our world for hatred and racism.

The Bible says (1Jn 4:8)  He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. This is as plain as the nose on my face. God is love. God does not want you to hate anyone, nor does He have any hate Himself for anyone either. You can hate God, but He still loves you. This is because love is closest thing to God that you can come across in this world.

Why do I say that? Well first of all, God loved the world enough to send His son to die for the sins of the world. He made this sacrifice because He loves humanity so very much. He gives us the Gospel of Jesus Christ so that we might all know His love and come to accept Him.

(Gen 1:26)  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. (Gen 1:27)  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Notice that it does not say God created whites, or Asians, or blacks. He just made man. This lets us know that we are in God’s image, and that there is no distinction made between any color neither at the Creation or any other time.

(Act 17:26)  And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; now we have God making all nations or races from one blood. I believe that this means we all came from this single origin, and that makes us all the same, we are all descendants of Adam.

To continue this line of thought I believe that skin colors came after creation. Here’s my breakdown. The people were of a singular race, likely Middle Eastern. Then people moved into other areas as space requires or due to a pioneering spirit. Another major event that added to the distribution of people across the face of the earth is the events at the Tower of Babel.

When the languages were changed, people banded together by language, and they went their ways. With time they spread into the entire world. As they lived in their surroundings, they adapted to the area by variations in skin color, among other things. I think that all races arose from a single race, and that races developed from the surroundings the people found themselves in and not from some superiority or any other factor.

In this vein, there is no difference between any two people. If someone has darker skin that likely means that their ancestors lived in places with a lot of sun, and probably close to the equator where darker skin was a boon. People with lighter skin came from places where the sun was not as intense, and lighter skin was a better choice.

This is called ‘variations’. Some people call it ‘micro evolution’ but I shy from that term because of its negative connotations.

Maybe I’m wrong, but this explanation makes the most sense to me, and answers the question why there are different skin colors.

(Gen 3:20)  And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living. Eve is the root of all humans, and she was of the same race as Adam obviously, so the races have to have arisen due to things like variations, and not because anyone is created inferior to anyone else.

(Rom 5:12)  Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: One man here is listed as bringing something into the world. Therefore he must be the father of all living because everyone (with a few exceptions) dies. So if he brought death, and death happens to everyone, we must all have come from him.

The exceptions to the death rule are Enoch and Elijah, both that were taken to Heaven in their physical form. (2Ki 2:11)  And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. (Gen 5:24)  And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

(Joh 3:16)  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (Joh 3:17)  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. Notice the love of God here. He loves the WORLD not just a certain group.

(2Pe 3:9)  The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. We see here that God wants all of us to come to repentance. Now tell me, who are we to go against the will of God? He loves everyone, and we are no one to condemn what God loves.

(Gal 3:28)  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. (Gal 3:29)  And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. This is where we see that no matter who you are. Gender doesn’t matter, your status in life doesn’t matter. Your race does not matter. If you are Christ’s then you are part of the promise that God gave to Abraham’s descendants.

(Act 10:34)  Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: (Act 10:35)  But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him. The nations can all belong to God if they all do what is right. What is meant here with the term ‘respecter of persons’ means that God does not care how much money you make, what family you come from or anything like that.

(1Jn 2:9)  He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. (1Jn 2:10)  He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. If you hate your brother, or in other words hate other people, no matter the reason, you are in darkness, period. If you love others then you are in the light and in God’s favor. He wants us to love each other and that’s why racism is so very wrong.

(Jas 2:8)  If ye fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well: your neighbor counts for the world. If you are told to love the person that physically lives by you, how is that any help to the world? You could live beside anyone, technically.

(1Jn 2:2)  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

Now, we all know that we’re sinners. We see that in fall of Genesis 3. We continue in the mortal plane and in sinful nature by birthright of our parents. In other words we’re born into this reality by our parents instead being born into Eden as illustrated in Romans 5:12. We all need to be saved, that’s all over the New Testament. Jesus came to save all mankind, as seen in John 3:16-3:18, 14:6, and 2Peter 3:9. And if Jesus wants to save all mankind, that means He loves all mankind, and who are we to hate what Jesus loves? Nobody, that’s who.

If you do as you’re told, which is to love your neighbor, or all people in other words, then that’s awesome. But if you respect, or think a group is better than another for superficial reasons (read as supremacy) then you are quite simply sinning.
One story that many use to point out the intolerance of the Bible is the tale of the Canaanite woman with the possessed daughter that sought out Jesus in Matthew 15:22-15:28, and Mark 7:25-7:30. This event happens right before the feeding of the masses that leaves seven baskets of leftovers.
The story goes that Jesus had one of several arguments with the scribes and was weary of fighting with them. He left out to take some time off from their foolishness. He goes to the border of Jewish land, and enters into a house in secret, but He could not remain hidden.
A woman, of another race, in Matthew she is referred to a Canaanite, and in Mark a Greek, either way, she’s not Jewish, she’s different from Jesus and those with Him. She seeks out and finds Jesus. Her child is afflicted by a demon, and she implores Jesus to help her. Jesus responds to her that He is sent to the lost sheep of Israel only. She does not let that stop her, she instead worships him. Jesus replies that the food for the children is not fit for dogs, and the woman replies that even the dogs eat the scraps that fall on the floor. Jesus marvels at her faith and heals her child.
I don’t think that Jesus was racists. I don’t think He was ‘colored’ by His raising and His cultural surroundings. To say that Jesus turned away from non-Jews because that was the way of things in His day would be to say He committed sin. That is absolutely false. There was a lesson in His actions that day. Jesus was not racists because people were racists back then, as we’ve shown in all those other verses.
But what was the lesson? Jesus did not mean to say that He was not meant for the world. His death was for all John 3:16 is one of many verses that clearly states that. But, in Jesus’ life, He was meant for the Jews. He had to be of the Jews to fulfill the Word of God, and the promises. The Old Testament was of the Jews, not the Greek or Canaanites. For Jesus to be Messiah, He had to do His work in Israel. He had to die in Israel to fulfill the Scripture. That was what He meant. His death was for the world. His life was meant to fulfill the needs of Jewish prophecy. It was not racism.
After Jesus tells her this, the woman worships Him. This is a peculiar turn of events. The woman was not Jewish and was not likely even familiar with Jewish protocol. She knows Jesus is a descendant of the great Jewish king David, for she calls him the Son of David. While she might know He was royal in His bloodline, she might not have heard of His divinity outright. But her faith tells her of His true nature. She knows He’s the Son of God. She called out after Him, knowing He could truly help her.
So Christ has told her that He is for the children of Israel during His life so that He might fulfill the scriptures of the Jewish prophets and save the entire world. The woman continues to follow Jesus, calling for His mercy and imploring for His help. She cried out after Jesus, and worshipped Him, saying ‘Lord help me!’ And she literally meant it, since well, she was talking to the actual Lord.
The woman refuses to leave the house Jesus and crew is staying in, and Jesus tests her one final time with the table and dog comment. I don’t think that Jesus was calling the woman a dog. Or even comparing her or her race to anything less than His mortal being.
I think it had everything to do with the fact she was not a follower of His. She was not a Jew, she had likely not heard the sermons given by Jesus, she had probably not read the scriptures, nor likely knew of the prophets. I think it was more a test of faith. I think He wanted to see if she truly understood He was Christ or if she was just chasing what she thought to be the latest voodoo doctor.
The woman gave her wise answer, and Jesus was satisfied, and granted the healing she asked for.
There is also another lesson to be had here. In the Matthew version, the disciples want to run her off, and Jesus ignores her. This detail is missing from the Mark version. Anyways, the woman is making a scene and is annoying the disciples. Remember, we know from many sources that in Jesus’ time and location, society was extremely patriarchal. Men were dominant and women were relegated to subdued roles. So a woman that is making a fuss and doesn’t ‘know her place’ so to speak would be offensive to the Jewish men, along with annoying.
Jesus does not ignore her to condone His disciples’ behaviors, but instead to give them a chance to prove themselves. Jesus did that here and there. He checked to make sure His lessons were getting through. He held His tongue hoping His boys would show the kindness He had taught them. Of course, they let Him down, but we all fail and fall short of the glory of God.
I think Jesus also continued the line of speech too with the woman as a secondary example to His disciples. He takes the path they wanted to take. He uses a bit of reproach towards her. She answers Him with honesty and wisdom. In the end, He sets her up to answer Him perfectly, and proves to His boys that no one is lesser than anyone else.
There are multiple layers of meanings in most of Christ’s workings usually I think. He was good like that.
Why would the writers of the Bible change the beliefs of the Bible if Jesus was in fact a racist? Some would accuse the Bible of being rewritten. But racism has survived, sadly, very well until fairly modern times. In the King James Bible, we’re talking a good amount of years back when distrust among the races was no big deal. We’re talking over 250 years in some printing versions. There would be no reason to remove racism in the time period when changes could have been slipped in.
In the Old Testament, there are only two so-called races; the Jew, and the Gentiles. The Jews were meant to be the priests, and were meant to minister to the Gentiles. Instead the Jews became proud of their religious position and cut themselves off from the Gentiles and eventually that led to hatred between the groups.
Ephesians 2:14-2:16 ‘For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross.’
There went that wall, that hatred. The cross made us, both Jew and Gentile into one body of mankind unto God. So if you hate someone of another color, then you hate what Jesus has wrought with His death on the cross.
The Jews, as priests, were not meant to be more special than Gentiles, but instead facilitators for the Messiah. They are chosen so Jesus might arrive. God had a plan, and that plan included a society of priest class people, the Jews. God isn’t racist either. He just had a job for everyone, the Jews to bring Jesus, and the Gentiles to spread His word to the ends of the earth.
Ruth, of early Jewish times, felt the warmth of Jewish hospitality and graciousness herself. If you are not familiar, I’ll give you a run down. There was a drought and some lean times in the lands of Israel, so this fellow Elimelech heads out to the land of Moab with his wife Naomi and his two sons. They are there a while, and the guy dies, as time marches on. Naomi and her sons continue on with their lives in Moab, and stick it out. The boys grow into men and get married. One marries Orpah, the other Ruth.
Life went on about ten years or so, and for a reason not explained, the two sons die as well. So now all three women in the family, Naomi, Orpah, and Ruth are all widows. Naomi decides it’s time to go home to Israel, since she’s heard word that things have turned around there, and the Lord had blessed the people with plenty.
So Naomi packs up and starts towards home. She tells her daughters-in-law to load up and return to their mothers. She honors them, saying they had always been good to her, and they were good to her sons. She then told them to find rest in the house of their husbands. I think this means she was blessing them to go remarry, for they were widowed, and remarrying was the proper thing to do when widowed in a manner they would call, well, honorably. Even now days, people often remarry after becoming widowed, especially if it happens when they are young.
Everyone says they married so young in the past, but I’m not all that sure of exact age. I think 16 years old for a woman is reasonable. That’s past first menstruation, and is long enough to allow for most physical maturity. So if Ruth married at 16, and her husband died 10 years later, she’s still in her 20’s, which is obviously young.
Many would say that people in these times lived extraordinarily long, others say it’s a wildly different counting system only, I’m not sure. But even if we use the short system, I’m seeing somewhere around mid to late 40’s as an acceptable lifespan. That would still make her no more than middle aged. It would be like telling someone at 40 they’re too old to marry. Now days people are just starting to get serious about love, marriage, and starting a family by their late 30’s and early 40’s.
Anyway, back to our tale. Naomi tells them to go home, thanks them for loving her sons and herself so deeply, and then sends them away, telling them to find themselves another husband when their hearts are ready.
Of course they both protest, claiming their loyalty to Naomi. She is the mother of their husbands, who are likely still not long deceased. Emotions are still likely very high because of this. They want to be with Naomi because Naomi is the last bit of their husbands they have left.
Naomi counters that there is no reason to bring them to Israel since she will bear no more sons for them to marry, and they are not Jew by race. Naomi is clearly by this point an older woman, having a pair of grown sons that were married for a decade. So she is too old to even care to remarry, by her reckoning. So she puts to the pair that even if she did have a husband and bore a son that night, would they waste their lives waiting for the son to grow up? Naomi then, in her grief, says that the hand of the Lord has gone out against her. That is a common thing to hear when you’ve lost a husband and both your children, especially when both kids die close together or at the same time. She was heartbroken, felt she was accursed by God, and was warning the girls away in her sadness.
There was more crying, and Orpah heeds Naomi and turns away and goes home. But Ruth will have none of it. She’s not going to let anything separate her from Naomi. She denounces everything of her former life. She decides to be with Naomi in all things. She will lodge in the same places as her mother-in-law, she claims the God of Naomi, and she would turn herself from Moabite to Jew if she had the power.
Naomi saw that there was nothing she could do, so they took off for Israel, and came to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barely harvest. They are a sad pair, two widows, one old, one a foreigner. In these days, after the harvest, that which was left over, the bits here and there that weren’t caught in the harvest was left for the less fortunate. Since there’s always some ears of corn or whatever that end up getting missed, might as well let someone eat them, and it’s a waste to double back to pick up a single ear or pick a single head of wheat.
So Ruth says she’s going to go out and scour the corn field for some corn so that they might eat. Ruth, though, is very modest about this, not even knowing that this is okay and legal. She says she will look for corn in the fields of him whose sight finds grace in her. She’s thinking she’s going to have to beg. Or at least worrying that she’ll be denied access.
Ruth ends up in a part of a field owned by Boaz, a wealthy man who also happens to be Naomi’s brother-in-law, or at least a relative of her husband’s. When Boaz passed by those in his fields gathering the leftovers, he actually speaks to them. What a novel concept. He says “The Lord be with you” and even more unusual, they answer back! The less fortunate, the ‘beggars’ so to speak, say “The Lord bless ye”. Civility among humans, so weird!
Boaz sees that Ruth has been working hard, and sees that she is not freeloading. He also knows who she is, and who she is working so hard to provide for. He knows Ruth is working the fields, the equivalent to modern day panhandling to give to his relative’s spouse. This is not lost on him, not at all.
He does well by her, and when she asks him why, he tells her because she has taken care of Naomi, even when Naomi was not of Ruth’s people. How well does he do? He was so impressed with Ruth and her dedication to Naomi, that he went through a great deal of legal wrangling to marry her. So we’re talking not only did the Moabite Ruth welcome and marry a Jew and into a Jewish family, she followed the Jewish Naomi to Israel where she, a Moabite, impressed and won the heart of a very prominent, wealthy Jewish man. The Jewish man went as far as to risk his reputation to marry her, since she was the wife of his (possibly) nephew, which is too close of kin.
And our boy Boaz here was David’s great grandfather! That also makes Boaz a direct ancestor of Jesus as well. So without the blurring of racial lines we see in the book of Ruth, there would be no King David, and thereby no Messiah.
That’s not racism, that’s a love story, how Gentile accepted Jew, and how Jew accepted Gentile.
All people are creatures of God. Jesus marched all over the place interacting and healing people. He often healed the non-Jew. He healed Samaritans, Canaanites, and Syrophoenicians. If peoples of all races were good enough for Jesus, they are good enough for all of us. Jesus casts His nets, and catches all kinds of fish, the fishes of humanity, of which He casts none back. His love extends to all.
We cannot judge on the color of skin, or on any other factor that does not count for the content of character. Matthew 7:1 ‘Judge not, that ye be not judged.’ Good advice there. Good advice, Lord.
Racism needs to die here and now. Erase the hate my friends, God has commanded us to do so. Until next time my friends, God bless.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008 at 9:04 pm and is filed under Uncategorized | . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.