That Which Divides Us

~August 28, 1962~

26For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28There 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. 29And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Galations 3: 26 - 29 NKJV 

I wasn't going to go there.  I mean, with all that has gone on recently in our country, steering clear of that racial conversation seemed like the best thing to do.  But along came Wayne Jacobsen and that all changed.  See, Wayne put out his weekly podcast this morning, and with this one he was tackling the very same racial divide issue which I had been skirting.  My first question when confronting this issue would be, are there indeed different races among Gods children?  I mean, aren't we all created in His image?  Could it be that this issue of race is more about us than it is about our Lords creation?  I guess if it is then we have a whole lot of soul searching to do amongst ourselves.  I cannot fathom that as God created His children in His own image that He would do in such a way that would divide us so violently.  Therefore, it is my belief that the weight of the racism we all too often strive against lies squarely on our shoulders.  We see someone who seems different than we are and we instantly attach a race label.  Sound familiar?  As christians, we should know that God does not see His children in regards to race.  That is the mistake we ourselves have made.  Is it that difficult for us to see others as they really are, as someone created in His image as we are?  As the apostle Paul tells us in Galations 3, we are all one in Christ Jesus with no racial barriers.  It wouldn't be the first time that we have bastardized our Lords creation with our own ideas.   

And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and hamlet, from every stahe and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of Gods children, black men and white men, jews and gentiles, protestants and catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old negro spiritual, "free at last!  free at last! Thank God Almighty, we're free at last!"

~Martin Luther King, August 28, 1962~

I used to be like most of you.  In fact in many ways I still am.  I attach race labels when in my heart I know full well that the very same Spirit of Christ Jesus which is in me is also in that person whom I am labeling.  Paul did  not discriminate between the races when he told of Gods revealing Christ in him.  Therefore, how is it that we can so proudly proclaim that we are different than any of His other creation?  As I said, this is our own doing and not our Lords intention.  In the past few years, I have come to have a different perspective on race relations from a african american coworker of mine.  It is he who enlightened me to the other side of race relations that many of us will never see.  That side of police injustice, labels and being treated differently than others.  To be honest, I cannot claim to know his point of view as I have never been in his shoes.  However, one thing I can proclaim is to began to see him as my heavenly Father sees him.  To see him as anything less would be to ignore what God has created.  In God there is no racial divide.  In Him there are no labels.  There is only Christ Jesus in us.  

20“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Galations 2:20 NKJV 

~Scott~