I remember watching the video of George Floyd being murdered and feeling like there was a pit in my stomach! I cried. And I was outraged, and I was angry. I also began to watch in the days and weeks that followed how people were posing as protestors but they were actually rioters rioting, taking lives, destroying people’s livelihoods, stealing, attacking police and security guards, and promoting hatred and my heart has been broken as I’ve watched this chaos unfold. I’ll admit, I’ve been angry and outraged many times as I’ve watched all of this unfold. I’ve needed to be reminded of the good news of Jesus Christ. That because of Him, there is forgiveness for anyone who believes in Him. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” The God I serve is a God who does not show favoritism or partiality. Remember what that verse just said? “For God so loved the WORLD” He is a God who has open arms to anyone who will accept His free gift of salvation. The Scripture says that God demonstrated His love for us by dying for us even though we were enemies with Him who were lost in sin.
The God of the Bible loves you no matter the color of your skin, no matter the balance in your bank account, no matter your nationality, no matter your age… I could go on and on but the point is that God is a God who shows no partiality. He shows no favoritism. He does love justice and righteousness and He expects us to be like Him. We are called to love people without showing partiality. God loves you and will accept you if you come to Him admitting your sin and believing in Jesus Christ as your Savior, trusting in His work on the cross to die so that your sins can be forgiven. And the best part of this good news is that Jesus rose from the dead and we can serve a risen, living Savior!
I can’t help but think about all of the hurt right now in America and the injustice we see and the racism (on many levels). The answer is Jesus Christ! It seems to me that humanity is constantly trying to put up walls between each other and God is breaking down those walls and uniting us in Jesus Christ. The problem is, people want to turn their backs on God and then there is no solution for the hurt and the division and the anger and the sin.
humanity is constantly trying to put up walls between each other and God is breaking down those walls and uniting us in Jesus Christ.
All humans are created in God’s image and as such, God values us and has provided a way for us to be redeemed and to join His family, called the Church which is made up of those who follow Jesus Christ. In Galatians 3:27-29 The Apostle Paul writes, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.” What beautiful truth! If we believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior then we are one in Christ!
In the early church, believers were being saved from a world where their life was shaped in a huge way by their nationality. Everyone seemed to view their nationality as the best and the tendency was to look down on people that did not share their race and culture. The Gospel was open for anyone who would believe and as people from different nationalities believed in Jesus Christ, they were united together because of Jesus Christ, and the early church taught that God shows no partiality, and therefore, new believers in Jesus had to wrestle with this massive shift in their worldview. The people that they used to look down on were now their brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. There are many times in the New Testament that we see this reminder. Here are just a few:
“For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.” Romans 10:12
“Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.” Colossians 3:9-11
“So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.” Acts 10:34-35
“My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.” James 2:1
“So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.” Acts 10:34-35
I recently listened to a short video by Pastor Alistair Begg and one of the things he said was, “What God is doing in the world is the very thing that people long for, and that is putting together a multi-lingual, multi-national, multi-ethnic group of people, old and young, and boys and girls, and rich and poor, and here we have the opportunity to say to one another black lives do matter, all of our lives matter, and our identity is found not in our ethnic background, but in our identity in the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Amen! When I look around at the hurt and the pain and the sin, I must say loud and clear, that the answer is Jesus! On our part, we need to be willing to come to Him, believe in Him, and be true followers of Him.