Jesus and Paul on Racism

Many of you reading this post will already know what a horrible state our world is in. Racism against black people is the topic of my post today.

I will be honest: up until the horrific news of George Floyd and the conversations I’ve had with my black friends recently, I did not know racism was this bad. That kind of honesty hurts, and to even write the words “I did not know racism was this bad” makes me cringe. My heart grieves for those who have had to experience the realities of racial injustice. This blog post is dedicated to you.

Since I am not one to have experienced any racism in my life, nor do I feel like I am in a position to comment on it, I have had conversations with a few of my black friends, two of whom I will quote in this post. One of them is Alford. Alford is a friend I made at a university campus fellowship in my first year. He treats me like I’m his younger brother, often giving me rides home, sharing nuggets of wisdom with me and extending his arm towards me in many kind deeds. I love him deeply. My other friend is Krista Kueviakoe. Yes, I address her with her last name in real life. I have the pleasure of serving with her at the same university campus fellowship I mentioned earlier. I look up to her because she is so well-versed in the Scriptures and brings a ton of joy and wisdom to conversations. I have so much to learn from these two and I am blessed to have them in my life.

Anyways, now that you know a bit about my two friends, let’s listen to what they have to say about our current cultural moment. This is Krista. I found her response to be quite eye-opening:

To call it current might be misleading, I think this is just the tip of the iceberg rearing its ugly head. It’s the culmination of 400 years since slavery, segregation, mass incarceration and systemic racism (to name a few) that have contributed to the reality we live in today. I’m tired of being tired. To the racists, we’re less than human and to the other people of colour and whites who aren’t racist we’re overdramatic, they think there isn’t a problem because they happen to be on the side of privilege where they can’t see it, or maybe they attribute our treatment to the way we “act” because we’re “lazy” or “stupid”. But the truth is that social disadvantages like poverty can be passed down generationally just like a gene, so, humongous disadvantageous for one specific marginal group in particular [plus] years and years of it being ongoing [equals] the conditions of black people we have today.

Krista is not the only one who thinks this way. Other black friends of mine feel very similarly about racism. Of course they should! The repercussions of the aforementioned slavery, segregation, mass incarceration and systemic racism lead to the unjust treatment of our black friends today! This is what Alford had to say about racism against blacks:

Blacks are disproportionately affected by COVID-19 and their neighborhoods are not giving the ventilators for the affected victims, nor are frontline workers (such as nurses) given the proper PPE that is needed for their own protection while caring for sick North Americans...Blacks are disproportionately dying at the hands of police officers and this has been happening for decades. The only difference now is that the scenes are being caught on tapes.

How heartbreaking! This cannot be! I think this is something we should be angry about. I hate to know that my black friends are unjustly treated! As their friend, I want to play a part (although it may be small) in enhancing their voice and their cries. In the following paragraphs, I’m going to break down racism to its roots and then we will posture humbly and listen with open hearts and ears to the suggestions that my friends Krista and Alford have to offer.

Racism is Division

From my reading of New Testament scripture, unity seems to be a big theme. It was important to Jesus, it was important to Paul and it was important to the other authors of the New Testament. Jesus prayed, “I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me” (John 17:23). Paul says that in Christ, “there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one” (Gal. 3:28). Even John, the writer of Revelation, saw “a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb” (Rev. 7:9). What a beautiful vision of the heavenly reality!

I love how Latasha Morrison puts it in her book Be the Bridge: “In the love of the family of God, we must become color brave, color caring, color honoring, and not color blind. We have to recognize the image of God in one another. We have to love despite, and even because of, our differences” (Morrison, Be the Bridge) Why? Because “the truth is that each ethnicity reflects a unique aspect of God’s image. No one tribe or group of people can adequately display the fullness of God” (Morrison, Be the Bridge). This gives more than enough reason to treat blacks with love and respect!

Now, let’s take a closer look at what Jesus and Paul would say about racism.

Jesus on Racism

Jesus would (and currently does) hate sin. Racism is a devaluing of other humans. Devaluing other humans is sin. Therefore, Jesus would (and currently does) hate racism.

In a sticky situation presented by the Pharisees and the Herodians, Jesus was asked “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? (Matt. 22:17)”. This was indeed very sticky. If Jesus said, “It is lawful”, then he would be blasphemous and could hint to other Jews that he was disloyal and was potentially serving the Romans! If Jesus said, “It is not lawful”, then charges would be pressed against him because he wasn’t paying taxes.

In incredible wisdom, Jesus replies, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s” (Matt. 22:21).

As a commentary on this verse, the late Ravi Zacharias said, “The disingenuousness of the questioner is noticed in the fact that he did not come back with a second question. He should have said, “What belongs to God?” And Jesus would have said, “Whose image is on you?”” (Ravi Zacharias, https://www.rzim.org/read/rzim-global/give-to-caesar-give-to-god)

We know from the Scriptures that the image of God is on everyone (Gen. 1:27). Does our race affect how much or how little we bear the image of God? Certainly not! We all belong to God because of the image we bear. If everyone truly belongs to God, then who are we to mistreat and demean another? Let’s take a look at one more example to see what Jesus would say about racism.

The mission of the church is, as Jesus commanded, “Go and make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19). Indeed, Jesus wanted everyone of all nations and all races to come to know that Jesus is Lord and that He deeply loves them and died for them. John 3:16 says that “God loved the world”. Jesus loved the world and He desires that those who believe in Him would follow suit. We should extend Jesus’ love for us to our black friends with unwavering joy.

Paul on Racism

Next, we have Paul. I mentioned earlier that Paul says that in Christ (or in the kingdom of God) “there is neither Jew nor Greek” (Gal. 3:28). Therefore, divisions because of race or hatred towards particular races are not of the kingdom and practiced by those who are not truly in Christ. Thus Paul writes in his vice list a few chapters later: “rivalries, dissensions, divisions, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Gal. 5:20-21). I don’t think it would be stretching it to say that Paul would say racism is evil and sinful, and therefore those who express racism will not inherit the kingdom of God. I think Paul would further argue that racism is the product of “the cosmic powers over this present darkness” and “the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12). This is important to understand: there are evil spiritual powers at play that manifest in the racism against the blacks!

We have just looked at a few examples that affirm the idea that racism is sin. Jesus said that “out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false, witness, slander. These are what defiles a person” (Matt. 15:19-20). Without a question, Jesus would agree that racism belongs to that list! Since racism is sin and sin is a heart issue, we must address the heart.

Hear me out. Yes, there may be solutions in terms of policies and laws, but those do not first and foremost address the state of our hearts. They do not change our thoughts, prejudices, presuppositions, assumptions or attitudes towards other people. Only Jesus can do that! Only through Jesus can we be reconciled to God and to each other (See 2 Cor. 5:18-19).

Paul says, “From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh” (1 Cor. 5:16). Why? Because “the love of God controls us, because we have concluded this: that one died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised” (1 Cor. 5:14-15). I am speaking directly at my brothers and sisters in Christ. We cannot join in with the world. They see people according to the flesh. They are deeply influenced by the world’s culture and structures and, as I mentioned earlier, “evil spiritual forces”. May the Spirit of God remove any tainted lens we may be using to see our black friends. May we see people through the lens of what Jesus has done on the cross. The Gospel must have a deep effect on our hearts. Tim Keller writes, “Jesus hates … injustice … so much, he came and experienced it to defeat it and, someday, to wipe the world clean of it” (Keller, The Prodigal God). Let’s remind ourselves of what Jesus did and allow it to change the way we see others. Let’s be particularly loving to our black friends as an act of glorifying God and proving to be His disciples (John 13:34-35).

How Can I Love my Black Friends?

Maybe you’re in the same position as I was. You’re reading through the news, social media, listening to friends and many are telling you to do this and that. Sometimes they contradict one another. You’re confused. You’re scared. You’re worried about being wrong or misspeaking. What should you do in all the noise?

I think the first thing you should do is turn off your social media, news feeds and any input of information about the world’s horrendous state and open up your heart and ears to the voice of God. Actually take some time to try to listen to what God would have you do right now. It’s different for everyone. Some might sense that God is asking them to call up a black friend and have a conversation with them. Some might feel like posting on social media is their starting point. Others might feel like they should do more research. Still others might feel like they need to create some content to raise awareness and spark conversation. Listen carefully and obey. At bottom, God is telling all of us to love our black friends the way He has loved us!

Speaking of researching the topic, I asked Krista and Alford to share with us some starting points to learn about racism against blacks. Both Krista and Alford recommend we watch a documentary that can be found on Netflix called “13th”. It is a documentary that “debunks a lot of myths about black people in the US (this extends to Canada and worldwide) and explains why slavery and racism is still alive today in its new modern and ‘politically correct’ forms”. Additionally, Alford says that “one should familiarize themselves with key, tragic events that took place in American history. Such major events would be the hate-motivated Tulsa Race Massacre, The Crack Epidemic, The Jim Crow Era, etc.”

Furthermore, in conversations with family or friends, do not entertain racist conversations that put down black people! I think it will be useful to quote Alford’s remark in full:

Whenever you hear about black stereotypes, don’t simply sit by silently. Address your older, and often more close-minded parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles whenever they toot racist remarks. Refuse to accept it as something normal. Hate is not normal. It is taught and it plants seeds of discord. Refuse to sit by when you see oppression. If you find that you have to look intently to see racism, this is not because it doesn’t exist. It means that you have not experienced, nor have you been trained to identify the issue. Ask a brother or a sister for help.

Krista agrees, saying that “they [that is, us readers] need to start engaging in conversations with the parents that raised them and the people around them. They need to become aware of microaggressions that are commonly perpetrated against black people…”. Furthermore, she insists that we “call out [our] parents and friends when they engage in ‘friendly racism’ whether a ‘positive’ comment or not…”.

So yes, there are many ways we can take action. These are only a few ways we can begin to live differently and embody the love and life of Jesus. I think what Krista told me when I asked if there were any other things she wanted to say would be a great closing word: “Remember that when God created mankind He made them in His image, so to speak against another person is to speak against the One in whose image they were made.”