Racism is ugly. Everyone has seen the protests, the fights, the riots. What should a Christian think about this? What should a Christian do?
I didn’t write about this right away because people react very emotionally. Emotional reactions make it harder to do the right thing. It’s better to take time to think, study God’s word, and pray about how to respond.
1 Corinthians 12:21-26 says this: The eye can’t tell the hand, “I don’t need you!” The hand can’t tell the feet, “I don’t need you!” Truly, the body parts that seem weak, we need those parts! And the parts of our body that we don’t want to show, we honor and protect those parts and make them more beautiful. The parts of our body that are already beautiful don’t need more beauty. God made the body that way. The parts we don’t show get more honor. That way the body isn’t divided. Instead, all the body parts take-care of each other. If one believer suffers, all the believers in Christ suffer together. If one believer gets honor, all the believers in Christ rejoice together.
We can’t ignore people who have been hurt or discriminated against. We can’t say anyone is worth less than another person. These verses talk about how God puts us together in the church, but the ideas this teaches also apply to how we treat people outside of church. What can we do for society and for people who have been hurt?
1. Recognize that people have suffered. People have suffered discrimination. That is wrong, and there is no reason for us to pretend it doesn’t happen.
2. Examine yourself for sinful attitudes, wrong actions and hurtful words. Repent, receive God’s forgiveness, change and do the right thing. But don’t feel guilty just because someone online said you are guilty. Look at God’s word and see what He says about your behavior, words and attitude. Trust His forgiveness and live the new life He gives you.
3. When you see other people saying or doing things that hurt someone, say something. Remind them that God loves all people and we should also love all people.
4. The government is responsible and has the right to stop and arrest people breaking the law. We should support them in that work. But if they go too far and harass innocent people, or they hurt people for no reason, then people have the right to protest that.
5. People are protesting because they want everyone to be treated equally, and that is fine. They aren’t breaking any government law, and a simple protest isn’t breaking God’s law. But people who are fighting, destroying things, and threatening people, they are doing wrong. God wants us to protect and respect people’s lives and property. Peaceful protest is okay. Anything that causes damage is wrong and sinful.
6. Above all, our responsibility is to love each other as God says, especially in the church, but also in society. If people are strong, good for them, let them take care of themselves. If people are not strong, such as people who get discriminated against, people with hard lives, people who suffer, then we show mercy to them, love them, protect them, help them.
That has always been God’s message in the Bible. That has always been what the true Christian church teaches and preaches. Maybe we haven’t always followed that teaching very well. This is a time to remember that teaching and do it.
Do you have thoughts about this? Please leave your comments, questions below.
