Image Issues…
This may be a little bit heated. Only because it is something that should greatly upset us. Not just as a people, but as a family of Christians. Let me break this down.
I listen to a radio-talk show KMBZ here in Kansas City. They do a variety of things on their shows. Talking about BIG social issues, things happening here in Kansas City, sports, government, world issues, and things that are trending. Today, during the mid-afternoon show, two of the hosts wanted to create a fidget, a small toy for people who "fidget", geared toward those who are easily distracted. The hosts had found a youtube video where they would be able to create it with things from our friendly neighborhood Walmart!
In their endeavor to create this, a man from the show Travis, was tasked with gathering the necessary materials. But he came back empty handed. You see Travis, just happens to be black. Which is only important to this scenario because a white man, cut Travis off in traffic, proceeded to then follow him to Walmart, get out of his car, spit on Travis' car, and proceeded to call him a racial slur. Then drive away.
This was saddening. We can ask ourselves, "Why is this still happening?" Or say, "This shouldn't be happening in 2017, aren't we better than this?" Unfortunately, no. We're not better.
We're still broken. Still in this sin cycle. But, there is hope. It lives in you.
When we look at the Bible, we are able to see the amazing redemptive power that is in Christ Jesus. And we see it all over the Bible! We see Paul after his conversion, sitting in tension with the disciples that Jesus had. We see their distrust in Paul, remember that when he was Saul? He had put their friends in chains! One was even stoned, and he approved of it. We see the Apostles at the Church in Antioch; Acts 13:1 says,
"Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul."
If you were to add a couple of cameras, an audience of a few million people, and games, we could call it, Big Brother: Church Edition. But what do we see? We see the Holy Spirit, repairing wounds, uniting the church together for the Glory of the Lord, and for His Gospel. In fact, Barnabas and Paul are sent out together to achieve and do great things for the Lord!
Even greater than this, we see our own reconciliation to the Father, through the affliction of Jesus. There wasn't just bad blood between us and God. We were eternally separated from our creator. We had desired the things of God, and not God himself, and because of our desire, we created a void that couldn't be crossed by anyone but God. Therefore, Jesus became the substitution for our sins, giving up his life, his love, his desire, so we could be reconciled to the Father.
God is in the business of reconciliation.
But reconciliation is defined as, "Restoring friendly relations." Here's our problem, most people don't have any kind of relationship with someone of another race, or skin color. We naturally divide ourselves, but what a better way than to destroy the works of our enemy than to create, and intentionally develop Christ-like relationships? In this endeavor, we can begin to mend fragmented portions of our culture. Here's the honest fact. Racism isn't just wrong, isn't just ugly, but it is purely sin, and an offense to the creator. He, God, has crafted each and every human being from His own, unique likeness. Therefore, every human being on planet Earth bears the unique picture of the creator. They are the Imagode, the Image of God, and should be treated, and loved as such!
Let us take up the fight of the healing the divide that Christ has begun! He was crucified so that His people, may become the Church. A racially diverse, unique, and beautiful church that brings the Glory to God, and Heaven to Earth.
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.
Ephesians 2:13-21
Lord,
Forgive us. Help us. Lead us. Unite your Church.
For your glory.
