What's Your Bias

Introduction

Courageous Conversations Series

Today: Bias Acts 10:23-28

Acts - the story of the emergence of the church as the way God's kingdom is revealed as the disciples take the kingdom message to the world.

This is a type of commissioning - calling Peter to follow Jesus in a new direction.

Vision Teaches

9-16 - Peter praying at one of the set hours of prayer.

Two competing things happening: Prayer and hunger. Not close to meal time.

Prayer - used to hear from God. Luke: common for God to speak when they are at prayer. Hunger likely shaped the nature of his vision.

Fell into a trance and had a vision. somewhere between alert and asleep.

Animals on the sheet were unclean - unfit for eating according to Jewish law in Leviticus 11.

A bias is a tendency, inclination, or prejudice to favor one thing over another.

Normal human tendency. Most bias is harmless.

Favorite color, food, ocean vs mountains

What’s NOT normal

Those people eat unclean meat - point of Partiality or bias.

Form attachments to their own group - the “in” group and form negative attitudes about other racial or ethnic groups - the “out” groups.

Leads to prejudice, racism, etc.

Prejudice

Seen mainly in Scripture as a negative attitude or bias against places, peoples and ideas. Formed out of false assumptions, stereotypes, ideology and even fear.

It is sometimes so firmly rooted we won’t listen to anything that doesn’t agree with that view. and easily leads to discrimination.

Racism: A form of prejudice that discriminates among persons and social groups on the basis of ethnic origin or skin color.

New information: Kill and eat.

Jewish faith - emphasis on being clean, pure, not doing anything wrong.

Asking him to violate what he assumed was a God-given law, practice. His response: No, I've never done that, I've never broken your rule.

Message to Peter: the OT distinction between clean food and food not fit to eat was now cancelled.

You can eat any food without fear of being unclean or dirty.

Peter was confused. What do I do with this? It goes against everything I was taught.

Happened 3x.

Peter still didn't get it. Was trying to figure it out when Cornelius’ people showed up and invited him to a party.

Cornelius - not a Jew. By Religious standards, unclean people.

Forbidden to associate with or to be with.

The spirit said: Go with them without wavering/doubting/hesitation.

This is the situation for which the dream was meant to prepare Peter.

Trusting When It’s Confusing

Joppa Trip

Peter and 6 friends left for Joppa the next day. A day and a half trip.

Cornelius was waiting with a group of his relatives and friends to hear what Peter had to say.

Journey out of Harmful Bias

At Cornelius’ Home

When challenged with instruction that goes against what he has been conditioned to believe he checks it against his (OT) scripture and discovers it is his religious tradition that got it wrong.

Examine the rules, norms, prejudices we've called Christian vs what God actually says.

Ezekiel 4:14 - I have never...

"God has shown to me I should not call anyone common OR unclean so I came."

Wisdom of Solomon 7:1 - To Cornelius - I am no different from you. I am a human like everyone else...

Addressing the group: You know, we're not supposed to be friends. But God has shown me that no race is better than any other.

God continues to work on Peter’s assumptions and biases

Deuteronomy 10:17 - I understand (now) that God is not partial...

Consider no one common or unclean

Don’t Show Favoritism or partiality because God doesn’t

God corrected Peter’s bias

What about “Those who love God and do good?

Shouldn’t we be biased/discriminating about those who don’t love God and do Good? You know, the sinners? Won’t they infect us? Aren’t they far from God with a pretty bleak eternal future?

That’s what the Pharisees thought and what God had to correct in Peter.

Western, evangelical Christians are quick to emphasize the conditions or hoops of what the bible says over the broader truth. We're good at saying, "Yeah, but don't forget..." as if there is an attempt to diminish or deny it. Have to protect this part of the truth.

The Kingdom and its Gospel is for all. Our openness to others is not dependent on their openness to it. Every person is at some point on the spectrum of openness to the Gospel (Likert scale).

Our responsibility is to receive them at that point, befriend them and walk with them in life and developing faith as they will allow us. To disparage them as sinners, make our propositional pitch and if they don't respond the way we think, cut and run. Read the NT, this is not Jesus' way, the early church's way, nor God's way for us.

Paul: Nothing in itself is unclean (Rom 14:14). Created in God’s image.

God’s judgment rests solely on the character of the man and will be influenced by no worldly (Eph 6:9) or national (Rom 2:11) considerations.1

Overcoming Bias

James 2:9 (ESV) — 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

Partiality: Lifting up the face of another person.

Lifting up the face of one person over another. God’s people are not to be unfair - pervert justice by lifting up the face of one people group over another;

We are not to corrupt justice by lifting up the face of one people group over another out of bias, what we fear (losing something, etc).

Racism: In favor of our own kind or race Matthew 5:46-47; Luke 7:29

racism. A form of prejudice that discriminates among persons and social groups on the basis of ethnic origin or skin color

Christians decry racism in this sense as contrary to the unity of humankind as created by God and as reconciled to God in Christ, as well as a violation of the dignity of all persons.

Share in Christ’s Life

Kingdom of God Perspective

We all have biases: ones we are aware of and ones we aren’t

They lead us to think and act in demeaning ways that are not aligned with the heart of God and steals from them the life God wants to give.

God shows no partiality toward anyone he has created, made in his image, and is in the process of restoring and we aren't to do that either.

Allowing ourselves to be divided and prejudice based on race are unacceptable for Christians.

Our responsibility not as white, black, hispanic, etc is not to view any of that as an advantage to be given.

That part of us like the rest needs restored to unity that is the Father, Son, HS.

We give/share life not out of our color, etc but out of our identity as followers of Jesus because he says to do it.

And in doing that we get to appreciate the uniqueness of each person’s ethnicity - which God gave us.

This is God’s Kingdom.

Influence in media: people groups that are despicable. Develop a bias. Bias' that we already have tend to be reinforced. If we don't have the personal relationships to counter that bias, they will deepen.

What stands in the way of listening?

Fear of what we may loseSocial conditioning - believe what you're being told is not true based on what you've been raised to believe.Cognitive dissonanceNarrative breakdown - using grammar or narrative from our culture. Way we're talking doesn't fit in or violates something in other person's narrative.Values conflictEmotional filteringDistractedSelf-protectionUnwilling someone to express opinion because conviction is so strongBad faith - not entering into conversation to have a convo but to move one person to one position to another. Wait for someone to stop talking to get to next point.Made assumption of intent. Think intent is really behind your process.

Christ restores all things to God and each other. The truth that God shows no partiality and neither should we opens us to start listening. Feeling of being heard is tied to feeling of being loved. Listening conveys more than you can imagine. Can move on to develop a relationship.