Deal Breakers (Racism & the Church)

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What I love about C4: The diversity. 11am Sundays is still the most segregated hour in America. (Location, comfort, preferences, or racism?)

Deal Breakers: Racism & The Church

As far as I can tell, throughout the history of mankind, there has always been the problem of racism. Of course, human history has always struggled with other sins such as sexism, classism, terrorism, and even individualism, but none of these other isms have been as destructive and stubborn as racism.

Racism is the Goliath that refuses to die — The the titan that breeds like roaches

It is the false god that has been worshiped for centuries by people who either fear the success of others or blame others for their lack of success. Racism is built upon and maintained by a lie that we are not the same.

I have, in my short lifetime, found in every race those who are rich as well as poor, those who are healthy, and those in need of medical care. I have discovered that race does not dictate one’s ability to learn, nor does it determine one’s ability to care for others. It is common among us all, to live and die. I have met old and young, slim and thick, tall and short, introverted and extroverted of every kind, whether their native tongue is English or Spanish, Afrikaans or Tagalog.

I assume you have too. You have met rude Americans, broke Americans, homeless Americans, thieving, murderous, adulterous and scandalous Americans who look like you, talk like you, live where you live, and work where you work.

Maybe our differences have a lot less to do with race than we think. So why are our neighborhoods segregated? Why do our churches lack diversity and why do we judge based on skin tones?

I am a critic to those who suggest they don’t see color because when you choose to ignore color you choose to deny the actual collective beauty that makes up humanity. It is our differences that make us a fantastic work of art. By God’s design we are not monochromatic. It’s color, amongst other things that separates us from the zebra. But even zebras have different stripes. I choose to see color because in color I find different stories, perspectives and backgrounds .

It is the contrast of color that makes the rose stand out, the rainbow worth looking and the skin shade worth admiring. Yet, we despise color because it separates. It’s lines are distinct and by nature, it dictates labels. We have judged or at least know people who have judged others not by their character but by their color. Racism is most obvious by this. It is a strange thing, but it is a familiar thing.

As I mentioned earlier, racism is nothing new but it still is strange. It’s strange to see a church that encourages it. It’s strange to meet Christians who justify it. And it’s strange to see religious leaders ignore it. Especially when Jesus, by his very actions taught against it.

Most of us miss this. We know he taught us to love our neighbors. We know he said to love one another just as he loved us. We know the story of the good Samaritan, we heard what Jesus said, but we often miss what he actually did. So today, I want to show you two things that he did. Two things the disciples missed at first, and two things that the church is still missing today. And then, maybe the church can get back to the business of making disciples.

Now, in case you weren’t aware, this story starts with a young couple that had the responsibility of populating the earth. But before they reproduced, they brought sin into the world and so, everything they reproduced came with a sin nature.

This became evident in their eldest son, Cain, slaying his baby brother. Well, over time things kept getting worse until the time of Noah. You know the story. God spares Noah and his family but sends a flood that wipes the rest of the planet in order to start again. The new batch, unfortunately was just as bad, if not worse than the first.

In a moment I’ll give you the details of how an invasion by God lead to a time of segregation and then I’ll tell you how another invasion by God lead to desegregation. But after that comes yet, another invasion that is currently simultaneously segregating and desegregating all the peoples on the earth. And that is where we will spend most of our time tonight. But first, let’s talk about the first two invasions, beginning with

An Invasion led to Segregation

Gen 11:1-9

Genesis 11:1–9 NIV

1 Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. 3 They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” 5 But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. 6 The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” 8 So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth.

Another Invasion that lead to Desegregation

Gen 22:12-18

Genesis 22:12–18 NIV

12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” 13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” 15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”

And this is where Jewish nationalism comes into play. For those who understand their heritage, they are not proud to be Jewish just for the sake of being Jewish. What makes them proud is the fact that they know who they are in God. They know they have a promise from him. One that calls them blessed. Whether they are in the city or in the fields, coming or going, and even in tough times they know that God never fails His children. Do I have anyone here tonight that knows what it means to be a child of God?

Can I get an amen from somebody who knows that God can do anything but fail? Is there anybody here who knows that God is more than enough? He is water when you’re thirsty, bread when you’re hungry. He’s a lawyer in the courtroom and a doctor in the sick room. And the promises to his ancient children are theirs. But there’s a promise for his children today too.

And this is the good news concerning Jesus the Christ. In fact, He is the fulfillment of this long awaited promise. He is the blessing that will bless others, and he begins with the seed of Abraham, but thank God he doesn’t end there. He is the invasion all the other invasions had been set up to bring. He is the ultimate ET, the real Superman, the alien that brings life instead of taking it away.

He is God in the flesh. He is the manifestation of all that is good and Holy. He was there from the beginning and he will be there in the end. Yet, he was sent to invade this earth to save those who couldn’t save themselves. This invasion, is different than the other invasions. It is not one of segregation nor desegregation.

Let’s recap for a moment. We’ve seen how one invasion lead to segregation when God interrupted the prideful plans of man. Then we saw how God invaded Abraham’s space and called him to impact the nations. He was instructed to leave his father’s house and his people and go to a place God would show him and give to him as an inheritance. It was a divine desegregation of sorts. And finally, these next few verses we’re about to read reveals how the person of Jesus the Christ became the invasion that lead to a segregated desegregation.

The Invasion lead to a Segregated Desegregation

Turn then with me to Matthew 15 where Jesus is preaching a passionate sermon to people who don’t seem to really like him. It all started because apparently, Jesus’s disciples failed to wash their hands before they ate.

Matthew 15:1-3

Matthew 15:1–3 NIV

1 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, 2 “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!” 3 Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?

Wow! That escalated quickly! Let’s read on to find out why Jesus was so upset.

Matthew 15:4-12

Matthew 15:4–12 NIV

4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ 5 But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ 6 they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 7 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: 8 “ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 9 They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’” 10 Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. 11 What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.” 12 Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”

Now listen, it is impossible to have a strong opinion about anything and not offend somebody. As a pastor, sometimes I search hard for the words to use that will encourage you to see things God’s way, in a way that won’t hurt your feelings. But Jesus didn’t work that hard. I’m trying to be more like Jesus, which means that sometimes you won’t like what I have to say, but you probably need to hear it. Anyway, listen to how Jesus responds after the disciples tell him that he hurt somebody’s feelings.

Matthew 15:13-14

Matthew 15:13–14 NIV

13 He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Leave them; they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.”

Savage! But it gets worse.

Matthew 15:15-16

Matthew 15:15–16 NIV

15 Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.” 16 “Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them.

Okay, so Jesus is clearly triggered. And they didn’t have snickers back then but maybe after this somebody started carrying around figs because hangry is real. Jesus explains

Matthew 15:17-20

Matthew 15:17–20 NIV

17 “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? 18 But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. 20 These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”

And then Jesus was like, “Man, forget this. Let’s go!”

Matthew 15:21-24

Matthew 15:21–24 NIV

21 Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” 23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”

And this bothers me. Because we don’t want to think of an angry Jesus. We have a hard time understanding a frustrated, irritated, aggravated Jesus. But this is the exact Jesus Matthew reveals to us. A Jesus that was so triggered by the crowd that he ignored a woman in need. The disciples must have gathered that if Jesus didn’t care then they shouldn’t either. But what I’ve learned since walking with Jesus is that sometimes, the richest lessons are in the moments when God is silent.

It’s in silence, when God isn’t speaking that we have to ask ourselves what we know of His character. When God is silent, what am I supposed to do? How should I behave? I’ve been praying about my marriage but God hasn’t answered me. I have some decisions to make on my job, but God hasn’t told me which way to go. I’m desperate for a word and God is with me, I know it. But still, he remains silent. Desperation cries out and God is saying nothing. The pain in my life is like a screeching chalk board and Jesus doesn’t even flinch.

And when he finally speaks on the issue, He says something that we wouldn’t expect him to say. He says, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” What does that even mean? Well, she either didn’t know, or didn’t care, or both.

Matthew 15:25-28

Matthew 15:25–28 NIV

25 The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. 26 He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” 27 “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” 28 Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.

Listen, when you’re desperate enough, you don’t care what other people think of you. When you’re hurting, you don’t care what they say about you. When you want God to do something in your life, you stop worrying about etiquette, rules, and tradition.

And this kind of hunger is what Jesus responds to. He doesn’t care if you are Jewish, or French. He’s not interested in your heritage or your birthright. God is looking for people who will look beyond the external and see Him as the God of all people.

It was her faith that bridged the gap when her race was a barricade. Jesus responded to this Canaanite woman like she was the seed of Abraham because she treated him like he was just as much her God as He was theirs. It is only when we honor God that we prove who we are as sons and daughters, whether by birth or adoption.

This woman made their God her God. And as far as the blessing is concerned, she decided in her heart that I may not deserve it, but I’m believing God for it. I don’t need all the blessings, but I’ll take the crumbs. And I don’t care who likes me, I just need Jesus to like me. I just need God to see my faith. And here is what Jesus was teaching his disciples and this is what God would say to us.

That is, I don’t care what color they are, if they believe in me, that makes them my child. Just like I blessed you, I’ll bless them. Just like I healed you, I’ll heal them.

And though I was sent to the lost sheep of Israel, the door is open to all who believe. If you read more of Matthew, you would find in the 11th chapter, Jesus calling out

Matthew 11:28-30

Matthew 11:28–30 NIV

28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Ladies and gents, it doesn’t matter what color I am, whether black, white, yellow, or green, I should be able to find rest in Jesus. And if Jesus is in you, then I should be able to find rest from the things in this world that divide and cause pain when I’m in the presence of His people.

You want to end racism, start loving God’s children, no matter how different they are than you. As we say here, love meets needs. Especially the needs of those who are crying out for help.

What would our world look like if we stopped looking away from injustice and stood up for the oppressed? We wouldn’t need signs that read “Stop Asian Hate” if we would show love to our Asian community in time of need. We wouldn’t need to say “Black Lives Matter” if we treated them like they did.

We wouldn’t put all of our white brothers and sisters in the same boat as the evil men and women who did horrible things as individuals if we understood that the same God is father to us all.

If we can’t come to agree on anything else, let’s allow our faith in God to build the bridge that unites us.

As Paul puts it in

Gal 3:26-29

Galatians 3:26–29 NIV

26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

The question you now must ask yourself is, can I follow a Christ that teaches this. Or is this a deal breaker for me?