If racism did not exist, we would not have so many segregated churches. It is because of racism we have white churches, black churches, Latino churches, etc. We can add in things like greed, power, control, money, etc. I believe at the core, is racism. I do not believe that racism, segregation, and separation is God’s heart. Love brings forth unity.
The Gospel Paul preached throughout the New Testament was a Gospel of reconciliation between Jews, Gentiles and Greeks which meant, the bringing together of different ethnic nations.
There is a reason Paul suffered the way he did. He was fighting against the cultural norm, which was fighting against Roman rule (a dominant culture/race) who wanted everything separated and segregated. Sounds familiar?
If you call yourself a Christian, you no longer have the right to be separated and segregated from other ethnic races. It is time for the church to be the most unified and colorful place on Sunday, instead of the church being the most segregated place on a Sunday.
A Call to Action:
It is time for you and I to begin to live intentional on doing life with people of other race and ethnic backgrounds. If you live in a diverse area, and your church is all one color, my friend, there is something to be said and something to be done. Join in the conversation, join in prayer, join the community of other believers and begin to challenge leaders and congregants at your church to begin seeking God’s heart for a unified and diverse church.
Remember, first it begins with you seeking God’s heart for the church and this should begin to lead to helpful, challenging and necessary conversations with others. This may not be easy but it is vital as we move forward as a body of believers. As the church we have to be leaders in this conversation and not continue to take the back seat.
“Every member of the body of Christ is needed and has a role to play. God values diversity, which is why he made such a variety of people.” – Derwin Gray #HDLeader
P.S. If you have any questions or would like to talk more about race and the church feel free to leave your email in a comment below.
Josh Samarco 