Racism is a deep discussion which cannot be addressed quickly. Even as I intend to break this up into several segments, we need to understand that much of this is just the tip of the iceberg.
My goal for this series is not to affirm certain political stances or groups, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ. My hope is to find true justice and cultural unity in the cross of Jesus Christ.
We need to start with a good foundation. Christian theology teaches that God created the world and humans perfectly without sin. Everything that He created was perfect. In Genesis, as God created, He then proclaimed that His creation “was good.”
There was no sin, therefore there was no division. There was nothing hindering the relationships between Adam and Eve, or between God and man. There was perfect fellowship and harmony.
Then sin came into the world. In the first couple verses of Genesis 3, Satan tempts Adam and Eve to disobey God. They give in, and as a result, at the end of the chapter, the world is cursed with sin. Once sin entered the world there was division. There was a break in fellowship between God and man, and between Adam and Eve. This was not how things were supposed to be.
Aside from the fact that God created man perfectly, there is also an underlying Christian idea that must be adhered to: there is only one race. This is not to say that there are not different people groups, or people with different skin tones. It is to say that in the Christian worldview, everyone has come from Adam and Eve. Therefore each is part of the single human race.
Several defenses for the one-race theory come from Scripture. First, Adam and Eve are perfectly created by God and then bear children. Nowhere else are we told that humans are made any other way. This is important because it proves that all people groups descended from one race.
Consider Genesis 3:20, which says that Eve is the “mother of all living.” No matter what your genetics look like, Eve is your first female descendent. Acts 17:26 says that we are from one man – Adam, or as the KJV puts it, “one blood.” Again, no human has come from anyone other than Adam, our first father.
Why is this important? Adam and Eve were created in the image of God. Genesis 1:27 speaks of this: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” If every “race” is really one race, the human race, and all descended from Adam and Eve, then all people who exist today are created in God’s image. This means, in our humanity, every individual has the same value.
In fact, this is the defense God gives against murder. Genesis 9:6 says, “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in His own image.” We must not murder, because to do so murders the image of God. If we can see ourselves as one race, the human race, we can start to break down the barriers between us.
Why do we end up segregating ourselves by “race?” How does the fact that there is only one race, the human race, change the way we see other people? If you believe that all men descended from Adam and Eve who were created in the image of God, how does this change the way we see people that are different from us?
Thanks for taking time to read this Maddening Theology post. If you enjoyed this content you can find Pastor Tim’s sermons at www.cornerstoneforestcity.org. You can also join us at 520 Marion St. Browndale, PA 18421 on Sundays at 10 AM. To make following the blog easier you can also register. You can also join us on Facebook at Cornerstone Forest City. Also, don’t forget to download our APP on iTunes or Googleplay.