This week we continue our theme about how the Great Commission was to “...make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19). As discussed, the “nations” here represents ethnic groups, not political entities.

So how do we recognize nations? How do we baptize them? How do we teach them to observe all that He commanded us? In Acts 17:26-28 the apostle Paul says:

Here, Paul starts with the fact that we all came from one—we are all family! We can also say that the basis of our understanding of others and knowing how to relate to them should start with the perception of how we are alike, not different. What are the points that we have in common? Where are the things that we already agree on?

The first, and most important is that we all came from the same parents, so we are all family. Regardless of the race or culture, it is still a family matter. Let us look at the two extremes—those who are called “black,” and those who are called “white.” Rare is the “black” person who is really black, but is rather some shade of brown. Likewise, a “white” person is really a lighter shade of tan. Much of what we are talking about in distinguishing races is in degrees.

Regardless of what some racists claim, it is likely that there is not a person on the earth at this time who is pure in their racial heritage. We are all mixed to some degree, and it seems that this was not only all right with the Lord, but His design. We even see in Scripture that Moses was married to a black woman, and even King David and the Lord Jesus had Gentiles in their heritage.

Now that we have laid a foundation for understanding that racism is going to be one of the most powerful and deadly forces at the end of this age, it is always our calling as Christians to be a light in the midst of darkness. The light or the truth, which we have been given, will be directly related to the darkness or deception, that the devil is using. From a historical perspective, racism has been the motive and power behind that which has caused most of the death and destruction on the earth. It will continue to be the greatest power releasing the spirit of death on the earth until the end.

Consider the Nazis. Their diabolical racism resulted in over twenty million German deaths, over thirty million Russian deaths, and scores of millions more throughout Europe. At the root of almost every war you will find racism in some form, which is often a religious form. There are other reasons too, but you will almost always find as a primary motivation some form of racism in the mix.

Even the American Civil War, which pitted mostly Caucasians against Caucasians in battle, but was mostly over the issue of keeping the black race in slavery. Some claim that this war was fought more over economics or state’s rights, and certainly these were factors, but they obviously were not the primary motive for the war. It was the issue of slavery that led up to the Civil War, and it was the most basic motivation for it.

We also need to recognize that religious bigotry is also a form of racism. When we consider ourselves better than others because of the denomination we are in, or even the religion that we hold to, this too is a form of religious racism. What causes us to fear others who do not believe just the way we do is the same spirit. This spirit has one basic purpose—to divide so that darkness can conquer.

This is not to imply that we should not be thankful to be Christians, to know the truth, and to realize how deceived those in other religions can be. However, this should never be a source of pride, rather of thanksgiving and humility. We are not saved because we are better than others; we are saved simply because the Lord had mercy on us. He did not have this mercy on us because of our goodness! That is a very basic affront to the cross. His mercy is simply because of His goodness and His choice, which He made for His own reasons.
For this reason we should be compelled to treat every other person, regardless of their race or their beliefs, with respect and dignity. I will gladly debate others on their beliefs, but I will not use this to belittle them. In fact, if I discuss religion with those of another faith I try to do what Paul did in Athens—I try to find points of agreement first, and then explain how Jesus is the Answer to the questions found in every religion. In all things I also try to keep in mind that the person I am talking to is a family member—we all came from the same parents, and I want them all in our eternal family, so my goal is always to save them, not insult them.

Francis Frangipane likes to say that before he was born again he was Italian. In the natural he is still Italian; however, once we are in Christ we are told in II Corinthians 5:16, “Therefore from now on we recognize no man according to the flesh...” In Christ we are not supposed to judge others by the color of their skin. In our new, eternal family, we are not black or white, yellow or red, we are a “new creation” in Christ. Now let us read the entire context in which this verse is found:

First, it is the love of Christ that should be controlling us in all things. For us to be prepared for the end of this age, we must be abiding in and preparing the way for the age to come, which will be the age in which all things will be restored. This begins with reconciliation to God, and then to one another. To do this we will have to walk in a spirit that is opposite to the darkness that is growing in the world. While the spirit of the world seeks to divide and destroy, we will be building bridges between races and cultures. We will be reconciling them to God, and then to each other.

We must always keep the love of God first, as we cannot truly love others unless we love Him first. We cannot love others as we should if we do not love God more than we love them. However, we do not really love God if we do not love each other too, as we are told in I John 4:20-21:

This is why the two great commandments are one. Anything but this love is a departure from the true faith regardless of how much other truth we have.

In my most recent Special Bulletin, I began to address the barrier between Christians and Jews (this is posted on our website). We will also cover this in our study here because it represents the ultimate human barrier, and one that will be overcome before the end of this age. As Paul explained in Romans, when this happens it will be “… life from the dead,” (Romans 11:15) or the overcoming of the spirit of death by the resurrection. That is how basic and how important this one issue is. That is why we are trying to lay such a strong foundation of understanding this before we go on to the other crucial prophecies concerning the end of this age. We cannot truly understand the others without understanding this one.

To make this truth practical, this week let us endeavor to look at all of our neighbors, coworkers, etc. as our relatives, regardless of their racial, cultural, or religious background. We still all have the same parents. Let us pray for the wisdom and grace to build bridges of trust with them so that we can have as many as possible join us in the great eternal family that will last forever.