As we have studied, racism is one of the ultimate enemies of mankind, and is of the character that is most basically opposed to the heart and ways of God. Racial conflict was also the first thing the Lord mentioned when He was asked about the signs of the end of the age. Therefore, those who are truly aligned with God and His purposes at the end must be free of this most basic enemy of the purposes of God.

For this reason I want to take this week to apply some practical ways to become free of the things that would make us racist. By becoming free, it will open us up to true church life the way it was intended to be.

As we have seen, our God so loves diversity that it is one of the most basic characteristics of all that He created. There are no two mountain ranges alike, or even two mountains that are alike. There are no two trees exactly alike, or even two leaves. There are no two people alike. Our DNA was created with the potential for differences that has been estimated at ten to the two hundred and fifty billionth power! Just to write the zeroes of this factor would take several thousand miles! This is the kind of potential for diversity that God has put into mankind, which He said was made in His image! When we read that God made man in His image, He was not just talking about an individual man, but mankind. Because He is so great, so expansive in His existence, it will take all of us in our great diversity to reveal His image.

This is just a mere reflection of how He is so much bigger, greater, more awesome, and wonderful than many of His own people perceive. All of creation speaks of His love for diversity and creativity. If we are going to be like Him, we must therefore love creativity, and be creative. We must also love and appreciate the differences, and see them as opportunities to learn and grow.

The church, which is supposed to be His representative on the earth, should therefore be the most diverse, and creative, entity on the planet. Those who are in it, and those who are observing it, should be continually full of awe and wonder at the creativity, the continually expanding revelation of God that the church brings forth. In this we are not talking about different or conflicting doctrines about God or His ways, but ever expanding and deepening ones as we grow in the knowledge of His ways. In fact, the deeper our understanding of Him grows, the less certain teachings and doctrines tend to conflict. They will begin fitting together into a beautiful pattern and harmony that cannot be perceived from the shallow perspectives at which so many stop.

Because of this, if we have the heart of God, we will not fear things or people that are different than us, we will appreciate them and respect them for who they are. Therefore, what we call “the tyranny of the familiar,” the tendency to find our peace and security in things that we are familiar with, is one of the greatest obstacles to walking in true faith in God. Let us examine this in a little more depth.

This bondage is actually one of the strongest yokes on mankind, and one of the most difficult of which to become free. It is what seeks to turn every new Christian into an “old wineskin,” resistant to change or anything new or different. It is also what causes us to shop at the same places, sit in the same place at church, feel awkward around people whom we do not know, form cliques in our congregations, and form denominations that resist relationships with the rest of the body of Christ. It will also cause us to miss the purposes of the Lord possibly more than anything else will.

As we previously discussed, the reason why the disciples on the road to Emmaus could not recognize the Lord was because “He appeared to them in a different form” (Mark 16:12). This most likely still remains the reason we fail to recognize Him when He seeks to draw near to us. We get so accustomed to a form or way in which He met us in the past that we fail to recognize Him when He comes in a way that we are not familiar with. The fact is that most of the time when He comes to us we can count on it being in a way that we are not familiar with. We see in the Scripture that He did not even heal people the same way twice. He did not have “a stump speech” that He repeated over and over. Every teaching was new and fresh. Even when He taught on the same subject, the kingdom, He continually described it in new and different ways that continually expanded the understanding of it.

Those who followed the Lord when He walked the earth were treated to wonderful new experiences every day. He was new to them every morning. He was continually leading them into new situations, and using these new situations to teach them about the kingdom of God and His purposes. Because He was continually teaching them new things, it kept their minds open and expectant, building in them a quick ability to embrace change. The Lord has not changed. This is the way a life that still follows Him should be. This is the way normal church life should be, which is for the purpose of teaching His followers to follow Him, not just comply with certain doctrines or programs.

That church life has been reduced to a couple of boring meetings each week is one of the great tragedies of Christianity, and is in fundamental conflict with the ways and nature of God. True church life is first and foremost about relationships—first to God and then to His people. If we are not continually getting closer to Him, and to the others in our church, then we do not have true church life.

True church life is twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, of experiencing God. Meetings and services are important and should be a highlight of our week, but they are not true church life—rather just a pit stop so we can get back out in the fray and run the race that true church life is.

The “tyranny of the familiar” tends to tighten its grip on us when we start putting our security in our environment rather than in the Lord. For this reason the Lord often has to deal with us as He did Moab, which we see in Jeremiah 48:11-12:

When He speaks of Moab not being “emptied from vessel to vessel,” it is referring to the way wine was purified in those times. It would be poured into a vessel and allowed to sit for a time. This allowed the impurities to settle to the bottom. Then it would be poured into another vessel, etc. So, the more times it had been poured into another vessel, the more pure it was. This is also one of the ways the Lord purifies us.

As soon as we become comfortable and secure in one place, He will upset it, putting us into a new situation. The change could come in our jobs, our hometowns, our churches, our neighbors, etc. Life and the world are full of change, and change is good. Every living thing changes, and to the degree we stop changing, we have started dying. To the degree we are able to embrace change we are alive, and our wineskins will still be able to hold new wine.

Next week we are going to examine some very practical ways that this is supposed to be incorporated into our lives and the church. However, this week, try to learn something about a church, a denomination, or a movement that is different from yours. One thing you will almost certainly learn is that they have something that you or your church needs. We all need the rest of the body of Christ, and if we are not rightly connected to it, we will not survive alone through what is coming to test the quality of every work. If we are connected to it rightly, Proverbs 4:18 will be true of us:

If we are walking “the path of the righteous,” the light should be increasing for us continually. Our path should be more and more clear. If this is not the case for us, then we need to examine where we are walking. This is your inheritance as children of light—increasing clarity in all that you do.