Race

Yesterday (Saturday, January 14, 2023) I participated in the MLK Unity March in downtown Apex. It began at the historic Apex First Baptist Church on Salem St. and then proceeded through the downtown to the Apex Town Hall. This is the third year of the event, and in each of the celebrations I have offered one of the prayers. It has been a great representation of the city's government (Mayor Jacques Gilbert, Police Chief Jason Armstrong), local pastors, and Christians from various churches. I continue to be encouraged by the direction of the event. 

This is the prayer I spoke: 

Last Sunday we looked at the topic of race from the Bible. This is relevant for us as 21st-century Christians who want to honor Christ in the place and time where he's placed us. But it's also connected to our desire to love our neighbors as ourselves. Part of loving our neighbors within our community and this culture involves thinking well about the topic of race—and then living well in light of it.  

In the sermon I read from Francis Schaeffer's The Church at the End of the Twentieth Century. He originally wrote this book in 1970, just a few years before Roe…

Yesterday we looked at three convictions we need to have about race. They are starting points to begin to love our neighbors as ourselves when they are of different races. We need to grasp at a deep level that (1) we are made in the image of the same God; (2) we are plagued by the same problem: sin; and (3) we are saved by the same Savior. If we miss these three then it won't really be possible to move forward in true racial unity. We will never be able to get past our own racial pride.

Race and racism are complex and controversial topics. Daniel Hays in his book demonstrated this vividly when he said, "Two-thirds of White Christians believe that the situation for Blacks is improving, while two-thirds of Black Christians believe that the situation for Blacks is deteriorating" (From Every People and Nation, 18). That tells you of the complexity of it.