If we are concerned about personal and sexual sin but do not protest against brutal injustice and cruel racism, are we really representing God's moral character as Christians?
Woe to those who plan iniquity, to those who plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they carry it out because it is in their power to do it.
They covet fields and seize them, and houses, and take them. They defraud people of their homes, they rob them of their inheritance. Mic 2:1–2 NIV
These two bible verses clearly describe the way colonists from Britain and Europe invaded and dispossessed indigenous people in North and South America, Australia and parts of Africa and Asia.
In our lifetime, so many black people have been murdered by the police in the USA.
Until 1969 Australian aboriginal children were abducted from their families and institutionalised.
Countless poor women from the Third World are still being forced into prostitution by lies and deceit in rich countries.
Should we be in favour of revenge and rioting? No.
But when police shoot black people and are not convicted of crime, it is systematic injustice of the worst kind.
No, O people, the LORD has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. Mic 6:8 NLT
Many conservative white people want to whitewash, justify or deny these crimes, but God is not impressed.
The blood of Abel still cries out. Are we the keepers of our black brothers? Yes, we are.
Sunday, December 8, 2024
The Terrible Sin of Racism
Tuesday, July 9, 2024
Social Justice and the Gospel
There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Ga 3:28 NIV
Why oh why do so many Christians ignore this revolutionary teaching of Paul, this message from God Himself?
In Christ there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all. Col 3:11 CSB
Why do so many Christians aggressively support white supremacy and Christian nationalism? Why is there so much political partisanship amongst Christians?
My brothers and sisters, do not show favouritism as you hold on to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.
For if someone comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and a poor person dressed in filthy clothes also comes in,
if you look with favour on the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Sit here in a good place,” and yet you say to the poor person, “Stand over there,” or “Sit here on the floor by my footstool,”
haven’t you made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Jas 2:1–4 CSB
So many Christian churches have ignored God’s command to love each other as brothers and sisters. Instead, we have prioritised hierarchy and obedience to someone of higher rank.
The founding fathers of the American republic declared that all men are created equal, but President George Washington owned slaves.
The Southern Baptists separated from the American Baptists because they insisted that Southern Baptist pastors should own slaves.
They quoted bible verses to justify their injustice.
Slaves, obey your human masters with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as you would Christ. Eph 6:5 CSB
Many conservative evangelicals still twist scripture in a similar way when they demand that wives always obey their husbands, no matter how unspiritual or domineering they might be.
Why do so many conservative Christians overspiritualise the Gospel? Loving your neighbour is reduced to nothing more than preaching at people to get them converted.
We are saved by faith and not works, as they accurately quote Paul.
But they conveniently ignore what James says, James the younger son of Mary and the brother of Jesus.
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can such faith save him?
If a brother or sister is without clothes and lacks daily food
and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, stay warm, and be well fed,” but you don’t give them what the body needs, what good is it?
In the same way faith, if it does not have works, is dead by itself. Jas 2:14–17 CSB
Sunday, June 18, 2023
Cancel Culture
Traditional conservatives in Western Countries want us to believe that Cancel Culture is an evil revolutionary movement invented by angry black people and left wing activists.
Sometimes cancel culture can go too far. Some very significant men in history did very bad things. If we no longer celebrate their positive achievements, our understanding of history will suffer.
King David had too many wives, and he was not always a good father.
George Washington was the first president of the USA, but he owned a lot of slaves.
Martin Luther persecuted Jews and Anabaptists.
Johannes Brahms was a misogynist.
But wait a minute. Is Cancel Culture really a new thing?
I am a lover of classical music. Over 100 years ago there were no women playing in some elite symphony orchestras. Now there are numerous wonderful composers and conductors who are women.
I am 74, and I have loved classical music all my life, but only in recent years I have heard a lot of music by female composers, which was previously ignored.
Very recently I heard of a woman who worked closely with Einstein. She was a genius and her ideas had a big influence on Einstein, but he got all the credit while she was forgotten.
When Spanish conquistadors took over Mexico and South America, they systematically set out to suppress indigenous languages and culture. Cancel Culture.
When European colonists invaded North America and Australia, they committed genocide and suppressed indigenous languages and culture. Cancel Culture.
I once met an African preacher who migrated to Australia. He told me that dancing was not permitted for Christians. For Africans, dancing is like breathing. Cancel Culture.
When I was a child in Australia, I went to a Church of England Grammar school. We learned about British heroes and colonial pioneers.
We learned that Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, but we were not told that an Australian professor and a German Jewish refugee shared the Nobel Prize for penicillin, when they took Fleming’s discovery and turned it into a life-saving medicine. Cancel Culture.
As a Christian, I had heard a lot about the Welsh Revival in 1904.
Some years ago some Welsh preachers visited our church in Australia.
We learned that one of the most powerful ministries in the Welsh revival was the preaching of a 15-year-old girl. When she preached in city streets, crowds came to be blessed: politicians, business leaders, prostitutes, and everyone in between.
She is ignored in most Christian history books. Cancel Culture.
Cancel Culture has been practised for centuries by conservative white Christians.
There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Ga 3:28 NIVUK84
Monday, June 1, 2020
Cry for Justice is Biblical
Read Micah Ch 2
1 Woe to those who plan iniquity, to those who plot evil on their beds!
At morning’s light they carry it out because it is in their power to do it.
2 They covet fields and seize them, and houses, and take them.
They defraud people of their homes, they rob them of their inheritance. Micah 2:1-2
Even in our lifetime, so many black people in the USA have been murdered by the police.
In our lifetimes, so many black people in Australia have been legally kidnapped.
Do I condone violent black revenge? No.
But to call police murder “sad” but black revenge “terrorism” is not fair.
“For I, the LORD, love justice;
I hate robbery and wrongdoing. In my faithfulness I will reward my people and make an everlasting covenant with them. Isa 61:8
Mankind, He has told you what is good and what it is the LORD requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8 (HCSB)
No, he has told you what he wants, and this is all it is: to be fair, just, merciful, and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8 (TLB)
The blood of Abel still cries out. Are we our black brothers' keepers? Yes, we are.
Thursday, October 3, 2013
ZEALOUS FOR A CAUSE BUT DO YOU LOVE?
- We must trust God in difficult times but passive faith is no good at all. It is useless to say: "God is in charge," because God expects us to take a stand.
But we must not love our causes more than we love people.
“But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you. Luke 6:27-28 (NLT)
Jesus warned that in the dark days before His return, THE LOVE OF MANY WILL GROW COLD.
- One of the reasons is bitterness and unforgiveness, even between Christians and Christians.
- Another reason is a wrong focus, concentrating on building ministries and organisations rather than loving and knowing Jesus and hungering for more of His Spirit, more of His love, more of His presence and more of His supernatural power in our lives.
- Yet another reason is emphasising submission to church leaders rather than each believer knowing, loving and obeying Jesus for himself.
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. John 10:27-28 (NKJV)
- Yet another reason is lukewarmness.
I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Revelation 3:15-16 (NKJV)
However, there are many Christians who are not at all lukewarm but very zealous.
- They are zealous for Bible truth, zealous for Jesus, zealous in hating sin, zealous in promoting the Gospel, zealous to save souls, zealous for missions and zealous in preparing for the return of Jesus.