God’s Solution to This Sin-Infused War in the Church

Throughout my lifetime, I have experienced the tensions of racism. Racism is rooted in sinful delusion, yet it is very real—and it is unrighteous, unloving, and unjust. As Acts 17:26 says, there is one human race, and the notion that there are different races is a fallacy.

During the 2016 presidential election racial and religious division escalated to a fever pitch, becoming a major point of contention. Diverse voices were shouting, “Black lives matter,” “All lives matter,” “No justice, no peace,” “Unborn lives matter,” “Gay lives matter,” “Aborted babies don’t matter,” “Immigrants matter,” “Immigrants don’t matte,” and on and on. Somehow, race relations took center stage.

My uncle Martin Luther King Jr. and my father were brothers in the civil rights struggle of the twentieth century. They firmly believed God’s justice system for human beings was reflected in a beloved community, where all human beings— regardless of ethnic, age, skin color, social or economic differences—should be treated equally. In many ways their views reflected the foundation of the U.S. Constitution as well as the Holy Bible.

We must understand that the idea that there is a “race war” is a result of the sins of division and strife. The solution is repentance for the sin of racism and correcting the flawed mind-set that has ruled the United States for far too long.

Color-Blind Theory Doesn’t Help

We don’t have the liberty of covering up this sin with platitudes like color blindness. As Monnica T. Williams states in her Psychology Today article, racial color blindness seems like a good thing on the surface, but it is not good enough. She writes:

At its face value, colorblindness seems like a good thing— really taking MLK seriously on his call to judge people on the content of their character rather than the color of their skin. It focuses on commonalities between people, such as their shared humanity. However, colorblindness alone is not sufficient to heal racial wounds on a national or personal level. It is only a half-measure that in the end operates as a form of racism.

Human beings have a wide range of skin colors, just as almost every other creation under the sun. So where does this color-blind concept really find its deceptive source?

In a spiritual sense, those with colorblindness are not to be applauded; they need spiritual enlightenment. Why? Because racial color blindness is spiritual blindness, which gives cover to the system that fosters white privilege.

The Dangers of Privilege

According to essayist Tim Wise, “White privilege refers to any advantage, opportunity, benefit, head start or general protection from negative societal mistreatment, which persons deemed white will typically enjoy, but which others will generally not enjoy.”

He goes on to explain:

Operationally, white privilege is simply the flip side of discrimination against people of color. The concept is rooted in the common-sense observation that there can be no down without an up, so that if people of color are the targets of discrimination, in housing, employment, the justice system, or elsewhere, then whites, by definition, are being elevated above those persons of color. Whites are receiving a benefit, vis-a-vis those persons of color: more opportunity because those persons of color are receiving less. Although I believe all persons are harmed in the long run by racism and racial inequity—and thus, white privilege comes at an immense social cost—it still exists as a daily reality throughout the social, political and economic structure of the United States.

Overall, it pays to be a member of the dominant group.

We Are One Race: Human

The human race is diverse, with people having various skin colors, body types, hair types and other cultural and ethnic distinctions. God never intended for these God-approved distinctions to divide human communities.

The issue of racial ties becomes irrelevant with the revelation that according to Acts 17:26, we are not separate races but rather one human race. While our God-ordained ethnic distinctions remain relevant, they should never divide us. Racial disputes, social differences and a lack of associations should not separate us. We are all part of the same race: the human race. {eoa}

Alveda King is a Christian evangelist, civil rights activist, former Georgia legislator and director of Civil Rights for the Unborn for Priests for Life. She has frequently appeared on Fox News, C-SPAN, CNN, CBN and Daystar television network, and she has been featured in publications such as the Washington Times, the Conservative Pundit, Charisma News and Right Wing News, among many others. Her books include King Rules, Who We Are in Christ Jesus, and How Can the Dream Survive if We Murder the Children? This passage is an excerpt from her book King Truths: 21 Keys to Unlocking Your Spiritual Potential (Charisma House, 2018).