Racism and Our ResponseНамуна

Racism: Whose Problem is It?

Do you know the names of everyone who lives in your street? We absolutely should be intentional about loving the people who live next door or across the road. And yet Jesus makes it clear that ‘neighbour’ means so much more than those with whom we share a suburb or a block of flats, and our responsibility is so much more than just to smile and wave.

The root of racism is failing to see God’s image in people who don’t look like us. Perhaps you’re thinking, ‘Sure, but what does this have to do with me?’ When people asked Jesus about the greatest commandment ever, He answered with two commandments: love God, and love your neighbour (Matthew 22:34-40). These two commandments are intrinsically linked. We can’t love God without loving people too. And when someone asked Jesus, ‘Who is my neighbour?’, He answered by telling the story of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37). This story would’ve shocked Jesus’ Jewish audience because there was a long history of hostility between Jews and Samaritans. Maybe you’ve felt shocked by forced proximity with someone from another race, culture, or socio-economic bracket. Perhaps you know all about historical racial hostility. Perhaps there are people you tend to avoid, consciously or unconsciously. What’s God saying to you about your reactions? What’s your next step?

In Jesus’ parable, the person who looked least like a neighbour was the one who acted most like one. Jesus makes the point that in God’s Kingdom, there are no racial, ethnic, or cultural divisions. The Samaritan wasn’t from the same area as the injured Jewish man lying on the road. He didn’t know him or live next to him. The Samaritan demonstrated that neighbours transcend barriers. Being a good neighbour is easy when we’re dealing with people we like, people who are similar to us, or even just people we know. But in Jesus’ definition of neighbour, similarity, familiarity, and fondness aren’t factors.

We get to model Jesus’ command to love God and love others within our church communities. In 1 Corinthians 12:25-27, Paul explains how God has created His global church, the body of Christ: ‘...there should be no division in the body, but its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it…’ Imagine what would change if everyone in your community or circle of friends started saying, ‘Racism is my problem too.’

Jesus Himself modelled how to cross barriers and love people who were different. He left heaven to eat with tax collectors, befriend fishermen, speak to lepers and show grace to sinners. Take some time to let the sobering truth sink in that racism is our problem too, and it’s a problem we can solve by obeying Jesus’ commands to love God, and love people. Let’s embrace every opportunity to show up in the lives of all sorts of neighbours, with grace, love, and respect.