Colours of Nations - Racism?
‘For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.’ (Colossians 1:16-17).
If we take the premise that God created absolutely everything, then we must understand that He has Divine purpose for the incredible and beautiful diversity of all the races, colours and textures created in His ultimate art - humanity - the image of himself. ‘So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.’ (Genesis 1:27).
The nations therefore have a distinct purpose in His-story, over His past millenniums! It is God’s journey with us, His amazing humankind, imaged of Himself. God of the universe, is somehow mysteriously living in this flesh and bone miracle of ours, through faith in Jesus by His Spirit. Humanity fashioned through the centuries, to be fully human beings; not just human doings, living to survive and die. What then is this purpose?
The Purposes of the Colours of Nations
We are all one in Christ: If you are a genuine Christian, according to Bible scripture, take a fresh look at your beautiful colours of skin and what it means to be black, white, brown, yellow, red, green, pink, or peach. When you are a believer in Jesus Christ, in God’s eye’s, your skin colour has no particular preference to Him. It is just your beautiful ‘body art,’ to cover your humanity that houses your spirit.
It is written, ‘There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus’ (Galatians 3:28). It is also written, ‘Then Peter opened his mouth and said, “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: but in every nation he that fears Him, and works righteousness, is accepted with Him”’ (Acts 10:34-35) KJV.
One blood source: ‘He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation’ (Acts 17:26).
Why has the God of all creation done this? Why only one mix of blood that runs within every human? The truth is, a black man’s red blood is the same as a white man’s red blood. In some churches, you would not think so the way people live and behave. With no doubt, there has been gross racial injustice in history and very much in recent times, but the important thing to understand is, in Christ there is no racism, in all the colours we are one, and things should be very different.
Church today in the cities and nations of the earth, must be a Church that fosters unity of heart and purpose, working together for a common destiny. It was the dream of Martin Luther King Jnr.
We are all ‘made from one blood’ of Jesus. Our skin clothing may be different, and can be admired and appreciated for the diversity, but the blood that supplies it… well, is all from the same source - God.
As simplistic as it sounds with all sensitivity to the many past historical, and current racial issues and abuses, and there are many, the Church is not a black church, white, or any other colour, but it just is! In Him we are all washed in the same blood of Jesus Christ, and in our veins, runs the same blood colour red.
There is therefore no excuse for human divisiveness, prejudices and racism; they marginalise people and cause so much harm. Our time left on earth is now shorter than ever, especially today in the global shaking the pandemic has brought. These racial tensions are still used in the world to create divisions in our cultures. It is not something God desires.
We must be reminded again of the truth that is in Christ. ‘Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man that is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek, nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all and in all’ (Colossians 3:9-11).
One Church in all the colours: The High Priest in the Old Testament wore a beautiful breastplate that represented all Israel. It had twelve very colourful precious stones, and was worn over the heart. This was called the ‘Urim and the Thummin’ meaning, lights and perfections, a device that would literally light up, when they sought specific answers from God for the nation (Exodus 28:29-30).
The end-time governing Church should carry the whole Body of Christ in her heart. We are not mutually exclusive to just one movement, denomination, colour, or group, although there are many varied and different expressions and cultures of the Church (and it is important to be planted and part of a local church where you relate). The true believing heart embraces all the beauty of the colours of the ‘living stones’ of the Body of Christ, which is the Church. ‘You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ’ (1 Peter 2:5).
The word tells us, ‘the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance,’ (clothes, looks, image, stature, skin colour), ‘… but the Lord looks at the heart’ (1 Samuel 16:7). If we don’t look as the way the Lord looks, we can be deceived by the racism, and division being stirred up and politicised today.
The word also tells us, ‘the Love of Christ controls us…’ (2 Corinthians 5:14). Self control is powered by the love that comes from God. It is the love of Jesus that should compel us and hold us together, or constrain us from falling to pieces. Racially divisive human opinions and their often negative actions needs godly awareness and self-control, brought into line through understanding the word of God. The devil himself has a racist nature, because his character is to divide, rob, kill and destroy (John 10:10). We must not give him ground, and let racial hatred, division and segregation of people proliferate.
Why then do we have this creative multitude of human texture, colour and geographical living spaces on earth? It begs the question; has all history, every war, every political leader, every border defined in every nation, every race, every empire, every dynasty, every song and every sound, been for an ultimate purpose? Absolutely! King David prophesied, ‘All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before You. For the kingdom is the Lord’s, and He rules over the nations’ (Psalm 22:27-28). David also declares, ‘Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him’ (Psalm 33:8). In the not to distant future, this will happen to every race, colour and culture on the earth.
Jesus’ prayer for all believers is to be one. ‘I do not pray for these alone (the disciples), but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are One’ (John 17:20-21).
The result of this prayer of oneness is that the Church will get the attention of the world, with glorious unity in the love of Christ, without any racism. Jesus has been preparing His Church for centuries for this time, so the world may believe in Him and be saved.
The Dream: From the words of a great American.
“I have a dream, my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. When evil men plot, good men must plan, when evil men burn and bomb, good men must build and bind. When evil men shout ugly words of hatred, good men must commit themselves to the glories of love. Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love. Sooner or later all the peoples of the world without regard to the political systems under which they live, will have to discover a way to live together in peace” Martin Luther King Jr 1963.
So, we continue from the infallible absolute word of God; to discover His purposes for ‘one blood and the pre-appointed boundaries of the nations’. The reason is in the next verse:’So that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us’ (Acts 17:27).
God’s ultimate purpose for your nation wherever you the reader live, is that mankind in your cities may grope for God; to seek Him, move forward and find what you have not been able to see before!
A massive wave of the cloud of God’s glory will flood the world in these future post pandemic days (Habakkuk 2:14). It will cover the earth as was spoken of old in the Bible. Church… it is a new era of history now 2021. It is time for radical change in the way we see things! Be colourful!
By Stephen Bennett 21/09/2021:
Author - Chapter 12 extract from the book: Prepare and Arise - It’s Time for the Nations!
https://store.bookbaby.com/book/prepare-and-arise
https://store.bookbaby.com/book/Prophet-Musician
https://store.bookbaby.com/book/The-Divine-Artist
