Man and woman. Straight and gay. Black and white. Believer and atheist. Christian and Muslim. Citizen and immigrant. Upper and lower class. We as Christians are absolutely the worst about sorting people into groups. Andy Stanley said this:
“We all, individually and collectively, run the risk of mis-prioritizing our adjectives when it comes to how we see people. Before long, we see good people and bad people; conservative people and liberal people; young people and old people; my people, not my people…before long we just adopt all the cultural norms, all the categories, next thing you know, we’re talking about viewing the world just like everybody else and your Father in Heaven says, ‘Hey, look up here, look up here. That’s not how I see the world. That’s not how I divide the world.’ Because the adjectives you use the most will eventually get down to your emotions. And you’ll be mean to people who don’t agree with you. You’ll say bad things about people who don’t see the world the way you see it. And your Father in Heaven says when you’ve done that, you have joined the ranks of the Pharisees."
The church itself seems to embrace segregation. This person doesn’t wear the same type clothes as me; therefore they are not as good as me. The color of this person’s skin isn’t the same as mine, so they should not sit next to me, or come to my church at all. This pastor, though his sermon is Biblically sound, makes me feel uncomfortable about my views and my sins, so I do not like him. And if I do not like him, then he cannot be as good as me. This person sins differently than me, therefore I am better, and am, somehow, more forgiven. This person is not saved, thus not as good as me; therefore I can judge. I follow these rules, ones I’ve created and decided to personally live by, and if someone else does not live by them, they are inferior. Facetiousness aside, a truth I know for certain is this: People aren’t necessarily wrong for not having the same conviction as you.
Outside of the church is our community and is our country. For example, abortion is an issue in which friends on both the right and left feel extremely strong. Generally speaking, and not that there can’t be exceptions, it makes sense for Christians to be pro-life, because they genuinely believe life begins the moment of conception, and that every life is valuable and worth saving. On the other hand, it makes complete sense that nonbelievers are pro-choice. With no religion telling them when life officially begins, anyone would simply see a fetus as a bundle of cells. And though they may still mourn what could have been, what is most important is the scared or overwhelmed woman in front of them that is not ready to have her life drastically altered. Believers, it is not our job to argue with people; it is our job to make sure others can see something of Jesus in us. The rest will follow. Another truth I know for certain is this: You cannot hold lost people to Biblical standards; you just love them.
My final truth is this: There is not a single person on this earth that is better than someone else. The adjectives we often use to define others can be hurtful to others and harmful to ourselves. Not only do they influence our thought process, our behaviors, and our personalities, but they also have the great power to leave us feeling angry and empty. The people of our country right now are feeling angry and empty and expressing that frustration in negative ways, and, frankly, our prejudices and categories are to blame. How do we remedy this? We have been conditioned to think a certain way, and while we may never be able to escape our initial, judgmental thoughts, we have to power to decide what we think after them in response. Sometimes, we’ve got to tell ourselves “no.” We’ve got to fight our own thought process. We’ve got to say to ourselves, “That person is beautiful and valuable and loved.” It’s not that adjectives are inherently bad. Jesus used adjectives of His own, and each and every person, in His past, present, and future, He loves an incredible amount. That is how we should identify people.
