My Scriptures professor recently shared a sermon he did on the Gospel and how it addresses race. I found this particularly insightful and I hope that some of you may find it to be as well! Here is my sermon analysis of my Christian Scriptures Professor, Malcolm B. Foley.
You can find the sermon here.
Today's world, much like the centuries that have proceeded us, has a problem with race and Christianity. The wonderful Mr. Malcolm Foley preaches about how the Gospel addresses race and Christianity, by bringing in segregation examples from the Gospels, in relation to the Dutch Reformed Church in the late 1850s and our modern lifestyle as Christians. I wholesomely agree with the main points the preacher, Mr. Foley, discussed in the sermon. He helped me reflect on how it is unfortunate that we still live in a segregated world today in continuation of centuries in the past.
So many people try to live through the law or call themselves Christians, but truly not act like one and believe like a Christian on the inside. In my response, I will be addressing the issue of race and how it reminds me of how Christians live their lives in the modern world.
To this day, people still try to use the church in order to justify the personal agendas of wrongdoings. Mr. Foley begins with addressing the issue within the Dutch Reformed Church in the mid-to-late 1800s in relation to racial segregation. The church, instead of celebrating the Lord's supper together as a whole, decided to celebrate the Lord's supper by separation of color. Through their actions of support for the separation, it reflects similarly Peter's actions against the Gentiles. Different supper times reflects the support of apartheid, just like how Peter's actions against the Gentiles reflected a separation. Anyone can put makeup on to try to be beautiful on the outside (emphasis on "try") but have a black heart on the inside. Similarly, anyone can call themselves a Christian but not be a true Christian on the inside. If you call yourself a Christian and hate drives you towards division, ask yourself, is that something Christ would do? In Galatians 2:14, it states, "If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?" Similarly, if you're a Christian and do not act like a Christian, then how can you compel non-believers to live like Christians? How do you expect people to believe that Christians, for example, are as loving as they say if your actions do not align with Christian beliefs?
Not only does that reflect poorly on you, but if you call yourself a Christian, then you poorly represent what Christian is to be like.
To your surroundings, your actions are reflections of who you are and what you believe. Mr. Foley's sermon reminded me of how, unfortunately in today's world, many "Christians" act so radically in being hateful to those who are "not like them" in terms of skin color, gender, sexual orientation, or even their own beliefs. So many people, especially on social media, will state a hateful message and then put the label of "Christian" behind it. That's like being someone who acts hatefully towards a nation and calls themselves a president. Oh, wait… As Mr. Foley said, there are always eyes watching what you are doing. You are a representation of not only yourself but who Christians are. If someone's agenda is to bring people closer to Christ, to spread love and the good news, then you invite them in with open arms. If you knock on someone's door and throw a pie in their face, expect the door to be shut within a matter of seconds rather than be invited in. If you want to invite people to get to know Christ, then you should act as Christ would in getting to know him.
Jesus didn't throw a pie in someone's face when he questioned him. He opened his arms out.
Nowhere in the Bible did it say that Jesus turned someone away because of how sick they looked, how poor someone was, or how sinful a person is. Jesus did not look at the color of one's skin if they had male parts of not, or even who they were interested in. Instead, he saw them all as children of God. We are God's creation. I feel like if you harshly judge another without recognizing yourself as hypocritical, then you could also be judging God too because we are all His creation. Sure, that may be a stretch, but who are you to judge another when you yourself have a life filled with sin? Someone who consciously judges another by the way they look or act is a hypocrite. The only one who is entitled to judgment is God. Jesus Christ helped reveal that through our faith in him, we can be right in the eyes of God.
Those who choose to judge others have little faith in Christ.
Regardless of how "Christian" one can claim to be, without living through CHRIST, one is not truly a Christian at heart, instead, it's just a misleading mask they choose to put on to make them seem like a good person. I agree that it is not our faith that saves us, it is the one whom our faith links to is who saves us. In other words, it is Christ. There is the nature of self-comparison and allowing other people's measurements of ourselves stray us away from who truly matters in the end, the one whose judgment we should be aware and afraid of, and that is the one in God's eyes.
Peter has committed the sin just like the pastor who turned away colored men and women away from having supper together, his identity is not one with Christ, he cared more about who he surrounded himself with rather than asking himself if this was a Christ-like the thing to do.
Like Mr. Foley even pointed out, Barnabas, who has a good reputation in the Bible also got pulled in too, it represents how easily sin compels you. Peter's actions in regards to separation from the Gentiles were observed by his peers, who follow in his footsteps. Just like how it was mentioned before, that there are constantly people watching you, especially those who admire you and would follow your footsteps. Mr. Foley preaches that many people believe in the saying that people naturally gravitate towards people who are like themselves, however, people are also naturally born to sin.
Being alike to others does not have to do anything with segregation within someone's colors, being alike could also mean people who share similar values, and even if not, then people who can challenge one another to think in better ways even if they are different from you. Everyone is alike because we are all sinners and we should all strive towards a better life through Jesus Christ together. Other than that, there should be no differences. Peter was taking others in the wrong direction of the Gospel, and it is so very common today and it is especially vulnerable to those who are lost or living a life without Christ.
Don't be fooled by a wolf in sheep's clothing.
