At the opening of this Black History Month I celebrate my ethnicity before the God who in His perfect creative wisdom made me what I am and will be forever! My celebration is not intended to exalt blacks as superior, discredit or exclude the reality of my brothers of other ethnicities since we are together what the same God made us to be as the creature, man, leading to celebration by all of our existence from Him. While it is a sad fact of history that my celebration of black history came about from evil circumstances, I am not mad at anyone in it. However, even with improvement, I do at times painfully realize America has still not arrived at an appreciative biblical worldview of ethnicity.
Clearly, from the beginning, God our Creator intended that mankind should be displayed in a variety of physical hues, size dimensions and features though, He created from the dust just the one man, Adam (Genesis 2:7, 5:1-3). As scientists that are Christian and/or honest now understand, the variety of hues, size dimensions and features among the human race are the result of genetic programming in the human body. This programming includes gene copying and mutations over time that point to the logical, inescapable conclusion of an intelligent design by a purposeful Designer; a Designer the Bible declares is God (Exodus 4:11; Proverbs 20:12; Acts 17:26; Romans 1:18-21)!1
In spite of all of the negative associations with ethnicity sinful men have created over the centuries to this hour, another evident intent of God concerning mankind is that we should retain our ethnicities eternally! This is plainly seen in the global extent to which the salvation of God through the Gospel of His Son, Jesus Christ, was to be proclaimed (Isaiah 49:5-6; Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:44-49; John 20:19-23; Acts 1:8). It is also seen and celebrated in the outcome of the proclamation to the end of this present age; the Lord’s labor beginning through His faithful apostles with the Jews (Acts 2:36-47, 10:34-48, 13:1-3, 14:21-28; Romans 10:14-18; Revelation 5:9, 7:9-10).
Finally, God’s intention to retain the ethnic diversity of mankind forever is seen in His prophetic Word. Indeed, as the Lord led me to write in the two-part post, Revelation’s Seven Churches In Time, starting January 5, 2020 under the category, Bible Prophecy, individual saints are shown as from every nation or ethnicity of man in the new, eternal future God has planned (Revelation 21:1-14, 22-27). Knowing these truths, Christians more than all other people on earth are to appreciate and celebrate the wonder and beauty of humanity’s ethnic diversity as the “very good” work of our Creator (Genesis 1:31, NKJV). But we too, with the world have issues with bigotry that degrades ethnicity.
As I wrote of God’s racial diversity initiative in another post, ethnic and racial prejudice is still just as prevalent among professed Christian churches in large numbers as it is in wider secular society.2 To its credit, secular society is making a serious though, spiritually and morally flawed effort through its newly invented political correctness, tolerance and multiculturalism to do better. Among some churches, an effort is being made not to recognize ethnicity or race at all as a means to show progress in race relations. While this should be done as it relates to love in interpersonal relations, to deny or ask someone to deny their ethnic or racial heritage is not biblically consistent with God’s will.
No one should be forced to downplay or made to feel ashamed of their ethnicity because God is the source cause as our Creator! Instead, we are to celebrate what we are as creatures purposely “formed,” “fearfully and wonderfully made” and “skillfully wrought” by God (Psalm 139:13-15, NKJV).3 Wickedly, the recognition and special celebration of black Americans in American history came about because whites in the majority refused to include them in the curriculum and text books of their segregated public and private educational institutions. This flagrant act of bigotry was endorsed with the purposeful support and willful silence of those that also called themselves Christians as though Jesus Christ--who is Jewish, was okay with this.4
As a Christian black American aspiring to be a strong man of God in the image of Christ,5 I rejoice in the truth the Lord is not a bigot! Too, in His perfect will, He does not support demoralizing oppression to the point of rendering an ethnicity worthless through attempting to erase their history though, He has allowed it as one of the many negative outcomes of sin and His judgment in the world (Ecclesiastes 4:1-3; Jeremiah 5:15-19, 16:10-13; Lamentations 1:1-11). I am grateful to God for His mercy that last century inspired Carter G. Woodson to launch an observance of black history6 which I mark in days now that have only moderated in overt ethnic and racial bigotry. Elimination awaits Christ’s Second Coming on the way to God’s new eternal order (Isaiah 11:1-10, 56:6-8).
1 View David Rives’ Creation In The 21st Century Episode On Race for a biblical and scientific discussion.
2 See the December 6, 2015 post, Celebrating God’s Racial Diversity Initiative, under the category, Call Repent.
3 Thus, for example, so-called progressive minded predominantly black American churches that do not want to engage in purposeful evangelism and ministry among
those that share the same ethnic and racial heritage because of concern about offending their white and mixed race members are foolish. In every city Paul, the
Jewish apostle to us Gentiles, started with fellow Jews because of his natural ethnic and spiritual relation to as well as love for them in their shared heritage (Acts 9:
10-22, 13:1-5, 13-17, 42-47, 14:1, 17:1-3; Romans 9:1-5). No one faults our white brothers in their predominantly white churches for naturally connecting to their
own, but only that they or anyone for bigoted reasons should purposely avoid and exclude others. God’s heart in me like the apostle Paul is that I should preach the
Gospel and witness Christ to all as the Holy Spirit gives opportunity and also be burdened (as I am) to make sure those from among whom I have sprung ethnical-
ly in America with our shared heritage of slavery and racism hear accurately from a biblical worldview to the end of becoming victors rather than victims! Those that
would nobly (though, deceitfully) exalt themselves above recognizing ethnicity even in a positive way are deluding themselves and not impressing God as they think
since He is the Author of ethnicity. Read my May through November 2006 series of Journals, The Renewing Of Our Minds to see what worldview such uninformed
thinking arises from at https://fromslaverytovictory.org/Journal-Archives .
4 Read the February 3, 2019 post, Christianity In Black And White, under the category, Black History.
5 I write about the way of Jesus Christ, the Strong Man of God in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics. Get a print copy or digital download of the book
at major internet booksellers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ChristianBooks.com and Apple (digital only). You can also get a print copy in this Ministry's
Strong Man Store.
6 So, clearly, God gets the glory for caring enough to inspire the courage of Mr. Woodson to create the observance! This truth should serve as a warning rebuke to
those black Americans that are guilty of focusing almost exclusively on individual human achievements and success in the observance which are truly shallow in
the context of the deeper and richer spiritual realities of God’s purposeful involvement in our common historical experience. God’s involvement is evident in the bib-
lical worldview of black history presented in the continuing educational spirit of the observance by Open Door Communication Ministries, Inc. in our From Slavery To
Victory Victory Education Project. Learn more at https://fromslaverytovictory.org. To God be the glory!
The demand for slavery reparations resurfaced with a vengeance this past Juneteenth as yet again members of the black community led by well spoken award winning author and journalist, Ta-Nehisi Coates, attempted to make the case for them during a United States Congressional House Subcommittee hearing. Equally well spoken against reparations was young black American, Coleman Hughes, a college student and columnist with an online magazine who among other reasons objected to reparations being given on the grounds that the person receiving them is instantly made a victim.1
While I appreciate the “why” of Coates’ argument for reparations, Hughes’ victimization concern against them strikes close to the heart of my objection rooted in a biblical worldview and expressed in this edited 2003 Commentary. Let me be very clear: to oppose reparations for slavery is not in any way to indicate that in any cases of economic exploitation of or land theft from black Americans afterwards there should not be a swift and just remedy. However, as I have written in other posts2 and now again in this Commentary, slavery was of God and to demand reparations of anyone from it is to demand them from Him (Lamentations 3:27-28)!
Are we really that far gone from a proper fear of the Lord? Consequently, any reparation recipients as victims have their reward from men now, but eternally miss out on God’s as blasphemers (Jeremiah 17:9-10; Matthew 7:21-23, 16:24-27; Romans 1:18-2:11; Hebrews 10:26-31)!
Originally Published July 2003
There are a growing number of African Americans across the nation calling for the American government and corporations to pay reparations to blacks for the experience of slavery. The word reparation is defined as “An act or the process of repairing or making amends” according to Webster’s Dictionary. It also is “Something done or paid as amends; compensation.” Interestingly, Webster’s defines reparations as “Compensation required from a defeated nation for damage inflicted during a war.”
As I understand the rationale behind the demand for reparations, blacks are owed compensation from the government and selected corporations because they benefited from the free labor of our slave forefathers. The compensation would be calculated based on the wages slaves would have earned in one scheme I recall hearing about. Whatever the scheme, the aspiring strong man of God in the image of Jesus Christ knows demanding reparations for the black experience of slavery in America is a wicked and sinful affront to the God of our salvation.3 Indeed, for it was He who allowed our enslavement and also set us free!
When are we going to stop acting out of this satanically inspired attitude of victimization over our experience in America? This attitude is exactly where the demand for reparations comes from. However, according to the Judge of all creation, neither our ancestors nor we now are innocent victims in His sight! He says, “‘There is none righteous, no, not one.’” And again, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (Romans 3:10, 23, NKJV). Therefore, where is the innocence of any human being, tribe, race or nation on the planet?
We who love to so eloquently explain the equality of the races; in our present cry for reparations are we saying that we are more worthy than all other people in the history of the world because our experience was so unjust and undeserved in our eyes? History reveals many other peoples have suffered the humiliation of slavery. No doubt all would have loved to receive reparations for their bitter service. However, most were grateful just to have their freedom when it came. What makes us, the sons of Cush, so special then? In the sight of God, nothing!
Truly, He planned our remedial judgment long ago and revealed it through the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 18). As it was in ancient times, so it is today; we are a people of great pride or is it not pride to demand reparations from the Most High God, the One ultimately responsible for our enslavement (Psalm 107:10-12; Lamentations 3:37-39)? Besides punishing the many wicked deeds of our ancestors, the Lord sought through slavery (and continues seeking in our trials) to humble our great pride as Isaiah’s prophecy shows. It also powerfully pictures that the Lord’s mercy in our sufferings will accomplish His primary end: the salvation of willing souls!
The present cry for reparations blatantly ignores the fact that the Lord impressed on this nation the need to help our slave forefathers set free amidst the Civil War. During the period immediately after the war called Reconstruction, educational institutions (of which many of our historically black universities such as Howard in Washington D.C.) were founded, money and assistance given to help the newly freed slaves begin their ascent to citizenship.4
Did everyone get 40 acres and a mule as promised? No. Were there setbacks due to racism and the violent intimidation of whites? Yes. But while we suffered these things and the grand insult of Jim Crow segregation, did not our people, a little here and a little there, by and by begin to prosper as the Lord in His infinite mercy and grace gave us favor? Yes! And at the turn of the 20th century we were doing so well as we moved from the agricultural South to the industrial North, we started to turn away from the heartfelt faith in the Lord many of our Christian slave forefathers had; rejecting their “Pie in the sky.”
Jeremiah the prophet spells out in clear terms the curse of desolation that follows the man (or people) who trusts in flesh and departs from the Lord; the blessing and enduring prosperity of the man (or people) who trust in Him (Jeremiah 17:5-8)! In light of the many and continuing problems of our community, we don’t need reparations or much more help than we already have. We need to turn back to the Lord in complete repentance which includes forsaking the remake of biblical Christianity into “our own” religion by so many churches!5
The Lord says, ‘“Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins shall die,’” (Ezekiel 18:4, NKJV). Therefore, unless the guilty repent, they shall all die (Luke 13:1-9). We who are enduring the current judgment of God upon our people in rebellion and apostasy through faith in Christ, should consider ourselves blessed to have our lives just as Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian in his day (Jeremiah 39:15-18). Let’s not join in the prideful insult to His mercy by demanding reparations from God or anybody else as victims for what was of His permitted will. Instead, let the faithful--every aspiring strong man and great woman of God in the image of Christ be victors over the world through faith in Him to the glory of God (1 John 5:4-5)!
1 Read the CBS News article.
2 The two-part, Message From A Redeemed Black Man posted beginning on June 2, 2019 under the categories, Biblical Worldview and Black History, launched a series
of posts through this month of June that serve as the most recent addressing divine involvement in Black History. Otherwise, our entire From Slavery To Victory Educa-
tion Project is devoted to this cause as seen throughout its Web Site.
3 To learn what a strong man and great woman of God in the image of Jesus Christ are, get a print copy or digital download of my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To
Basics, at major internet booksellers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ChristianBooks.com and Apple (digital only). You can also get a print copy of the book in the
4 While the poor in the community still need help from everybody to “rise,” what is needed most of all from the descendants of our former masters that are guilty is the re-
moving of all of the artificially imposed barriers and obstacles of racism as I wrote in the February 19, 2017 post, Who Is Weeping For My People, under the category,
The Cause.
5 Read the two-part post beginning February 8, 2015, Strong Through God, Not Religion, under the category, Black History.
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