The Scourge Of Racism
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Released January 5, 2024
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Arising from the midst of the Lord’s permitted severe adversities as judgment upon along with grace, mercy and revival in His American Church are men; men who aspire to be “strong” as described of old by Daniel the prophet and in Christ’s image (Daniel 11:32-35; Romans 8:29, NKJV).1 Such men are supposed to be well represented in the Church. However, in these latter days they have been made rare by a multitude of Church sins including the toleration and practice of racism. Restored in their sold out devotion and obedience to Christ, aspiring strong men of God in His image are the only ones that can stand to lead the Church out of racism and into modeling racial harmony!
All men are weak in sin before God (Psalm 6:1-2a, 51:5; Luke 5:4-8; Romans 3:9-18, 23)! Our thinking, attitudes, words and deeds fully display the sin nature that resides within us (Mark 7:21-22). Indeed, racism is but one of many sins men practice that flow from our sin nature and the arrogance with pride spawned by it in the heart.2 With all other sins men commit, racism too, is not only a display of the sin nature, but spiritual weakness. Consequently, as the Lord leads me to write in The Scourge Of Racism, those who practice racism whether they profess to be Christians or not and whatever their hues are also showing spiritual weakness only He can deliver a man from.3
Jesus Christ, God “the Word” and “Son,” came into the world from Heaven by the express will of “the Father,” (John 1:1-2, 14-18, NKJV). He taught with “authority” and did mighty works in the power of God (Mark 1:21-28, 4:35-41; John 20:30-31, NKJV). He was also tested in every manner as we are to the death, but no sin was found in Him for He was perfect in all of His ways (Matthew 4:1-11, 26:36-46, 27:35-54; Hebrews 2:18, 4:15). Without dispute, Jesus Christ is the Strong Man of God He wants all willing men to look to as the role model for what being a man is about, follow and imitate to the end of bearing His image forever (Luke 9:18-36; 1 Corinthians 11:1, 15:47-49)!4
While the Father does allow for the reality of sin weak Christ followers, this is not His perfect will (1 Corinthians 11:23-32). Every man that repents of his sins and believes on Christ for salvation is called by the Father to become a strong man in His Son’s image and purposely set on a path to spiritual maturity to that end by Him (Matthew 10:24-25; Ephesians 4:11-16; Hebrews 12:1-11). In seeking to please Him and do His will, Christian men as aspiring strong men of God in Christ’s image submit to and obey His commandments as taught (Matthew 28:18-20). Chief among the Lord’s commandments is for His disciples to “love one another” as He exemplified (John 13:34, NKJV).5
Not only would the world know the reality of Christ by His disciples’ display of love for each other, but they by their obedience to His command would be showing Him love the way He requires (John 13:35, 14:15). As a result, they most assuredly would not be tolerant of or practicing the loveless sin of racism! For besides disobeying the Lord’s command to love each other practicing racism, they know this sin wickedly does harm to its object whether a fellow believer or not (Romans 13:8-10). Too, they understand themselves to be sons of God who behaving in righteousness and love, are distinct from the devil’s children and their hurtful conduct toward others (1 John 3:10-15).
The men I am describing--aspiring strong men of God in the image of Christ--are not more evident in the Church at this hour because many have been left ignorant of their calling attending churches where it or anything like biblical manhood is not taught. Also, men are marginalized in the Church due to another sin, capitulation to feminists for the sake of their definition of equality. Nevertheless, Christ Lord of His Church is restoring willing men through Ministries like ours!6 They are being purposely taught the way of Christ as the Strong Man of God so in being personally restored, they might also restore their families and communities to include local churches as needed.7
As I write in The Scourge Of Racism, whatever their hue aspiring strong men of God in Christ’s image do not tolerate, practice or in silence endorse the sin of racism, but call it out while modeling the Lord’s commanded love.8 As it should be, these aspiring strong men of God in the image of Christ are local church leaders as well as those rising up from the pews to display the solution to racism in His Church and to a skeptical, hostile watching world to His glory as we are called to do! Truly, standing against racism and all biblically defined sin in the midst of intensifying adversities and persecution from Christian impostors and the world will be challenging; they will have the experiences of the men in Daniel’s prophecy already cited as they serve in Christ’s strength (Philippians 4:13).
1 Read the October 15, 2023 post, In Judgment, Grace, Mercy And Revival, under the category, Glory To God!
2 See the September 17, 2023 post, Racism A Two-Fold Scourge, under the category, Biblical Worldview, for a definition of racism.
3 The Scourge Of Racism, Copyright 2023, ODCM Publishing Division, Portland, OR, p. 64. The book can be purchased in this Ministry’s Web Site Stores including the Strong Man Store, all major internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
4 Learn more about Jesus Christ as the Strong Man of God in my previously published book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics! The Hard or Soft Cover or E-Book Editions are available in the Strong Man Store, all major internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
5 The Lord knows His commandment is impossible without the indwelling power and help of the Holy Spirit and spoke in anticipation of His coming to equip us to obey (John 3:1-8, 14:16-17, 26; Romans 5:5; 1 Peter 1:22-25).
6 Since 2005 Strong Man Ministries has been carrying out the Lord’s mission to restore men, their families and communities despite actual opposition not only from the world, but local churches! Learn more about our work on our Web Site and courageously consider supporting it.
7 Restoration through returning to the Lord is an important first step for professed Christian men who know they are far from anything like His image in their walk. Our on- going Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord, seeks to facilitate that restoration. Your soul, sir, is worth the thirty minutes it takes to watch the rally on our YouTube channel.
8 The Scourge Of Racism, op. cit., p. 64.
Guilty disobedient white professed Christians willfully ignoring, setting aside and corrupting God’s Word over four hundred years to enable them in their churches and those making no such profession in the larger American society to uphold the bigotries, discriminatory acts and oppressions of racism has not gone without divine imposed and unintended consequences. Surely, for racism and other sins the severe judgment now, upon His Church has been imposed by Christ!1 Too, there are many unforeseen unintended consequences along the way sin always has that are contributing to the devastating spiritual, moral and ethical chaos, ruin and collapse of churches along with our nation.
The centuries long flagrant disregard for and disobedience to the clear teaching of Scripture against racism, its discriminatory acts and oppressions with other sins by the majority white professed Christian American Church has spawned the unforeseen outcome of a latter day generation that is at ease doing the same on such issues as marriage, divorce, feminism, abortion, same sex relations, gender identity and roles to name some.2 Another is the social chaos this state of affairs is causing that cannot be overstated; most of which will not be reversed until Christ returns to install and enforce the transcendent spiritual principles, morality and ethics of God’s Kingdom on earth (Psalm 2)!
Yet another unforeseen unintended consequence of brazen contempt for and disobedience to God’s Word on racism’s discriminatory acts and oppressions with other sins is the ongoing splintering of the American Church into ever increasing fragments as each man, woman or party must have their own typically unbiblical theological spin, belief system and way (Acts 20:29-30).3 Of course, the American Church has never been without division over theology since those that came from Europe to form the colonies were from various Catholic, Protestant and other professed Christian sects.4 But the splintering today is in over drive with thousands of denominations, churches, groups and sects.
The selfish mindset behind the splintering is not only a product of championed American individualism labeled freedom, but still an unabashed refusal to heed the instruction and warnings of Christ and His apostles on an issue; this time that of division. The Lord’s express will is brotherhood and unity (Matthew 23:8; John 17:20-23). Paul, the Lord’s apostle to us Gentiles asked rhetorically when the seeds of division were being planted in the first century, “Is Christ divided,” (1 Corinthians 1:13, NKJV)? The Lord warned ‘“And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand,’” (Mark 3:25, NKJV). No exception with our nation, the American Church fragmenting is collapsing too.
To be sure, there is a biblical place for God’s faithful to disassociate themselves from harlot professed Christians that in their practice of sin create a manmade religious “form” of the faith as the apostle Paul gives prophetic warning (2 Timothy 3:1-9, NKJV). Also, the Lord foretells a falling away from Him by ‘“offended’” splinter factions near His return in which they ‘“will betray…and hate one another;’” helping to give rise to ‘“many false prophets’” who ‘“deceive many,’” (Matthew 24:10-11, NKJV). This is now, well under way and helps in part explain why the guilty many in the American Church refuse to repent when confronted with God’s Word objectively read, interpreted and applied.5
Indeed, as the Lord leads me to write in The Scourge Of Racism, the world filled with those calling themselves progressives--religious and otherwise--is doing the right thing morally by not only owning the wrong done to blacks and other minorities through racism’s bigotry, discriminatory acts and oppressions, but attempting to do something about it whatever all of their skewed motives and efforts.6 Confessing sin is supposed to be automatic to all professed Christians since none have been saved apart from it. However, with hearts hardened into the numerous forms of manmade Christianity the religion and as de facto apostates that put worldly conservative values ahead of God’s Word many evangelicals in the American Church will not confess racism as sin and repent.
Refusing to repent from sinning against the Lord as religionists in contempt of Him and with hardened hearts was the issue with Hophni and Phinehas I wrote about in last week’s post (1 Samuel 2:22-25).7 Please note in the passage cited that God was not indifferent toward the two sinning priests. His judgment had already been determined and in His timing announced by an unnamed “man of God,” then, confirmed through the child prophet, Samuel (1 Samuel 2:27-34, 3:1-18, NKJV).8 As to a hardened heart, even the Philistines’ religious leaders warned their kings not to go there as they considered having “the ark of the Lord” after seven months of misery. They recognized a hardened heart is what destroyed Pharaoh and will anyone (1 Samuel 6:1-6; Romans 2:4-5, NKJV).9
1 Read the October 8, 2023 post, Racism A Reason For Church Judgment, under the category, Instruction along with the one on October 15, 2023, In Judgment, Grace, Mercy And Revival, under the category, Glory To God!
2 Blacks and other minorities long before were naturally taking their religious cues from whites in the lead who introduced Christianity in its various forms to them over the centuries also with negative outcomes. See the September 4, 2016 post, Christianity The Religion American Style, under the category, Call To Repent.
3 As with Israel during the period of the Judges when “everyone did what was right in his own eyes,” so, the American Church at this hour with one major difference. Israel’s condition was blamed on them not having a king, but we have One; even the same One they rejected then and guilty professed Christians reject now: God in Christ (Judges 21:25, NKJV)!
4 In spite of their theological differences, there was cooperation on founding the nation, building it and establishing its general cultural mores loosely based on select Judeo- Christian teaching from the Bible. This general culture as the Lord has been leading me to repeatedly point out shamefully included ensuring the dominantstanding of whites through the bigoted, discriminatory and oppressive deeds of racism. For the record, restrictions on sexual immorality was in no way bigoted, discriminatory or op- pressive since they are plain instruction directly from God’s Word (1 Thessalonians 4:1-8).
5 See the February 2, 2014 post, The Falling Away, under the category, Bible Prophecy. Impostors and apostates do not submit to God or His Word--never have and never will (Romans 8:5-9; 2 Timothy 3:10-13; 2 Peter 2:1-3, 12-22)!
6 The Scourge Of Racism, Copyright 2023, ODCM Publishing Division, Portland, OR, p. 15-17. The printed book is available in the Strong Man Store, all major internet book- sellers and brick and mortar bookstores. The just released E-Book is available at major E-Book sellers. Watch the book trailer.
7 Read the January 14, 2024 post, Racism’s Oppressions A Divine Priority, under the category, Call To Repent.
8 For those that would dismiss the Lord’s call to repent through me confirmed by His written Word because of no name recognition and through racist eyes, being a no ac- count black man, beware since every word of the Lord the unnamed “man of God” declared in the passage came to pass--glory to God!
9 Don’t let a hard heart keep you from hearing the Lord’s call to return through our Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord, on YouTube (Hebrews 3:7-19)!
I have heard from some white Christians over the years that they are tired of hearing about racism. I have also heard of others lately that do not care any longer to deal with it as a social justice issue. And while I can understand how the foregoing might be so from a sinful human perspective, has anyone considered that the Lord Jesus Christ could possibly be at the end of His forbearance to bring more severe judgment upon the guilty who tolerate and practice racism in His Church? After all, besides being sin from arrogant pride and spawning many deeds of transgression and iniquity, racism in the Church defies and disobeys a very direct and specific commandment of Christ as Lord!1
To be clear, the arrogance of racial bigotry and discrimination are nowhere supported in the Bible because they are sin; going as they do against the character of God and Law He gave to Israel as His chosen people charged to act like Him (Deuteronomy 10:12-22)! And though the Lord forbade Israel to intermarry with the surrounding pagan Gentile nations, as He leads me to explain in my book, The Scourge Of Racism, it was not about racism, but spiritual fidelity since all these nations engaged in idolatry among other ungodly practices (Exodus 34:10-17).2 In the New Testament, what had morphed into bigotry and discrimination in Jewish practice was rebuked (Acts 6:1-7, 10:1-11:18)!
Also, irrefutable as biblical evidence Christ and Heaven view racism as sin is His ‘“new commandment’” that the disciples making up His Church ‘“love one another’” as He ‘“loved’” us, (John 13:34, NKJV).3 What? Do you think the Lord is not serious about His commandment stated with the same force of authority as the Ten Commandments which also came from Him (Exodus 24:9-18)? The bigotry and discrimination of racism willfully transgress, sin against and pervert the Lord’s new commandment to His disciples that tolerate and practice it; His disciples who by His stated will are supposed to be identified as such by our ‘“love for one another,’” (John 13:35, NKJV).4
This means every professed Christian white, black and every other hue that practice racism is sinning against the Lord!5 Now, the racism of guilty professed white Christians is typically what is addressed when the subject comes up. This is one of the many not so small consequences for the guilty whites from the nation’s inception and over the centuries that have led out in tolerating and practicing the sin of racism. However, we black and Christians of other hues that are guilty get no pass from judgment as the usual objects of racism’s scourge without repentance since the Lord shows no partiality and judges each man as his deeds deserve (Romans 2:4; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11).6
Centuries of tolerating and practicing racism by disobedient real Christians and those as religious impostors have misrepresented Him as well as brought disgrace and shame on Christ and His Church. Only Satan could benefit from the failure of professed Christians to obey the Lord’s command to love each other and has; untold numbers of especially minority men want nothing to do with Christianity because its primary identifying mark, love, has been largely missing. So, is the Lord okay with this as even many evangelicals appear to believe judging by their slowness to address racism internally and how far down the moral issues list it is? After encountering the Lord in a recent time of fasting and prayer, I can assure of His grief; the end of His forbearance and longsuffering!7
1 Read the September 17, 2023 post, Racism A Two-Fold Scourge, under the category, Biblical Worldview. The historic culpability of the guilty majority white members making up the American Church in upholding the tolerance and practice of racism within and without its assemblies is inescapable to all but the most spiritually hardened of hearts in denial.
2 The Scourge Of Racism, Copyright 2023, ODCM Publishing Division, Portland, OR, p. 45. Learn more about the soon to be released book at this link.
3 Every aspiring strong Man and great woman of God in Christ’s image takes to heart His commandment understanding the role assignment He has given us as a servant of humanity. I write about this eternal role in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics. Get your Hard or Soft Cover or E-Book Edition in the Strong Man Store now, among internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
4 See the two-part post that begins March 8, 2015, Known By Our Love, under the category, Instruction. As this 2015 post affirms, the love the Lord speaks of is God’s. This reality makes His cause for “all” to be able to identify those who are truly His disciples by our love for one another the more frustrating when they also tolerate and practice racism! Of course, the post also stresses a significant reason racism can exist to the extent it does in His Church. It is because of the many false Christians as impostors practicing a manmade, counterfeit version of the real deal that is also tolerated.
5 Read the December 11, 2016 post, Professing Christian Racism Is Sin Too, under the category, Call To Repent.
6 The racism practiced by blacks and other hues is just as wicked as that of whites in the sight of the Lord! For this cause, no one can justify being a racist by saying some- one else is one too.
7 I was fasting and seeking the Lord on another matter this past September 13th. In the brokenness of my soul in His presence, He blended His grief over the state of His Church in America with my personal concern. I cannot stress enough how urgent it is for every professed Christian to watch our Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord. It is not about garnering views for the sake of boasting. It is about giving the willing the chance to hear the Lord’s heart for His professed people at this critical time in the history of our nation and world!
“God is righteously at work in His house through judgment.” This is what He led me to write and explain in a post earlier this year as well as warn again of in the opening paragraph of last week’s.1 And why? The tolerance and practice of the sin of racism led out over four centuries by the guilty majority of professed white Christians in the Church that also enabled it in the larger society is one of several very serious reasons the Lord has brought judgment. While due to taking racism lightly some in evangelicalism are incredulous and dismissive concerning any judgment from the Lord because of it, He for that reason and other Church sins is about to take His judgment to another level!
I warn about the Lord’s judgment in my updated book, The Scourge Of Racism.2 That His judgment should amaze a professed Christian demonstrates such a one does not know the Lord from His Word or in relationship! From Genesis to Revelation God is shown to judge sin, disobedience or insubordination if you will (Genesis 2:15-17, 3:17-19; Revelation 2:12-17). There is not a sinful fallen human organization on earth that will long tolerate insubordination before punishing it! Even lions and wolves punish their insubordinate. So, how is it anyone supposedly acquainted with Christ would presume He would not judge any sin as insubordination and much more racism in His Church?
The guilty have made this false presumption about Christ concerning racism in the Church from colonial times as they also make it today in the face of His very direct and specific commandment through the apostle Paul regarding the role of women (John 13:34-35; 1 Corinthians 14:34-37): because they want to! They mistaken the Lord’s slowness to judge for permission to sin instead of what it really is, “forbearance, and longsuffering” to give time for them to repent (Luke 13:6-9; Romans 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9, NKJV). Otherwise, the guilty have not gone nor will they go unpunished by the Lord without repentance. Moreover, the whole Church suffers when the Lord judges as He does now.
The American Civil War not only divided the nation, but churches and denominations too! The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) owes its name to a split among white Baptists in favor of retaining slavery shortly before the brief, but bloody and destructive war over it as judgment from the Lord after years of resisting His will to abolish it.3 Centuries of Church toleration, practice and enablement of now, systemic racism helped pave the way for the rebellion that erupted a generation ago and set in motion radical feminism, sexual deviance and gender confusion. These all subvert the family and its order as God designed and is leading to the nation’s swiftly paced ruin. Sin has consequences!
Another clear consequence of widespread insubordination in the Church is seen too, at this moment: dwindling memberships, the death of local churches and loss of cultural influence. If the people who profess to know Christ do not obey His Word, how can it be expected that unbelievers will? And as it concerns racism, I point out in The Scourge Of Racism, the world is shamefully doing better than the Church in its flawed attempt to deal with it!4 White conservative evangelical and Southern Baptist Seminary President, Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., points out the Church’s very existence is threatened when the authority of Scripture and by implication obedience to it are surrendered.5
Of course, consistent with the typical priority focus on other important select moral issues by conservative white evangelicals and the SBC currently the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, racism is not dealt with by Dr. Mohler in his book I refer to in the preceding paragraph. Though racism may not be a priority moral issue for conservative white evangelicals and the SBC, my book among a growing number of others addressing this willful lapse trumpets it is for the Lord!6 As I write about in my book, conservative white evangelical in-house silence on racism is fed by a continued toleration and widespread practice of it among guilty leaders and members;7 silence that also held sway while sexual predators preyed on church members and allowed women to become pastors.8
Contrary to popular professed Christian opinion, Jesus Christ is not a marshmallow! Along with His continuing work to save throughout our nation, “the LORD strong and mighty” at the end of His forbearance and longsuffering is about to intensify His judgment upon His American Church (Psalm 24:7-10, NKJV).9 More churches that should be discipling new converts are going to die because the Lord can no longer trust them to do so with fidelity to His Word (Matthew 23:15).10 More frequent and devastating calamities upon the nation many of His professed people love more than Him are coming. Finally, more intense resistance to evangelicalism’s demand for secular society to submit to biblical morality while many of them do not is on the way with greater persecution!
1 See the April 30, 2023 post, God’s Warning To Non-Christians, Pt. 1 and Healing Racism’s Wounds In The Church, both under the category, Call To Repent.
2 The book is now widely available in this Ministry’s Web Site Stores including the Strong Man Store, all major internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores. View the short book trailer.
3 Read the February 12, 2023 post, Leaders Can Get Their Nations In Trouble, under the category, Call To Repent.
4 The Scourge Of Racism, Copyright 2023, ODCM Publishing Division, Portland, OR, p. 15-18, 47-48.
5 See The Gathering Storm, Secularism, Culture And The Church by R. Albert Mohler, Jr., Copyright 2020, Nelson Books, Nashville, p. 34. On the same page Dr. Mohler writes, “Where you find a church, you find a community committed to the Bible. If not, you have not found a church.” Sobering truth every pastor jumping on the band- wagon of insubordination to Christ and His biblical commandments as written should fearfully consider!
6 Read the September 24, 2023 post, Racism In Christ’s Church A No-No, under the category, Instruction.
7 I spent over thirty years of my Christian life with the SBC and talk about its issues with racism in my updated book. In-house silence precludes hypocritically taking a stand against racism in the larger society which is why it must be repented from now, with all other sins in returning to Him! Truly, racism is equally egregious in its of- fense to God as all other transgression, sin and iniquity. Watch our Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord for Christians.
8 The widely reported and dealt with at the convention level cover up of sexual impropriety in many of their churches by SBC leaders has publically at least, rebuked the si- lence concerning this iniquity. It has also righteously led to an emboldened stand against churches flagrantly defying Scripture and being insubordinate through enabling women to become pastors, lead and take authority over men (1 Timothy 2:11-3:13; Titus 1:1-16; Hebrews 13:8; Revelation 2:18-23).
9 Jesus Christ is the Strong Man of God and role model for every Christian man I write about in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics. The Hard or Soft Cover or E-Book Editions are available in the Strong Man Store, all major internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
10 New converts are easily taught and mentored in person by spiritually maturing individuals as has always been done or in this technologically sophisticated age, online (Acts 18:24-28). As He showed during the pandemic, local churches--especially ones sinning against Him--are not so essential Christ cannot do without them (Revelation 2:1-7, 3:14-22)!
Racism embodied in the American heritage is a tragedy of no small consequences to our nation and all of its citizens.1 As it is everywhere found in the world, racism is a two-fold scourge upon the souls and lives of its objects. Consistent with Webster’s Dictionary definition of scourge and use in the Bible, racism is a plague of spiritual pestilence born of sin affecting the souls of its objects and a whipping delivering excruciatingly painful blows to their lives (Job 9:23; Mark 15:15). It is the deadly disease aspect of the term to which the Lord led me to identify and primarily refer to in the title of my 2005 publication, The Scourge Of Racism now, updated accordingly.2
Indeed, as I again from Webster’s define racism presenting its reality in the first chapter of the book, it is “The belief that some races are inherently superior to others” and to practice “discrimination based on race.” Racism so defined is ancient and seen all over the earth; it is not a unique American problem. For the arrogance of inherent superiority that has driven tyrants and peoples to murder, war against, oppress and mistreat neighbors arises from sin in the human heart and is not just based on skin color or physical features either (Genesis 4:1-8; Hebrews 11:4; 1 John 3:10-12)! I go on to briefly touch on examples of racism as a human sin issue in our times throughout the book.
Even though racism is not unique to our nation, it nevertheless, has thoroughly worked its pestilence of destroying evil into every fabric of America’s existence. It has been wickedly aided and abetted in this by the guilty majority white members of the American Church in their various local assemblies since the nation’s inception who have enabled racism’s historic tolerance and practice here. This sobering truth means people who professed to be Christians have helped enable the scourge of racism both as a deadly spiritual disease of sin and consequential whip that has painfully impacted not only minorities in general, but their supposedly brothers of color in Christ as well!3
I do not write the foregoing or my book to cause anyone to feel guilt, shame or trash their heritage. However, as the Holy Spirit leads I write the sobering truth to help my white brothers calling themselves especially conservative Christians to grasp something of the magnitude of the sin that has been involved with enabling and practicing racism to lead not to angry denial which is added sin, but repentance! Truly, white Christians conservative or otherwise have no greater friend in me as a biblical conservative and aspiring strong man of God in the image of Christ that fears God enough not to skew the facts of history or His Word for my own agenda (Proverbs 27:5-6; Romans 2:1-11). 4, 5
My urgent concern in Christ after four centuries of racism systemically part of the American heritage and daily life is seeing it removed from the American Church first as is righteous. Then, to see the Church in all of its racially diverse glory stand together against racism and model God’s way of unity through His love to the rest of our society. For from Heaven’s view, racism is not just a social justice issue, it is uppermost one that is spiritual! The Church is supposed to be concerned about Heaven’s view of everything and purposely laboring to make it known by precept and example. Instead, the American Church has sinned to the utmost undergirding the scourge of racism and has aroused with its other sins, the ire of God on par with Israel’s golden calf fiasco (Exodus 32:30-35).6
1 Read the September 10, 2023 post, Our American Heritage, under the category, Biblical Worldview.
2 The Publishing Division of the Ministry I lead, Open Door Communication Ministries, Inc. first released what I wrote as a booklet offered for purchase, but primarily distributed free as a prophetic word of warning from the Lord to white Southern Baptist Convention leaders as the largest group of evangelicals in our nation I was also a part of at the time. Consider the upcoming release of the 2023 update of the book at this link. Also, read the February 3, 2019 post, Christianity In Black And White, under the category, Black History.
3 See the June 28, 2020 post, Last Chance For Conservative White Christians?, under the category, Call To Repent.
4 Secular or religious liberals would not now, have the ability or platform to present history or educate on racism with their particular worldly slants if professed conservative white Christians had been humble and transparent about as well as repentant from the issue as sin from the beginning. Now, the denial of the guilty is casting even more disparagement upon biblical Christianity because the wicked do not care to differentiate between it and their manmade religious forms.
5 The aspiring strong man of God in the image of Christ seeks to please God and do His will (John 6:38). I write fully about this in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics. You can get a Hard or Soft Cover or E-Book Edition in the Strong Man Store, among internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
6 Just because even many professed Christians do not take sin seriously anymore does not mean God has backed up from doing so. His remedial judgments for the sake of His own professed people’s sins taking place all around our nation in the many regularly occurring calamities are intended to awaken us to His call to return to Him before things get far worse. View the Lord’s call to return to Him through this Ministry’s Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord, on its dedicated YouTube Channel.
While the living God of the Bible objectively read, interpreted and applied has never been or could be a party to racism as affirmed in last week’s post, many professed to be His people over the centuries certainly have!1 Here in America over four centuries many whites in the majority have silently tolerated, openly practiced and endorsed racism and its oppressions among non-whites beginning with the indigenous peoples of the land and continuing very severely amidst those of my black slave forefathers and thereafter. Because God does not give endorsement to oppression on any basis, all American professed Christians should have been standing against racism to this hour.
However, the historical truth is that relatively few white professed Christians and particularly among conservative evangelicals--people of the Book--have been identified as leading out against America’s systemic racism and oppressions of blacks and other minorities. On this Sanctity Of Life Sunday spearheaded by white conservative evangelical Christians to stand for human life as of God our Creator and against the murder of the unborn as the most feeble through abortion, it is clear they with all of us in the divine image restored through and claiming love for Christ can represent God’s “righteousness and justice” as He expects (Psalms 82:1-4; 103:6, NKJV). The issue is which issues?
How about all of the moral and ethical issues God in the “whole counsel” of His Word as it is written calls out as human sin that oppresses and/or harms a neighbor in any way no matter their skin color (Matthew 22:34-40; Luke 10:25-37; Acts 20:27; Romans 13:8-10; Galatians 5:13-15; James 2:8-9)! Every biblically conservative Christian plainly sees God’s concern for the poor, widows, orphans, and even prisoners in His Word (1 Samuel 2:6-8; Psalm 68:5-6; Isaiah 61:1-2a; Galatians 2:10). But the guilty among white conservative evangelicals have largely chosen historically to ignore God’s expressed concern for the oppressed in many ways and especially through racism (Luke 4:16-21).
Indeed, it is not just the unborn oppressed by the denial of life by parents in the only recently evolved culture of death I as one unsaved once participated in that need defending. It is also those oppressed by race and ethnicity over the past four hundred years in America. To ‘“deliver’” Israel from such ‘“oppression’” is the reason God states He had ‘“come down,’” (Exodus 3:6-9, NKJV). Knowing of God’s famous act in history to deliver His oppressed people should have been enough for any professed Christian not to oppress anyone. But many of them were at the forefront of carrying out the well documented oppressions of racism in our nation among the oppressors God condemns.2
Of the notable very few white conservative evangelicals that gave some support to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as he led what was thoroughly a spiritual fight during the height of the 1955-68 Civil Rights Movement to extricate blacks from America’s systemic oppressions of racism was Dr. Billy Graham. While he was not known to be among the marchers, he spoke out against and wrote a tract condemning racism. He was criticized by some fellow white conservative evangelicals in a display of total disregard for “the Book” they claimed to revere whatever all of the motives including being full on racists and the fear of man (criticism, ostracism and violence) rather than God (John 12:42-43).3
Now, while we each cannot possibly personally take on every single instance of unrighteous and unjust oppression in our land, we can and should seek the Lord about His priorities among the most egregious, long standing and urgent without neglecting others (Luke 11:42).4 The deafening historic silence and outright wicked support for oppressing blacks and other minorities through racism by whites professed to be Christians fits this bill since this has also been grave sin in the Lord’s sight from which the guilty must repent (1 John 1:5-9)!5 Denying and minimizing the oppressions of racism as some white conservative professed Christians are doing believing it negatively portrays their white heritage is evil and makes the Lord our Judge “a liar,” (Proverbs 28:13; 1 John 1:10, NKJV).6
Born again biblically conservative Christians must come out from among professed Christians that approve of the unrighteous, unjust oppressions of racism and are unwilling to obey God in serving as He intends to avoid their judgment (Psalm 82:5-8; Proverbs 24:21-22)!7 For such persons truly show that they do “not know the Lord” and are corrupt in their practice of Christianity as with Judaism the two sons of Eli, a priest of Israel, were (1 Samuel 2:12-17, 22-25, NKJV). The Lord was wroth with Hophni and Phinehas for their contempt of Him and sent a prophet to tell their father of His judgment that included their deaths on the same day as occurred (1 Samuel 2:27-36; 4:1-18)! If you know Him, the Lord expects obedience to His will and priorities (Matthew 7:21-23; John 14:15).
1 Read the January 7, 2024 post, God A Party To Racism?, under the category, Call To Repent.
2 Scripture is unequivocal: God has no regard for oppressors who are very often among the rich though, practicing oppression is not exclusive to them as American history can attest; filled as it is with the abundance of racially oppressive acts of guilty whites from all socio-economic groups threatened by any advance of minorities that might surpass them (Job 27:13-23; Psalm 12:3-5; Jeremiah 22:11-19; James 5:1-6).
3 See the February 22, 2018 article by John Blake for CNN, Where Billy Graham ‘missed the mark.’ I acknowledge Dr. Graham’s efforts--minimal to whatever extent in the eyes of some--addressing racism that included hiring black staff evangelists such as Rev. Howard O. Jones in my book, The Scourge Of Racism, Copyright 2023, ODCM Publishing Division, Portland, OR, p. 16-17. The printed book is available in the Strong Man Store, all major internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores. The just released E-Book is available at major E-Book sellers. Watch the book trailer.
4 As He leads, we are to give at least moral support to our brethren laboring in God’s causes we are not engaged with.
5 Read the September 24, 2023 post, Racism In Christ’s Church A No-No, under the category, Instruction. Also, view this Ministry’s Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord, on YouTube to consider the Lord’s call to return to Him.
6 While it may be true that American history among other subjects is being presented with a decidedly politically liberal worldview in the nation’s public schools which is un- righteous and unjust, for political conservatives--some calling themselves Christians--to do the same is just as wrong. Two wrongs still do not make a right! What is righteous and just before God is not to present either a politically liberal or conservative view of history to our children in our public schools, but just the facts however painful they may be to one group or another so they can learn the truth and from it.
7 Let any white conservative evangelical pastor now, losing church members no matter how much they gave because you have taken a stand against more than the social justice issue, but the sin of racism be encouraged. You have courageously done the righteous and just thing and the church the Lord has entrusted you to shepherd un- der Him has become closer to being His (Matthew 16:13-18; John 6:52-66, 21:15-17). Courage is of the character of Christ aspiring strong men and great women of God are to display in His image I write about in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics. It is available in the Hard or Soft Cover or E-Book Editions in the Strong Man Store, all major internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
As the Lord leads me to make plain in the book, The Scourge Of Racism, racism leaves no one involved untouched; not the object or the perpetrator!1 In the book chapter similarly titled as today’s post, He leads me to firmly assert the very real resulting wounds of racism in the American Church require healing through God’s methodologies already prescribed in His written Word! Of course, one must first be biblically conservative to honor and preserve God’s instruction in His Word intact and willing to objectively interpret, apply and submit to it in obedience. Because all or some part of the foregoing is missing in the main, the Church is now, under God’s judgment!2
Through its human vessels beginning with guilty professed Christian white colonists from before the nation’s founding, their local assemblies and subsequent institutions, the Church in this land that came to be America has tolerated, practiced and enabled racism within its ranks.3 Some of the guilty professed Christian objects of racism in bitterness have returned the favor. Obviously, none of these persons were practicing biblical conservatism in preserving or obeying Christ’s commandment to “love one another” over the past four centuries nor are the guilty doing so now (John 13:34-35, NKJV).4 This ungodly reality is contrary to the example of many biblical personages.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the foremost example of a biblical conservative. He announced to Israel He had not come “to destroy the Law or the Prophets…but to fulfill” them (Matthew 5:17-20; Luke 16:14-18, 24:25-27, 44-45, NKJV). Every godly person in the Bible after Christ also treats the Word of God with reverence and acts on it as it is written (Joshua 8:30-35; Daniel 9:1-2; Luke 2:25, 23:50-51).5 Even Satan and his demon cohort take God’s Word at face value while corrupting it to whoever will pay heed (Matthew 4:1-7, 8:28-29; 2 Peter 3:14-16). No, Christ’s commandment that His disciples love each other has willfully not been honored, preserved or obeyed!
There is absolutely no excuse for disobeying Christ’s commandment for the real “born again” Christian because the impetus and spiritual substance of God’s love through the Holy Spirit fills our hearts providing what we need to obey (John 3:1-8; Romans 5:5; 1 Corinthians 13:1-8a, NKJV). Beyond yielding to the sinful flesh along with worldly family and cultural conditioning, this raises the prospect of fear and the outcome of cowardice which the Lord does not accept as a reason for disobedience (Romans 13:8-14; Galatians 5:19-25; Revelation 21:8). After these reasons only one other is plausible and that is the disobedient are not Christians at all, but impostors and apostates.6
In my book, I do not pretend healing racism’s wounds in the American Church will be easy. The biblical process will be spiritually, psychologically and emotionally challenging for authentic Christians that have been practicing even subtle racism a long time. For the personal sin of racism and that of one’s fathers must be confessed and repented from before God to receive His forgiveness (Daniel 9:8-11; 1 John 1:8-2:2).7 Also, the forgiveness of those known brothers and sisters one has been bigoted toward and discriminated against is to be sought. Guilty black and Christians of every other hue must confess and repent from bitterness and be willing to forgive those past and present who have brought harm through racism (Mark11:25-26; Ephesians 4:31-32; Colossians 3:12-13).
1 The Scourge Of Racism, Copyright 2023, ODCM Publishing Division, Portland, OR. Learn more about the book to be released October 5th and the specific chapter referred to, The Sting Of Racism, at this link. The book will be widely available in Ministry Web Site Stores, among internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
2 Read the June 10, 2018 post, God’s Judgment Upon His House, under the categories Bible Prophecy and God’s Creatures.
3 See the respective September 10 and 17, 2023 posts, Our American Heritage and Racism A Two-Fold Scourge, both under the category, Biblical Worldview.
4 Read the September 24, 2023 post, Racism In Christ’s Church A No-No, under the category, Instruction.
5 This is the heart of every aspiring strong man and great woman of God I write about in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics. It remains available in the Strong Man Store among internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
6 See the two-part post beginning August 21, 2016, Christianity The Religion Of Men, under the category, Instruction. Practicing and attempting to pass off a counterfeit form of manmade of Christianity, religious folk as impostors that grow worse and apostates who knowingly infiltrate local assemblies are foretold (2 Timothy 3:1-9, 13; Jude 3-4, 16-19). These are easily persuaded by Satan, sin and self to hate as racists because the love of God is not in them!
7 Racism is most assuredly among the sins of the fathers and one’s own the Lord is expecting those professed Christians who will return to Him to confess and repent from in His appeal through this Ministry’s Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord.
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