Geuine Unity

Note: This was written over several days during the week of May 24, and may not include the most recent developments surrounding this continual breaking news story.

This post is going take a different emphasis, focusing on current events surrounding the death of two African-American males. I will try my hardest to approach these appalling tragedies through the lens of Christ. I am hesitant on speaking out on this issue, primary because I am a white male, and have never experienced any racial discrimination in my life. However, I am hopefully writing this from the perspective of a Christian, rather than a sub category I may fall into. I will not bash the police enforcement in this country, either. I have a high regard for good officers who put their lives on the line every time the uniform is worn. Over the past couple of weeks, several cases of racial injustice have been in the public's eye. Ahmaud Aubrey's killers were arrested two months after his death. He was a black man, jogging in a wealthy Georgia neighborhood, who just happened to match the description of a robber on the run. One of three suspects now is charged in the investigation , and he worked for 30 years in the Glynn County District Attorney's Office. After this catastrophe, Minneapolis Police were attempting to arrest George Floyd. An officer kneed on his neck trying to restrain him. George Floyd was accused of trying to pass a counterfeit twenty dollar bill.  It is unclear whether he knew the money was fake. Floyd could be heard on a videotape pleading to the officer that he couldn't breathe. He later died soon after this, according to city officials. The four officers were fired. One was charged, and the investigation is ongoing. Violent protests broke out in Minneapolis. Other cities around the country, are also seeing these protests occur. Less severe incidents have occurred since COVID-19 lock down easements have lessened across the country. An example was black man in New York's Central Park asking a white women to put a leash on her dog in a section of the park where leashes were required. The women called the police and claimed the man was harassing her, and she was in fear for her life. Police did show up however no one was arrested or given a citation. The women strangely surrendered that dog to a local shelter. How, as Christians are we supposed to act when injustices happen to our brothers and sisters of a different minority? Paul writes to the Galatian church about disunity in Christ going on among the Jews and Gentiles. "There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither nor slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" Galatians 3: 28-29. All of humanity is equal in God's sight, and are joint-heirs in the Lord,s promise to Abraham. The promise is to bless his descendants and to make them as numerous as the stars in the sky. As followers of the Lord, we are to strive for equality and unity during our time on this Earth. The Galatians' Jews thought they were better than the Gentiles. Jesus redeemed all of humanity by dying on a cross and being raised three days later. Both the Jew and Gentile are saved by faith in Jesus Christ alone. The Gentiles were being looked down upon for not observing Jewish traditions. We are all saved by the grace of Jesus, in whom our faith lies. We are also called to love one another, just as God loved us by giving up his only son to redeem us from our sinful nature. "Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, be compassionate and humble" 1 Peter 3:8. Jesus says in John 13:34, ": A new command I give you: Love one another as I have loved you, so we must love one another." From the passage in 1st Peter, we are to love one another in such a way as to be like-minded, sympathetic, compassionate, and humble towards one another. We are to care deeply for each other. We should put ourselves in each other's situations, to truly have genuine sympathy and compassion towards one another. My preacher says the best way to get to know someone is to spend time with that individual, especially if you don't share the same life experiences. When it comes to friendships, we typically hang out with people that mirror ourselves. So get out of your comfort zone, and take the time to build meaningful relationships with people who are different from yourself. That could be anything from race, disability, social status, political views, nationally, language, income bracket, education level, or anything else that makes us different from one another. As Christians, we should view every person that crosses our path as a brother or sister created in the image of God. We are all equally loved in his eyes, and no one is set above another in the Lord's creation. What is the right way to respond to injustices with a Christ-like attitude? The answer is with love and unity in Christ. Addresses this huge act of incivility, when you see discrimination occurring in plain sight. Examples might be if a business owner is known to be rude towards minorities, take your business elsewhere. You may have at least one Facebook friend who posts racist things occasionally. Just unfriend them. If you notice a politician spreading racial ideology, or trying to divide people on the basis of their differences, vote for another person on the ballot. When you get the chance, vote these people out of office, regardless of their party affiliation. When your actions or words hurt someone else, apologize to them face to face,  and ask for their forgiveness. These are small steps and certainly do not go far enough to make racial injustices right in this country. If Christians would set the gold standard on how to love one another, maybe some progress could be made in this area. Loving your closest friends is hard sometimes. Loving others with whom we have differences, can seem impossible. Jesus' words are not a suggestion, but rather a commandment. This post or meme has been going around on social media. I agree with the statement 100%, however, I thought it needed a couple of additional lines.

I 'm not black, but I see you.
I'm not black, but I hear you.
I'm not black, but I mourn with you.
I am not black, but I will fight for you with God's grace.
I am not black, but you are my brothers and sisters.
I am not black, but I love you as Christ has loved me first.
💗💗💗💗💗💗

"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves."
-Romans 12:9-10