It has been hard over the last few weeks to see our country in turmoil over the death of George Floyd. Tragically, this is not the first time we have seen protests and outcries over the death of an African-American man in our country. I cannot imagine the frustration, hurt and fear this brings to the whole African-American community. The struggle with prejudicial thinking has been a long-standing issue in our country and one that we as Christians have not been nearly as vocal about as we should. The Bible is clear that prejudging someone based on skin color, nationality, economic standing or any preconception is sinful. In James, it clearly teaches that we should treat everyone equally, and throughout the Bible we are called to love our brothers and sisters even as we love ourselves.

In Micah 6:8, the prophet calls us to do what is right: “He has told you, O man, what is good, and what the Lord really wants from you: He wants you to carry out justice, to love faithfulness, and to live obediently before your God” (NET).

In Matthew 5:13-15, Jesus calls us to be the “salt” and “light” of the world:

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.”

God has declared that we are not to ignore or be silent about injustice, and the church needs to speak God’s truth in our communities. We individually must love our fellow man no matter the outward differences. We must remember that all our neighbors were created by God and God loves them!

I have read statements from many pastors about the struggle of racism in our lives and I agree with two key points.

First, racism must be dealt with in our hearts! We must decide that we are going to live by godly standards of loving one another. We battle our own prejudicial feelings and attitudes. We must humble ourselves and seek God’s forgiveness and healing in our hearts and minds.

Second, we must reach out to our brothers and sisters and show them the love that God has shown to us.

In this we must stand against the injustice we see and speak God’s truth into our world!