God created man and woman in His image. Every man and woman alive today are descendants of the first ones created in the Garden of Eden by a loving and perfect God. The color of skin has nothing to do with the value of the person. The Bible states concerning God, “He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on the face of the earth,…” (Acts 17:25-26, NKJ).
The first Jewish believers had to grow in this understanding of God, as does the Church today. Peter said, “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism. In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right” (Acts 10:34-35, NLT). There is no racism with God and should never be with God’s people. Heaven will be fully integrated! The Scriptures state, “After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb” (Revelation 7:9, NLT).
The racial tension in our present time and throughout the world is a sad commentary to the effect of sin. Sin divides. Sin destroys. Sin alienates us from God and from one another. One sees a glimpse of this in the story of Moses. His family became divided over his foreign wife. The text reads, “Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman” (Numbers 12:1, NKJ). Their criticism angered the Lord and left Miriam with leprosy for one week.
Arrogance leads to racism. Pride exalts self over others. The true Christian faith views all men equal before God. Every person is made in the image of God and greatly loved by God. The gospel of Jesus Christ provides one way to heaven for every person, regardless of color, language or nation. Jesus Christ is the only way for any person to be right with God. Christ died for the sins of all the world. He rose to conquer death for every person. He provides forgiveness of sin through His blood for all mankind. Through the gospel of Christ we see all people equally sinful, equally loved and equally redeemed when they trust Jesus Christ to save them. There is no color in the soul of man.
The story of the Good Samaritan was the Lord’s effort to illustrate how people of other races should be loved, cared for and valued (Luke 10). We should view all men as our neighbors. Jesus did. Paul wrote, “For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him” (Romans 10:12, NIV).