Gracie Girl Blog

In the midst of the black lives matter movement beginning a new wave of protests, petitions, and initiatives that are bringing change and hopefully will continue to bring more change than our country has seen in a while- I’ve found myself wondering what the heck the Bible says about a time like this. While there is so much good information, and I’m learning a lot, there’s also a lot of hate and political agendas that get wrapped up in everything, and sometimes the sheer amount of it can be overwhelming.

Truthfully, I grew up color blind when it came to race. I’m thankful to have grown up in such a diverse place, and growing up it didn’t ever matter what color my friends’ skin was. But in the same vein, I didn’t see the difference in culture or struggle. I had a hard time coming to terms with the fact that I have white privilege because on the surface it looked like everyone around me was getting the same opportunities as me. The best definition of white privilege I’ve found is that it doesn’t mean your life isn’t hard, it means your skin color isn’t one of the things making it harder. There is an advantage you have in this country if you are white (or even just look white) and that’s something I had to come to terms with.

In all the posts and tweets, I found myself getting lost in all the statistics and opinions. And it probably took longer than it should have, but I opened my Bible. I found Isaiah 61 – a passage surely written for a time such as this. (Verses are bolded, my commentary is below)

Isaiah 61

1 The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,

Pastor Mike Todd said in a sermon titled Racial Reconciliation that reconciliation started with the organism not the organization. It’s on us personally, as individuals, to confront our own prejudices. I firmly believe that after the organism, the reconciliation starts with the church. The church has the power to be a catalyst for change.

2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,

There was a post going around instagram a couple weeks ago that said something along the lines of “What if 2020 is your year.” I honestly brushed it off because um, have you seen 2020? Then I read this, and had the same question for God. The title of Isaiah 61 is actually The Year of the Lord’s Favor. From this passage I learned the year of the Lord’s favor is about restoring, building back up physically, emotionally, morally and spiritually. For America, 2020 is about building up our black brothers and sisters. Its also about protecting the physically weak and at risk from the virus. Its about grace for our neighbor who refuses to wear a mask anywhere or family member who is convinced we don’t need a movement in support of black lives.

3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion-

While the change is happening and the change is good, the African American community is grieving the countless unjustified deaths of their own. It’s our job to grieve with them. Zion means the kingdom of heaven, the city on a hill. There are people in the city on a hill grieving, lets let the world know the whole city grieves with them. The church is one body and one part of the body hurts, the rest does too.

to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,

the oil of joy instead of mourning,

and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.

We are in the business of trading death for life. Mourning for joy. Despair for praise.

They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord, for the display of his splendor.

Oak trees are strong, they endure, they give God glory. I feel this is particularly true of black Americans. They have endured much, they are strong because of it, and they give God glory more than any other race in America. One study I found reported 79% of black Americans identify as Christian. There is a deep faith among this community that the rest of the church can learn from.

4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.

Its no secret- America has been long devastated. States, towns, neighborhoods have been long devastated. There is generational racism still being passed down. The relationship between black and white people has been long devastated. We have been anointed to rebuild, to renew that which has been long devastated. What does that look like for you?

8 For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing.

One of my favorite verses ever. Justice is coming- let that be an encouragement and a warning.

11 For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before the nations.

Contrary to what it may seem, God did not create the universe to revolve around the United States of America. Shocking, I know. Our ultimate allegiance is to God. He will make righteousness and praise spring up in our country, lets be a part of that and remember HE is Lord over all – not the American government.

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When Jesus talks to the Samaritan woman in John 4, he crosses many cultural boundaries to have a conversation with her. He was Jewish, she as Samaritan (two groups that historically hated each other), he was a man and she was a woman, he was the embodiment of purity and she was on her sixth man after five husbands. As a result of that encounter, the woman told her whole town about Jesus and many believed.

My prayer for the church, for Christian individuals of every race in America, is that whole cities may be changed by encounters people have with us. That we don’t just let what society is doing influence us but that we stand and act on biblical ground.

Although culture is aiming toward a good goal right now, it doesn’t mean everything that is currently culturally acceptable is aligned with the Bible. Like always, Jesus remains counter cultural:

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you

Matthew 5:43-44

Martin Luther King Jr. said this:

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

Righteous anger and hate are very different things. We can’t fight evil with evil. We can’t get rid of racism by hating racist people. We can’t get rid of police brutality by hating cops. We can’t teach our racist friend if we refuse to sit down and talk to them. Maybe its time to commit to having a conversation with whoever feels like your enemy today, maybe its time to start praying for them (I’m preaching to myself honestly).

I watched a Ted Talk given by Daryl Davis about how he, as a black man, attended KKK rallies to learn more about his enemy and came to befriend a KKK leader. Eventually, his friend stepped down as a leader. This wouldn’t have happened had Daryl not taken the risk to cross some lines. This also wouldn’t have happened if Daryl or the leader he befriended, weren’t willing to listen to each other.

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I believe its important to elevate black voices in this time, and I hope you check out some of the links I’ve put that have taught me something recently. I also believe we has believers have a responsibility to speak with the authority we have under the gospel, and I hope this inspired you to open your Bible as our country and the church learns how to do better.

I’ll end this by listing some faith-informed people I have learned from who are speaking out for black lives:

• Lecrae: a Christian rapper who I have followed for a long time. Both his music and social media posts are great.
• Christine Caine: As a white Australian pastor in America, she has had to put more effort into learning about the history of racism in America than those of us who grew up here. Christine offers a unique perspective as a non-American looking at America’s issues and has committed to having conversations and posting them. I specifically learned a lot from her conversation with Dr. Anita Phillips.
• Pastor Mike Todd: I know I know, I always recommend him. As an African American pastor leading a very diverse church, Pastor Mike is great at bringing a word for everybody. He isn’t afraid to get uncomfortable and that’s something I love about his sermons.