Prejudiced!! A label that anyone in the right frame of mind would seek to avoid. It is a label that carries a context that can divide even the closest of relationships. A label whose imprints can be found throughout the entirety of our history, present day included; resulting in many a town being painted red. It is a label whose context has also been abused, misused & misplaced. One not look any further than today’s application to those of the conservative mindset. A believer willing to risk their views being known regarding sex in our culture, pro-choice & pro-life is sure to inherit the label of prejudice and wrongfully so.
Prejudice – prejudgment, or forming an opinion before becoming aware of the relevant facts of a case. (Wikipedia)
In the reading of the above meaning, 4 things can be observed for take away’ s:
- Infers a rush to judgment
- Relevant facts that need to be considered
- Each case is singular
- A process is at place
Considering the above as well as humanities use of the term throughout our history, one could be left with the question that Pilot himself had when confronting Jesus and his Lordship, “What is Truth?”. Can clarity be found for the believer in a world that is becoming more secular, indifferent & faithless; that allows them to be confident in their identity in Christ while living out their faith. Again, I find myself so thankful for my Savior and his word. When considering the source, I should not be surprised that it is the old testament where clarity is found. A location that many often refer to when criticizing Christian beliefs, without knowing the hearts from which they come. For the believer themselves, it is a piercing reminder of God’s heart and where ours need to be. Created in the image of our God, then we know it will be our actions that define who we are and who’s we are. Reference James 2 v 14 – 26.
In the Old Testament book of Jonah, we read about the city of Nineveh and its impending judgment. Often what is remembered when we hear the name of Jonah is the man who was swallowed by the fish because he was running from the call God had given him. What can easily get over looked is that this man was a prophet of God who was called to go to an area with the message of repentance for a people known for their evil ways. It was the Assyrian empires capital city whose wickedness had come up before the Lord; wickedness that can be seen in the world today as well as in the communities with which we live.
One would assume that Jonah would have been running out of fear as Nineveh’s reputation was well known. But further examination of the scripture reveals that to not be the case. When reading the book of Jonah, one gains great insight into the heart of our God and his desire for mercy. But there’s another take that cuts to the heart of us as a body and our ability to minister and use Jonah 3 v 10 – 4 v 3 as my source of reference. In it is read the following:
“When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened. But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry. He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”
In reading the scripture above we see that prejudice regarding the grace of God was the real reason why Jonah ran from his call. If not observant, it can often be the reason why we as the body of believer’s struggle to move forward. Is there a method or motive to our evangelism that has us being more selective than Spirt lead? Have our emotions to circumstances or people groups been the compass of our outreach? These are serious questions that need to be answered if we are to respond to a present-day call or a future one. One should wonder what the testimony of the apostle Paul would have been like if prejudice was allowed to fester during the establishment of the early church.
Many things are happening globally and locally that have us running to build bigger walls, missiles that can travel farther & satellites that can see deeper. It reminds me of Israel and their lack of faith in a God who had the power and desire to see them be overcomers. Reference Deuteronomy 1 for insight on that and note that I’m not at all advocating for a lack of due diligence on our part when it comes to public safety. My concern is a reflection of what Jesus had said to his disciples when they were in the face of a great storm. Luke 8 v 25 states:
“And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?””
Faith is a gift from God and one that can be increased in a way that has the body seeking Christ as a first line of defense and not falling to our knees as a last resort.
Without listing the litany of scriptures referencing the heart of our savior and the scope of his gospel, I will revert to Jonah and God’s response to his prejudice regarding those who deserved to be saved and those who don’t. His response is found in Jonah 4 v 11 which reads:
“And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals”
Jesus said the following in Matthew 6:
“The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. “But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!…”
As a body may our eyes be lights that move our heart in evangelism no matter the depravity, circumstance or individual we face; dispersing the true gospel without prejudice.
God Bless – Sean Bosse
Literary Discipleship 