God has a Dream....
GOD IS NOT PREJUDICE
Romans 2:11 says, "For God does not show favoritism." God will not treat people with any prejudice. Colossians 3:25 says, "Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism." He will punish without favoritism and is an equal opportunity savior.
1 Timothy 2:4 says that God, "wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth."
GOD COMMANDS US NOT TO SHOW PREJUDICE EITHER.
1 Timothy 5:21 "I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism."
PREJUDICE IS A SIN
James 2:2-4 says, "Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, "Here’s a good seat for you," but say to the poor man, "You stand there" or "Sit on the floor by my feet," have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?" If that wasn't enough the Holy Spirit make it plain as day when he speaks through James and writes in James 2:9 "But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers."
RACIAL PREJUDICE
Jesus spoke and ate with non-jews. He broke every social expectation when ministered to the Samaritan women. John 4:9 "The Samaritan woman said to him, "You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?" (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)" Jesus showed no prejudice toward the black race. In fact he claims that a black woman will rise in judment against the Jews of his day who would not listen to his preaching. In Matthew 12:42 he said, "The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here." Jesus showed no racial prejudice.
NATIONAL PREJUDICE
God had to show Peter that cultural prejudice was wrong. Peter said to the Jewish Christians in Acts 10:28 "You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean." And again in Acts 10:34-35 Peter says, to the prejudice Jewish Christians, "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right." Prejudice against someone because of their nationality is wrong.
DISABILITY PREJUDICE
In Jesus day most people believed that someone with a disability was cursed by God and a 2nd class citizen. A man who was born blind once tried to tell the Pharasees that Jesus was from God but they would not listen to him because of their prejudice toward him. In John 9:34 they replied to the man born blind, "You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!" And they threw him out." They beleived that blindness was a curse on sin and all blind people were worse sinners than others. But Jesus didn't believe that. John 9:1-3 says, "As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." Jesus was not prejudice against the disabled.
MORAL PREJUDICE
Some like to look down their nose at others because they have not commited some of the sins that others have. But they forget we ALL have sinned. We all need grace. We all are unworthy and should beg for mercy not be looking down our nose at someone else. Jesus taught in Luke 18:10-14 "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men— robbers, evildoers, adulterers— or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God…" We shouldn't show moral prejudice and think we are better than anyone.
GENERATIONAL PREJUDICE
Some will show favoritism to to the adult over the child. Abortion is a prime example of putting the convenience of the adult before the very life of a child. Jesus taught in Luke 18:15-17 "People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." Prejudice against children is wrong and dangerous. Jesus said "it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea" than to lead a child astray.
FINANCIAL PREJUDICE
Some show prejudice towards their fellow man due to money. In Jesus day, if you had a lot of money people assumed you were blessed by God and thus saved. They looked down on the poor as sinners who God wont bless. Jesus didn't teach that. In Matthew 19:23-25 Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?" Jesus new that salvation is not based on money. In fact, money can be a distraction from what is important and leads to salvation. Our faith is in God not money. To favor someone because of money is sinful.
I hope you can see that prejudice for any reason is wrong and that we are to show the love of Christ to ALL people.
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posted by Evangelist @ 5:07 AM
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