“Let’s Run This ONE RACE Together!”
By Pastor Ron Buxton
In a packed restaurant one day, a Jewish man was staring uncomfortably at a Chinese man who was sitting only a few tables away. Needless to say, it was a very awkward and tense moment. Suddenly, the Jewish man arose–and without warning–slapped the Chinese man across the face!
He shouted: “That was for Pearl Harbor!”
As you can imagine—all the people stopped eating, and were aghast, as the Chinese man responded: “What? I’m not even Japanese! I’m Chinese!”
“Chinese, Taiwanese, Japanese…It’s all the same to me!” protested the Jewish man.
“Oh yeah”, challenged the Chinese man, as he slapped the man back, “That’s for sinking the Titanic!”
“Wait a minute!” replied the Jewish man, “That was an iceberg!”
At which point, the Chinese man responded: “Goldberg, Feinberg, Iceberg…It’s all the same to me!”
In all seriousness, there’s really nothing funny about the concept of ethnocentric racism. And, unfortunately, one of the most horrendous acts of violent racism occurred recently in El Paso. But how did we get here in society, and where can we turn to remedy this cultural cancer?
The word itself—“race”—entered human conversation by way of the Romance languages: Latin, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese. <Razza> was the actual word that was then transliterated into the other common languages. In fact, research doesn’t place that word into English usage until about the 19th century. Does that mean that some people were NOT treated as inferior before then? No–absolutely not! However, as to a verbal tool of hate, the word “race” was basically absent in its written form until a wildly popular book was released in 1859. And sadly, as John Stonestreet often states: “Ideas have consequences, and bad ideas have victims!”
The Holy Bible paints a totally different picture of the human race. In fact, it very clearly teaches that there is only ONE race: the human race. Acts 17:26 declares: “He God has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth.” And although our physical appearances may differ due to skin color, etc. —we’re all part of the same beautiful creation of God called the human RACE (singular).
We need a divine intervention! Folks–there is really no other source to appeal to where we can adequately condemn prejudice and violence. And, tragically, world history has proven that without this acknowledgment of only ONE human race–we are doomed to metastasize this cultural cancer!
But here’s the deal: Somehow we must run this “race” together! And we can! But only because Christ has made that possible. You see, the Fatherhood of God is only revealed through the redemptive work of Christ. Please consider my words today. The concept that humanity is comprised of multiple races is horrible! And, tragically– ideas have consequences, and bad ideas have victims!
