By Laura
Race is not an issue that can be ignored, especially not by the Church- the people of God called to make disciples of every nation. In his article “The Color of Faith,” David Van Blema remarks on the gravity of the situation: “In an age of mixed-race malls, mixed-race pop-music charts and, yes, a mixed-race President, the church divide seems increasingly peculiar. It is troubling, even scandalous, that our most intimate public gatherings-and those most safely beyond the law's reach-remain color-coded,” (26). God sends the Church into the world to be His image-bearers, living out the unity, peace, and love that exemplifies life in Christ. In order for the church to begin living out its missional identity, it must realize the ways it has been affected by racial segregation and take a biblical approach to embracing reconciliation and oneness in the body of Christ.
Throughout the New Testament, Jesus came proclaiming that the Kingdom of God is here. We are living in the tension between the redemptive act of Christ on the cross and the reconciliation of all things to God when Jesus comes again and the world is made new. As Christians, we are to live into the present truth of the Kingdom and join in the redemptive work of Christ here and now. In Revelations 7:9-10, we are given a picture of what the body of Christ will look like after the Second Coming when all is made right: “There...was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb,” (NIV).
This is the true picture of the Kingdom of God as it was meant to be- diverse, colorful, and unified. This is the beautiful future that God calls us to live into now. David Campbell, a professor at Notre Dame, advocates, “If tens of millions of Americans start sharing faith across racial boundaries, it could be one of the final steps transcending race as our great divider,” (Van Blema, 27). The Church has a great role to play.
