The Hour of Segregation by Minister T.

The hour of segregation is at eleven o’clock, at church on Sunday morning any week of the year. The church is one of the most segregated institutions in the world. Churches are not integrated, even though we represent the Kingdom of God. There may be some churches that are the exception, but segregation is generally the norm. Racism is one of the strongest weapons of the enemy of God and the church is a fertile ground for that seed. Only when we have been delivered from our own racial issues will we become the light that guilds the world.
The word of God says in Galatians 3:28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither male nor female; for we are all one in Christ Jesus”. In the text, we see that in Christ, there is no difference in race, sex or creed; we all stand on one level and are all one in Christ Jesus. All who sincerely believe in Christ, no matter what nation, sex, or condition they are in, they are accepted by Him and become the children of God through faith in Him. Christians are called to be doers of the word, not just hearers. Our house of worship should be a reflection of heaven, where people of all colors worship God together.
Racism is a powerful stronghold on earth. It has sown death and destruction wherever its seed is plant. The interwoven foundation for racism is pride and fear. Pride in the flesh is judging others by the externals and feeling that we are all sufficient. The church should not judge others according to the color of their skin, sex, or cultural background. Pride makes us think that we do not need others or God. Insecure people are afraid of those who are different and those they cannot control. They are fearful and do not trust others who look or act different. Fear and pride tear down the trust that makes relationships possible, therefore creating a division. The cross of Christ overcomes the pride of man and his insecurity. The deeper the cross works in us, the more humble we become with the grace to embrace those who are different from us.
At eleven o’clock on Sunday morning, the church is still a segregated place that gives room to racism. The reason may be rooted in the fact that the church gave birth to demented theologies and philosophies that justified and perpetuated slavery. The Southern Baptist Convention was actually born out of an attempt to justify and perpetuate the institution of slavery. Today’s Southern Baptist Convention is different from its origin, many of them fight the war against racism; but racism is still there and in other denominations and movements within the church. We should not point a finger at any single group, the church, as a whole is guilty of being one of the most fertile grounds for the enemy-racism.
The world is degenerating from ethnic conflicts but the church must become unified. We will have unity when we can see each other with the Lord’s eyes, hear each other with His ears, and love each other with His heart. How can we expect the world to do this until we, the church, have done it? This does not mean that we all need to worship the same way or submit to the same organizational structure. We should build our unity on the foundation of the recognition and appreciation of our differences. There may be doctrinal differences that are in conflict with churches and movements. True unity does not come by compromising our convictions. We can obtain true unity by standing on our convictions and respecting others right to do the same. True unity is in diversity, not in conformity.
All of creation reflects God’s love for diversity. God made every vegetable different and He has made each person unique. In a salad, each vegetable retains their identity. When pouring dressing over them, their individual taste is perfected and they blend well in harmony. In the church, each member is an individual with gifts and talents. When the Holy Spirit has breathed on us, we become individual members within one body working in harmony for the Kingdom of God. Our differences were not design to conflict, but to complement one another. It is only because of our continued distance from the Lord and insecurity that we view our differences as threats.
Some people believe that only Asians can preach to Asians, Afro- American to Afro-American and Caucasians to Caucasians. This is contrary to God’s design, as well as to the biblical example of how God reach people. The Lord sent Peter to the Jews and Paul to the Gentiles. According to our modern standard, this was wrong! God sent Paul to the Gentiles because he was an offense to them. The only way that Paul could preach to them was to be totally dependant on the Holy Spirit. Likewise, the only way that Peter could preach to the Jews was through the power of the Holy Spirit. Natural affinities do not help the gospel; they usually get in the way.
The enemy of God greatest success in maintaining division between people has been to keep us judging people by their extreme traits. With extreme judgment, liberals look at conservatives and see the KKK; conservatives look at liberals and see communists. It is a strategy of the enemy of God to have us perceiving one another through the glasses of racism. A judgmental attitude drives us farther apart and decreases the possibility of unity that the enemy fears so much. The greatest threat to Satan’s power is the unity of the church. He knows very well the awesome authority that Jesus has given to any two that will agree. One Saint can put a thousand to flight but two can put ten thousand to flight. Unity multiplies our spiritual authority.
To end the hour of segregation and to achieve unity in the body of Christ, the first thing we need to do is to repent! We need to repent for giving place to the most powerful strong hold of the enemy-racism! Repentance is more than just saying you are sorry; it is turning from our evil ways. We have to repent! The church has to pray for the ability to see each other with eyes, ears, and the heart of God. There are deep wounds remaining due to racism, but there is healing for all of us at the cross. When we carry the cross, there is no spirit in this world that will not be subject to us. The cross of Jesus has overcome the world, and when we embrace it, we will overcome the world.