If we look to the future for the age to come, we see a heavenly picture: A great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and the languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Revelation 7:9-10).
Jesus removes hostility and introduces harmony (Ephesians 2:14-18). God is not about separation, but inclusion and unity. Jesus made it possible for anyone to be included in the people and promises of God (Galatians 3:28).
That good news in the Gospel does not just mean that we are brought near to God, it also means we are brought near to the people we once considered so different from ourselves (Ephesians 2:13). God restores our relationships with people and groups we have mistreated. That is called reconciliation: The removal of prejudice and the restoration of a relationship to a healthy understanding and appreciation for each other.
God is a reconciling God. The Gospel is, at its core, a message of reconciliation. God brings peace where there was once strife and kindness where there was once animosity. He has done it with us, and He can do it between us and our neighbors, whether black, white, Latino or otherwise. As we learn to follow Jesus and grow in our faith, we need to remember that the message of Jesus is that we all belong with God, together – no separation, no difference in status or worth, for the Lord shows no partiality (Romans 2:11).
It was the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr. that one day his children would live in a nation where they would not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
God looks beyond the surface of things and evaluates the motives of our heart. Proverbs 20:27 says, “The lamp of the LORD searches the spirit of a man; it searches out his inmost being.” For God knows our hearts (Acts 15:8), and God knows our thoughts (Luke 11:17).
Sadly, it seems to me that many folks in our country have lost their heart and love for the Lord. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick (Jeremiah 17:9-10). That is why we make other excuses for the deceitfulness in our own hearts.
Yet the Lord continuously searches our hearts and minds, looking for good and asking us to be a beacon of hope and reconciliation to all. Let us continue to put our hope in the Lord (Psalm 31:24; Psalm 71:5 and Colossians 1:5), and we can overcome these humanistic, secular attitudes by reconciling ourselves back into the loving, graceful, and open arms of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Pastor Mark