The Human Race

I was filling out some paper work the other day and one of the questions was about my race. Some of the options were white-Caucasian, African, Hispanic, Native American, and so on. There was an option for "other". I wondered what they would think if I checked other, and then wrote in "Adam's race".

This made me think of something I read. There really are not separate races of people, there is one race of people. We associate race with the "color" of a person's skin. What exactly is "color"? Just look around you and see all the different skin tones. "Color" is controlled by the amount of melanin in our skin. Everybody has melanin, just some of us have more, and some have less. Therefore it is more accurate to say "What shade of melanin are you"?

So are there actually different races of people? Certainly, and it is a Biblical concept. However, there are only two races. The first are those who have been saved from their sin and are a "descendant" of the last Adam, Christ. The second would be those who have not been saved and are a "descendant" of the first Adam. The prohibition against an unequal yoke is not between people of different shades, but between a believer and an unbeliever.

A valid question now becomes "How come you, as a person of little shading, do not associate with people of more shading"? That is a good point. The Bible states that we are no longer Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female, but that we are all one in Christ Jesus. It shames me to realize how divided my own life is in this regard.

One thing that does divide me from others is culture. However, there are MANY people who have the same shade of skin color as I, but there is a big cultural divide between them and me. That does not give me an excuse for not associating with ALL my brothers in sisters in Christ Jesus. What have any of us done recently to bridge the gaps in our churches and have true fellowship with all believers?

WOW! That sounds like ecumenicalism. I definitely don't believe that all churches are equal, or that we should gloss over doctrine. However, there are many churches who believe in enough of the same doctrine to be in fellowship, but they differ in culture only. We need to get out of our comfort zone and see that there are others out there who may worship slightly different than we do but they are still our brothers!!!!

The bottom line is that we have placed a barrier in our churches based on the shades of our skin. That is an artificial barrier that will be done away with once and for all when we worship at the foot of the throne for all eternity.