<\/p>\n
He struck again.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n I was visiting another church yesterday in my never-ending quest to find one that is Evangelical, but that doesn\u2019t bow a knee to Trump. The sermon series title was, \u201cJesus is (blank).\u201d Behind these bold printed words across the slide on the screen were multiple images of Jesus. Most of them were fairly common images that I have seen decorating fellowship halls and Sunday school rooms since I was a kid. Nevertheless, looking at all the different depictions of Jesus, with his long-flowing, wavy brown hair and light-colored eyes, I could only conclude that the pastor believed the answer to the sentence was: Jesus is <\/span>white<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It occurred to me that one of the main fundamental issues within the White Evangelical Church in America is that they actually believe this is true. Not if you directly questioned them, perhaps, but in conceptualization. Not only is He white, but He likely has an American flag tattooed on his bicep, an NRA card in his back pocket, and a MAGA hat proudly worn on his head. And if that is the Jesus that the American Church is serving, then it makes sense that they would believe making him Lord of their lives means voting Republican, having at least two 22s in their gun closet, protesting abortion clinics, and hating gays and immigrants.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Who we serve matters. <\/span>Knowing<\/span> who we serve matters. Because Jesus is none of those things.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n When Jesus is white, it is easy to believe we are called to a life of materialism and consumerism and national pride in the American way. It is easy to believe conservative politics and gun rights and July 4th fireworks are the Jesus-way. That as long as we vote red and support Trump (regardless of how un-Christlike he and his policies are), then we are doing \u201cGod\u2019s will.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Closely aligned to a white Jesus is an American gospel. A gospel that applies promises given to the nation of Israel under their covenant with God to our country. A gospel that assumes we are \u201cspecial\u201d and \u201cblessed\u201d because our nation was \u201cbuilt on Christian principles and values\u201d and as long as we continue to adhere to our heritage, we will continue to be protected. It doesn\u2019t seem to matter how many historians fact-check these claims and find them ringing false \u2013 the belief lives on and is deeply rooted in Evangelical churches.<\/span><\/p>\n However, Jesus is not this white nationalist American version that we\u2019ve come up with. When we read the gospels, an entirely different picture comes to the forefront. The way of Jesus\u00a0is a life of sacrifice, of laying oneself down and taking up our cross.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Jesus is not white. He is not American. Jesus was a Middle Eastern, Jewish man whose parents had to smuggle out of their home country as a toddler in order to save his life. Jesus, who said, \u201cLay down your sword,\u201d and denied every opportunity to take power and control, cannot possibly be used as a mascot for violence if one reads the Gospels accurately.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Jesus loved people. <\/span>All<\/span> people. He died for <\/span>all<\/span> people. In fact, Jesus went out of His way to love those that the religious of His day had rejected or pushed out of society. We could even call the Samaritans the immigrants of His day, blamed for societal ills and not allowed to be a part of Jewish life. Jesus not only spoke to and engaged Samaritans but made them the hero of one of His parables. He flipped the cultural assumptions around.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Jesus embodied the social justice ethic of the Law found in the Old Testament. He breathed compassion for the least of these. But the most shocking thing about Jesus\u2019 ministry is that He told us to do the same. From the Sermon on the Mount to Matthew 25, Jesus consistently commanded His followers to love others the way He loves us. He said we should be known by our love. He even said the whole of the Law was summed up in love.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Conservative churches and preachers write off this message as socialism or \u201cwoke nonsense,\u201d but it\u2019s very hard to get away from when you read Jesus\u2019 actual words in the gospels for yourself.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n This is not to say that we ignore when He says, <\/span>Go and sin no more<\/span>. Yes, Jesus calls us to lives of holiness, but that holiness is not to be lived in glass towers. It has to be lived among the people, in proximity to those suffering and in service to those most in need. Holiness is not mere right belief, but it is right action. Action that copies the way Jesus lived.<\/span><\/p>\n And Jesus\u00a0<\/span>loved.<\/span><\/p>\n It should also be noted that Jesus never went up to people and started the conversation off with, \u201cGo and sin no more.\u201d He loved first. Showed compassion first. Met their needs first. He didn\u2019t tell them they had to stop doing this or that or come here legally. He merely loved on people because He <\/span>is<\/span> love.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Encounters with the love of Jesus change people. After an encounter,\u00a0<\/span>then<\/span> Jesus told people, \u201cGo and sin no more.\u201d Then, when their hearts were changed. Not before.<\/span><\/p>\n We have this so backwards in our churches today.\u00a0We push away people Jesus would have served. We condemn those He would have forgiven. We embrace nationalist priorities and racism over justice and compassion. And worst of all, we call it \u201cChristian.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The Church claims to believe that Jesus <\/span>is<\/span> God. Therefore, the words of Jesus are the words of God. Therefore, if we truly want to make Jesus Lord of our lives and call ourselves Christians, shouldn\u2019t we be paying a bit more attention to what He said??<\/span><\/p>\n RLC welcomes and encourages individuals who engage in critical thinking at the intersection of faith and justice to contribute to our blog. The views and opinions expressed by our blog authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of RLC, its staff, members, or officers.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" He struck again.\u00a0 I was visiting another church yesterday in my never-ending quest to find one that is Evangelical, but that doesn\u2019t bow a knee to Trump. The sermon series title was, \u201cJesus is (blank).\u201d Behind these bold printed words across the slide on the screen were multiple images of Jesus. 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