Confession and Change
I remember hearing a story a number of years ago about a businessman named Ernie who was working on a Gospel campaign. There was a deep divide between the white community and the African-American community.
Ernie and the campaign leadership felt called to address this divide by bringing people of all races together to plan the event. However, the more that Ernie, who was a white man, spent time in his community with people of color, the more he began to realize his own racial prejudices.
As Ernie said, “If God was fixin’ to do a new thing, I had to get out of His way and let Him do it. I needed to repent of the racism and prejudice and selfishness in my heart.”
Ernie wasn’t a bad man; he loved God. However, the way he grew up and how he lived his life meant discrimination against others different than him was engrained in him.
When he realized this, he confessed it to those affected by his prejudice. The final step, however, was to change. As 1 John says, “Let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth” [1 John 3:18].
When it comes to the prejudices in our hearts, we need to bring them into the light before God, and then change them. We need to act: educate ourselves and reach out.
Then we will begin to create a world welcoming to all, regardless of skin color or educational background. This is the true Gospel of Christ for everyone.
“When it comes to the prejudices in our hearts, we need to bring them into the light before God, and then change them. We need to act: educate ourselves and reach out.”
1 John 3:18
“Let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth”