CHRIST AND RACISM — NO COMPROMISE, NO EXCUSES

There is no gray area when it comes to the Gospel and the treatment of our brothers and sisters. Christ did not command partial love, nor did He authorize half-hearted obedience. A steadfast belief in and commitment to complete, total racial equality in every word, every action, and every policy is not optional. To claim to follow Jesus while holding to racist ideas—no matter how subtle or culturally reinforced—is to stand in direct contradiction to the law of Christ: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39). Every barrier of skin, every prejudice of color, every division maintained in His name is a betrayal of the cross.

We could respect someone who admits the truth: that they are a racist and therefore have rejected Christ. At least there is honesty in their confession. But those who claim to follow Christ, who call themselves His disciples, and yet continue to defend racial division are a disgrace. They twist Scripture to justify exclusion, they elevate tradition above the commandment of love, and they bear witness not to the kingdom of God but to the pride and sin of the world. Such compromise is not a matter of cultural misunderstanding; it is rebellion against God.

History offers painful examples. Marshall Keeble labored for decades in Churches of Christ that claimed doctrinal fidelity while refusing fellowship to Black believers. The Southern Baptist Convention was founded to protect slaveholding missionaries. Denominations praised for orthodoxy all too often defended segregation, placed cultural norms above the Gospel, and treated Christ’s commandment of love as negotiable. Yet God’s law is absolute. Love does not wait for culture to approve; inclusion does not depend on the comfort of the majority. The moment we tolerate racial inequality in the name of Christ, we nullify the Gospel we claim to uphold.

The Gospel demands courage, humility, and unwavering conviction. To follow Jesus is to confront the idols of race, power, and pride wherever they appear—in ourselves, in our families, in our congregations, and in our denominations. We are called to dismantle every barrier that separates God’s children and to practice reconciliation as a non-negotiable act of obedience. Anything less is a betrayal, a hypocrisy, and a stain on the name of Christ.

Let us be clear: faith and racism cannot coexist. One who claims Christ but clings to racial hierarchy has chosen sin over obedience. One who excuses prejudice in the name of tradition or culture has chosen the world over the cross. The Gospel is radical, uncompromising, and uniting—it does not negotiate with color, status, or social norms. Our allegiance is to Christ and His command to love all His children equally, without exception, without delay, without compromise.

BDD