When prejudice is brought up, it is often done so when talking about racial prejudice. But there
are other forms of prejudice to consider. And, often times, they may cause more issues in our
Christian walk than we may think.
Prejudice is defined by dictionary.com in these ways:
1. An unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand without knowledge, thought, or reason.
2. Any preconceived feeling or notion, favorable or unfavorable.
3. Unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, especially of a hostile nature, regarding an
ethnic, racial, social, or religious group.
So, it is not just race or ethnicity that falls under Prejudicial idea. When it comes down to it, every single
one of us has some kind of prejudice or bias.
Before I name any specifics, I really ask you to consider this question: How would it make you feel about
people lumping you together with groups like Westboro Baptist or others like it? A good majority of us,
cannot stand that group for obvious reasons. Nobody likes having assumptions made about them, right? I
am pretty sure that the Golden Rule applies here as well. (Luke 6:31)
However, a good number of us do the exact same thing to various groups all the time.
Here some other examples that I have heard:
-"Everyone who goes to that school are complete jerks."
-"Liberals are stupid and unintelligent." (Or, Libtards. Seriously. Stop using that term. Nothing Christian-like about it."
-"Conservatives are uncaring and unfeeling."
-"All homosexuals are pedophiles and don't know the meaning of monogamous."
-"Islam is such a hateful religion. Their book is so full of hate, they must be too!"
-"ALL of the immigrants in the caravan obviously don't care about becoming citizens. They just want to take over our country and drain our assets!"
-"Homeless people need to stop being lazy, stop drinking, and get a job!"
-"Strippers and prostitutes are disgusting human beings."
-"Men only care about sex. They are such pigs."
-"She dresses so trashy. She must be a slut."
You get the point. You can probably think of more, but these are all examples of prejudice and bias.
I am not denying that based on scripture, some of these people are not in accordance with scripture. However, we are seriously going to hurt the spread of the Gospel by making assumptions about people.
Why would anyone listen to us if we show that we have great disdain and false ideas about them?
Would you want to listen to someone who made false accusations and assumptions about you? Of course not!
Have you ever tried to get to know these individuals and see the heart of who they are? The more we make assumptions about who people are, the more we will carry disdain for them, and not want to give the Gospel to them.
Christianity is not meant to be lived in a bubble! We have to stop hiding behind fear of the unknown. I think that is where a lot of bias and prejudice come from. It is so much easier to live in ignorance, and safer not to take the chance to share God's love with those who are completely different from us.
You never know what people are going through, and what kind of experiences they have had. As an example, when you see an immodestly dressed woman, consider that she doesn't know God. Consider that she doesn't realize that there is God who loves her, and wants to free her from the obsession with her body or appearance. Or the young teenage woman who is pregnant, and has no one to support her. She is being pressured to abort, and has no loving church family to rally around her. How do you know that the homeless man is a druggie, or alcoholic? What does it hurt to buy him a meal, give him water, or socks?
You just don't know. We are not called to lives of comfort and ignorance. We are called to step over lines to meet people where they are and give them the Gospel.
Peter, while he was a powerhouse apostle, struggled with prejudice toward the Gentiles. (Acts 10:9-48, Galatians 2:11-19.) Paul actually called him out once at a feast where Christians gathered together. Peter feared judgment of the Jewish born Christians, and refused to eat with the Gentile Christians. So, even Peter struggled with this. As Christians, we must learn what our personal biases and prejudices are so we can overcome them and give the Gospel to more people, as God has called for us to do.
Remember this as you go about your day:
Everyone has a soul.
Everyone needs God.
Everyone has a story you know nothing about.
are other forms of prejudice to consider. And, often times, they may cause more issues in our
Christian walk than we may think.
Prejudice is defined by dictionary.com in these ways:
1. An unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand without knowledge, thought, or reason.
2. Any preconceived feeling or notion, favorable or unfavorable.
3. Unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, especially of a hostile nature, regarding an
ethnic, racial, social, or religious group.
So, it is not just race or ethnicity that falls under Prejudicial idea. When it comes down to it, every single
one of us has some kind of prejudice or bias.
Before I name any specifics, I really ask you to consider this question: How would it make you feel about
people lumping you together with groups like Westboro Baptist or others like it? A good majority of us,
cannot stand that group for obvious reasons. Nobody likes having assumptions made about them, right? I
am pretty sure that the Golden Rule applies here as well. (Luke 6:31)
However, a good number of us do the exact same thing to various groups all the time.
Here some other examples that I have heard:
-"Everyone who goes to that school are complete jerks."
-"Liberals are stupid and unintelligent." (Or, Libtards. Seriously. Stop using that term. Nothing Christian-like about it."
-"Conservatives are uncaring and unfeeling."
-"All homosexuals are pedophiles and don't know the meaning of monogamous."
-"Islam is such a hateful religion. Their book is so full of hate, they must be too!"
-"ALL of the immigrants in the caravan obviously don't care about becoming citizens. They just want to take over our country and drain our assets!"
-"Homeless people need to stop being lazy, stop drinking, and get a job!"
-"Strippers and prostitutes are disgusting human beings."
-"Men only care about sex. They are such pigs."
-"She dresses so trashy. She must be a slut."
You get the point. You can probably think of more, but these are all examples of prejudice and bias.
I am not denying that based on scripture, some of these people are not in accordance with scripture. However, we are seriously going to hurt the spread of the Gospel by making assumptions about people.
Why would anyone listen to us if we show that we have great disdain and false ideas about them?
Would you want to listen to someone who made false accusations and assumptions about you? Of course not!
Have you ever tried to get to know these individuals and see the heart of who they are? The more we make assumptions about who people are, the more we will carry disdain for them, and not want to give the Gospel to them.
Christianity is not meant to be lived in a bubble! We have to stop hiding behind fear of the unknown. I think that is where a lot of bias and prejudice come from. It is so much easier to live in ignorance, and safer not to take the chance to share God's love with those who are completely different from us.
You never know what people are going through, and what kind of experiences they have had. As an example, when you see an immodestly dressed woman, consider that she doesn't know God. Consider that she doesn't realize that there is God who loves her, and wants to free her from the obsession with her body or appearance. Or the young teenage woman who is pregnant, and has no one to support her. She is being pressured to abort, and has no loving church family to rally around her. How do you know that the homeless man is a druggie, or alcoholic? What does it hurt to buy him a meal, give him water, or socks?
You just don't know. We are not called to lives of comfort and ignorance. We are called to step over lines to meet people where they are and give them the Gospel.
Peter, while he was a powerhouse apostle, struggled with prejudice toward the Gentiles. (Acts 10:9-48, Galatians 2:11-19.) Paul actually called him out once at a feast where Christians gathered together. Peter feared judgment of the Jewish born Christians, and refused to eat with the Gentile Christians. So, even Peter struggled with this. As Christians, we must learn what our personal biases and prejudices are so we can overcome them and give the Gospel to more people, as God has called for us to do.
Remember this as you go about your day:
Everyone has a soul.
Everyone needs God.
Everyone has a story you know nothing about.
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