In the next few days, perhaps even weeks, you will hear many statements made and many messages spoken about the sovereignty of God in the face of the wild times we are in. Messages about unity and calm. Many will say, “no matter what, Jesus is in control and on the throne.” A very true statement, indeed, but without context, are we really saying the same thing?
Context matters.
Many will say, “no matter what, Jesus is in control and on the throne.” A very true statement, indeed, but without context, are we really saying the same thing?
It’s one thing to say that Jesus is in control and that we put our hope in him, but do you trust him enough to NOT vote for a xenophobic, racist, white supremacist idolizing president?
Do you trust him enough to go against the grain and risk your comfort zone of partisan futility to send a message that you firmly believe–as we learn in the Scriptures–that character matters, leadership matters, empathy matters, morality matters, humility matters, life matters (not that cherry-picking “all lives matter” BS. I mean the WHOLE life), and people matter?
Do you trust him enough to consider leaders who show concern for the poor, the widow, the stranger, and the foreigner?
Do you trust that Jesus’ throne cannot, does not, and will not align with evil, image-bearers-of-God hating ideologies?
Do you trust him to be in control?
FYI: Black people are aware of what you say AND what you do. Trust and believe that we are listening, watching, and taking note of whether your deeds line up with your words. Don’t tell us that you care about our Black lives and then turn around and support a president who sees the movement for the dignity of Black lives as a problem.
It’s one thing to say that Jesus is in control and that we put our hope in him, but do you trust him enough to NOT vote for a xenophobic, racist, white supremacist idolizing president?
There is a serious failure to consider the optics of what you are communicating to your Black siblings when you seem to falter between two opinions. As the writer Son of Baldwin puts it:
“We can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist.”
You cannot say you love us and then turn around and vote for people, or policies, that continue to reinforce a system that thrives on our oppression, a system that can be directly linked to our death.
Black people are aware of what you say AND what you do. Trust and believe that we are listening, watching, and taking note of whether your deeds line up with your words.
When Black people say that Jesus is in control, they are not using empty words; believing that God is still on the throne is our lifeline. Our faith isn’t a faith born of privilege and comfort; it’s a faith that comes with risks. We continue to engage in this risky faith because we believe that heaven can meet us on earth.
We believe in the dignity of all people. We believe that we are a reflection of our creator and should be able to live and be 100% who God created us to be.
Some of you reading this might call me bitter and say that I am causing division. I’m neither.
As you continue to align yourselves both publicly and privately with people who have and will continue to harm Black people, please know that it speaks volumes about where your hope is and to whom you are actually loyal.
Here’s the good news:
You still have time to repent and repair the damage that you have caused.
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Thank you for loving we who continue to cause great harm, to oppres, threaten and even take your lives, your families and communities on a regular basis enough to speak this truth clearly with gentleness and respect…. to call us to repentance and reparation. I count it as gift.
Well said, dear brother, well said.
You don’t even consider the possibility that anyone besides you could have a valid opinion contrary to your own.
Anyone who disagrees with you (as I do, deeply) can only be a racist, a friend of oppressors, an enemy of God.
I’ll show respect for you, young man, by telling you the truth: your post is foolish, bigoted , and deeply unjust. You also seem to think all black people need to think the same, and that those who do think that way, must be right and righteous by definition.
You need to repent, brother. That is a deeply uncharitable post. And it is based on demonstrably false premises, as is Black Lives Matters, and all the hatred expressed towards the police over the past several months. My brother is a cop, and he saved more lives in his career than all BLM protests combined — I won’t say “black lives,” because it is racist and sub-Christian to care what color skin those people had.
Mr. Petion, I really appreciated your post. As a Christian who is white, I have been very angry that others in my same belief category cannot see exactly the thing you are talking about. It is the Black church that has strengthened my faith in Christ this year when I felt it falter seeing us excise and overlook character issues left and right. Thank you for speaking out. I feel sorry for those who won’t humble themselves enough to listen. When it comes to voting, I see many with their ears plugged as our president says hateful and dangerous things (or supports those who do with complicity or outright encouragement to continue hate) and then say they never heard him say anything wrong. It’s baffling to me. What you said is spot on. I wish more would listen with ears and eyes wide open. I wish more would vote for the good of their neighbor and not self preservation.
Mr. Marshall, I fear that you have been called out by Max before you ever commented, yet weren’t even able to see that. You are complaining he is bigoted while not allowing him to express his opinion as if you have authority to tell him he’s wrong in every respect. I genuinely hope that you can find the humility to listen to others without a mind already made up about what they are saying before they ever say a thing.