“. . . for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, “I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered.” (Isaiah 56:7b-8)
In these days of social upheaval, many people are clamoring for racial justice. Many have decided to protest, peacefully as well as violently. But what about we who are believers in Christ? As Christians we are warned that our anger should never cause us to sin. Anger that erupts in violence is sin. But what about peaceful protests? Should Christians be a part of the BLM cause for racial justice. Should we march in the streets to promote justice?
The Word of God never speaks about protest marches, for, the fact is, the Lord’s ways are not the ways of the world. The way the Christian is called to do good and to change the evil in our world is by means of preaching the gospel to all people because the way to peace and equality is only in the Kingdom of God. The prophet Isaiah reminds us that the Kingdom of God is open to people of all nations and ethnicities. Yet, as the prophet adds, those who join themselves to the Lord must hold fast to His covenant. They must keep His commandments and love and serve only Him. In terms of the New Covenant all must have faith in the righteousness of Christ alone. Only those in Christ are worthy of the Kingdom of God because they have been made worthy by Him.
Human religious works and pious deeds, no matter how noble, do not qualify anyone to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. They are the result of faith, not the cause. Thus any religion, philosophy, or political system or ideology which proclaims that humans can make their way to heaven or achieve unity and peace by doing good works is false. But the Christian’s calling is to preach the cross of Christ to the lost not to march in a protest. The Kingdom of God is the only way to achieve true and lasting justice and peace for all people. And the people protesting won’t know it unless we tell them.