No Longer The Same
If I told you that God does not look at human beings according to their race, lineage, or geography, would you be offended?
Prejudice is generally born from an over-identification and preoccupation with such things.
When Jesus died on the cross, He took these issues out of the way, along with another even larger issue that caused division among people.
In the natural, we tend to notice people based on what we see. God only sees two kinds of people on this earth: those who are His by the new birth in Christ and those who are not because they have not yet believed in Jesus and been born again or have refused to believe and rejected the message of life and hope in Christ.
God sees past our outer frame, which the Bible calls this earthly tent, to the core of who we are. He knows whether or not we have truly come to know Jesus Christ. God knows what true transformation looks like because it creates a heaven-born new species.
During the time of the law, a great prejudice existed on this earth. Jews were considered to be the qualified race, and all other races were outside that place of being special and favored. It was the Law that created this separation. Through the eyes of those under the law, there were only Jews and Gentiles on the earth. Jews were special, and all others were not. This created a hostility between the two groups.
But when Jesus came, something amazing happened.
Ephesians 2:14 For He (Jesus) Himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by setting aside in His flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility. 17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
True New Covenant understanding annihilates racism and prejudice because anyone who becomes a New Creation knows they did not earn it. They do not possess it through special privilege based on their race, social status, level of intellect, geography of their birthplace, or anything else.
I hope that the primary thing that leaps out of that passage from Ephesians straight into your heart and understanding by way of revelation is this: “setting aside in His flesh the law with its commands and regulations.” I hope you were profoundly impacted by the second thing: “Create in Himself one new humanity out of the two.”
Jesus took away the very thing at the division’s center. By doing so, we now see people, regardless of skin color or natural origin, as potential brothers and sisters based on believing the gospel, confessing Jesus as Lord, and thus becoming born again. One New Man in Christ! We are truly no longer the same as we were before we came to know Him! We become one in Him.
