I’ve had more than one opportunity to preach at several different churches during the time I’ve been a preacher. I’m often amazed at the fact of how each of these churches, which believe the same Bible Doctrine, have different beliefs. You can always find something different if you look hard at them.

I recently had the opportunity to preach at a church that had some really nice people in it. I had talked to one member three times on the phone and another member one time, before I went to this church. It was really interesting to me at how nice these folks were. However, I was not prepared for what I would be told while I was in this church, before services began.

This church has fallen in number simply because they have allowed Satan to enter in or because God is separating the wheat from the chaff. Either way, these people really seem to be positive about everything in the church. At one point, apparently the church was running between 35 – 50 people in the church and now they have about 12 faithful members. In my mind though, I see a potential problem that I believe God could not be happy about. The problem is called ‘discrimination’ One of the men came to me and said, "Occasionally a black person will walk in the services, and when that happens, we just don’t give an invitation. They may want to join the church, and we don’t want that to happen." Is it me, or is the wrong? My next thought was, what if they are Hispanic, or Asian, or Australian, etc.?

Being prejudiced is being as Pharisaical as it gets. I can remember where the Bible talks about people prejudging Paul, because of what he had done before he met Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus. They didn’t want to believe that Jesus could be forgiving to Paul, because of what he had done. I can recall where the Jews wouldn’t accept Timothy, at first, because he wasn’t circumcised, and they knew his dad was a Greek. However, I cannot remember Jesus turning anyone away when they were seeking HIM.

Jesus said, "I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." (John 6:48 -51 KJV)

Where do we, who have been saved by the grace of God ourselves, have the right to keep anyone from seeking God? Where do we as Christians have a right to tell people they can’t serve God with us simply because of their skin color? I’ll take it a little further than that; where do we have a right to discriminate against anyone because of their race, sex, etc.? WE DON’T! Jesus died for all men, women, boys, and girls, and we should be seeking them out to lead them to HIM. HE came to seek and to save those which are lost.

A number of times we see in the scriptures the phrase, "IF ANY MAN." This tells me that God does not discriminate against anyone, and if HE doesn’t discriminate against anyone, where do we think we have the right too? He created us all! Every man was created by HIM! He desires that every man be saved! If I remember what my Bible says, it tells me that I’m supposed to "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:19 – 20 KJV). If you want to take it a step further, look in Acts 1:7 – 8. There is a commandment for us to do so.

We, as Christians, need to stop and smell the roses, so to speak. The end is drawing nigh, and we have a job to do. I am reminded of when Jesus was asked a question. A Pharisee asked HIM, (Mat 22:36 - 40 KJV,) "Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." How can a man love God and not love his neighbor?

We need to see, in this passage that Jesus did not say; thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, except if he was black, brown, red, yellow, etc., or if he has a past. Get the point? We are to be concerned about everyone. If a person is saved, it is our responsibility to teach that person the things God wants him to understand and know. It is our responsibility to baptize them when they are saved, and to teach them whatsoever the Lord has commanded us to do. We cannot honestly say, "I love the LORD," and not love our neighbor.

Despite what many people think, the Bible tells us that Noah had three sons. They were all his sons. Japheth – which means Caucasian or light colored skin; Shem – which means of tan or yellow skin, Jews, Asians, etc; and Ham, which means dark skinned man. Amazingly, Noah was of a Jewish colored skin, and he begat 3 sons, all of different color. Now, what does that mean to us? It means to me that Christ died for all! He thought about everyone. Had all the Pharisees sought Jesus, like Nicodemus did, He would have saved them too. Jesus did not discriminate against anyone. He will only judge those who refuse HIM and HIS grace, but that’s HIS right. HE created us, HE wants to save us, and if we reject HIM then HE has no other choice but to judge us.

Condemnation is not the right of any Christian. We have no right to condemn anyone who is seeking the LORD. We are all condemned, not by color, race, religion, sex, etc., but because we are lost and need to be saved by the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for our sins, according to the scriptures and was buried and rose again on the third day according to the scriptures. After salvation, we must be about God’s business, and we cannot do that unless we seek all that are lost and love them just as Christ taught us too. May God give us the heart to seek the lost, and to love them with the love that Christ taught us. After all it is that duty, which God ordained for HIS children. We must do it! We can not be prejudiced and serve God the way HE desires us to. If we allow ourselves to become prejudiced, then we are hiding the light of Christ from certain people, and that is not what we are commanded to do. May God have mercy on us all and may he give us a heart of a true Christian. Amen.