Advancing Gospel Reconciliation - Jesus Died for Your Racism - Repent

Written by Kenny Gibbs, PHD.

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. 1 John 1:8-10

In America, we know you’re not supposed to be “racist.” It’s not just bad – it’s basically the worst thing you can be. Our history – from slavery to the continuing fight for full civil rights – tells us that “good people” should not have biases against others “based on the color of their skin.” This type of thinking is so deeply ingrained that even people like Richard Spencer, the organizer of the 2017 “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville that killed Heather Heyer and two police officers, doesn’t call himself a racist, but refers himself as a “civil and human rights advocate.” As a result, in conversations about race or racial injustice, I have often found that the focus, especially among my White brothers and sisters, is primarily on making sure they are not seen as a racist, instead of the more important task of dismantling the systems of racial hierarchy and oppression which mar the Imago Dei and stifle the flourishing of fellow image bearers.

Despite the cultural norm that “good people” don’t have bias based on skin color, social science tells us that to be human is to have bias. Further, to be American (or influenced by American culture) often means having pro-European and anti-Black bias.  Yes – even Black people have this too.  However, if a person’s idea of him- or herself as a “good person” requires they not be a “racist,” or to be a person without any known or unknown bias against another person based on their race, then he or she will not confront their biases and tear them down.  We do not repent of the sins we don’t believe or admit exist.

The story of the gospel is that we are not “good people.” As Paul writes:

There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”  Romans 3:10-12