I Want a Racially Diverse Church

When I really began dreaming about this ministry God has called me to, there were a number of things that I envisioned to be a part of it. Among those was racial diversity.

Martin Luther King, Jr., is credited for noting that 11 a.m. on Sunday was the most segregated hour of the week. The truth of that statement is unsettling in light of the ways the early church took shape. Sadly, King's observation is true.

Let's take care of the excuses first and get them out of the way. I realize that the racial breakdown of a community has a large impact upon the diversity of a church congregation. For instance, here in Springfield, the vast majority of the population (92%) is white. In the ten county region surrounding Springfield, 95% of the population is white. So, in an area that is dominated by one race of people, it's difficult to build racial diversity in a church.

However, that isn't any excuse for not at least trying to build diversity. The biblical example of the church that was established in Acts 2 shows us that the early church in Jerusalem consisted of people from many different racial backgrounds. People who had a lot uncommon came together believing in one commonality -- that Jesus was Lord.

One of the coolest things about Christ is that He breaks down barriers that the world puts up. Through the New Testament we find examples of social and cultural walls coming down through the work of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. John 4 shows Jesus breaking down both. First, there's the Samaritan woman (racial, lower class) at the well, and later the official (upper class).

The book of Acts lists several, like Peter going to the Gentiles, Paul reaching out to Timothy (who was bi-racial), and probably one of the most striking examples comes when the poor Gentiles sent money to Jerusalem to help out the poor there.

Unfortunately, the church in America barely resembles this today. We work, play and shop with people from different races and cultures, but when it comes to church, each goes their separate ways. Friends, that's plain unbiblical.

Here's some quick ideas to combat this division:

• Become pro-active and either invite people of other races to attend your church.
• Or, better yet, switch churches to one of an opposite race...and take some friends with you.
• Have your church work with a church dominated by another race. Do community and social events together. Maybe even share members or start a church plant together.
• Hire staff members of different races. It helps break down those barriers when people see folks like them as part of the face of the church.
• Be intentional about showing kindness to people when they visit your church. Make them feel at home.

Now, that last one should be a no-brainer, but I think it's the one we fail at the most. At one time I attended a church that completely shunned an interracial couple. It was quite embarrassing, and very unbiblical. The husband and wife endured it for a while, but eventually left.

Knock down those walls in your community. The Christian church is no place for racial segregation.