Archive for the 'America' Category
Now is the Time for the Racial Crisis to End in America
Ronald Reagan once said, “All great change in America begins at the dinner table.” I believe that great change can’t happen unless someone sets the table for tough conversations. This past Wednesday in Jackson, Mississippi, a table was set for America’s toughest conversation to occur: a conversation on racism in America.
This conversation did not take place among politicians, business leaders, educational institutions, or sports leagues. This tough and long overdue conversation took place with pastors of local churches.
Dr. Jerry Young, President of the National Baptist Convention, and I led a conversation with a group of twenty other pastors. Dr. Young invited ten pastors from his convention and I invited ten pastors from our convention. The conversation was filled with special, difficult, and joyful moments.
More on our conversation via CNN
Martin Luther King, Jr. and Birmingham, Alabama
When Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote his Letter From a Birmingham Jail on April 16, 1963, he noted he had never written such a long letter. Reading this letter recently, the words in his final paragraph penetrated my heart. Dr. King wrote, “Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty.”
Sadly and regrettably, after 52 years, this deep fog filled with racism, injustices, and misunderstanding has not lifted fully. In fact, the last eighteen months in our nation, it has become like a fire fanned by a mighty wind. Rather than the fire coming from the Holy Spirit of God and His breath upon our churches, the fire is raging from the DNA of our hearts. Sin is in our DNA and is at the heart of our human condition. Prejudice and racism are offenses against God and one another.
Silence is Not the Answer and Hope is Not a Strategy
Silence is not the answer and passivity is not our prescription for healing.
We must not be silent any longer. Hope is not a strategy. You cannot just hope something goes away and it happens. Nor can you sit passively in the church pew and believe it is enough. Passivity has never been and will never be a prescription for healing.
We, the Church, have come to one of the supreme hours in our history since our birth on the day of Pentecost. With great conviction in this hour of crisis in America, our generation must rise like never before, resolving that the sin of racism will stop now and not be forwarded to generations in the future.
Now is the Time For Racism to End in America
Sin wounds. Sin hurts. Sin divides. Sin destroys.
Grace forgives. Grace heals. Grace unites. Grace lives.
Since we believe the Bible is God’s authoritative, infallible, trustworthy, inerrant, and sufficient Word about all matters of life, including racism, then let’s obey it.
Genesis 1:27, “So God created man in His own image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female.”
1. AMERICA: ALL PEOPLE ARE CREATED IN GOD’S IMAGE
No one is less than another. We are created by God and created for His glory on this earth.
Acts 17:26-28, “From one man He has made every nationality to live over the whole earth and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live. He did this so they might seek God, and perhaps they might reach out and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. For in Him, we live and move and exist.”
2. AMERICA: THERE IS ONLY ONE RACE—THE HUMAN RACE
Each of us came from one man, Adam. Every ethnicity on this earth came from him. God Himself determined when you would live in human history. In fact, He even determined where you would live. Therefore, God has each of us where we can demonstrate His love so when people seek after God, they will find Him.
We not only have the same problem of sin, we have the same solution: our Savior, Jesus Christ.
1 John 2:2, “He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world.”
3. AMERICA: JESUS DIED FOR ALL PEOPLE
Jesus did not die only for white people, black people, or any other group. Jesus died for all people. Why?
John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him, shall have everlasting life.”
4. AMERICA: GOD LOVES ALL PEOPLE
When we receive God’s love found only in Jesus Christ at the moment of salvation, we become devoted followers of Jesus Christ. We become Christians.
I want to remind each of us today: We are not black Christians. We are not white Christians. We are not Latino Christians. We are not Native American Christians. We are Christians! We are followers of Jesus Christ.
We Are One in Christ
The death of Jesus Christ on the cross makes us one in Christ. While Satan and sin destroy and build walls between people, it is only Jesus and His love that gives life and tears down these walls between people.
In this desperate hour in our nation when the racial tension is building rapidly, the church of Jesus Christ must rise together as one.
We are not black churches. We are not white churches. We are not Latino churches. We are not Asian churches. We are the Church of Jesus Christ. We are members of the same body. Let the church rise!
The Hope For All Racism to End in America
The hope for all racism to end in America is Jesus Christ and in His triumphant church. Schisms and divisions will end when the gospel of grace begins to rule in our hearts again.
Your church must be for your city. Your church must be for your town.
The Church needs to rise up and not just have a racial unity conversation, but also live out an ongoing demonstration of racial unity to the world. As Jesus said as recorded in John 17:21, “May they all be one… so the world will believe You sent me.”
Each pastor in this nation must rise to become a prophetic voice relating to the issue of racism, calling it what it is, even if the price is high personally. For the sake of America, pastors and churches must be the prophetic voice of not just doom and gloom, but the voice for hope and future.
This is why we need to call out to God and ask Him for the next Great Awakening in America. Each Sunday in our churches we need to ask Him for the next Great Awakening in America.
Racism is Satan’s Tool
In closing, I am not sure what you believe about the subject of spiritual warfare. But I believe the issue of racism is from Satan and his demonic forces of hell. Why? Racism is completely opposite of the message of Christ. Racism is completely opposite of the message of love. Racism is completely opposite of the message of reconciliation.
We are notifying Satan and his demonic forces that steal, kill, and destroy, that enough is enough. The power of God is greater than the forces of evil, even the evil of racism. “Greater is He who is in us, than he who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4)
Pastors, rise up! Churches, rise up! Business leaders, rise up! Educational leaders, rise up! Political leaders, rise up! Towns and cities, rise up! Everyone, rise up!
The need has never been greater. The urgency is upon us.
Now is the time for racism to end in America!
Now is the Time to Lead,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Senior Pastor, Cross Church
President, Southern Baptist Convention
*******
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is currently serving as the President of the Southern Baptist Convention. The Southern Baptist Convention is America’s largest Protestant denomination with more than 15.7 million members in over 51,094 churches and congregations nationwide.
To request an interview with Dr. Ronnie Floyd
contact Gayla Oldham at (479) 751-4523 or email gaylao@crosschurch.com.
Visit our website at http://ronniefloyd.com
Follow Dr. Floyd on Twitter and Instagram @ronniefloyd
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.
A National Conversation on Racial Unity
Dr. Jerry Young, President of the National Baptist Convention, USA, and I will lead A National Conversation on Racial Unity in America in Jackson, Mississippi, on Wednesday, November 4, 2015. Dr. Young and I spoke at a rally recently called Stronger Together, held at the First Baptist Church in Jackson, Mississippi. It was an incredible night, one of my most memorable as President of the Southern Baptist Convention.
22 Pastors Will Participate in This Conversation
Dr. Young leads the largest predominantly African-American Christian denomination in the United States. This denomination is comprised of 31,000 congregations and 7.5 million members.
Dr. Young and I are each asking ten local church pastors from across America in our respective conventions to join us in this national conversation on racial unity. We are thankful for every leader or group who is attempting to address this national crisis. Yet, we believe local church pastors and churches can bring a unique perspective on the racial crisis; and in reality, we need to lead the way toward addressing and resolving this crisis.
The ten pastors representing the Southern Baptist Convention who will be joining me are:
Dr. K. Marshall Williams
President, National African American Fellowship of the Southern Baptist Convention
Senior Pastor, Nazarene Baptist Church
Philadelphia, PA
Dr. Steve Gaines
Senior Pastor, Bellevue Baptist Church
Cordova, TN
Dr. A.B. Vines
Former President, National African American Fellowship of the Southern Baptist Convention
Senior Pastor, New Seasons Church
Spring Valley, CA
Dr. Ted Traylor
Senior Pastor, Olive Baptist Church
Pensacola, FL
Marshall Blalock
Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church Charleston
Charleston, SC
Dr. Ed Litton
Redemption Church
North Mobile, AL
Timmy Chavis
Chairman, Multi-Ethnic Advisory Council of the Southern Baptist Convention
Senior Pastor, Bear Swamp Baptist Church
Pembroke, NC
Dr. Paul Kim
Asian American Relations Consultant for the Southern Baptist Convention
Pastor Emeritus, Antioch Baptist Church
Cambridge, MA
Felix Cabrera
Director of Red 1:8 Church Planting Network
Lead Pastor, Iglesia Bautista Central
Oklahoma City, OK
Dr. Gene Henderson
Mississippi Baptist Pastor & Leader
Pinelake Church
Brandon, MS
Please pray for each of these men and their role on November 4. Also pray for the ten pastors from the National Baptist Convention who will be joining Dr. Jerry Young.
Others Can Attend This Conversation
The Conversation on Racial Unity in America will take place on Wednesday, November 4 at 8:30 a.m. The location will be in section A and B of the Ballroom of the Jackson Convention Complex, Jackson, Mississippi. This event is open to everyone, so if you have an interest, I hope you will join us. More information is available here.
Join Us For MISSION MISSISSIPPI’S RACIAL RECONCILIATION LUNCHEON In Jackson
Dr. Neddie Winters is the President of MISSION MISSISSIPPI. Their mission is to encourage and demonstrate grace in the body of Christ across racial lines, so that communities throughout Mississippi can see practical evidence of the Gospel message. Mission Mississippi believes that through Christ, we can find common ground to build strong relationships and communities for the betterment of all Mississippians, regardless of race. Their vision is, “To be the leading resource and catalyst for Christian racial reconciliation and healing for Mississippi and the world.”
The luncheon will take place in sections C, D, and E of the Ballroom of the Jackson Convention Complex in Jackson, Mississippi. If you would like to join us for this luncheon, please go here to learn more. Dr. Young, Dr. Winters, and I would love to meet you.
God is Moving Among His People
In December 2013, I was in a meeting in Atlanta for Prayer and Spiritual Awakening. We were discussing the need for growing and strengthening relationships between all races and ethnicities. Dr. K. Marshall Williams, a dear friend and now President of the National African-American Fellowship of our Southern Baptist Convention, stated to us: “Southern Baptists must reach out and begin having conversations with our brothers with the National Baptist Convention.” I never forgot what he said with great passion and conviction.
When I was elected President, I began praying for open doors. Through prayer gatherings, I began to see God bring down the walls that divide races and ethnicities. Then, sadly through the tragedies of Ferguson and other cities in our nation, the burden and conviction became overwhelming.
In the final half of 2014 when racial tension and violence was increasing exponentially, I released an article entitled, “THE WOUNDS RUN DEEP: RACISM AND INJUSTICE MUST END AND LET GRACE AND LOVE BEGIN”. This article opened doors into several conversations and experiences.
God used this article to open doors that lead us to these two experiences on November 4 in Jackson, Mississippi. Our own National Prayer Meeting at the 2015 Southern Baptist Convention highlighted the need for racial unity and was a catalyst to this opportunity in Jackson. May God use it to His glory. Pray for us. Join us.
Now is the Time to Lead,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Senior Pastor, Cross Church
President, Southern Baptist Convention
*******
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is currently serving as the President of the Southern Baptist Convention. The Southern Baptist Convention is America’s largest Protestant denomination with more than 15.7 million members in over 51,094 churches and congregations nationwide.
To request an interview with Dr. Ronnie Floyd
contact Gayla Oldham at (479) 751-4523 or email gaylao@crosschurch.com.
Visit our website at http://ronniefloyd.com
Follow Dr. Floyd on Twitter and Instagram @ronniefloyd
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.