We're back in the 20's! When I look at the United States 100 years ago, the most important historical event to me from 1920 is women finally being given the right to vote. It took too many years for the U.S. to get there, but the men in power came to realize women were intellectual enough and trustworthy enough to handle the responsibility of voting. Women were by no means equal culturally to men at that point, but it was a step in the right direction that many women were beaten and tortured fighting for. 

In God's eyes, men and women have been equal from the beginning. 

" So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." - Gen. 1:27 (NIV)

All human beings descend from Adam and Eve; we all have that same Creator and bear His image. This fact in itself should be enough to completely dissolve racism, sexism, toxic forms of nationalism, and more! Every person, no matter their sex, race, country of origin, sins of their past, or immigration status, has been made in the image of God and should therefore be treated with the respect that title deserves. God took the time to create each person with their specific facial features, personality quirks, giftings, and all sorts of other qualities to design them uniquely. Biblically, it is clear that everyone is created by God, and He created us all equal in worth to each other by creating each person in His image.

Why, then, does racism, sexism, and many other -isms exist? 

Because everyone has also been corrupted by sin. Paul tells us that in his letter to the Romans (Romans 3:23). Seeing anyone as less worthy of God's love than you is sin, because that means you are saying that person was not made in the image of God like you were. And since God's Word clearly states everyone is made in the image of God, you are calling God a liar by saying otherwise. How is that not sin?

The church today is called to stand against sin and stand firm in the Word. This is one place where the church truly needs to stand up to call for repentance of these sins of racism, sexism, toxic forms of nationalism, and many others. This has infected the church for too long and should not exist if we believe God's Word to be true. This can only begin by individuals choosing to follow after Christ and obeying His command to love people as He loves them. 

Seeing people with the worth God created within them can change your entire outlook on life. It makes missions more valuable to you, because you care whether those in another city, state, or country hear about Jesus. It makes prison ministry seem more important than ever, because no matter what they've done, you know God still values them as equal in worth compared to you. It could possibly change your heart towards immigrants, even those who are in your country illegally, because now you're given the opportunity to minister to many people from many countries (including countries that are currently closed to missionaries) without ever leaving the safety of your own city/state/country. 

We are all created equal in God's eyes. The quicker we as the church can come to grasp this biblical truth, the quicker we can be about God's work: spreading His gospel and His love to all people, without holding back. How are you showing Christ’s love to others? How have you seen those in your church standing against culture?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lacey Rae recently moved to Mt. Zion, Georgia after graduating from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary with a Master's degree in Biblical Counseling. Her passion is biblically counseling young women to help them grow closer to Christ. She loves attempting to bake, bingeing showing on Netflix and Hulu, and supporting her six nieces and nephews as often as possible.