What does the Bible say about racism?

Genesis 1:26God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

All of us are descended from Adam and Eve and equally made in God’s image. This concept is called the Imago Dei (image of God), and it is established in the Bible’s very first chapter.

1 Samuel 16:8“The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

James 2:1How can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others? For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives? . . . if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin.

Whether we favor people based on wealth or race, discrimination of any kind stands in blatant contradiction with the Good News revealed through Jesus Christ.

John 4:9The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?”

John 4:27Just then his [Jesus’] disciples came back. They were shocked to find him talking to a woman, but none of them had the nerve to ask, “What do you want with her?” or “Why are you talking to her?”

John 4:39Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus.

Samaritans had a half-Jewish ancestry and believed in God, but some of their beliefs about God were unorthodox. Centuries before Jesus, the Samaritans tried to prevent the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem during the time of Ezra (see Ezra 4). In response, the Jews shunned them, and hatred between the two groups had festered for centuries. When Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well, she questioned why Jesus would even talk to her. Jesus’ disciples were shocked as well! But Jesus made a point of crossing that racial divide with all its cultural and theological messiness.

Luke 10:33“Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion on him.”

Jesus confounded his listeners by making a despised Samaritan the hero of one of his most famous parables.

Ephesians 2:14Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us.

Colossians 3:10-11Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.

In the early church, the great racial controversy of the day was between Jews and Gentiles (non-Jews). Over and over, Scripture makes it clear that racism is in violent contradiction with Christ’s desire for unity in his church.

John 8:39“Our father is Abraham!” they declared. “No,” Jesus replied, “for if you were really the children of Abraham, you would follow his example.”

Romans 2:28-29You are not a true Jew just because you were born of Jewish parents or because you have gone through the ceremony of circumcision. No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit.

Galatians 3:7The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God.

Many Jews in the first century placed their confidence in their race and heritage, rather than in God himself. They were proud to be descendants of Abraham and felt entitled to God’s blessings. That racial pride caused them to miss the heart of God’s good news: it is a gift offered to all, accepted only by faith.

Acts 11:1-3Soon the news reached the apostles and other believers in Judea that the Gentiles had received the word of God. But when Peter arrived back in Jerusalem, the Jewish believers criticized him. “You entered the home of Gentiles and even ate with them!” they said.

Acts 15:5Then some of the believers who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees stood up and insisted, “The Gentile converts must be circumcised and required to follow the law of Moses.”

Acts 15:19“So my [James’s] judgment is that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.”

Galatians 3:8The Scriptures looked forward to this time when God would make the Gentiles right in his sight because of their faith. God proclaimed this good news to Abraham long ago when he said, “All nations will be blessed through you.”

The early Jewish believers carried on the traditions God gave their ancestors, including circumcision and Jewish dietary laws. Many assumed that in order to honor and obey God, non-Jews would have to become Jewish and follow their religious laws. But God’s desire was not for the entire world to become Jewish. His desire was for the entire world to know him through his Son, Jesus.

John 10:14-16“I [Jesus] am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me . . . I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd.”

Romans 1:16I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile.

Galatians 3:8The Scriptures looked forward to this time when God would make the Gentiles right in his sight because of their faith. God proclaimed this good news to Abraham long ago when he said, “All nations will be blessed through you.”

Jesus was sent to the Jews first, but not because he didn’t care about non-Jews (Gentiles). God promised to Abraham long ago that, through his descendants, the Jews, all nations would be blessed (Genesis 22:18). In John 10, Jesus described how he was the good Shepherd, and he used that imagery to foretell how he will bring even Gentiles into his flock and unite all peoples as one.

Galatians 2:11-13When Peter came to Antioch, I [Paul] had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong. When he first arrived, he ate with the Gentile believers, who were not circumcised. But afterward, when some friends of James came, Peter wouldn’t eat with the Gentiles anymore. He was afraid of criticism from these people who insisted on the necessity of circumcision. As a result, other Jewish believers followed Peter’s hypocrisy, and even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy.

Peter knew that Gentile believers were his brothers and sisters in Christ. However, it had long been Jewish custom to refuse to eat meals with Gentiles. When certain Jewish believers pressured Peter, he stopped eating meals with Gentile believers—and soon, other Jews withdrew as well. Paul publicly denounced this racism as a contradiction of the message of the gospel.

1 Corinthians 9:20-21When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law. When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ.

As an evangelist, Paul understood the difference between cultural traditions and Christian truth. He followed the Jewish law when witnessing to Jews—not because God required it, but because it showed respect and consideration for the consciences of the Jews he witnessed to. When Paul witnessed to the Gentiles, he didn’t follow Jewish laws. That way, the gospel was plain and clear, without any cultural obstacles. The one thing Paul never changed was his obedience to the law of Christ. His evangelism methods never required him to sin. We should all follow Paul’s example in preaching a gospel that is both accessible to all peoples and true for all time.