A critique of “A Color-Blind Denomination”

Todd Benkert, a white brother, wrote an article on race relations and his friend, Raymond Dix, a black Pastor, wrote a thoughtful article critiquing it. Both articles are worth a read. In the comments on Pastor Dix' article Todd made an astute observation that has a practical application to the matter at hand:

"sin issues are not solved in the abstract."

I agreed and added a few lines to his observation:

Jim Pemberton February 26, 2012 at 10:11 pm
 
“Sin issues are not solved in the abstract.”

Great observation. I’ve often heard abstract truths offered as solutions to practical outworking of sin. I may have given some myself. The abstract is the foundation for practical solutions, but we don’t do anyone any favors unless we also come across with something practical we can use out of it.

“In our focus on Jesus we must strive toward unity in Christ in real and concrete ways.”
Amen. And I would add that it’s a long time coming. Most people toss only the abstract in the ring because they don’t really want to deal with the problem. It’s like they say, “See? I have the solution. Now I’ve done my part and can wash my hands and go back to my comfortable life while you have to figure the practical out on your own.”

For the matter of race relations, if we are serious about it, it requires actually developing relationships cross-culturally. Friends are friendly, but also know, trust, and love each other well enough to deal with each others’ sin.