A couple of years ago, I was sitting with one of my girls watching a documentary in Africa,
and you've got all the animals and stuff like that.
They're kind of fascinated by that.
And at one point of the documentary, it showed a tribal group, an African tribal group,
colorfully dressed black people doing some activity, I don't know, dancing or something.
I'm not really sure exactly what it was.
But at that point, my daughter jumped up off the lounge, ran over to the TV,
and pointed at the people and said, I know those people.
And I'm like, well, no, I don't think that's quite true.
And she was at it, yes, I have.
Those people play drums.
And really?
I really couldn't have any idea what she was talking about.
And then Nat calls out from the kitchen and said, yeah,
they had an African drum troupe come through kindy in this last week.
And so it's the first time she'd ever seen a black person.
When she was at kindy, she was fascinated by that.
And she talked about it for some time after this TV program.
And of course, seeing the black people on the TV, she just assumed they were the same people.
And naturally, what black people do is they play drums, which is partly true.
But they're not the only ones who play drums.
Ian Francis played drums as well.
Another time, one of my girls, who was learning a little bit of Mandarin at the time,
was fascinated by different languages that people speak,
asked a member of our Cantonese congregation whether they spoke Cantonese.
And the answer was, yes, I do.
And then, after a bit of a pause, came the qualifying question.
So, you speak Cantonese and normal?
And the gentle response was, no, I speak Cantonese and English.
Out of the mouths of babies.
I could keep going on with stories like that.
We notice difference from a very young age.
Our prejudices begin early.
We work on the assumption that our way of thinking, our way of doing is normal.
And other people are not normal.
They are just different.
Now, on one level, it can be intriguing.
At worst, it becomes rampant racism, which demeans and segregates.
And so, over the next five weeks, as Sam has said,
I'm going to take a look at a very complex issue, race and ethnocentricity.
That's our topic for the next five weeks.
And to kick us off, I've got a bunch of stuff that I want to say by way of orientation
before we get to the Bible.
So, firstly, defining racism and ethnocentricity is not easy.
In most cases, they are used interchangeably,
which is basically what I will do throughout this series,
unless I say, no, no, no, when I say racism, I mean like this.
That's quite specific about it.
But generally, I'll be using them interchangeably, but they are different.
Racism is an explicit or implicit belief or practice
that qualitatively distinguishes or values one race over other races.
So, in that definition, I'm thinking of race primarily.
I'll talk about this probably more next week when I talk about race a bit more.
Is that race is primarily in terms of physical features.
Racism is therefore making judgments based on physical features.
So, the focus of that particular definition is both the heart and behavior.
The heart that believes that one race is more valuable than another race
is a sinful heart and that sin is called racism.
The behavior that distinguishes one race is more valuable than another
is a sinful behavior and that sin is racism.
It is always wrong to treat a person with disrespect on the basis of their physical appearance.
That's it.
You know, always wrong.
No qualification to that at all.
Ethnicity is a little different.
It's a term that's used to stress the cultural rather than the physical aspects of group identity,
such as language, dress, food, customs, values, and sometimes religion.
The two are different, although they are connected.
Ethnocentricity is when I say my ethnic group is the most valuable ethnic group
and the way we do things is the way things ought to be done.
That is, I'm normal and you're not if you don't do it my way.
That's ethnocentricity.
So the two are different, racism and ethnocentricity, but they are connected.
Where it is always wrong to judge a person on their appearance,
I think we are biblically and morally bound to value some aspects of ethnicities
over other aspects of ethnicities.
And where that valuing is rooted in biblical teaching about good and evil,
that should not be called racism at that point.
There are aspects of every culture, such as mine,
which are sinful and need of gospel transformation.
Secondly, why I think this series is important for us.
I think it's important because Australia has always struggled with multiculturalism.
As a multicultural society, Australia on the one hand has been remarkably hospitable
towards migrants from different cultures,
although there have always throughout our history been outbreaks of racial prejudice
against the latest wave of migrants.
The traditional Australian attitude towards migrants from other cultures
and particularly people from different races
is that they have come here to become part of the Australian way of life.
And that therefore means that they should be assimilated as quickly as possible.
That's our thinking.
The Australian psyche is we live in the greatest country in the world,
apart from the United States, which says it's the greatest country in the world,
but we live in the greatest country in the world.
And if you want to come to be part of this country,
you're coming here to be part of the Australian way of life.
You know, we are so ethnocentric.
We don't even register that people might want to come to this country
because they're escaping a war-torn country, for instance,
and we just happen to be the closest one or the cheapest ticket or something like that.
It doesn't even come into our way of thinking.
We just think the Australian way of life,
that is why the whole world wants to live here.
And what that means in translation is that you are welcome,
we welcome you, providing that you are prepared to embrace the Australian way of life and its values,
providing that you make the learning of the English language the top priority when you come,
that you don't rob Australians of jobs or other opportunities like education.
That's been in the papers recently on the North Shore.
Providing that you leave all of your racial and cultural tensions behind
and don't import any sort of prejudices and conflict.
We've got enough of our own.
Providing that you are basically assimilated.
However, there is some tolerance for the preservation of harmless ethnical customs and behaviours.
We can put up with some things.
You are welcome, provided you import your food.
You are welcome that you do not lower the Australian standard of living
by imposing too much strain upon the urban infrastructure and upon the welfare system.
Therefore, assimilation is the key to a successful immigration program.
Migrants should become as invisible as possible, as quickly as possible.
We even had a term for it, the term new Australians.
It was in vogue back in the 1950s and 60s, new Australians.
And it implied that the goal of assimilation, of immigration, was assimilation.
That is, you are now Australian.
So dump all of your cultural heritage.
You're Australian now.
And so while we might be hospitable and welcoming,
we struggle to embrace and we significantly push back on any people group that comes here
and doesn't assimilate.
Why would you not want to assimilate?
We struggle with that concept.
I see traits of that general Australian attitude at St. Paul's.
When I first came to St. Paul's six and a while years ago,
I remember speaking to a number of long-termers who said,
the Chinese are taken over.
They didn't just mean Chatswood.
That had already happened.
They were referring to here at St. Paul's.
The Chinese are taken over St. Paul's.
And so I want us to be thinking about this issue for our holiness
and because our church obviously is living in a very diverse neighbourhood.
I think racial struggles are an ever-present issue
and I believe that we need to keep our finger on the pulse
in terms of racial harmony for the glory of God,
for the sake of the gospel of where we are.
Now, I don't think that it's an explicit discrimination.
As Sam just said, if you're a white person,
yeah, I'm not racist.
It's an implicit discrimination.
It's an inadvertent discrimination is what happens.
And so I want us to even be aware of that
so that we're a church that treasures Jesus together
for the joy of all people.
That's the last bit of our mission statement.
All people.
Thirdly, by way of orientation,
I don't think I'm the best person to speak on this topic.
I wrote our core values,
core values like treasuring Jesus together,
but I'm acutely aware of my own failure in this issue.
I grew up in a country town
dominated by white Australian rural culture.
There we had a few aboriginals that I engaged with at school.
There was the Greek family that owned the cafe
and the Chinese family that owned the restaurant,
the Chinese restaurant, that is.
And, you know, that's probably a little bit oversimplistic,
but you get the picture.
You know, I grew up in a monocultural place
as a camo-wearing, gun-totering.
You know, I've eaten the national emblems.
And, you know, I wouldn't exactly call me a redneck,
but maybe you would.
I, you know, I now wear, I wore a pink shirt this morning.
So, you know, so I think, you know,
but I've never, I've never worn a swastika armband.
I've never regarded myself as neo-Nazi or anything.
I never had a shaved head or anything like that.
I've never done that.
I've just been monocultural.
And so my way of doing things is the way of doing things.
That's where I was.
And so gradually, you know, being introduced
that there are more people in the world
than the 8,000 people in Narrabri
has been, you know, quite a big exposure of things
over the time.
And so my kids are growing up in a very different background
than what I grew up on.
But let me say that growing up where I did,
I grew up, when I look back on it now,
is I realized I was a racist through and through.
I still am.
Been working on it since 2005.
And I might get to that at one point
in this next four weeks, what happened in 2005.
And I grew up a racist, particularly towards Aboriginals.
That was the cultural group that we bucked against the most,
where I was.
You know, we didn't have many Greeks or Chinese,
so they, you know, didn't care.
But Aboriginals.
And when I think of the jokes that I told
and the demeaning way that I treated them
and spoke about them,
I don't really feel like I should be up here
saying this on this topic.
There are those amongst you,
and probably I would say more likely
amongst the younger generation
who have grown up like my kids will
in a very diverse kind of world
who are probably more advanced in your thinking,
in your practice,
in this than I am.
You know, let me just pause at that point.
This is sort of point number four,
but I'll make it point number three.
I, in the next bunch of weeks,
are going to say some wrong stuff.
I'm going to say some silly stuff.
I'm going to say some racist stuff,
and I'm not even aware of it.
Okay?
Just be aware of that.
It won't be deliberate.
It will be inadvertent,
because I'm learning in this stuff.
And so if you need to,
take a chill pill before you come to church.
Okay?
I'm going to say some stuff,
but for some of you,
you're going to go,
Steve, you've just gone too political.
And for some of you,
it's just like,
hang on a bit,
you haven't gone political enough.
You know,
affirmative action is what we need.
Let's,
for some of you,
I'm not going to be biblical enough.
Some of you,
I'm going to be too biblical.
Some of you,
I've just missed the point altogether.
Just, if you need to,
take a chill pill
before you come to church.
I'm not sure if that's an actual thing
that you can buy,
but you know the point.
The one thing I've got going for me
is that I'm the senior minister
of this church.
And when it's my burden,
as it is,
I can influence it
to become your burden.
And it is my burden.
I wrote,
Treasuring Jesus Together.
And that is my burden.
Fourthly,
this is a hot issue right now.
And I think that in terms of our wider society,
I mean,
the newspapers even this weekend,
I think that the Christian faith
has got something very significant to say
to our society on this issue,
although I'm not convinced
that they will listen to us,
the church.
Australia's Race Discrimination Commission
has said a couple of weeks ago
that this is the most volatile time
of the past 30 years
for racial tension in this country.
And I want to say
the Christian faith
has got a contribution to make.
In fact,
I want to say
the contribution to make
to this issue
in a secular society.
But I also acknowledge
that the institutional church
has an awful track record
in such a way
that no one
might in fact
want to listen to us.
I'll give you an example
of what I mean
by a great contribution
to the Christian faith.
The Christian faith
has got a great contribution to make.
W.H. Auden,
he was one of the most influential writers
of the 20th centuries
in the English-speaking world.
I want to clarify that
from my group.
20th century.
He was converted
from intellectual secular humanism
to Christianity in 1940
in one event.
He went to a movie theater
in Manhattan
where he saw a movie
produced by Hitler's Third Reich.
The movie followed
the Blitzkrieg through Poland
and it was a propaganda piece
by the Third Reich
of their great victory in Poland.
And in recounting the incident,
he said that there were
many German immigrants
who had come to the U.S.
sitting in the theater with him.
Now remember,
this is pre-the U.S.
being involved in World War II.
And so,
showing the movie
is probably neither here nor there
in some ways.
And he's sitting in the movie theater,
watching the movie,
and he says,
whenever a Polish person
was brought onto the screen,
normally carted around
by a Nazi German,
the audience would call out
in one voice,
kill him!
Kill him!
And Auden was so shocked
by the response
of these Germans
in this movie theater
that he walked out stunned.
And one question
ran through his mind.
What response
can my enlightened,
secular humanism
give to that evil?
To those who cry out
for the blood
of innocent man?
And what he saw
at that moment
was the bankruptcy
of his secular humanism,
and he began to sense
that the only answer
to this evil
can be found in God.
He was convicted
of God's holiness,
his own sinfulness,
and he became a Christian
in 1940,
not long after
that event.
And so here's a man
who sees an ethnic
hatred happening,
person to person,
ethnic hatred,
in such a way
they're wanting to kill.
And he gropes around
in his system of thought,
his system of secular
humanistic thought,
which leaves God
out of the picture
and puts all the answers
there in front of him
as a human being,
and thought of an,
to come up with
an explanation
as to how can you
deal with this evil,
how can you fix
this evil?
And he makes his way
away from secular humanism
to the Christian faith
because he said,
God's the only answer.
And having said that,
there are people
making the exact
opposite move
in the exact
opposite direction
because of the
awful track record
of the institutional
church on this issue.
They're making their way
into humanism
because they look
at the church
and go,
well,
they've got nothing
to contribute here.
It's nice to hear
the story of people
like Auden's move
into Christianity
as a solution
to racism,
and yet there are others
who are moving
away from it
because there have
been so many
professing Christians
Christians
and churches
who have long
held membership
in the church
and denominations
and the Ku Klux Klan
at exactly the same time.
That is,
the church
has a terrible
track record
in supporting racism,
and so what do you do
when you find stories
that give you comfort
that Christianity's
got something
to contribute?
In fact,
I want to say
the solution
to ethnic pride
and other stories
that show you
that Christianity
was part of the problem.
What you do
is you go to the Bible
and ask whether
they got Christianity
right
or whether,
on the other hand,
they got humanism
right
and Christianity
wrong.
And when I ask
those questions,
I don't see that
secular humanism
has got any answers
to this solution,
although I want to say
that secular humanism,
which is the dominant
philosophy of our culture
in which we live
here in Australia,
it has a bunch
of great aims.
It does want to see
people as equals.
It does want to promote
a selfless morality
and the equality
of all people.
It desires a more
humane society.
Secular humanism
is behind gay marriage
and the equality
of all people
and everyone have love.
That's secular humanism.
But I'm not convinced
that they can deliver
on what they want,
on a more equal humanity
when you embrace
at the same time
an atheistic evolutionary theory
that suggests
that humans came from
lower life forms.
It's not a big jump
when your foundational view
of the human race
is simply that we have
come from lower life forms.
It's not a big jump
from there into racism.
All you need to do
is to describe
all the differences
around the world
as well those people
are less evolved
than I am.
Those people have got
a little way to go.
They're somewhere partly
between monkeys and people.
That's all you need to do.
And that's exactly
what has happened
throughout history.
That's exactly
what Hitler did
with the Germans.
He was a great fan
of Friedrich Nietzsche.
So while I agree
with some of the outcomes,
I don't think
that secular humanism
has got the framework
that enables it
to deal with racism.
Having said that,
I go to the Bible
and I see a totally
different thing
than the version
of Christianity
that supports racism
and ethnic pride.
And so I think
we've got to be honest,
frankly,
right up for the front,
be honest about our history
as part of the institutional church
and say that
we have blown it
over and over
and over again
on this issue.
Almost every people group
has got a story to tell
of the failure
of the institutional church
and I don't think
we need to fight that.
I don't think
we should fight that.
I think all we need
to say is to say,
I know
and I'm sorry
not all those
who profess to be followers
of Jesus
are followers of Jesus
and those of us
who are followers of Jesus
like me
are so imperfect
that I'm going to blow it
again
and again
and again.
But can we please
at the very least
let the Bible
and Jesus
have its say here.
And so that's
what we're going to do
over the next five weeks.
That's all introduction
to the series.
So let's go to the Bible
and dig into it.
One more point
before I do that.
For those of you
who got your sermon
scorecards with you
and particularly waiting
for me to get to Jesus
I'm not going to get to Jesus
in a hurry tonight.
So just relax
put your scorecard down
or put it up.
I'm not going to get to Jesus
tonight
in any big way
but this is a five part series
and each bit's building
on the next bit.
Jesus is going to dominate
probably from next week onwards
he will dominate
but he's there
and all the framework's there.
Okay.
We're going to start
with creation
then look at the fall
then look at redemption
and then we're going to look
at the consummation
of all things.
The unfolding Bible story
we're going to look at how race
fits in with that.
Okay.
Let's get that clear.
Let's dive in.
We're going to begin today
with creation
and I will get to Jesus
eventually
but what we see today
is a very significant point
in dealing with racism
and ethnic pride.
First man and woman
created the image of God.
Genesis chapter 1
verse 27.
Now in case you're thinking
I'm just starting my sermon now
just relax.
That was all
all the introductions
part of it.
Okay.
It's all part of it
and we're going to get there
real quick.
Okay.
God created man
in his own image
in the image of God
he created him
male and female
he created them.
That verse is utterly profound
and significant
and full of implications
on this issue
of racism
and ethnic pride.
Adam and Eve
were created
in the image of God.
Subsequent human beings
born from Adam and Eve
are also
in the image of God.
Genesis 5 verse 3
says when Adam had lived
130 years
he had a son
in his own likeness
in his own image
and he named him Seth.
The words likeness
and image there
in Genesis 5
are the same two words
that are back there
in Genesis chapter 1.
The point is
the image of God
keeps going on
and on
and on.
The first pair
Adam and Eve
are not the only ones
in the image of God.
Those who come from them
are also
in the image of God
and the implication
is the unity
of the human race.
That's the implication.
Every human
that flows
from Adam and Eve
is created
in the image of God
and there is
no human
that doesn't flow
from Adam and Eve.
That's the biblical premise
right there
from the beginning
of the Bible
in Genesis chapter 1.
Now I don't want
to go into all the detail
of what it means
to be
in the image of God.
We could argue
till we are blue
in the face
about rationality
and morality
and free will
and all these other things
that would distinguish us
from the monkeys
and dogs and cats
and other stuff like that
and unfortunately
the Bible at this point
doesn't put a big footnote
underneath to say
just to clarify
what I mean
by the image of God.
Possibly
a better thing to do
rather than pick
one of these
wonderful human traits
is to say
that all of them
whatever they are
are designed
to image forth
God
in a way
that no other
created being can.
That's what it means.
We display
we image forth God
we mirror God
in a way
that no other
created thing can.
What that means is
being made in the image
of God
is not just a status
it's a mission.
It has a purpose
attached to it.
That is
for the glory of God.
Human traits
like God
that display
His glory
that's what they're there for.
And so rather than argue
about the details
let's take it
as a mission
to mirror God
to live in such a way
that when people
see us
they see a reflection
of the character
of the quality
of God
and that is
a huge calling.
The extreme
dignity
of human beings
above all
other creatures
is for the sake
of magnifying
the majesty
of God.
And I think
that's the point
of Psalm 8
which was read out
to us
right at the beginning
by Gary.
It begins with
O Lord
our Lord
how majestic
is your name
in all the earth.
And it ends
in the same way
in verse 9
O Lord
our Lord
how majestic
is your name
in all the earth.
God is majestic.
They're the bookends
of Psalm 8.
There's the beginning
there's the end.
That's what it's all about.
It's about
the majesty
of God.
And so it's interesting
about how the rest
of the Psalm
fits into
that theme.
You have set
your glory
above the heavens
from the lips
of children
and infants
you have
ordained praise
because of your enemies
to silence
the foe and the avenger
when I consider
your heavens
and the work
of your fingers
the moon
and the stars
which you have
set in place
what is man
that you are
mindful of him
the son of man
that you care
for him
and what's
the answer
to that question
in Psalm 8
you made him
a little lower
than the heavenly
beings
and crowned him
with glory
and honour
or a better
translation
you have crowned him
with glory
and majesty
and then the
psalmist
goes on
describing
the uniqueness
of man
you made him
ruler over
the works
of your hands
you put everything
under his feet
all flocks
and herds
and the beasts
of the field
the birds
of the air
the fish
of the sea
all that swim
the paths
of the seas
that's
the
mandate
from Genesis 1
coming out
there
to
created
and exercise
dominion
over the
created order
but the psalm
having described
the majesty
of man
the psalm
doesn't finish
with
oh Lord
how majestic
are people
he did say
that
a bit earlier
but that's not
the point
of the psalm
the psalm
ends with
oh Lord
our Lord
how majestic
is your name
in all the earth
the psalm
ends with
a point
of praise
to God
which means
the point
of our
subordinate
majesty
the majesty
that sits
under God's majesty
above all
the other creation
of the world
all the creatures
the fish
and the birds
the point
of it all
is for the praise
of the majesty
of God
that's why
we're made
in the image
of God
is for his
glory
and his majesty
his praise
which means
at the very least
that if you
demean
and belittle
anyone created
for that
end
you demean
God
you rupture
his purpose
for all people
creating his image
to show him
as majestic
and so
this creation
doctrine
of the image
of God
even apart
from redemption
in Jesus
has massive
implications
for example
the horror
of unjustly
destroying
or harming
another human
being
in Genesis
9-6
whoever sheds
the blood
of man
by man
shall his
blood be shed
for in
the image
of God
has God
made
man
there's a sermon
there in and of
itself
to do with
capital punishment
abortion
and euthanasia
all there
and the point
there is
taking the life
of another man
is not
to show you
how invaluable
a human life
is
is to put
the value
of human life
as
there's only
one thing
that can be done
for a person
who deliberately
takes the life
of another person
that is
for their life
to be taken
now
that's the principle
trying to work out
how to do it
justly
that's another matter
all together
I won't kind of
get into that bit
the image of God
has massive implications
for the way we speak
to another human being
James chapter 3
with the tongue
we praise our Lord
and Father
and with it
we curse men
who have been made
in God's likeness
and he ends it there
with how can that be
you cannot speak
to another human being
like that
because of the image
of God
and both of those
arguments
are straight out
of creation
apart from
redemption
in Jesus
the image of God
has massive implications
for racial pride
and ethnocentricity
in Acts chapter 17
which is read out to us
Paul makes
the common origins
of human beings
the ground
of equality
and the end
of ethnic arrogance
Paul is here
he's in Athens
he's speaking
to the Athenians
and they were
very very proud people
they had two classes
of people
the Athenians
and everyone else
they were all
barbarians
that's what they regarded
cavemen sort of stuff
you know barbarians
that was everyone else
everyone else
was lower
than what they were
and Paul gets
one sermon
to this group
and what does he say
to them
I'll pick it up
in verse 24
the God who made
the world
and everything in it
is the Lord
of heaven and earth
and does not live
in temples
made by hands
and he is not
served by human hands
as if he needed
anything
because he himself
gives all men
life and breath
and everything else
from one man
he made
every nation
of men
why does he say that
I mean he could have
said a thousand things
to him
why does he say this
from one man
he made every nation
of men
that they should
inhabit the whole earth
and he determined
the time set for them
and the exact places
where they should live
see what he's doing
Paul walks in here
to these Athenians
and he says
you Athenians
you think you're
so special
you think
that you
have got
some unique
origin
they thought
they popped
out of the soil
like carrots
they weren't
connected
to anyone else
you think
that the barbarians
are so
inferior to you
I got something
to tell you
you and the barbarians
are you hate
you've got
the same daddy
and God decides
where you're going
to end up
and God decides
how you're going
to look
and he's going
to decide
the way you're
going to talk
you're all connected
what's God's goal
in making all
this diversity
God did this
so that men
would seek him
and perhaps
reach out for him
and find him
just like
W.H. Auden did
though he is not
far from each
of us
for in him
we live
we move
and have our
being
and some
of our
own poets
have said
we are his
offspring
a glance
against the
claims of
racial superiority
Paul here
asserts the
unity of
all people
it is
fundamental
to his
theology
he's using
this theology
here to
undermine
pride
and arrogance
and segregation
and superiority
and oppression
and instead
to turn it
around
see the
common origins
of all
people
the unity
of all
people
and especially
the unity
of all
people
under God
God wants
all people
to be unified
in their
seeking of him
through the
Lord Jesus
so my point
today
is that the
Christian doctrine
of creation
itself
apart from
redemption
in Jesus
makes a
very significant
contribution
to dealing
with racism
and ethnic
pride
God
himself
this is what
we're going
to look at
more as we
go in the
weeks
God himself
affirms it
by coming
to his
creation
in the
person of
Jesus
Christ
the image
bearer of
the father
in such a way
that he says
you see me
you see God
he is the
image bearer
of the father
he goes to
the cross
to right
all of
our
wrongs
to bring us
together in
unity
but that's
for another
day
friends
for us
right now
really simply
the diversity
at St.
Paul's
is really
really obvious
there is
always a
threat that
this diversity
could fracture
us rather
than create
a marvellous
gospel unity
St.
Paul's
mission statement
says it
exists to
know Jesus
treasure Jesus
and represent
Jesus for
God's glory
and the joy
of all
people
the all
people
is deliberate
our mission
statement is
represented
visibly
in our
church
logo
it
represents
a racial
diversity
people from
every tribe
and language
and people
and nation
at all
different stages
of being
united together
around
Jesus
so we're
going to get
to Jesus
around
Jesus
that is
our mission
it's our
mission now
because that
is our
future
together
for all of
eternity
but that's
week five
let me pray
and
exactly
so we pray
we pray
we pat
remember
we pray
we had
our
我enti
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