THE MORAL ISSUE OF PREJUDICE PART 9 OF 10
Text - Acts 10: 1-35 * vs 34-35
INTRODUCTION
Tonight we’re going to continue with the series of messages that I’ve been preaching on the topic of biblical morality and the issues of morality that we’re facing in our country today. This is one of the things that has been spotlighted on television and in newspapers over the last two months. It’s been a topic that I think all of us need to understand what the Bible says about it.
In the past year, over 30 black churches have been burned throughout our nation. That’s a terribly horrific crime? That anybody would burn a church, whether it be white, black, Asian or whatever denomination, whatever ethnic background, whatever group of people would be meeting in that building is terrible.
Our own church has even experienced this. We actually have pictures in our church library of when the auditorium of this church was burned out. The pews were burned and everything was charred. It is just a terrible looking scene. But some of the pictures that we have been viewing on television of these burned buildings, have literally been burned to the ground. Nothing but ashes left, and what a terrible thing to go through as a congregation, as a group of people - to come to church and find your building completely burned to the ground.
Prejudice is rampant within our society today, isn’t it? It is something that we deal with on a regular basis. It is a moral issue that we face. It is something that the Bible speaks about and we need to understand how God feels about this. And there are some things that I am sure that you have read in the newspapers and seen on the news, that you probably could tell me stories on this topic concerning prejudice.
Well let’s look at what the Bible says about some people that struggled with this in their own life – good people. People who were Christian people. People who were Christian leaders who struggled with this issue. We’re looking at Acts 10, beginning in verse 1 where it says:
Acts 10:1 Now there was a man at Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort.
We’ve already looked at who Cornelius was, the kind of role he had, what kind of job he had. What was his ethnic background? It was Italian. And who was Peter, or should I say, what kind of ethnic background did Peter have? He was Jewish. Peter was a Jew and Cornelius was a Gentile.
In Biblical times, there was great animosity between Jews and Gentiles, weren’t there? Great animosity. The Gentiles were people who were considered to be great sinners by the Jews, they were considered to be as low as dogs in some cases, and yet we find here this man Cornelius was a devote man who feared God with all his household, gave alms to the Jewish people, and prayed to God continually. And God heard his prayer, didn’t He?
Read verses 2-8
Acts 10:9 On the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray.
There Peter saw in a vision unholy animals that were in a sheet. And God said “eat it” – Peter refused to do that on three occasions, and God told him that what He has cleansed, is no longer to be considered unholy.
Read verses 10-22
Acts 10:34-35 Opening his mouth, Peter said: "I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, 35but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him.
Isn’t that wonderful? Let me read verse 34 again.
“I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, . . .”
I believe that Simon – or Peter – learned a lesson from God in this case - one that he struggled with throughout his entire life, throughout his entire ministry, as an Apostle, as a man of God. And folks, I know that there some Christians today that are also dealing with this moral issue of prejudice. Some church members deal with this issue of prejudice in their own personal life.
Go over to the book of Galatians in Chapter 2, and as you’re going there, I want to relate to you a story about a woman who was in Washington D.C. and was attending a banquet and found herself seated next to a man from China. And looking at this individual who was from China, she presumed that he didn’t understand any English and she figured that she had to, at some time or another, carry on a conversation with him, because she was seated right next to him. When the soup was served, she asked the Chinese man, “Likee soupee?” The man, with oriental dignity bowed his head, affirming that he did, smiled very politely, saying nothing.
When the salad was served, the woman asked, “Likee saladee?” Again, the man very politely bowed his head, affirming yes, and said nothing.
The meat was then served. The woman asked, “Likee meatee?” The man, again, very politely bowed his head, affirming yes, and didn’t say a word.
After the meal was all over, the master of ceremonies stood up to present the guest speaker for the evening, and to this woman’s shock, the Chinese man next to her stood up, went to the podium, and spoke in absolutely flawless, perfect, unaccented English. When he was finished he turned to the woman very politely, smiled, bowed his head very politely, and asked “Likee speechee?”
Aren’t we awful the way we look at people and think, because of the way they look, they must act a certain way, have certain traits, certain characteristics, certain things that we automatically assume must be that way just because of their appearance?
It’s like the person (I spoke on this issue not long ago, the moral issue of homosexuality), when we look at somebody who is a little bit different from your normal every day, macho-type of man, who has maybe a little bit of effeminate characteristic to him, we automatically brand that person as a homosexual, don’t we?
I walked in the church one Sunday with a pink shirt, and what happened? Automatically, some people made comments about the pink shirt that I was wearing and then had to try to give me pink socks. But that’s the way we are, aren’t we?
We look at a trait, we look at a characteristic, we say “ah, that person is this way.” If we see a bunch of Indians walking in single file, from then on, we say “All American Indians walk in single file.” That’s just the way we are. And we automatically brand them all with that characteristic, because we saw one act that way, because we saw one individual act or speak or do a certain thing, we automatically brand everyone in that ethnic or culture group the same way. We paint them with the same brush.
Folks, God – it says in verse 34 of our text, “He is not one to show partiality” and neither should we be.
Go over now to Galatians Chapter 2, verse 11, it says:
Galatians 2:11 But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned.
Who is Cephas? He’s Peter. The same Peter we just looked at in Acts 10.
This was Paul, saying I confronted him, we had a clash, we had a confrontation, and he says because “he stood condemned.” What was the problem that was in Peter’s life? Go onto verse 12:
Galatians 2:12 For prior to the coming of certain men from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he began to withdraw and hold himself aloof, fearing the party of the circumcision.
So prior to the coming of the Jews, what happened? Peter used to eat with the Gentiles, but now that the Jews are there, he’s no longer eating with the Gentiles.
It says, “but when they came, he began to withdraw and hold himself aloof fearing the party of the circumcision.”
I want you to understand why some people are prejudice and how to overcome this issue in our lives today.