Dear Black Christians,

Righteous Principles are not the property of a particular faith, but the heritage of ALL people of faith and principle. This letter speaks from faith to faith. Disagreement is expected; sincerity is assumed.

Black and Christian myself, I have the opportunity to be among you and hear the things said in some of our circles. In our churches, the preachers say the right things and read from the Bible of the teachings of Jesus.

However, once we leave church and get into our daily living, there are some problems. Our walk with Christ and the teachings of Jesus, particularly from the Books of Saint Matthew and Luke chapter five and six, respectively, needs review.

Let’s talk about it.

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

— Jesus via St Matthew 5:43–45

Source: For His Glory TX

For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye, therefore, perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

— Jesus via St. Matthew 5:46–48

Source: Grace Community Church: Glen Rose, TX

The Sermon on the Mount, given by Jesus, is of great spiritual value because it contains the teachings of Jesus as recorded and understood by the writers in the Bible. The words are not identical in each account, but if they were, then it would mean that the recorders, particularly Matthew and Luke, were the same person experiencing the same feelings at the same time using the same brain patterns.

I want to get it out of the way that multiple people wrote the account of the Sermon on the Mount down years after it happened, but I assume that most of us can agree that the Bible is a good source of information for Jesus’ words, despite the men who wrote the words focusing on different aspects of His teachings. The sentiment is the same as quoted in the verses above, love our enemies.

For the sake of examining Christ’s command, I will speak as if all White people are our enemies. We can save the qualifications for a different conversation.

Their ancestors oppressed our ancestors. Their grandparents and parents refused our grandparents and parents service in public places, making it difficult for them to pursue their dreams and so forth.

Whether real or imagined, even today, we may feel like Whites curse us and talk about us in derision. They hate us for being different and for reminding them of the evil they perpetuated toward our ancestors. They despitefully used us and abused us and persecuted us for years!

Feelings do matter because they frame our perception of life. Jesus understood that. Facts care nothing for feelings, but mercy, as it is offered through Christ, cares because He tells us to put our feelings aside.

But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

— Jesus via St. Luke 6:35–36

Modern Adaptation of St. Matthew and Luke’s words

Black Christians, even with all of the justification that some of us use to speak ill of and dislike or hate White people, Jesus asks us to be different than what comes naturally to us.

The natural man is an enemy to God because he gives in to the base desires that require no temperance, no self-control. If Whites are our enemies, Jesus invites us:

• Love your enemies, the White people.
• Bless the White people that curse you,
• Do good to the White people who hate you.
• Pray for the White people who despitefully use you, and persecute you.

Why?

Jesus taught so that we “may be the children of our Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45).

If that is not a good enough reason, Jesus tells us further that we must be perfect like our Father in Heaven is perfect.

Luke heard the Lord say, “ye shall be the children of the Highest: for He is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (Luke 6:35–36).

The point is, Black Christians, Jesus wants to groom us to become like God, and He can only do that if we put aside offense and be as Jesus invites us to be, full of love and forgiveness, service and prayer.

Source: Matthews UMC

Invitation to Healing

Jesus spoke to the multitudes of people in and around ancient Jerusalem who were in the throes of oppression by the Romans. The Romans looked down on them, which triggered hate and offense. Hate was in the hearts of many, but Jesus wanted them to rise above the hate, which comes naturally when someone mistreats us.

He wants that same thing today.

He can work miracles through us if we allow His healing nature to take away our bitterness and animosity towards the White people — especially when we recognize that White Christians are invited to do the same things that we are invited to do.

We can help each other be true followers of Jesus.

Dearly beloved brothers and sisters, my Black Christians. This letter is not one to berate or spread hate, as has been the message of many who want to call us out on our behavior.

It is an invitation to become more like Jesus in an effort to make the world a better place. Also, when He comes to rule, He will recognize us as the people He wants to have rule and reign with Him in glory.

Black Christianity is no different from all other types in that it is about perfection through Christ.

One of my favorite teachings is written by an ancient American prophet named Moroni. He wrote:

Come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God. Moroni 10:35

We are invited to be perfect in Christ. Jesus invites us to put away our ungodly thoughts and words and love God by keeping His commandments. If we do these things, the grace of Christ is enough to bring us to perfection in His glory.

What does that look like?

It looks like us being as giving and loving as Jesus when He walked the streets of Jerusalem blessing people and serving people.

It looks like us not being overly concerned with image and pride. It looks like freedom from oppression because we are willing to let it go.

It looks like peace, beginning with the individual, then the family, then the community, then the nations and world, to prepare for the coming of Jesus, our King.

He is King not only because He is all-powerful, but he invites us to do good and share in His glory, the epitome of unselfishness.

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Brothers. Sisters.

We are hurting because of the past and the present. We hurt because of the possible futures that our children will endure because of what now occurs in the streets of America!

When will there be peace? When will Black bodies stop dropping at each other’s hands? When will White people stop telling us to get over the past?

I don’t know these answers.

What I can tell, family, is that we will get further by following the teachings of Christ than by following the ways of the world.

We tell the world that Black Lives Matter, by the way, we live our lives and the things we do and say.

God will help us fight our battles of racism and bigotry if we fight the battle of hate within us against our enemies and focus on seeking justice for all and understanding for all.

Black Lives Matter because Jesus came to suffer for our sins and rise from the dead, offering us the same rising.

Yes, Black lives matter as much as White lives. We know we are not free of oppression here, but with Christ as our Advocate, we will be.

No more hate for Whites, but more trust for Christ.

Sincerely

Rodric Anthony Johnson

Your fellow disciple of Jesus Christ