The Scourge Of Racism
Book Overview And Chapter Synopsis The Scourge Of Racism |
By Robert Kelley
©2023 Open Door Communication Ministries, Inc.
I. OVERVIEW
Racism is a historic evil practiced in the larger American society and within the professing Body of believers making up the Church of Jesus Christ. This evil has been upheld for centuries and is fully entrenched and tolerated especially among professed Christian white conservative evangelicals, but is also practiced by a number of professed Christian black and other minorities. The primary purpose of this book is to expose and biblically confront racism among evangelicals, call for repentance and challenge all to become the solution as Christ’s Church led out by aspiring strong men of God in His image!
II. CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
The Scourge Of Racism can be divided into five major parts:
1. Part I: Racism Is An Undeniable Reality In The American Church.
As the Lord leads, one of the reasons I am concerned the American Church
is not taking racism in our midst seriously enough is because of denial. I
devote Chapter One, The Reality Of Racism to skimming the historic and
contemporary surface of the very real evidentiary presence of racism in
America, the world and the Church.
2. Part II: Racism Causes Real Pain.
I spend two chapters of the book discussing the pain racism causes using
observation, Holy Spirit enabled reasoning and personal experiences. In
Chapter Two, The Sting Of Racism, for example, the Lord leads me to use
the sting of a bee to illustrate the stages of possible injury involved in what
racism does to its object. I talk about not only blacks and other minorities
as the injured of racism, but whites too.
In Chapter Three, Racism Encounters In The First Person, I disclose my
awakening to racism as a child and serve up enough personal incidents
into adulthood after it in and outside of that segment of the Church that
identifies as conservative evangelicalism to adequately demonstrate my
acquaintance with its injurious nature. I am also transparent about some
of my failures and spiritual immaturity along the way.
3. Part III: Racism Is Not Biblically Supported.
Two chapters are used to remind readers what the divine attitude is toward
racism in a biblical worldview. In Chapter Four, The God Of The Bible And
Racism, Scripture is objectively interpreted and applied to clearly show God
does not condone or endorse the racial bigotry or discrimination involved in
racism.
Chapter Five, Love Covers A Multitude Of Sins, presents instruction on the
love required by Christ of His followers and fired by the Holy Spirit as the
biblically taught remedy for racism within the Church.
4. Part IV: A Biblical Call To Repentance And Warning.
In two chapters the Lord leads me to issue His call to repentance and a
warning for continued obstinacy. Chapter Six, Healing The Wounds Of
Racism, pulls no punches in discussing the tough road for healing with too
many pride-filled hearts that requires humility to repent from sin. Repen-
tance however, is the Lord’s mandatory first step toward healing the rela-
tional wounds in His Church and evangelicalism.
Chapter Seven, The American Church And Samson, compares the minis-
try of Samson, his conduct and the outcomes with the American Church
as a word from the Lord on why His judgment is growing increasingly se-
vere in the failure to more urgently and intentionally deal with racism and
other sins in the midst. In the comparison with Samson as well, the hope
of the Lord allowing a repentant American Church to go out victoriously,
yet painfully at His predetermined end is presented.
5. Part V: Strong Men Of God In Christ’s Image Leading The Way.
The final Chapter Eight, The Strong Man Of God And Racism, sounds
the call for conservative evangelical leaders and men, white, black and
every other hue to aspire to become strong men of God in the image of
Christ in order to rise up to lead the way to implementing the Lord’s solu-
tions for removing the sin of racism from His Church. Endnotes and a
Bibliography referencing works by Dr. Billy Graham, Chuck Colson and
Rev. John Perkins with my own book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To
Basics among others are featured. A Study Guide with individual thought
and/or group discussion provoking questions is also available at the end
of the book.
Listen to the author talk about the book on the popular Podcast, Challenges
Of Faith Radio hosted by Gary McCants. Read the author's bio.