Book Recommendation: Kingdom Race Theology

 

There is a deep tension in our society right now when it comes to the issue of race and racial relations. Up until recently, I have found many of the methods to identify and answer these questions to be severely wanting. They would either deny there is a problem or take the problem so far as to think racism permeates every single part of life, separating people into classes originally devised by Marxist ideology.

So what are we to do? How can we address these questions thoughtfully and realistically while still remaining faithful to the framework of Scripture? One thing the dominant perspective gets right is stating that there is a problem. The thing it fails to do is offer the only true answer to the problem: the ultimate atonement for sin on the cross.

In Tony Evans's book, he lays things out frankly and honestly. He does not pull punches in seeing how the Bible addresses the issues of racial tension we are seeing today. And this goes for both sides of the aisle. Racism is real, and it does exist, and those who are followers of Jesus deny the basic reality of a person being an image bearer if they are racist. There is no room for racism in God's Kingdom. Likewise, he leaves no room for those who seek to divide us by our melanin levels, as is with the derivatives of critical theory. He shows that in the gospel, there is a unity in Christ that bridges all divides and brings true reconciliation.

At the end, there is a provided list, particularly for black and white Christians, of serious questions to be considered. I found it challenging and hopeful. While it certainly pressed points of things I have not considered before, it is done wholly in the love and grace of Jesus, and it does so for both lists. Whoever reads it will feel challenged to do better and to love more.

I highly recommend this book. It provides a path forward that is not found at the whims of questionable philosophical origins and frameworks, and is wholly built upon the transformative power of the gospel. Unlike some of the other options that are out there to wholly focus on what makes us different and always left me feeling misunderstood or angered, Evans's take points us ultimately to the cross that reconciles us all together to God. If the divide of sin and death could be resolved, so can our divisions over race as well.

You can find the book here - https://a.co/d/aT1WgNE