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6.02.2006    |    A natural fit
Slavery and Christianity, that is. Naomi Schaefer Riley's article, "Equal Before God" in today's WSJ poses the question "Why did masters want their slaves to be Christians?"

That's a good question, but the better one is, "why did any slaves remain in the faith?" My answer should be clear to those who can read Scripture: we suffer, with our Savior, on this side of the cross. In different words, life is harsh, and we look to the world to come for comfort. But on this side of the cross, in this life, we grit our teeth, bear our burdens, knowing that God is with us -- Immanuel.

I can't imagine what it must have been like to be a slave, but I've seen some hard times and know that faith in God has pulled me through. There are many in today's generation that could not do what I had to; just as I don't know that I could do what a slave had to.

The key word is suffering: for Christ; with Christ. This, to me, is the message: one that complements, and is a natural fit, to being a slave in this world. Those who suffer simply for having been born the wrong color must know that God loves them, especially. Just as He loved His only son, but allowed that, before Jesus returned to the Father, "first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation" (Luke 17:25).

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posted by John Luke at 10:44 AM

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About this site and the author

Welcome. My name is John Luke Rich, (very) struggling Christian. The focus here is Christianity in its many varieties, its fussing and feuding, how it impacts our lives and our society, with detours to consider it with other faiths (or lack thereof).

Call this blog my way of evangelizing on the internet.

Putting it differently, we're only here on this earth a short time. It's the rest of eternity that we should be most concerned about. Call it the care and feeding of our souls.

I was born Jewish, and born again in Christ Jesus over thirty years ago. First as a Roman Catholic; now a Calvinist by persuasion and a Baptist by denomination. But I'm hardly a poster boy for doctrinal rigidity.

I believe that Scripture is the rock on which all Christian churches must stand -- or sink if they are not so grounded. I believe that we are saved by faith, but hardly in a vacuum. That faith is a gift from God, through no agency on our part -- although we sometimes turn a deaf ear and choose to ignore God's knocking on the door.

To be Christian is to evangelize. Those who think it not their part to evangelize perhaps haven't truly understood what our Lord told us in Matthew 28. We must preach the Gospel as best we are able. Using words if necessary.

Though my faith waxes and wanes, it never seems to go away. Sometimes I wish it would, to give me some peace of mind. But then, Jesus never said that walking with Him was going to be easy...

Final note: I also blog as Jack Rich on cultural, political and other things over at Wrong Side of the Tracks

Thanks for stopping by.