Paul’s Challenge of Discrimination
Paul spoke in Galatians about God not showing favouritism to anyone. Now at the time there were Gentiles being added to the church. This went against Jewish tradition as historically the Jews did not associate with people from other cultures. It was Peter who God showed the vision which was interpreted to mean that God had made all people equal and loved. And as such, it was ungodly for him to discriminate because no one whom God made was uncommon or unclean. (Acts 10)
Paul’s ministry was mainly to the uncircumcised or to those who were not Jews and he observed that Peter’s behaviour was often discriminatory. “For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party.” (Galatians 2:12) Paul noticed that Peter was too afraid of the opinion of others and treated the Gentiles differently depending on who was around.
The Devil does not like unity and we have to guard against favouritism and discrimination. It is often easiest to associate with the people who look like, think like and act like us. We can sometimes create circles that unfairly exclude other people. This should not be the case among Christians and we should remember that heaven will include people from every nation and culture.
We have to make an intentional effort to try to understand other people’s way of life. We have to continuously make an effort to ensure that people within our sphere of influence feel valued, worthy of acceptance, loved and included. This is especially important for people in positions of leadership. Organisations and groups that include diverse input in the creation and implementation of programs do better as this guarantees a rich blend of experience and expertise. This in an effort to meet the needs of a diverse audience which impacts the growth and relevance of our organisations.
A.P.-Y.
Published by Anneta Pinto-Young
I am a trained Social Worker who currently provides professional leadership on a programme to support Social Work students and Newly Qualified Social Workers entering the Social Work Profession.
Born and raised in Jamaica in a Christian family where my father is an ordained Pastor and Deacon who has served for over 50 years in the ministry. My father is also a trained musician and our family can be described as a musical family. I grew up in a small farming community in St. Peter’s, St. Andrew and my parents also have a small farm.
I credit my gift of writing to my father who I watched and listened to over the years as he wrote sermons, poems and other recitals in his capacity in ministry. English has always been an easy subject for me and over the years I have developed an increased interest in writing.
I am a Trainer, I sing and have a passion for worship, the spoken word and the free flow of the prophetic anointing. I am married to my best friend Andrew Christopher Young who is an advanced Musician and whose music you can find on YouTube and Facebook. I am a trained Coach and Mentor and I love experimenting with food so I love cooking. I enjoy trying cultural dishes from across the world and I view food as an entry into cultures and languages.
View all posts by Anneta Pinto-Young
Published
October 14, 2020
