The voices of some of the people are shouting, “Black lives matter.” They are absolutely right. Though we aren’t hearing it said, white lives matter. Indian lives matter. Chinese and Japanese lives matter. The lives of every nation on this earth matter. But we don’t need the voice of the people to tell us that. We have the voice of God. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27 ESV). When man was created, he was created in the spiritual likeness of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

After the flood, the entire earth contained human beings, all speaking the same language. They tried to stay together, but God confused their languages so that they would scatter and populate the earth (Genesis 11). But man, though separated into different nations, still maintained what he was from the beginning of time—created in the image of God.

Throughout time, nations have developed and grown. The color of a man’s skin helps to distinguish his nationality. His speech, whether an accent or a different language, helps to identify him. But whatever color he is, whatever language he speaks, whatever accent he has, he is still a creation of God. He still has the same opportunity to be a child of God.

So someone may ask, “How do you know this?” You need only to turn to Acts 2. There we find twelve men who were Galileans speaking to people in languages they had never spoken before. They were Parthians, Medes, Elamites, those from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontius, Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, Libya, and Rome. There were Jews, Cretans, and Arabians all together in Jerusalem to celebrate Pentecost (Acts 2:9-11). The purpose of these twelve men speaking was to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. Later, a preacher named Philip, taught a man from Ethiopia and baptized him (Acts 8). These men were following the instructions of Jesus. Jesus said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20).

The current attitude in our country today is not new. It has existed through every generation since the beginning of time. The apostle Paul dealt with it, as did other first century preachers. Paul made it clear when he said, “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him” (Romans 10:12). Paul was chosen to preach to the Gentiles. They were given equal opportunity in the Kingdom of God, but they were subject to the same teaching given to the Jews. They had to obey the same instructions presented to every nation under heaven.

Cornelius was a Gentile soldier. He was “A devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God” (Acts 10:2). Peter had to be told by divine revelation that Gentiles were acceptable in the Kingdom of God. At the home of Cornelius, Peter proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  One of the things he told Cornelius was, “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him” (Acts 10:34-35).

The voices of the people today aren’t shouting out the Good News of the gospel. They are shouting out unrest and destruction. Instead of the current battle cry proclaimed by a few, we should be shouting out that God loves everyone and sent His Son to die for all nations (John 3:16).

Along with the battle cry comes the breaking of the law. That is no different than those that have broken the law throughout the history of mankind.

After the Israelites took Jericho, a man named Achan took some things from the city. They had been commanded to take nothing. This is what God said to Joshua, “Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings” (Joshua 7:10). Because of Achan’s sin, “All Israel stoned him with stones. They burned them with fire and stoned them with stones” (Joshua 7:25).

 King David saw a beautiful woman. He inquired about her, sent for her, and he committed adultery with her. She became pregnant, so David killed her husband in battle and took her for himself. When Nathan, the prophet, confronted David for his sin, he made plain the charges against him. “Why have you despised the word of the LORD, to do what is evil in his sight?” (Second Samuel 12:9).

 King Ahab wanted what did not belong to him. He wanted a vineyard that belonged to Naboth, land that was Naboth’s inheritance. Jezebel, Ahab’s wife, wrote letters in Ahab’s name and brought in two witnesses to make charges against Naboth. The men of the city did what Jezebel had told them to do. “So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones” (First Kings 21:13). Ahab went to the vineyard and took possession of it (verse 16).

When Jesus stood before Pilate, the people were stirred up by the chief priests and elders. They persuaded the crowd to destroy Jesus (Matthew 27:20). The people cried out, “His blood be on us and on our children!” (verse 25). So they crucified the Lord. They tried Him illegally, beat Him, took His clothes, and killed Him. Sound familiar?

The voice of the people can take away our possessions. They can burn and loot and destroy. They can even take our lives. What they cannot do is plot our destiny if we are faithful and obedient to God. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 7:10-12).

Sandra Oliver