Our church finished a lent series through the book of Judges leading up to Easter. Judges is probably one of the most savage and heart-breaking books in the bible…it records what happened when people turned away from God and did as they saw fit. It is easy for us to judge others and say, “Well, we would never go that far”…but here we are in the 21st century hearing news story after news story of shocking atrocities.
So what are we to do in such times? There is a central theme that repeats throughout the book, which is that the people forget God, and so get more and more lost. So let’s get back on track by doing the reverse of Judges 8:34, that it may be said “and they did not remember the Lord their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side.”
So I’m returning back to a practice of one modern way of making “memorial stones” to remember the works of God I’ve witnessed in my life (see here for #1-15, and here for #16-29), and to access that living God here and NOW!
30. T.P. asked for prayer for the pain in his body. I prayed that God’s word be like a fire in his bones. The next day he contacted me to tell me that he was healed from the pain in his bones and that it hadn’t come back since.
31. (Aug 2012) In a particularly discouraging season of ministry of youth pulling back from God, I was praying for some guys I hadn’t seen in a while and as I drove to youth group, and I saw two of them (H* & I*) crossing the street in front of me. We talked and they came to youth group that night as well as another brother, T* I hadn’t seen in a long time, and he was excited about re-engaging in praying for a friend.
32. (2014) As I had been growing in practicing listening prayer, God confirmed multiple times through others what I was hearing from God. I prayed for Isa and saw an image of a flower, which was confirmed by Vero who also saw a flower. In another time of prayer I shared seeing a vision of a desert scene that matched exactly what Blumey had seen in prayer. While praying for Claudia I saw a vision of a beanstalk. Candiss, who needed encouragement in that season, also saw the same thing in prayer but was afraid it was just her. In prayed for my friend K* I saw a vision of a pink and white stripe turning vertical to intersect with a nest. K* confirms that his wife was pregnant, which was an unexpected turn that would be hard but encouraged to pray for good. Time and again I am reminded that God does see, speak, and know us.
33. (2015.02.15) Our church was in a place of financial difficulty to pay for our needs. We challenged the church to give and the monthly offering commitment doubled!
34. (2015.02.25) I had left my keys hanging in the lock of our front door facing the street overnight and it was still there in the morning!
35. (2015.03.27). Ji (and me too) was so discouraged after losing bid after bid for a house (probably about a dozen by this point). She was in tears crying that we’d never be able to get a home. On my way to view yet another house I told God that if we even get in for a house we’ll know it’s from Him. As I arrived they gave us keys to the house that very day, cheaper than what we were willing to pay. On top of this, by a sort of mistake, the seller decided to legally make the house into a duplex so the city got involved and held the seller accountable to make a lot of repairs. We live in this house to this day.
36. Gus was experiencing spiritual attack of a sudden sickness as he was prepping to give a word for the coming Sunday. Me and Isabel prayed for him and he felt a progression into healing. As I rebuked it he felt it pulling his head, and then Isabel prayed and he felt it break off.
37. (2016.01) In a hotel parking lot, I forgot I had left my van with the engine running and the keys in the ignition. A couple hours later late at night, Louis and Phil noticed it and told me! (If you inspect my life there is a pattern here of forgetfulness! The deliverances from so many of these situations points to a God who is looking out for me, even in my carelessness!)
38. (2016.07.17) In prayer I share seeing the spirit like a bright bird hovering. This is doubly confirmed by Chris who on his own saw Isaiah 31 (v. 5 reads: Like birds hovering overhead, the Lord Almighty will shield Jerusalem; he will shield it and deliver it, he will ‘pass over’ it and will rescue it.”) and Gus got an image of the shadow of wings.
39. (2017.04.04) As I prayed for Megan I got a sense of James 1:2-4. After sharing this with her she told me that she had just read James 1 and had journaled about verse 2, earlier that day.
40. (2017.04.21) Liz R. had pain in her wrists so bad that she wanted to go to doctor. Sandra and I prayed for her hands. She immediately started feeling better as she felt heat and chills. We prayed for her a second time and she said she felt no more pain in her wrists.
41. (2017.05.30) I went out for a street outreach for d-school with Gina and Yvette. At a local park we offered to pray for a couple older ladies. Leticia asked us to pray for pain in her kneesthat doctors said would last for about 5 years after chemo. She was in her 3rd year. When we asked about her level of pain on a scale of 1 to 10 she said it was an 8. I prayed out loud along with Gina and Yvette. I felt something moving. I asked her how she felt and she said she felt warmth and the pain was gone. Not even on the scale. She was in joy that she could even move her leg. This encouraged the lady next to her, Uvala, to ask for prayer for her lungs. Gina prayed for her twice. Uvlala said she felt warmth and felt good.
42. (2017.06) During our mission trip to the Dominican Republic with ICM, we entered into a woman’s house and in prayer for her I saw an image of a pumpkin being carved out to shine light. The woman asks me to repeat what I said and asked for more of what I saw. She began to tear up. She brought out out a model pumpkin she owned that has a light in it to plug in. She felt seen by the Lord.
43. (2017.07.10). During my morning face time with Jesus, the passage was on having faith even as small as a mustard seed. I thought to myself “I believe help my unbelief.” I prayed to God to have more true faith. I turned my music app on (which was already set to random) and the first song that played contained the words “help my and unbelief”.
44. (2018.08.16) D* had been struggling with issues of swallowing her food and digestion. I offered to pray, as she had faith that God would and could heal her. I prayed for her by laying my hand on her back. She told me as soon as we started praying she could feel something pass through her and open her up.
45. (2018.08.23) In prayer for Carol I asked God what truth He wants to speak to her. God brought to my mind Zephaniah 3:17. It turns out that was passage that she had read that vey morning. (18.09.12) I listened with O* for God’s perspective on what He wanted to teach her through overwhelmingly difficult situations she was dealing with. I sensed the scripture of the end of Matthew Ch. 3 to Matthew 4:4. It turns out this was the section that she had stopped doing her facetime.
These are just some examples that I had recorded of how God sees, knows, and hears us. God is alive and wants a living relationship with us! He can deliver us in the ways that we need! What memorial stones do you have of God’s work in and through your life (and how can we access that today)?
This is a message I gave to the church family I grew up with about racism in the Church and why this is a gospel issue. Message begins at the 28:30 mark in the video below:
Here is a transcript of the message: INTRO Good morning West Covina Christian Church! Thank you so much for your prayers and financial support that allows me and my family to live and minister cross-race & cross-class for God’s Kingdom. With that in mind, Pastor Kory invited me to speak on this challenging passage in the bible that we’re tempted to skip right past. This passage touches on racism in the church. Okay, I know that this is a touchy topic but we must speak to it as even the early church struggled with this. The second part of the greatest commandment is to love our neighbor as ourselves, even those that are different from us! Now, before we jump into the passage and message I want to be sure to clarify what I mean by some terms
Race: When I say the word “race” I want to acknowledge that this is largely a socially constructed word, that generally defines differences of people groups by physical appearance, often by skin color. It’s more than just country or nationality alone.
Racial Prejudice: If you’re feeling defensive rise up within you, I want to recognize that we all struggle with prejudice. We all have the sinful tendency to pride and favoritism so why wouldn’t that touch our perception of racial differences?
I confess, even in my years of cross-race ministry I have to continually uncover and root out my own racial prejudice. Hopefully, it’s less now with God’s help.
Now our final term to clarify is Racism: Racism isn’t the same thing as individual racial prejudice. Racism is when racial prejudice works its way into systems, that is into whole groups and institutions, such that sometimes it takes on a life of its own, bigger than just one individual person’s choice.
Okay now that we clarified some words let’s open up our hearts to what God wants to speak to us from this episode in the early church narrated by the Apostle Paul. If we feel paralyzed when it comes to racism God wants to bring a word of clarity and hope!
Please stand if you’re able for the reading of God’s word from Galatians 2:11-21 (NIV) 11 When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. 13 The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.
14 When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?
15 “We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles 16 know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.
17 “But if, in seeking to be justified in Christ, we Jews find ourselves also among the sinners, doesn’t that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not! 18 If I rebuild what I destroyed, then I really would be a lawbreaker.
19 “For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!” Okay, how do we see racism in this passage?
Well first, in v.15 Paul states the Jewish view that “we are Jews by birth.” This means the Jewish race wasn’t something you could achieve nor was it dictated by WHERE you were born but rather your genes, specifically descendants of Jacob
Then you see racial prejudice appear in how some Jewish people viewed themselves in contrast to “sinful Gentiles” (Gentiles meaning anyone who’s NOT Jewish). Some felt superior to other non-Jews, even though Paul goes on to make clear that NO ONE is able to be righteous before the law except Jesus.
This racial prejudice became racism as it pressed into systems in how these Jewish people interacted with Gentiles. Jewish laws moved from certain foods being unclean into human traditions that Gentiles themselves were seen as unclean. In v.12 we learn of the circumcision group who insisted that all believers needed to follow Jewish ceremonial laws. Racial prejudice was not just individual here but became racism in that it permeated whole groups, institutions, and even laws.
THIS is what Paul the Apostle HAD to speak out against as the early Church was forming!
So what lessons can we learn about racism from this passage?
Racism is a gospel issue. Paul addresses the issue of racism here as a major gospel issue. So much so that he doesn’t talk to Peter in private about his error but calls him out in front of everyone, even his own leader, Baranabus, who was implicated!
Why? Because racism hinders the witness of the gospel!
You see, Peter, a leader of the church, was doing life with the Gentiles believers, making them feel like this gospel of Jesus connected them. But when these particular Jews came, Peter distanced himself from the Gentiles. How would you feel in the Gentiles’ shoes? Do racial hierarchies persist in the gospel, are we only second class citizens in God’s Kingdom, does Jesus’ love not extend all the way to me?
Gospel means good news. How can the gospel be good news if we still keep treating others just like the rest of the world?
The Gospel ceases to be good news if it means that we must still earn our place, especially if it’s through race specific rules. Paul ends this passage in v.21 by declaring: “I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”
Christ died for us when we were still sinners! The Good News of Jesus means we don’t have to be born or live a certain way BEFORE we can receive it.
Now as Paul says, in v.17-18, this doesn’t mean license to go on sinning and destroy ourselves but rather we NOW have the power of Jesus to live a different way. But these life changes are not to be conflated with forcing one specific racial expression of faith as more superior than others.
That’s why we must share the table with Christians of different cultural perspectives around the Word of God. No race has the monopoly on truth. God made us ALL in His image but different cultures came out of that and in heaven we’ll still have different tribes and tongues because no single race can reflect all the beauty and awesomeness of God.
Jesus says in John 13:35 “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” What should make Christians stand out from the world is how we love each other unconditionally, especially those that are different from us.
STORY (Locke students & WLA holiness church) I was a public high school English teacher for 8 years in a South LA neighborhood that was mostly Black and Brown. Over time I got to know my student’s lives, their stories, their families, their homes. God taught me so much of his heart of love and justice for those that are often overlooked and taken advantage of.
Some of the students found out I was Christian, and by God’s grace they wanted to come to my church. But the thing was, I went to church at WLA Holiness church which was majority Japanese American. But I started bringing them. It was a big cultural difference for them.
But they kept coming back. You know why? Because even through the awkwardness and mistakes, the WLA Church family, though racially and economically different, showed them love. Ate with them, invited them into their spaces, and began to love them like family.
So when the gospel of Jesus was shared with my students they received it with joy, because they had a better sense of what that good news looked like. Because you see racism IS a gospel issue.
What else do we learn about racism from this passage? Friendship is the start of breaking racial prejudice.
Cross-race friendships are a great place to start to combat racism.
Peter didn’t always hang out with Gentiles. In Acts 10 God had to speak to him in a vision 3 times to break him out of his racism. And even then he didn’t understand until God brought him to the house of a Gentile named Cornelius, had him preach the gospel to them, and the Holy Spirit manifested on them.
It was through relationship with the Gentiles, that Peter’s racial prejudice was broken down more so that, not only did he baptize the Gentiles, he began to eat with them, something he said he would never do.
Through sustained interaction and friendship, with real people of a different race, limiting stereotypes are unable to hold up.
To say “I don’t see color” isn’t actually helpful because what that conveys is that you still don’t see the full person. Colorblindness is still a kind of blindness. To have a real relationship with a person is to see the whole person, including their color and how that affects their experience for good and for bad.
And when i say friendship I DON’T mean a shallow one way relationship. When i say friendship, I mean a relationship that moves toward mutuality.
STORY: New Life Mutuality My wife and I sensed God calling us to love more holistically so we moved into LA city’s Eastside, amongst predominantly working class Latinos, learning from a church that was doing ministry in the community. I began to make friends in the neighborhood. But I must confess I had come in with an attitude of a savior where the help just flowed one way.
Gus is someone I met early on. He’s a Mexican American that was raised by the streets, without a college education, and been through drug abuse. But he met Jesus and God transformed his pain and anger into deeper love and his heart as a helper really came out. You see he was already a construction contractor. I began to learn he had skills I completely lacked.
And on top of this God poured out on Gus incredible spiritual gifts of the prophetic. God often uses Gus, to rat me out. He’ll come up to me humbly and say, “I’m not sure if this is from the Lord but God brought this image to mind…” and bam, i’m laid bare. He shares with me something that I didn’t tell anybody that only God would know. But its always to build me up, not tear me down.
Gus has helped me to Jesus multiple times. He is not just a friend that I help, he is a friend that helps me. Ours is a friendship of mutuality. But this didn’t happen right away. Deeper friendship takes time. I moved into the neighborhood in 2011 but it wasn’t until about 2016 that i’d say I moved into friendships of mutuality.
What else do we learn from this passage about racism? Cross Race Friendships must move to challenge individual and systemic abuses.
Friendship did break down Peter’s racial prejudice HOWEVER, racism still persisted in Peter.
I say this because although he personally overcame some racial prejudice against Gentiles, when other Jews came along Peter withdrew from table fellowship with the Gentiles to accommodate prejudice. He didn’t challenge the Jewish believers’ system of racism in their interactions, laws, and beliefs.
Maybe Peter didn’t want to make waves, or cause division. But some things should never be accommodated. Racism is one of those things. This is the difference between a peacekeeper and a peacemaker. A peacekeeper’s priority is to maintain the status quo. A peacemaker’s priority is to bring true reconciliation.
True reconciliation CANNOT happen if a wrong is not named and restitution is not made. If only the wronged group has to do all of the adjusting and speaking up this is not true reconciliation.
It’s insufficient to say “I can’t be racist because I have a friend who is X.”
You may have a friend who is X, but what are you doing to break down racism where it persists? I don’t mean you go looking for fights. But what I do mean is that when racial prejudice and racism show up you don’t give it a free pass.
As an Asian American this isn’t easy for me. But we must speak up. We can not just go with the flow of racism. Scripture challenges us that “Love does NOT delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (pause) 7 It always protects (pause), always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”
Though you personally didn’t make the laws and institutions, silence is complicity. In these ways we can be racist without even knowing it because we dont push back against norms that are unjust and favor one group over another. History tells us what happens when people have power to say something but don’t, allowing things to happen, with devastating consequences.
More often we may encounter more subtle forms of racial prejudice and racism. That may be little offhand comments, circles of certain friend groups, who is or is not included in leadership decisions. We all need the help of Jesus to overcome the fear of man, and fear of what others think to speak and do right.
You may not be received well for speaking to and practicing gospel love. Don’t worry Jesus and the prophets weren’t always received well either.
Sometimes those we’re trying to love may not receive it either. But keep bringing yourself under the tutelage of the love of Jesus, and be willing to learn from the people you are trying to love too.
Speak truth to power, especially if you have some form of power or authority.
STORY: Cross-Race Friendships must move to challenge abuses. My friendship with friends like Gus cannot just stay there. I must be willing to learn from him and care about the things that affect him and neighbors like him.
As we listened to our neighbors, affordable housing has become a great concern. Rent increases are unreasonable, the poor are being displaced, and homelessness has become unavoidable. So our church members have begun to organize more and get involved with local policy. One of my fellow co-workers had to speak up and challenge our council member on the issue of affordable housing. We’ve had to go to boring and even contentious civic meetings.
We are starting to see some changes as we’ve rallied together to support more housing policies, linkage fees so that new constructions have to pitch in for affordable housing, as well as lifting of parking minimums for more housing.
In my personal practice I try to not stick to cliques in church but step out to talk to, listen to, pray with, those who are new or feel on the outside. I try to share the stories of my friends who are of a different race and class with my supporters. I try to speak up at our church conference wide meetings, which are mostly Caucasian, regarding needs and concerns of my friends of color. Cross Race Friendships must move to challenge individual and systemic abuses
This sounds hard. Why do I have to be engaged with this Dave? What does this have to do with me?
Consider what would have happened if this racism wasn’t addressed in the early church? WE are the Gentiles! We wouldn’t be here if Paul hadn’t confronted racism in the early Jewish Church. We are here because Jesus, the Son of God, but a Palestinian Jew in the flesh, laid down his life for all races, not just his own. If God’s love and grace did not extend to us as outsiders of Israel we would be lost.
So Beloved Sons and Daughters of God of all races, here at West Covina Church, in like fashion let us love not just with words but in action and in truth. Let us root out racial prejudice and racism where it exists so we can see more clearly the good news of Jesus. Let us displace ourselves and put ourselves in structures that will help us interact with people of different races, whether that be at work, at school, clubs, and social settings. Let us work at building deeper mutual relationships across class where we not only meet needs but are open about our needs. Let us not live in fear of man but speak up whenever racial prejudice or racism shows itself and demonstrate another way. Let us be the church that Jesus gave his life for, so that we would all be not the SAME, but be ONE in God’s love.
It’s been a month since my family and a team of us went on a 2 week mission trip to the Dominican Republic.
And what an “adventure” it was, as there were unexpected turns right from the gate – literally. As our team of 22 arrived at the airport to depart to the DR, we discovered our flight had been canceled! After haggling with the gate agents the only option for us was to split our team into 5 groups and over the course of 59 more hours our team was finally able to be together at the community center of our Iglesia Comunidad Multicultural hosts! And just when we thought we were all good to go, one of our team mates, Angel, collapsed in the bathroom early the next morning from loss of blood, from an aggravated pre-existing condition and had to be taken to the emergency room of a nearby hospital! Needless to say, Jesus was showing me that I couldn’t take anything for granted but needed to keep on talking to him step by step!
The devil didn’t want us in the DR but Jesus did, and he met us and the community in DR in powerful ways in the midst of trials “turning our test into a testimony” (in the words of Angel, who experienced healing and was able to come out of the hospital in 6 days with better care than he would have received in the states with a loving team around him)!
Whether through ministering to the children through the community center or going on prayer outreaches door to door or putting on a children’s event in the field of our host church’s future church plant – when we took steps of faith, Jesus met us there. As we listened to God each day, he gave us direction, even to our children. Amos got an image of a blue flower in prayer one morning and Nancy, one of the key people of peace that we met in the community of Secara, had a blue flower painted in her living room! Nathan saw a turtle as he listened to God and Nancy’s house also had turtles in their backyard!
Before going on an outreach in a community called Los Rieles, where ICM has a vision to plant another church, in prayer two team members sensed the name Rosa, and one person saw in their mind a woman who had just had a baby asking for prayer.
Near the end of our time that afternoon we came upon a house with a bunch of teenagers there listening to music, so I thought “Oh boy, this might be rough”. But we took a step of faith and asked if they had time for us. Out stepped a man and he told us he was a pastor named Nico! We offered to pray for him, but as he shared about his life and how after many babies that he lost he praises God that now he has teenage twins! We prayed for him and his ministry preaching up in the mountains, but we also asked him to pray for us!
We were mutually blessed. We were about to leave when he asked us to pray for his neighbor who had just given birth to a baby and needed prayer! How could we say no? We asked Nico to come with us and he agreed.
We were greeted by an older woman at the door who invited us in and called for her daughter who was in pain from having just given birth. We asked this younger woman what her name was and she told us her name was Rosana! We realized this could be the Rosa we had seen in prayer asking for prayer. We told her that we sensed God told us about her before we met her and that God sees and cares about her. We prayed for Rosana. After we opened our eyes Rosa, her mother, and Nico had tears streaming down their faces so touched by the presence and love of God.
Indeed when we take steps of faith Jesus will meet us there! We lift up the good work God is continuing to do in the DR through our siblings of ICM and we pray that God will do that good holistic work through us here in LA too! Let us keep listening to and following Jesus, trusting he wants to break through with his goodness in our midst!
With the full team of siblings in Jesus made up of Americans, Dominicans, and Haitians working together in unity to bring the goodness of the Kingdom into the community!
This is a message I shared, at Epicentre West LA, concerning God’s heart and my convictions concerning love for “the Least of These.” It brings together a lot of what I’ve learned over the past decade and I hope it can be helpful to you.
(my sharing starts at the 29:00 mark)
GENERAL TRANSCRIPT OF MESSAGE BELOW *** Good morning spiritual family at Epicentre WLA! Pastor Chris is out of town for a funeral of his Aunt so please keep him in your prayers. My name is Dave Kitani and I am one of the pastors at your sister church on the Eastside, New Life Community Church – Lincoln Heights. Thank you for the privilege of having me over to share God’s word with you all. I’ve gotten to know some of your leaders over the years and it’s been awesome to grow as family together in LA. I’m so excited because starting in 2022, I’m gonna be walking with and helping to lead a joint d-school with our church family, along with Steph from Epicentre WLA and Omar from Hope Church.
Epicentre WLA and New Life have been going through a series on our shared core values: Love for Jesus, Love for the church, and Love for the world. This morning I’d like for us to step in a little deeper and flesh out what this might look like. What would a follower of Jesus look like, not just by appearance but by lifestyle? How would you know if someone is a true follower of Jesus? Dare I go further and ask how would I know if I am “saved”? What do you think?…These are important questions.
At the end of the day I’m not the one who determines the final answer. Jesus does. In this morning’s passage Jesus seems to reveal how He would determine who is with him and who is not. Now this is not the ONLY way, but it’s certainly one of the ways Jesus will know. This can simultaneously be a moving passage but also a terrifying passage.
Please stand, if you are able for the reading of God’s word
SCRIPTURE READING: Matthew 25:31-46(NIV) 31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ 46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
PRAYER
In this intense passage, Jesus mentions 6 different forms that he will come to us, representing 6 different types of people we may come across:
a person who is 1) hungry, 2) thirsty, 3) stranger (the word used here in greek is “xenos” meaning foreigner) 4) naked, 5) sick, 6) and in prison.
There are so many implications of this that we won’t be able to get into all this morning, but at the very least what do all these people have in common?
They are all people who are in deep need. These are the people who society often overlooks, the one who Jesus calls “the least of these.”
What is so moving is that Jesus loves these overlooked ones, the least of these, sooo much that He identifies himself with them.
The ones that society considers the least, Jesus considers the most. The ones that the world puts down, Jesus lifts up. That to see these ones in need is to see Jesus himself. To love the least of these is to love Jesus himself.
Some have tried to qualify this passage and say that in v.40 “the least of these brothers and sister of mine” means Jesus is referring only to other Christians in need. Now this certainly can include Christians but I would add that it’s broader than that. In the same book of Matthew, ch5:47, Jesus says that if we only love and greet our brothers and sisters, the same word “adelphos” is used, then we are no different than anyone else who doesn’t know God.
Now what is so terrifying about this passage is that to reject or ignore these ones in need, is also tantamount to rejecting Jesus himself. I know the judgment of God is scary. We know that God is loving but we also know God is just. Otherwise, there is no justice for the poor, oppressed, and abused nor accountability for the oppressor.
loving those in need is ESSENTIAL to being a follower of Jesus and is a fruit of true salvation (v.46).
by those in need i don’t simply mean those within our family, friends, and race. if that is the case, again, we are no different than non-believers (Luke 6:32). And by those in need I don’t just mean those who may periodically be in such a place of need but rather those who may persistently be in such a place.
I must also clarify that I don’t believe Jesus is saying we must do good works TO BE saved but rather that we are saved TO DO good works. Eph 2:8-10 (NIV)
8 For it is by grace you have been saved,through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Good works is not the root of our salvation but it is the fruit of our salvation. Jesus also says in Matthew 12 that a tree is known by its fruits (Matthew 12:33)
What is encouraging though is that this same Jesus has loved even us.
Some of us, our families may have come from places of deep need, were once or still considered “the least of these”. Unless you are Jewish, we were all once foreigners to Jesus.
Some of us have become so distant from “the least of these”, we have insulated ourselves. But Jesus still loves us, pursues us, and is calling us into a deeper relationship with Him, His way, His heart. So don’t fear, Jesus walks with you.
If we claim to know Jesus, Jesus says we must know His heart for the poor, the least of these. But is this really God’s heart? YES, because we find it THROUGHOUT the scripture. Please check it out for yourselves. The bible testifies that love for the poor is not just a minor note but a major theme of God’s heart. Here’s just a brief overview:
The law – Deuteronomy 15:11 ESV = For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.’
The wisdom – Proverbs 14:31 = Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.
The poetry – Psalm 140:12 = I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy.
The prophets Jer 22:16 = He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?” declares the Lord.
The gospels – Luke 6:20 = Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.“
The early church – Acts 2:44-45 = 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.
The epistles – 1 John 3:17 (NIV) = If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?
MY JOURNEY SO FAR IN LOVING THE LEAST OF THESE
I grew up in an Asian American Christian church. I accepted Jesus into my life when I was in 7th grade. Loving God seemed clear through the church. The loving your neighbor thing was a little vague…something like being nice to people around you, who were mostly people like me. Loving the poor was something I sort of knew casually in my Christian upbringing but at best it was a minor chord…something for some Christians.
My entry into God’s heart for the poor was through teaching. I wanted to be a teacher. I went to UCLA grad school for a degree in education and a teaching credential, a program that happened to have a social justice bent only working with low-performing schools in low income neighborhoods. I was hired at a school called Locke High School, in South LA in a neighborhood called “Green Meadows” one of the most dangerous places in LA, and right next to Watts, one of the poorest neighborhoods in all of LA.
That first year of teaching was the hardest year of my life. It was a shock to my system that people would have to live under such conditions…right here in LA. I was a total outsider and in over my head. This experience made me so desperate for God.
One morning I read Isaiah 1:17: “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.” This scripture came to life, it jumped out at me and grabbed me. Not all who are poor are fatherless, but so many of my students were “fatherless.” The role sheets revealed different last names from my students and their guardians. God was showing me His heart.
God worked through the students there who taught ME, about justice and loving through overwhelming hardships.
My wife, became a professor at Cal State LA, many of her students came out of neighborhoods like Green Meadows. We were wondering how could these inner city schools ever change for the better? A friend in educational leadership shared with us this idea that for urban poor schools to change the middle class needed to live in these neighborhoods not to gentrify but to reconcile, to share resources.
There was a workshop i was invited to about these issues and that is where I met Pastor Chris Rattay who was living in a poor neighborhood with his family and building up a church there. Chris recommended that I join the Servant Partners Internship, if I was seriously thinking about living in the community. SP is a mission organization that seeks to transform communities WITH the urban poor.
In the spring of 2011 I put in my resignation at Locke. And in the fall of 2011 I joined the SP internship at the Lincoln Heights site and have been living in the neighborhood and serving in the church there since the fall of 2011.
Jesus led me to learn and love in a deeper way through and amongst the urban poor. They have modeled for me how to stay present and persevere THROUGH the struggles and pain. This isn’t to romanticize the urban poor for poverty can be terribly inhumane. But I know I still have more to learn from my siblings for they are rich in faith and, according to Jesus, the Kingdom of God belongs to them.
So how do we let Jesus transform us to love “the least of these”?
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
Give generously.
Specifically, invest in urban poor pastors/leaders. We support missionaries, why not local missionaries? Relief is necessary but this should move to development. Those who have lived and served on the ground level know better than us what the needs are and what would be most helpful in developing and empowering people.
Tithing is the bottom floor, not the top floor. Matthew 23:23 = “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” Jesus said that we should STILL do the former (tithing) but not neglect the latter (justice, mercy, and faithfulness).
We want to gloss over this giving part and go to doing. We should do the doing but we cannot ignore the giving. the danger of wealth is that no one thinks they have a problem with it. Of all the rivals to God that Jesus chooses to address he chooses wealth (Matthew 6:24)
2. Live simply.
Selling what we don’t need and give proceeds to the poor or those investing in building up the poor.
1 Tim 6:6-8 = 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.
Jesus challenges us to consider that where our treasure is there is where our heart will inevitably be.
Matthew 6:20-21 = 20 but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Investing treasures on earth vs. treasures in heaven would like you have a temporary apartment in Paris for a couple months and investing so much stuff into that place when home is in LA. Our lives here is just a dot compared to eternity.
3. Invest relationally
If you are giving generously to urban poor and those who work with the urban poor you will care for them and will pray for them…your heart will go to people.
Cultivating cross-class friendships (to hear their stories, their struggles, their way of life, to actually receive from them what God has put in them). Relationship building is key. And by relationship I mean not one-way relationships but rather relationships of mutuality, where there is giving of life both ways. Real friends. (When I moved from the mentality as only me as the one helping to me opening up my life and being willing and needing to receive from the poor this is when I entered into deeper fellowship deeper trust deeper richer and sweet community.)
Striking up convos with people and asking them their stories and how to pray for them. Convos with employees of places you frequently visit or even work at. (janitors, cafeteria workers, restaurants, etc)
Build intentional friendships with people at school / work
Give your self to structures that put you in contact with the least of these.
The more contact the better bc we tend to compare ourselves to those around us. If the least of these become like family to us, it will cause our caring to be grounded in real relationship and real needs. This will serve as better place from which we can engage the larger systems that effect the poor as well as to stay engaged because, as family, their issues become our issues.
IN CONCLUSION
If we are to follow Jesus, then that means we must follow Him into loving the poor. Jesus will meet us there. Let us be people who give generously, live simply, and invest relationally amongst the least of these.
I am hopeful. i am amazed by the way we care for our own families. Especially as a child of immigrants, the sacrifices our parents make to see we are provided for. i am a recipient of such love and hope to love my children in such a manner. I believe God has put that into us.
But what if we obeyed Jesus and loved our neighbors in need like our own families? what if we loved our neighbor’s children as we did our own?
The third lens that Asian Americans have proximity to is that of liminality. Whereas invisibility presses into the experience of marginalization, liminality presses into creative possibility. As mentioned above Asians Americans are made to feel like they are not Asian or American enough and they often live on the margins of Asian and American. To be clear, they do exist in the overlap of the two as they are both Asian and American – Asian by heritage and/or ethnicity, American by immigration and/or citizenship – but not at the center of either spheres. As Sang Hyun Lee articulates so well, they occupy this unique liminal space. Despite all the particularities that make Asian Americans different from each other there is this common thread repeated in the literature of the unique perspective of liminality in which Asian Americans are socially located – called by different names with different nuances – betwixt and between, productive ambivalence, interstitially, hybridity, a third space.[1] I choose the term liminality as it capture the sense of being part of something but also at its limits, or its cutting edge so to speak.
Potentials and Problems
The vision of liminality for Asian Americans is a compelling way forward with such creative, prophetic, and communal potential. A more Eastern “both/and” approach can provide a corrective balance to the more western “either/or” traps of false dichotomies.[2] It is a space from which we can critique and challenge hegemonic centers in the spirit of the prophetic.[3] To take W.E.B. Dubois’ concept of “double consciousness” a step further, it is a way that acknowledges the connective possibilities of a “triple consciousness,” with the potential of understanding not only the consciousness of the dominant culture as well as the culture of those like them, but also the consciousness of a foreign born culture.[4] As Jonathan Tran reminds us it is a way to be engaged with but not at home in this world.[5]
However, even here there are potential problems. The both/and approach of a dialectical monism like Taoism has its shortcoming in its tendency to unify and blur that which should remain distinct (ex. good and evil). A both/and approach is also not always the answer just as an either/or approach is not always helpful or accurate. I would press further to add in the element of “neither/to an extent” for a more holistic thought process as a liminal approach. Another danger in a liminal approach is it can leave us vulnerable to syncretism that is overly relative and selective without an accountable firm ground to stand on. Last but not least, liminality is hard to live into not only because it can have a foreignizing effect but some on the margins are just trying to survive and some on the other hand, who have established themselves, are drawn into the temptation to merge with dominant worldly powers or develop hegemonic centers within the margins.[6]
In Scripture
Reading the bible with the lens of liminality allows us to see those in scripture who have navigated a way forward. Moses, as a key figure in the Exodus, was raised in the places of power of Egypt, but was ethnically of the powerless people of Israel, yet he occupied a liminal space of not always feeling fully at home in either space. God met him in that space and, possibly because of it, Moses was more receptive to YHWH and more able to not only speak truth to the Egyptian powers but to lead a people that felt powerless. Moses operated from the liminality of understanding the oppressor and the oppressed to partner with God to create a reformed Israel in covenantal relationship.
Then there are also Joseph, Daniel, Esther, and Paul that occupied these liminal spaces, living displaced under dominant worldly power. Joseph and Daniel were involuntarily displaced from their homeland and in this sense were the 1st generation in another land. Whereas Esther and Paul were born and raised in the shadow of empire, Esther in the Achaemenid Empire and Paul of Tarsus as a citizen of the Roman Empire, the only apostle of Jesus named with that privilege. Roy Sano points out the journey of Esther in its special resonance to the Asian American experience. Esther initially tried to assimilate with the Empire but grows into her identity and her role in redemption. [7]
Through faithful reliance on God they all made the most of their liminality in using whatever resources or privileges they had to cross boundaries, speak truth to power at great risk to their lives, and usher in God’s holistic salvation. Jesus voluntary displaced himself into the liminal space[8]: leaving his heavenly home to dwell amongst his earthly creation; he was conceived out of wedlock by the Holy Spirit to a teenage mom, raised amongst the poor as a Galilean from the marginal hood of Nazareth, broke bread with the sinners and outcasts, and crucified amongst criminals outside the holy city. Though both fully God and fully human, “his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God.”
Application
Liminality, redeemed through Christ, gives us the way of true life. But to follow Christ into the liminal space means the way of the cross. It means being in relationship with those on the margins out of our comfort zones. It means sharing power and resources generously. It means dying to the world and its false and short-sighted promises of life. It means counting the cost.[9] Suffering is not an end itself but rather it is a means through which things that need to die are laid down and where life and solidarity with Jesus and the crucified people of the world is found.[10] There is no resurrection without the cross. Peter exhorts us to view ourselves as “aliens and strangers” in this world who are now His people who can walk in His “marvelous light.”[11] The space of liminality is also open to any who would embrace the Way in that it is only in the surrender of our lives that we will find true life. Though not the only ones, I believe Asian-Americans are uniquely positioned to be potential peacemakers,[12] with proximity to the liminal space, that we’ve lived in for a while now.[13] Jesus leads by example and empowers us to walk into liminality and He will meet us there as the true center of all life.
CONCLUSION
If scripture is our “norming norm”[14]than we need the perspective that each unique context has to bear to see the bigger picture. This is not to add to scripture but to see more clearly what has been there the whole time. Asian Americans have a unique perspective that can contribute to the larger Body of Christ through the lens of redeemedcollectivity that holds together the tension of individual and community, invisibility that can give us solidarity with others who suffer overlooked, and liminality that steps into the potential of the radical way of Jesus. Asian Americans DO have something to bring to the larger conversation to help work together for oneness, not sameness, until God’s Kingdom comes here on earth as it is heaven.
[1] Betwixt and Between (Peter Phan in Christianity with an Asian Face), Hybridity (Amos Yong in Soundings From the Asian American Diaspora), Productive ambivalence (SueJeanne Koh in chapter on “Health Care” from Asian American Christian Ethics), Interstitial (Rita Nakashima Brock in Off the Menu), and Third space (Homi Bhabha in The Location of Culture)
[6] Lee, Daniel D. “Lecture: Marginality and Liminality”
[7] Roy Sano points out the journey of Esther in its special resonance to the Asian American experience. Esther initially tried to assimilate with the Empire but grows into her identity and her role in redemption (Sano, “Shifts In Bible Reading”).
[8] Though he had the power of heaven at his disposal chose to empty himself and live amongst the marginalized rather than grasp for worldly power.
[9] When push comes to shove, what is our priority, to be accepted by the dominant society or to be disciples of Jesus? It doesn’t mean that this is a strict “either/or” and they cannot overlap but in the space or “both/and” acceptance by the world way should not come at the expense of the way of Jesus.
[11] 1 Peter 2:11 (NASB 1995). Jeannette Ok, points out that this puts Asian Americans in a double “perpetual foreigner” situation (Ok, “Always Ethnic”). But if we consider the other side of Peter’s argument, put positively, it can drive us to even more deeply embrace our “eternal citizen” status as our core identity. This doesn’t mean that our ethnicity is of no value as we will retain them in heaven as Imago Dei, it is rather that even our ethnicity can serve to express the manifold beauty of God.
[12] Not peacekeepers who are about keeping the status quo
[13] Many of us can understand the oppressed (living with America’s notions of “Perpetual Foreigner”) and the oppressor (used as a wedge against other people of color as the “Model Minority” to merge with the dominant powers). It takes intentionality and continual surrender to Jesus’ way of the cross to press into this liminal space on the margins, as there’s always the temptation to merge with the dominant worldly powers.
[14] Lee, Daniel D. “Lecture: Encountering the Word of God”
Another lens with proximity to the Asian American experience is that of invisibility. All minorities experience some form of marginalization from the dominant majority culture. Invisibility is the common form that marginalization takes in the Asian American experience. It is not unusual for Asian Americans to be left out of media, data analysis, history or what is considered American. They are also often left out of the Black and White binary of race discourse. By Whites they are viewed as the “perpetual foreigner” but to other People of Color they are considered “honorary whites.”[1]
When they are present in a mixed group they are often portrayed or assumed as to go with the flow and not speak up. Even when they are “hyper visible”, when seen as yellow peril or as terrorists, they are still invisible in that they are not seen with any distinction but lumped together with vastly different people groups, guilty by mere physical appearance. This is why the Chinese American Vincent Chin is killed as a job stealing Japanese (a completely different country and language), and the Sikh Indian American Balbir Singh Sodhi is killed as a Muslim Arab terrorist (from a completely different country, language, and religion). No matter how long Asian Americans have lived in America they get the unique “privilege” of being asked repeatedly where they are “really” from. Whereas Black Americans are generally not assumed foreign and Latinx Americans can sometimes pass as White over time. Asian Americans are not seen as American enough in America nor Asian enough in Asia.
Problems and Potentials
The problems of invisibility abound. When we speak up about abuses, we are dismissed that our problems are not as bad as others. Now there are certainly degrees of systemic oppression but to deny it all out of hand does not deal with the pain that is there. This unaddressed pain, even from microaggressions, can lead to the han of deep wounds, resentment,[2] and even physical issues in our bodies.[3] Yet Asian Americans are not only victims as we need to own ways that too many of us have bought into the “model minority” myth and have allowed ourselves to become wedges against other racial minorities. And on top of this there is the invisibility within Asian America where East Asians are seen as Asian American (even though they are only 37% of the Asian American population) often at the exclusion of South East Asians, South Asians, Pacific Islanders, multi-racial Asians, Asian adoptees, as well as the poor and other vulnerable populations in our midst which are all often dominated by adult males.
Yet even in the midst of invisibility there is potential for good. Asian Americans have learned not only to survive, but to adapt and even to thrive. Although there are times that we must speak up there are also places and spaces for meaningful silence. Resistance does not have to be loud to be legitimate. Silence can be a form of respect and even in what is beautiful in art it is not only the positive space that conveys a message but the negative space that can “speak” to what is absent.[4] Moreover, the experience of invisibility is an opportunity to step into understanding, compassion, and solidarity with others who are marginalized and unseen.
In Scripture
Reading the bible with the lens of invisibility, we can find it is full of the motif of the goodness of seeing the invisible, especially those who are marginalized. It is Hagar the Egyptian slave, used and mistreated by Sarai to bear Ishmael for Abraham, who calls the LORD “You are the God who sees me“. God sees, hears, and responds to the Israelite slaves crying out over their oppression by the Egyptians. God works through Boaz to see the poor widow Moabite, Ruth, and becomes an exemplar of kindness causing Ruth to proclaim, “Why have I found favor in your sight, that you should take notice of me, when I am a foreigner?” Hannah and David are also notable examples of those overlooked by people but seen by God and woven into the redemptive story of Jesus.
Jesus in his ministry sought out and ministered to the invisible ones. Jesus sees and makes space for the blind beggar Bartimaeus as well as children who the disciples try to move aside. Jesus stops to look up and see the hated tax-collector Zacchaeus, bringing about his transformation. An important turning point for the early church was when Hellenistic Jews pointed out that “their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food” by the Hebraic Jews. Andrew Lee suggests that the Hebraic Jewish apostles were able to respond rightly to this inequity because they knew what it was like to be marginalized themselves.[5] What is fascinating to note is that the writer of this account, Luke, was more than likely a Gentile or at least a Hellenistic Jew, an outsider to the dominant Jewish culture.[6] Without his perspective we may not have gotten the perspective of Jesus as born to poverty, his mission to those in need, the parable of the prodigal son nor of the good Samaritan[7] nor how the gospel of Jesus opened up to us Gentiles in the book of Acts!
Application
The bible challenges us to redeem invisibility. God sees the invisible and commands that we do likewise. Invisibility is an opportunity to cry out to the God who sees and hears. The marginality of invisibility is a reminder to show compassion for others on the margin. God’s command to the Israelites to love the vulnerable is rooted in the reminder that “you [plural] were strangers in the land of Egypt” and “you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners”. This is a pointed exhortation to Asian Americans who may feel invisible – and even if they come to a place of distance from that experience – that it is important to remember this very experience can be the fuel for us to enact compassion for others in similar circumstances. Jesus sees the invisible and marginalized – the hungry, thirsty, naked, imprisoned, sick, and foreigner – so much that he identifies himself with them. That to “see” and care for him in “the least of these” is to serve Christ and to not recognize and neglect them is to reject Jesus Himself.
[5] Lee, “Reading the Bible as an Asian American.”
[6] From evidence in scripture scholars believe at most Luke was a Gentile and at least a Hellenistic Jew himself. Colossians 4:10-4:17 is a key example (Encyclopedia of the Bible, entry on “Luke, the Evangelist”)
[7] Samaritans being outsiders that Jews had a deep prejudice against
2nd of a 4 part series adapted from a final research paper for my Asian American Theology course (for the 1st Part, Introduction, click here)
COLLECTIVITY
Definitions
In the midst of all the particularities of Asian American experience one common factor is the Asian background of collective cultures that persists with Asian Americans.[1] Collectivity is not always expressed in the same ways and it is not exclusive to Asian cultures but it is an overarching rule rather than the exception found in Asian cultures. Though expressed in differing ways and nuances, many religions and worldviews of Asian cultures have a common sense of something that connects all life.[2] Whether explicitly religious or part and parcel of the culture this sense of connectivity is expressed in the social ordering of collectivism, that places the needs of the group above the individual, as attested in many Asian cultures. Collectivism emphasizes the “we” whereas individualism emphasizes the “I”.[3] Attending concepts of shame and honor are often found in collective cultures where individual actions are magnified socially.
Potentials and Problems
The potentials of collectivity are in the ways it can help us consider others outside of ourselves whether it be family, neighbors, community, and the world. Collectivity trains us to adapt, adjust, and accomodate to the needs of others. Self-sacrifice makes more sense in collectivity and is a tangible expression of love that Asian Americans can be connected to more closely through their heritage. Collectivity can keep the individual accountable to others, more readily see systemic issues, and be a check to a dangerous progression of Western liberalism where the rights of an individual reign supreme no matter the social cost.[4]
However, collectivity itself unchecked has its own set of problems. In the name of maintaining social order, people are entrusted with power to arbitrate power but then can hold on to it and abuse it. Collectivity is especially susceptible to this abuse of power, using hierarchy for hegemony rather than for helping. Collectivity is not immune to the danger of merging with worldly use of power for domination rather than service, silencing opposition and minorities on the margins. In the centering of collective concerns, individuals can be erased.
In Scripture
Reading the bible with the lens of collectivity in mind helps us to highlight connections we may not readily see and give us clues to ways of operating in a Christ redeemed collectivity. The bible begins with a sense of the collective Triune God, distinct roles yet unified – Creator, Spirit, and Word. The Hebrew word for God the Spirit is ruach which can also mean breath. God breathed into humanity and thus the Spirit reminds us of the breath of life that has animated us all. Even after sin and death enter the story, God enters into covenantal relationship with humanity as God is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jesus himself reminds us that God is “not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.” (Luke 20:38 NIV). Here we see collectivity speaks to ancestors that have passed and the eternality of people, which makes sense to many Asian traditions that venerate their ancestors.[5] This understanding can enrich the concept and experience of the communion of saints past in the present.
Collectivity can also explain the reality of not just individual responsibility but corporate responsibility – which is why Achan’s whole family was held responsible for his sin as well as why Nehemiah, upon hearing of Jerusalem in ruins, would repent not only for his own sins but for those of his family, his people of Israel, and his ancestors long gone even though Nehemiah was born and raised in Babylon. God speaks not only to individuals but addresses collectives, from Israel to surrounding nations and from individual disciples of Jesus to the whole Church and world. Even epistles were circulated to churches and communities. The loss of the 2nd person plural “you all” in English (and in predominant English translations of the bible) is a loss to the US American culture and indicative of its blind spot to collective and systemic community and responsibility. In fact, our salvation even rests on the idea of collectivity in that just as we became collectively responsible for the sin of the one Adam, we who trust in Jesus receive collectively the righteousness of the one Jesus.[6]
Application
In Jesus we, who trust in him, have a way forward with a redeemed collectivity. The analogy of the Church as the Body of Christ captures this collectivity well. The individual is in service to the whole but the whole must also recognize and honor the individual, with special care for the most vulnerable. All this comes under the headship of Jesus, in a healthy model of hierarchy that uses his power not to dominate but to serve. In God’s hierarchy, as a check to power, God holds those in positions of leadership to greater accountability and responsibility. Even shame and honor are redeemed in that the locus of the good is not relative to the whims of the social order but are bestowed by God and find their grounding in God.[7]. The healing of Jesus is holistic in that like the story of the bleeding woman he not only heals her physically but replaces shame by honoring her in front of the people and so heals her socially. Asian Americans Christians through their proximity to collectivity can, in Christ, see and embody a redeemed collectivity to the larger Church and the world.
[1] Edara, “Relation of Individualism–Collectivism and Ethnic Identity.”
[2] In Taoism is found the concept of chi (which is even referred to in Buddhism), In Hinduism there is prana, In Polynesian worldview there is mana, and in many indigenous cultures we find animism.
[3] Edara, “Relation of Individualism–Collectivism and Ethnic Identity.”
[4] Koyzis, Political Visions and Illusions, 27-62.
In this time of pandemic and sabbatical I want to take time to reflect. It’s been 9 years since my wife and I moved into the inner city. More specifically, we set down our roots in LA’s Eastside community – a largely working class Latino neighborhood with a significant immigrant population. These are 9 lessons I’ve learned since living here and we plan to continue to for the foreseeable future (I know many of these are generalizations and there are always exceptions but these are just some of my observations. I’m still learning. 😛 ):
1. Greet everyone when you arrive and when you leave a gathering
This may be something more specific to Latino cultures but it’s something that Ji picked up first (she has more “noonchi” than me, so she can “read the room” much better than me. :P). She noticed that every party or gathering we went to in the community most everyone that arrived would go around to at least briefly greet (wave, speak, shake hands, hug, and/or kiss on the cheek) most of the guests and would do the same when leaving. This speaks to me of the high value of honoring the presence of family and friends physically…no matter how distant the relation by association each person should be acknowledged. I never really noticed that I would usually just greet the people I was closest to at gatherings but I had to live outside my box to see there was another way to recognize community larger than my own.
2. Life is not about what you do but about your relationships
In middle class circles that i grew up in and associated with people would often ask what one did for a living (i.e. a career) or where one studied (education). Amongst the working class, I had to learn pretty quickly that even small talk in the inner city was different. Many I encountered and started building relationships with may have had jobs but that didn’t always mean they viewed it as careers – work that wasn’t always a source of pride for them but rather work that they were able to get given the limited options that were open to them from limited educational resources. What my community did talk about was their families. Our neighbors may have been stand-off-ish at first but once they found out Ji was pregnant with our first child we were showered with warmth and relational bonds began to form. Yes, what we do is important but I learned from the inner city to value the relationships that we have that hold up our spirits and with whom we can share life no matter where we find ourselves.
3. Proximity promotes interaction
Of course there are challenges to living in such close proximity with a lot of people in the inner city (for example, it’s hard to have silence and solitude…i’ve gotten used to the continual sound of ice cream trucks and random explosive sounds throughout the night). But I grew up in a suburb so it was such a strange but welcome change to see so many of my neighbors out and about. In the two homes we have lived in the inner city we’ve been about a block away from the main street of the neighborhood, meaning it’s quite common for neighbors to be walking past the sidewalk of our home. As we take out our trash bins, sit in front of our home, tend to our small plants, take walks with our little ones, it’s easier to strike up conversations with neighbors. I love that. It’s very humanizing. The street that we live on now has a handful of older señores and señoras that watch over our street and know all about what’s going on in our block. Countless times they’ve given us a heads up if there was suspicious activity around our home when we didn’t see. Their knowledge has been invaluable and their presence assuring.
4. The power of story and analogy
When I listen to the stories of people from different walks of life I move towards deeper understanding, compassion, and connection. My wife reminds me that this is true for most people but people in the inner city really respond to stories and analogies. In the “ivory tower” of academics or amongst the middle class we can sometimes get carried away with abstract and fancy ideas but these can sometimes go over the heads of folks and lose their roots to real everyday life. A good story not only gets our attention but can move and inspire us, often times more than stats and cold hard facts. A good analogy can give complex ideas hands and feet to stick with us. It’s no wonder that when Jesus walked amongst us He shared about the Kingdom of God through stories and analogies. He knows what speaks to us if we care to listen.
5. The urban poor are teachers of the ministry of presence
It took me a long time to see, understand, and appreciate this. As a person coming largely from the middle class I’ve put high value on efficiency and structures, especially as they have served me. However, in my focus on such things I’ve uncovered blind spots as well and I’ve missed opportunities for more meaningful relationships. I’ve learned from the urban poor that it’s in the informal times, not just the formal, that trust is built. It’s in the laughter, the tears, and the spontaneous moments in which life happens that bonds are built. They have modeled for me how to stay present and persevere THROUGH the struggles and pain, for indeed there are many in the inner city. I still remember when I shared with a group of brothers in Jesus, most of who were former gang members, that my father was diagnosed with cancer. One guy ran up to me and dropped down to his knees and grabbed me by the hand. They knew how to be and stay present when things got real. They didn’t miss a beat and immediately prayed for me, when I thought I was there to “serve” them. My father is in remission, I believe, through their prayers. They have taught me what it looks like to be loyal friends. This isn’t to romanticize the urban poor for poverty can be terribly inhumane. But I know I still have more to learn from my siblings for they are rich in faith and, according to Jesus, the Kingdom of God belongs to them.
6. The middle class may be good for consistency but the working class are good in an emergency
For many in the middle class consistency has been what’s been modeled and passed on. And that’s a good thing if any good work is to continue for the longer haul. But for many of my working class friends the adults in their lives haven’t always been reliable and stability is uncertain so it wasn’t as helpful to wait around for somethings that may not come. In the midst of uncertainty, they’ve had to grow much more in flexibility and hustle to survive. They’ve had to grow a wider network for support. This I believe has grown their muscles for emergencies. When there’s been an unexpected emergency or death i’ve seen folks in the community pull together what resources they have to help in whatever ways they can – community connections, funds, meals, and presence. When some emergency goes down for a middle class person (which doesn’t happen quite as often because they’ve often shaped their lives to avoid those) they often may not reach out to other folks in their community quite as quickly because they may have the financial resources to deal with it on their own. But moreover, possibly, because their networks may not be as familiar with what to do or be able to relate as well and readily drop things as needed with all the commitments to consistency they’ve built into their own lives. When my father-in-law passed, I was amazed by how quickly our community responded, dropping what they had going on to offer to serve and be present to my wife.
7. Structures should serve people not people serve structures
Structures are helpful for development so that one doesn’t constantly have to waste energy re-inventing the wheel and putting out preventable fires. But I’ve had to learn that structures can also become a hindrance if they aren’t serving to the people they’re meant to serve. An over reliance on structures can cause us to forget that we’re working with people with different needs and motivations…in other words, with real human beings in circumstances we cannot always control. That is hard for me given I have realized how control has become such an issue for me. Living in the inner city (and this pandemic too) has shown me what an illusion control is. Order is good but I must remember that I must continually surrender control to God who knows better how to order things rightly and justly. When structures are more for structures sake than they are for helping people in unique situations it’s okay and even good to adjust them or lay them down as needed. The spirit of all laws (and structures), as I understand God’s word, is to choose what promotes life. Love is always worth the extra work. Love is what will endure.
8. It is not bad to show emotion
I don’t really know where I picked up this notion that it’s bad to show emotion. As a man, our culture has taught us that there is only a small range of acceptable emotions – generally only those that portray “strength” and God forbid that we show any weakness. As someone who is ethnically Japanese the cultural models elevated have been stoic samurai that will die for a cause. As someone raised and pointed toward upward mobility in America it’s meant playing the game and being about “reason” over “emotion.” But why then do we have emotions? Why does our creator, in whose image we have been made, express the full range of emotions? Why does our Savior allow himself to weep? I suspect there is something suspect about downplaying emotion. Sure, we don’t want to be controlled by emotion but I believe it’s more damaging to suppress them rather than feel them and work with them…because they will leak out either way. In a revealing cross-class conversation we were asked why middle class folks don’t show more emotion. It made our working class friends feel like one had to be perfect and so become almost unrelatable. That was an eye opening reminder to me. In my fear of what others might think I was pushing myself away from myself. I am learning to communicate myself with more feeling, even the ones more difficult to express, not only to be more honest but to remind us that we are human beings that long for connection. To be present to oneself and to express emotions is to express that you are a human being made in the image of God.
9. People don’t care what you know so much as if you were there for them
People in my community don’t care so much about my education or my titles. Their test of trust is whether I will be there for them. At the end of the day, our lives, isn’t that true? We remember those who have touched our lives more than their status in life. When I had cause for celebration who rejoiced with me? When I was sick, hurting, or in need, who was it that showed up for me? In a life full of struggle it is important to practice celebration regularly where we can. My community has taught me to show up for birthdays, games, and special milestone events because they cannot take them for granted. It has been the community of the working class in the inner city that have taught me to show up when there is heartbreak and tragedy. It is has been my undocumented immigrant friends that have shown me most the meaning of hard work, to live with courage every day, and to show up day in and day out. When I need prayer they are the ones I can count on to actually do so…powerfully. It may be inconvenient for me at times but showing up for folks is to show that their lives matter…and we are always better together.
Please understand I don’t enjoy talking or writing about abortion. However, unfortunately, too many Christians I know have made this issue the focal point of their political engagement or THE issue that will cause them to swing one way or the other for a political candidate or party…and that has consequences well beyond this single issue for ALL of life – from health care to education to immigration to the justice system. The irony is that it turns out banning abortions is actually tied to an INCREASE in abortions (I’ll unpack that later). I get it, abortion can be deeply emotional, as we’re talking about the very formation of life here, and many have deeply personal stories tied to the issue.
Because this is such a heated issue I first want to start with WHAT I AM NOT SAYING:
I am not wanting, and certainly do not celebrate, the taking of ANY life at ANY stage of life from the womb to the tomb, for all are made and woven in the image of God.
I am not a woman so I don’t know the unique burden of choice, circumstances, and most overwhelming responsibility and judgement by society for raising a child.
Most importantly, I am not God so I don’t have the final say or judgement of who is a Christian and how they practice their faith. Each person will have to give an account for how they have lived to God.
Now, on to WHAT I AM SAYING*:
*These are my own personal views and not any official stance of any church or organization I am part of.
1. POLICY
I don’t know any bible believing Christian (yes, even on the liberal end) that thinks abortion is good. It turns out most people in general, who aren’t believers even, don’t WANT (as in strive for) abortions either.
So with this in mind what policies actually REDUCE abortions (I understand there is room for disagreement here but I would just like to provide perspective on the actual data available)? It turns out banning or restricting abortions has the unintended consequence of increasing the abortion rate. Why is that? For starters, just because something is made illegal doesn’t stop people from doing it, but rather drives it underground (see Prohibition) making it more difficult to regulate and even more dangerous for the mother. Abortion rates go up when abortion is banned because when abortion is banned it ALSO often takes away funding for invaluable services such as sex education, reproductive care, pre-natal services, women’s health, and most of all contraceptives and birth control (which repeatedly comes up with the strongest causational link of reducing abortions, in a 2012 study abortions were reduced by 62-78%! I understand that birth control is a whole other issue for some but we cannot ignore the relationship between birth control and its real time impact on abortion rates. I can even respect those who may be against certain forms of birth control and have the integrity to be a safety net should an unintended pregnancy happen. What is hard for me to reconcile with the spirit of Jesus is when the ones supporting the laws that put a burden on others “will not lift one finger to help them.” [Luke 11:46]. Is this how Jesus treats us?). So if a clinic performing abortions is closed, it also then closes access to everything else that would HELP prevent abortions from having to happen in the first place.
Unfortunately, because of the polarized two-party system in the US, abortion is bundled up with reproductive care so its often closer to an all (Democrat) or nothing (Republican) approach. Please understand there are things that I DO NOT agree with in the ALL option (For example abortions shouldn’t be so easy to get for teens without any parent/guardian knowledge. But please keep in mind that most abortions are done by religiously affiliated ADULTS who already have children and are overwhelmingly coming from poverty). We have not yet figured out a way to “a-la-carte” this issue and this is not by any means simple or ideal. I even understand the sentiment that some may not want to pay for the birth control of others but unplanned pregnancies actually end up being more expensive, estimated to cost the US $11 billion dollars per year. But if we want to really make those sort of changes the most effective way is addressing state and local budget items but this is not where people focus. Any sound policy doesn’t only punish on the back end (stick) but tries to address why things happen in the first place (carrot). If access, education, and health in general are cared for it creates the kind of environment for people to thrive instead of babies having to die. So if we’re gonna be pro-life we need to be pro-life for the WHOLE life.
2. GLOBAL IMPACT
The increased abortions rates connected to the banning of abortions (and the stripping of good reproductive care tied with it) does not only happen in the US but is also seen worldwide. This is not some fringe finding – simply google “Mexico City Policy effects” and there will be so many to choose from reputable sources. The U.S. has made aid decisions to other countries ignoring these effects, and it has had significant negative global impact.
3. HISTORY AND PARTY POLITICS
But to zoom out even further over time, abortion rates peaked around 1980** and than have steadily been declining since then – from 2013 even lower than at the point of the Roe Vs. Wade decision (the 1973 the Supreme Court ruled that states could not unduly restrict women from getting abortions). What is even more shocking is that REGARDLESS of the political party of the president and even the supreme court judges the rate of abortions have gone down overall (this is from a right leaning source too). And even if Roe Vs. Wade were overturned it would not change most of the abortion apparatus or make as great an impact on abortion rates. In fact, there seems to be evidence from breaking down CDC data to suggest that abortions have decreased 3-6 times faster under Democrats (likely for reasons stated above)! Again, I don’t agree with every approach and policy of the Democrats but to say the Republican Party is the sole party that represents Christians values on life is simply intellectually dishonest (if one looks into the formation of the “Religious Right” in politics it is a deeply troubling story based in racial segregation in which abortion was not always something that Christians rallied around but was used to amass political power). We as believers must not be loyal to any political party but speak truth to power.
IN SUMMARY
Again, I don’t think any Christian believes abortion is good. I’m not sure if it is THE issue to die on at the expense of all of God’s other commands. But, if the goal is to ACTUALLY reduce the number of abortions, the answer may not be in banning abortions (which is tied to increased abortion) but in policy aimed at addressing the underlying factors for unintended pregnancies and abortions. Another way I’ve heard it put is rather than focus on banning abortions another approach is to make abortions unnecessary. And if one insists that it’s not about the numbers but the principle than what principle are you really upholding if it’s not to decrease abortions? So in the case of abortion, at least, taking a left approach might be more helpful to make the right stance. I’m wondering to what extent, like the Pharisees with the sabbath, in our focus on keeping the letter of the law we have missed the spirit of the law to preserve life and need to hear Jesus’ exhortation for us to understand “I desire mercy, not sacrifice” (Matthew 12:1-13). Taking a stance is one thing, thoughtful policy is another.
Beloved, at the end of the day, I know we won’t agree on everything and you are certainly free to make your own choices, but I believe we share the conviction that we want less abortions (and some day none) and more flourishing of life. Otherwise, when we as believers say we are Pro-Life without actually being willing to do the work of reducing abortions for the Whole-Life this is more symbolic talk than actually helpful.
**A friend pointed out an error on my part where I had originally stated that the rates had declined after Roe v Wade, which is true in the long run but was not in the immediate term. The correction has been made.
*taken from a podcast interview I was a part of discussing Asian-American Christians and racial justice.
**DISCLAIMER: I understand that the “Asian” race label is a problematic categorization to begin with that lumps together different countries, languages, cultures. This isn’t necessarily a label that we have chosen for ourselves but speaks to our “racialization” in the world that we live in, especially in America. Given this context, I speak in some generalizations, realizing that there are always exceptions, in hopes that we can see what we might have in common to build some bridges moving forward.
When it comes to conversations about racial injustice in America, it seems Asians Americans occupy a curious space in a world that is often seen in Black and White (and sometimes Brown). As an Asian American it’s not always clear if and when we should speak up and if we’re even a part of the conversation at all. This is for a number of reasons:
On the one hand there are ways Asian Americans are sided with the OPPRESSOR (the Model Minority Myth)
The model minority myth narrative is particularly dangerous because Asian Americans are often weaponized against other POC. The dominant culture points to Asian Americans and claim “If ‘they’ can do it why can’t these other races?”
On the other hand there are ways Asian Americans are sided with the Oppressed (Yellow Peril)
Covid19 revealed how quickly the “model minority” can become the “Yellow peril” – an age old American idea that Asian are the permanent foreigner, invader, alien, and diseased.
Because of a virus that started in China, Asians Americans who aren’t Chinese or have never even been to China are deemed responsible for the virus and attacked. And even if one has come from China, to assume Chinese people have somehow brought this upon themselves and want to see their loved ones die from this terrible virus? This is appalling and base. Because Asian Americans may be different we’re treated like we’re savages.
There has been a History of “dehumanization”for Asian Americans. Two in particular come to mind:
1854 People vs. Hall, a Chinese witness of a murder by white man ruled inadmissible in CA court bc “the Chinese were ‘a race of people whom nature has marked as inferior, and who are incapable of progress or intellectual development beyond a certain point’” (along with Natives, Blacks, or mixed people could not testify in court against a white person)
1982 Vincent Chin is beaten to death with a baseball bat by two disgruntled whites, that assumed Chin was Japanese, blaming them for the loss of automobile jobs. The two men were let off without any jail time and this sparked Asian-Americans to unite around civil rights. Through Federal retrial it was the first time Asian Americans were protected in a federal civil rights prosecution. Chin’s case paved the way for federal Hate Crime laws.
It reminds me of how Asian Americans are frequently and persistently asked “Where did you come from?”, with the assumption we must not be American (the first time might be an honest mistake, but the persistence of the asking when our initial answers don’t satisfy the asker is what reveals this). Whereas lighter skinned Latino Americans (who can begin to pass as White) and even Black Americans are not assumed from the gate to be foreigners in America. People pull back their eyes to make slants to mock our appearance, even if we have been here for generations…in this way Asian Americans are made to feel like perpetual foreigners and outsiders, no matter how far we “make it”.
So Asian Americans occupy this liminal space between oppressor and oppressed, native and foreign, belonging and not belonging. (this idea is unpacked by Asian American theologian Sang-Hyun Lee, focusing on the more creative, communal, and prophetic possibilities of this liminality).
*As a Japanese-American I carry within me the Japanese who took a cue from the western world and cruelly colonized most of Asia but also I carry within me the Japanese who were put into internment camps in America for no crime but for simply being.
Add on top of this most all Asian cultures are collectivist cultures as opposed to Western individualistic cultures, meaning Asian cultures put the needs of the community almost always before the needs of the individual. Personal freedom is in service to collective good. There’s good aspects to this but there are also bad aspects to this.
This means, in general, it comes more naturally to Asians to adjust oneself for the needs of the community. Writ large, Asian Americans can and will more readily do whatever they need to, to assimilate with the needs of those around them. This again can do so much social good (cus we Asians can get things done). But it can also come at great cost, as we can lose our sense of self and turn our backs against injustice, especially to merge with those in power.
If I can capture what most of my experience as an Asian-American in America has been in one word it would be…invisible. Trying to blend in so as not to cause trouble but never so good or white enough to be celebrated. Even in race conversations I didn’t realize i was erasing myself and my ethnic heritage to accommodate the other races at the “table”.
SO WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS FOR THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY IN RACIAL JUSTICE?
1. To expand our sense of Family:
Asian Americans usually keep our head down but we fight for the success of our own families.
Matthew 25:31-46 is a prophetic word to the Asian American community. It is a challenge for us to focus not only on avoiding sins of commission but to recognize our sins of omission (actively doing good and caring for the least of these).
If we built real friendships across differences and saw Jesus in the least of these as family, we would fight for the least of these. Now, if we would fight for our neighbors children as we would for our own children we would be a force to be reckoned with.
2. To step into the role of Peace-Makers
Jesus tells us that “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:9). Now, to be clear that is a call to be peace-makers NOT peace-keepers (who are more about keeping the status quo). Being a peace-maker is no easy call because this often means being a bridge…and bridges get walked on by both sides.
Asian Americans are uniquely positioned, I believe, to be peace-makers – able to absorb the challenges of understanding the oppressor and the oppressed, being able to live in that liminal space and its tensions (we’ve been doing that for a while now). This is not to say our way is the best but that we DO have something to bring to the conversation to help work together for oneness, not sameness.
Until we see the prayer of Jesus fulfilled, for us to be one to be a witness to the world that His love is real (John 17:23), let us press forward.
People protesting the death of George Floyd hold placards up at Lafayette Square next to the White House on May 31, 2020 in Washington,DC. – Thousands of National Guard troops patrolled major US cities after five consecutive nights of protests over racism and police brutality that boiled over into arson and looting, sending shock waves through the country. The death Monday of an unarmed black man, George Floyd, at the hands of police in Minneapolis ignited this latest wave of outrage in the US over law enforcement’s repeated use of lethal force against African Americans — this one like others before captured on cellphone video. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
learning to love holistically amongst the urban poor
treevalley in the inner city 