All men are made in the image of God – When God created man in the beginning, He said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness… God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” (Genesis 1:26-27). However, this did not apply only to the first man and woman (Adam and Eve); this applies to all men since that time, even today (cf. Genesis 9:6; James 3:9).

All men descended from one man – When Paul was speaking with the Greek philosophers on Mars Hill, he told them about the “unknown God” (Acts 17:23) – the true, living God of heaven. He explained that God “made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth” (Acts 17:26). Since everyone came “from one man” (Adam), the different races and tribes of the earth did not evolve in different ways from lower life forms. That means that all people – regardless of race, ethnicity, etc. – are inherently equal.

All are one in Christ and Jesus died for all – Not only are all inherently equal by virtue of the fact that they were made in God’s image, there is also equality with regard to their spiritual identity as the people of God in Christ. Paul wrote, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). Just as Jews and Greeks (Gentiles) could be one in Christ, people everywhere can be one in Him today as well. Jesus was sent to die on the cross because “God so loved the world” (John 3:16), not just a certain race.

God does not show partiality – When Peter came to the household of Cornelius (a Gentile), the gospel had not yet been preached to the Gentiles. Yet through the events described in that chapter, Peter came to understand that “God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him” (Acts 10:34-35). God was willing to accept all people if they would fear and obey Him.

We are to show love for all men – As God shows no partiality, we must also show no partiality (James 2:1, 9). Therefore, Paul told the brethren in Thessalonica that they were to “increase and abound in love for one another, and for all people” (1 Thessalonians 3:12). Just as no one is excluded from the love of God, we are to show love for all men, regardless of race or ethnicity.

The above post is an excerpt from the book, Social Issues: Learning about and Dealing with the Problems of the Present Age by Andy Sochor. Follow the link to learn more about the book and purchase your copy today!