“We want our church to look more like heaven” is a well-intended sentiment that I hear many white Christians and church leaders make regarding their desire to have ethnically diverse churches. Unfortunately, however, in the ears of some ethnic minorities, this statement often serves as code for “we want ethnic minorities to attend our churches […]
There is no shortage of materials written about the disintegration of the black family. Many have noted black families often have one parent households or have children that were born out of wedlock. The familial brokenness in some black communities has caused different cultural commentators to offer reasons as to why certain black communities are […]
Two weekends ago, I had the privilege of lecturing and preaching in an inner city church in Minneapolis, MN. My lecture focused on reconciliation and my sermon focused on election and predestination. This dear congregation and its leaders are intentionally pursuing multi-ethnic ministry in the very heart of one of Minneapolis’s most diverse inner city […]
The phrase “secular” Christianity may seem like an oxymoron, because indeed it is. Yet, there are numerous so-called Christians and so-called churches whose expression of Christianity is secular, not biblical. There are some who identify with the Christian faith, but reject belief in the saving efficacy of Jesus’ death for sinners, his resurrection, and his […]
“What are you” is a question that those of us with a multi-ethnic, biracial, or transracial heritage have heard at some point and time in our lives. We often hear this question because we appear to some to be ethnically or racially ambiguous. On other occasions, however, the question is asked because others want to […]
As with many things in Christian history, the cultural climate and cultural trends often determine the direction and the vocabulary of the American Christian movement. We’ve recently seen evidence of this with the different versions of the worship wars, as churches have moved from traditional to contemporary worship. We’ve witnessed this with emergent church and […]
In one of the most famous chapters in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he asserts, “Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3). This statement occurs with a series of assertions about the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, as a sharp confessional summary of matters of first importance regarding […]
Jesus died to reconcile all things and all people to God and to one another. He states in Luke’s gospel that he came to preach the gospel of peace to the poor and the captive (Luke 4:18-19). Ephesians emphasizes that (1) Jesus died to reconcile Jews and Gentiles (everyone who is not Jewish) to God […]
The execution of 9 African-Americans at a Wednesday bible study in Charleston, S.C. over the summer sent shockwaves throughout the U.S. Once it became clear that white supremacist thinking was the reason for this terrorist attack, many Americans from different races cried out against white supremacy and its residue. This outcry was exacerbated when images […]
Many agree Americans live in a racialized society (a society that attributes certain characteristics to groups of people for the purpose of racial hierarchy and racism), that we live in a country whose national origins cannot be separated from the evil ideology of white superiority and black inferiority, and that the U.S. still (in many […]
The various challenges that our country faces reinforce the hopelessness that many Americans feel right now. However, Romans 8:18-25 teaches the hope of future glory has conquered the present sufferings in creation. Context of Romans 8:18-25 Romans 8:18-25 is part of a tightly constructed argument that Paul is making in Romans 5-8. Romans chapters 5-8 […]
Adoption is a great thing. As a child, I was practically adopted and raised by my aunt and uncle. As a result, I personally understand the importance of giving children a good home. An increasing amount of white evangelical families are adopting black and brown babies. As a black man with a multi-racial heritage, married […]
As I’ve argued elsewhere, there is not a direct correlation between the racial reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles to God, and to one another in the bible and the need for reconciliation in the evangelical movement. Yet, the bible’s teaching of reconciliation in Christ certainly applies to the racist past and present struggle with race […]
Using aspects of Reformed theology, Dr. Jarvis Williams gives a Gospel-centered argument on why the Evangelical movement needs more Reformed minorities leading multi-ethnic churches.
It’s that time of year again: the Academy Awards. For those of us who love watching good films, we anticipate seeing the different actresses and actors nominated for the industry’s most coveted award. Yet, this year, as last year, controversy looms large over the Academy Awards event due to the lack of diversity represented in […]
Dr. Jarvis Williams uses the book of Romans to prove God’s certain love for us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Dr. Jarvis Williams walks us through Jesus’ prayer in John 17 to highlight why disunity in today’s churches can be detrimental to our evangelism efforts.
Using the book of Matthew, Jarvis Williams argues why Christians should celebrate Christmas, no matter the trivialities.
Some of the mainline evangelical conferences are dominated with white leadership and speakers with very little or zero black and brown representation. Evangelical leaders who claim to care deeply about reconciliation and representation fail to show this when they create their conferences’ speakers list. Some evangelical conferences have either all or predominately white speakers and […]
Dr. Jarvis Williams breaks down Psalm 42 to highlight how and why we can have hope in Christ in the midst of a troubled world.
