"White Like Me"

They say that black lives matter,

And, Lord knows, I agree,

Bought with the blood of Jesus,

Shows our value, don’t you see.

And we know all lives matter,

To the Lord without condition,

Jesus died and rose again,

To save us from perdition.

Came from a line of racists,

But Jesus broke that curse,

Don’t know how far back it went,

But He can change the worst.

No matter that old history,

Grace stopped it all with me,

With my kids and grandkids,

Race is not what they see.

Color-blind and happy,

To show to all respect,

By grace to love our enemies,

Bad attitudes correct.

So, yes, I’m white but inside,

‘Cause Christ has washed away,

The sins that held me captive,

God’s Book says I’m okay.

‘Cause my sins were as scarlet,

But there’s a stronger red,

The precious blood of Jesus,

And the prophet clearly said,

That though as red as crimson,

They shall be white as snow,

And I am just so thankful,

And wanted you to know.

The white that really matters,

Is when you are washed clean,

By His wounds find healing,

And that is what I mean.

The God of all creation,

Has called us to a talk,

And if we will confess to Him,

He’ll show us how to walk.

Find His love, my brother,

And get clean from within,

If we agree that we are wrong,

No matter where we’ve been,

He will forgive the trespass,

He will pardon the past,

He grants us full forgiveness,

Salvation that will last.

And with that inner healing,

We can love each other,

Just the way that He loves us,

No matter our skin color.

“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow…” (Isaiah 1:18, NLT)

The prophet Isaiah, perhaps above all others, had a powerful vision of God’s redemptive work. He says God is calling His people to a reasonable discussion about a problem they can’t solve: their own sinfulness. But God offers a solution: His cleansing power! Color is used to graphically illustrate the transformative experience, and holds great power for us today. Where color and race are used to divide us and create animosity, God’s grace intervenes to cleanse and heal us. It is only His grace that causes us to love, respect, forgive and live in peace with one another. It’s always been that way. It still is today. Think about it.

Lord, cleanse us and empower us to let Your healing flow through us to everyone, in Jesus’ name.

Art by J.K. Dooley, used by permission. Thanks, J.K., and God bless you.