Why do churches continue to be so segregated, and what can we do about it?

[nateswift]

Originally Posted by Ralph_Kirk

However, you also have to look at the next verses.

And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.

This verse changes everything.

Roman slaves were the personal property of their masters. Their masters could abuse them, rape them, maim them, whatever they wanted...and were accountable to nobody in how they handled their slaves.

This verse changes that relationship. Both the "master" and the "slave" are equally the property of the Lord, which now makes the "slave" the responsibility of the "master"--and the "master" will be held accountable for the "slave's" well-being.

This puts the master into the stewardship capacity described in Luke 12:

The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.

But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk.

The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

This is true, and it is a VAST improvement over the norm for the time. If only nominal Christian masters had followed it (there are notable cases of it having been done, for instance Voltaire's report on his visit to America) but the vast majority did not, and it was not until the 1700s the people started realizing that chattel bondage was wrong in itself.

[kjw47]

Originally Posted by BaptistFundie

Found out today this past weekend that in the denomination that includes my church, we have 9 different languages represented in our region, and great diversity -- 40 "black churches" lots of "white churches" (and other shades), and a great mix in between. It was good to hear.

It is really sad. I attended Baptist--They do not teach what Jesus taught.
The preacher lied right to my face as they do to all. He said if I said 3 lines of prayer I was born again= pure lie. Ephesians 4:22-24 is the only way one is born again.
At that point in time, I was a drug dealer, drug doer, drunkard, thief , fornicator, swearing every other word. He was a liar. They do get many tithes like Mr Osteen does with that lie of 3 lines of prayer.