Identity politics and God's word.

One of the subtle issues of ¹Dispensational Eschatology is "identity politics." 

It's not obvious on the surface, but when you look closely, this teaching places a certain nation/race on a pedestal above all others. The Jewish race. The nation of Israel is viewed by many - mainly within, but also outside the church - as the "apple of God's eye." To even question this superior status is considered antisemitic by some - i.e. racist. 

The irony is if this high view were held toward any other race - such as Hitler's so-called Ayran race -  It would be racist and people would rightly be up in arms protesting. 

I am not suggesting at all that Israel was unimportant or insignificant. They certainly were and played a unique and vital role in God's plan of redemption, as well as on the stage of human history. Nor am I suggesting we should not ²support national Israel today. Any nation that promotes freedom, especially if surrounded by a region of hostility toward that freedom, deserves our ²support. But to accurately assess national Israel's true significance in God's eyes, we must explore God's words in the bible. God must be true even if every man is a liar. 

³If you wish to explore this more click here.

If someone does not view Israel as superior to other nations some will object and ask "Isn't the nation of Israel God's chosen people; special above all others?" The short answer is yes, but to answer that question properly and completely we must ask the bigger underlying questions. e.g. to what end was Israel chosen for and was that purpose ever carried out? If so, how and when? 

The longer answer is they were chosen to be the nation through which the promised Messiah came, and he did (though orthodox Jews believe the Messiah's coming is still in the future). And He came not just as the Deliverer of the Jews only, but the Savior of the entire world. For a more thorough discussion on this click here.

The general issue with identity politics.

What does any of this have to do with identity politics? In essence, identity politics says one's individual value or worth is determined by one's group, race, nationality, etc. However, when you follow this through logically, isn't this in fact at the heart of racism - i.e. one group or race being superior (or inferior) to others. This is saying I am better (or worse) than you simply because I belong to a particular race or group. Or, I can do no wrong because I belong to a certain group e.g. a person of color - any color or lack of it - can't be racist because they are the victim of racism. A certain group could get away with many things others would never be able to do if they were considered superior to others. 

But this is not true, no matter who asserts it. This is a form of group or ethnic supremacy if you will. Not unlike the "white supremacy" label we hear thrown around today. A kind of ⁴ethnic-based identity -- exactly the opposite of the message of grace. 

In God's economy, identity is based on something much greater and far more significant. God calls us to ground our identity in who we are as His image-bearers first as well as ⁵who he has made us to be in Christ, not in our ethnicity, group, gender, culture, worldview, etc. The teaching of the Bible shatters all boundaries of race, gender, or any other difference.

Gal 3:25  But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian,
Gal 3:26  for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.
Gal 3:27  For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Gal 3:28  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Gal 3:29  And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to ⁴promise.

This above "group" - God's group if you will - is the only group we can ultimately and legitimately base our identity on. Being part of this group has nothing to do with race and everything to do with grace.

This is not a point of pride but of humility, since it's based on grace and not our ethnicity, culture, efforts, some assumed "birthright" or anything that has to do with humanity seeking to bolster their identity apart from and outside of God, their Creator. 

This is also unifying because being an image-bearer of God includes everybody, so in this sense -- the way most define a group -- it is not a group at all because we all belong to it. 

Also, being remade in Christ's image is available to anybody and will be denied to no one who desires to enter onto this path i.e. it excludes no one and is freely offered to anyone. 

These aspects of our identity are determined by no less than God Himself -- the Creator of us all -- making them the only legitimate grounds for our identity and of far greater significance than anything offered or asserted by men.

Ironically those who scream ⁶loudest about racism are usually those who look at the world exclusively through an "identity politics" - i.e. racial - filter. The problem is this creates an "us-them" mindset and division instead of unity. 

A lot of accusations about who is being more divisive are thrown around these days. However, if we stop and think about it, we will find identity politics at the heart of this divisiveness, not racism in the classical sense e.g. whites vs blacks, Aryans vs Jews, etc. Those who are least racist are the least likely to think in racial terms - e.g. I am not a brown, white, or black woman or man I am simply a fellow human being created in the image of God, just like you are, regardless of race, gender, age etc.

The truth is we are all created in God's image and our value is not rooted in our group, race, nationality, or gender...at least not in God's eyes (this of course includes Jews). So in the most basic and vital sense, as bearers of God's image, we are all the same in the eyes of God; we are all ⁷equally created to know and experience God in all his beauty, majesty, love, and goodness. We are all members of the human race who have equal access to God in and through Christ and are equally valued by God regardless of group, race, gender, etc.

We see this in the Gospel of John by Christ himself when he said the following to the Samaritan women at the well, 

20  (the women said) 0ur fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.” John 4:20-26

Note Christ said he's seeking people whose heart (i.e. "... in spirit and truth...") is after him, not those who come from any particular group, race, or area i.e. not the heart of a Jew, white, black, yellow, brown or any other specific race but all hearts. When you understand that Samaritans were considered "half-breeds" by the Jews - not unlike the Muggle-born "mudblood", Hermione Granger, in the Harry Potter series - this conversation with a Samaritan woman becomes even more significant. 

In addition, he was having a conversation with a woman. Women were considered second-class citizens by that culture and time (but obviously not by Christ). And you certainly didn't hang out with a woman alone, one on one, even in public. This was considered taboo. When you look at the context of this conversation, his disciples' response subtly hints at this taboo.

Am I saying it is wrong to love our heritage? Not at all. To the degree it honors and displays the beauty and diversity of God, it is a good thing. However, it is not the ground on which we base our identity and worth. 

There is nothing wrong with cultural diversity. It can be a good thing to display the vast creativity of God. It is just not the ultimate thing we base our identity on.

For a discussion on why and how we must distinguish culture from race click here. 

For a discussion on the image of God click here

For a discussion on Dispensationalism click here.

For a discussion on the promises made to Abraham click here. 

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Footnotes:

¹I am not looking to single out Dispensationalism for its own sake but because of its widespread support in the evangelical Christian community, the subtle effect of this view is significant and worth mentioning.

²I'm not saying financial support necessarily but verbal or moral support assuming they (or anyone else we support for that matter) are acting morally and legitimately in self-defense. 

³For more on that promise click here

⁴One group is more valuable than another because of their ethnicity, thereby deserving greater respect.

⁵However this does not make Christians superior to none non-Christians because it is a status given to us as a gift and available to anybody who will receive it.

⁶I'm not saying there is no racism or that racism shouldn't be addressed I'm saying those who see everything through a racial filter (identity politics) are likely the most racist. Those who don't are the most "colorblind." 

To say it another way, the most racist among those who read this will probably scream loudest that this article is racist and antisemitic. To assert a person of color can be a racist is taboo or that all "whites" are not automatically racist by being white, will upset some. 

⁷This also happens to be the world view of the founders of this nation - that all men are created equal - even though not fully put into practice initially. However, this view eventually became the impetus and basis for the abolition of slavery. The foundation of truth laid in the founding documents of the "great American experiment" ultimately won out, even though a significant compromise over the equal value of the black man was initially made in order to form a union of the 13 original colonies that later became the United States of America i.e. our nation. Contrary to much of the present-day narrative, most of the founders were opposed to slavery and this compromise. An accurate and revealing depiction of this battle and compromise is shown in the second episode -- titled "Independence"-- in the HBO miniseries "John Adams."