One of the more fascinating things that has happened over the past decade is due to the existence of Christian Nationalism, the impression of Christianity from the outside can have the appearance that because we’re Christians, we support racism, sexism, and other “-ism’s” that cause harm to others.

Recently, I’ve seen more and more pastors, Christian influencers, and other people of faith coming forward to speak out against any form of racism or misogyny. It’s almost like they need to clarify that “Umm…Christians aren’t like this”, as if this idea of Christians being anti-racist is a new idea.

As it turns out, Christians have been calling out these hurtful practices for much longer than many people believe, and one place where that can be seen is in the popular Christian music of the 90’s.

Let’s start with Kirk Franklin’s “Revolution”:

This is arguably one of the biggest Christian songs of the 90’s, and if you existed in any form of youth group in the 90’s or 2000’s, it’s very likely you’ve heard this song overplayed like crazy.

I personally remember learning all of the lyrics and rapping them along with Kirk Franklin, without actually taking the time to read the impact of the words themselves:

Sick and tired of the Church, talkin’ religion
But yet we talk about each other, make a decision
No more racism (no), two face-ism (no)
No pollution (no), the solution (no)
A revolution

Not only is he calling out racism by name, but also calling out church hypocrisy, and how Christians like to pretend they love Jesus but them spend more time gossiping about others at the same time.

One of the other big examples is arguably one of the biggest Christian bands of the 90’s: DCTalk

In their hit song “Walls”, they open the song with a clip of Martin Luther King Jr. before jumping into their impactful lyrics:

Man against man just ain’t the plan
It’s time for God’s people to take a stand
I mean brother to brother, black to white
Stand up to the problem and begin to fight

Christians: If you still struggle with racism, whether it’s intentional, subconscious, or if others in your life have told you that you’ve said harmful things to those of a different race, it’s time to start taking steps towards growing into a more loving person.

No, this isn’t “woke”.

No, this isn’t “pushing liberal agenda”

This is following one of the most basic commands from Jesus Himself:

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Matthew 28:18-20

All nations.

All people.

If you think this is something you may struggle with, I encourage you to sit down with those who have differing opinions and hear them with open ears and open hearts. I’m not saying that you need to just do whatever they say, but what I am saying is to have those conversations.

Not only are those conversations an opportunity to grow as an individual, but getting to know how to love others and overcome prejudices is a way to grow as a community as well.

Just like Jesus asked.