In correlation with the release of Bloodlines: Race, Cross and the Christian, Pastor John Piper will be webcasting an address to local pastors in an effort to promote racial reconciliation. This address will broadcast worldwide live online through the Desiring God website on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern.
In Bloodlines, Piper confesses his own racisim as a youth in Greenville, S.C., and his need for the gospel. His message is nothing short of a plea for racial harmony and a call to action for the church. “Conservative evangelicals seem to have become indifferent to the sin of racism,” explains Tim Keller. Whether it’s weariness, our stubborn hearts, or outright denial behind this indifference—racism is still a relevant issue that Keller and Piper assert deeply offends God.
Though many strategies have been put forward to combat racism—educational, governmental, social—they all have been ineffective in eradicating this evil. These strategies fail to recognize that at the root of racism, human sin and a supernatural enemy are at work; and they won’t be conquered with good intentions or human effort.
“There is little doubt that where maddening hopeless, sinful, self-destructive behaviors and structures hold sway over large groups of people—white or black, left or right—the devil is deeply at work,” Piper explains. “What hope does a message of personal responsibility or structural intervention have against this supernatural power? None.” The good news is racial justice and reconciliation are possible. The good news of the gospel is all bloodlines come together in the bloodline of Christ.
Tune in for the broadcast at Desiring God on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern.
See also “Moved to Action.”
