Why is it that if we are driving along and the guy ahead of us is going slower, he suddenly becomes a jerk? Why is it when we are driving along and the guy behind us is on our bumper wanting to go fast, he suddenly becomes a jerk? Why is it if we have no tattoos a person with tattoos is a weirdo? Why is it that a person with a different appearance becomes someone we should not like or judge to be this or that?
If you stop and think about it honestly and think about your own classifications about people you see every day, you might see a very opinionated and judgmental person. If we really let our minds go we may even be more shocked.
I don't think there is anyone on the planet who hasn't made a judgement call on someone else's behavior or appearance. Look, the truth of the matter is that no two of us act or look the same. Why do we find it so hard to simply accept that?
If a person has to act like and have the appearance of 7,057,075,000 people to be acceptable, (2012 population of Earth) I would say none of us is or ever will be acceptable to someone else. So why do we keep on "expecting" them to do so? Why do others keep expecting us to be like them? I can't help but think that state of mind is the state of mind of stupid people, including myself. By the way, that big number is something like 7.57 billion people. How arrogant is it of us to think that for another person to be okay in our book, they have to drive like us, walk like us, speak like us, look like us, live in the same part of town like us, go to the same school as us, have tattoos like us, not have tattoos like us and on and on and on. If I spent the rest of my life finishing that sentence, I imagine I would have at least one example for every person on earth.
Here is my advice to us all: get over it; it is never, ever, ever going to happen. There are people we may get along with. There are people who we may share the same interests and beliefs. There may be people we even just don't understand. So? So, accept it and move on. All this fighting and arguing about our differences is insane and can only be the work of evil itself. Really take time to think about this today-it is just stupid. I am going to make an even bolder statement; If we think we are the only one who has it right and if we are the only one who has the right eye shape, skin color, and lifestyle then we must be God. Because as far as I can tell He is the only one who has it right. He is the only one who is without blemish. Let's take it one step further, if the other 7,057,074,999 people on Earth also are the only ones who have it right then we have 7,057,075,000 gods walking around on this planet. WOW! Who ever knew?
One of our biggest divisions are because of what we call race. We have this race and that race, oh yes, and that race. Each race has different skin color, eye shape, culture and so on. What if those different races didn't exist? Do you think we could see each other differently? Could we maybe even respect and accept each other - even in our differences? Do you think we might find it easier to love each other?
In Mr. Ham's study he writes; "According to the Bible's history, all humans are descendants of Adam and Eve- thus only one biological race exists." That's fine if you believe the Bible. Well, let's look at what we know. Back to Mr. Ham; "All humans in the world today are classified as Homo sapiens sapiens (same genus, species, and sub species). When the Human Genome Project published a draft of their findings in 2000, the New York Times reported that "the researchers had unanimously declared there is only one race-the human race."
The most common distinction in or between race has been color, so I will use that for today. In the video series of this Mr. Ham does something neat. I will share that and add the opposite side of it. He held a piece of white paper close to his face and asked if he really was white. I think we can all agree that, with that in mind, none of us on the planet is white. Expanding on that idea, we could do the same with a black sheet of paper and see that no one is really black. Mr. Ham says, "There is so much information in the human genome that zillions of combinations are possible." My thought is that there are zillions of combinations , yet there is no one really white or black. What we do have is everything in between.
According to Mr. Ham, "Lots of brown is called black and a little brown color is called white. In actuality, no human is really black and no human is really white. There are not different colors but different shades of one basic color, brown. While many factors are involved in determining skin color and the steps are very technical, basic genetics can help us understand the most important principles. Assume dominant genes result in lots of melanin and recessive genes result in little melanin. Adam and Eve were most likely a middle brown color with both dominant and recessive genes for the pigment melanin in the skin. Children who received all the dominant genes would end up with a lot of the color and be very dark. Children who received all the recessive genes would end up with only a little color and be very light. Children with a mixture of genes (both dominant and recessive) would be middle brown."
When we look at it scientifically can we see that we are all basically the same with variations. Going forward with there being only one race, we need to label what we had called "race" as people groups within the human race. Mr. Ham says that "Within any one people group, the difference genetically between any two people is .2%. But between different (people) groups that were classified as races, the difference that determined that there were different races is .01%. So the differences between any two people within any one (people) group genetically is actually greater that the differences between (people) groups." Using the old idea of races, he is saying that the genetic difference between whites and orientals or between blacks and native americans is only .01%. However, the differences within the group of Native Americans or within the group of oriental people is .2%. Does that not put a different perspective on our differences?
Take another look at those percentages. Is a genetic difference of .01 % between me and another people group (or "race" by the old classification) really worth all the ill feelings? Have we been taken down a road by the evil one who exists to destroy God's greatest creation, the human race?
Again, we are all different. Again, even within the same people groups, we are all different. There are no two people anywhere that are the same so maybe we should simply accept that and enjoy, maybe even embrace, our differences.
Somewhere, someone has got to realize that we are not so different. Sometime we have got to accept that we are all in this human race together and care about each other. What would the world be like if our differences didn't matter at all? What would it look like if we could freely love and respect each other? What would it be like if all of us in all people groups would help and love one another? What would it be like if "In that day, the wolf and the lamb will live together; the leopard will lie down with the baby goat. The calf and the yearling will be safe with the lion, and the little child will lead them all. The cow will graze near the bear. The cub and the calf will lie down together. The lion will eat hay like a cow. The baby will play safely near the hole of a cobra. Yes, the little child will put its hand in a nest of deadly snakes without harm. Nothing will hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, for as the waters fill the sea, so the earth will be filled with people who know the Lord." Isaiah 11:6-9 NLT. In this reading, Isaiah described the new righteous kingdom set up by the Messiah. The curse of he fall will be lifted and peace and harmony will rein. So, what would the world be like? It would be like the world God intended and the world He will bring back into existence one day. It would look like the world He designed free from darkness and evil. It would be a world in which we all dream of living. Think of that person your really don't like. Think of that person who has really hurt you. Would not your life be better if that anger and hurt were removed and you could just love them? I know it would make my life better. Wouldn't all of us wish such an existence for our loved ones, kids and grandkids? If we would wish it for those we love, why not work at it right now rather than wish it?
The dislike and disrespect we have for one another is not because we are different. It is not our differences but our dark behavior because of the curse of the fall. Is it possible for us to put down all our differences, insults, hates and anger and realize that the curse drives these attitudes? Well, maybe we can't put them all down, but I believe we can do a whole lot better!
Love somebody, love everybody! On the surface, we are not as different as we may have thought. In our hearts it must be the same for we all want to be loved, respected, and thought well of. So, all in all how different are we really?