One of the principles of “spelunking scripture” is that not all verses in the Bible are of equal value. Clearly, some passages are more important than others. In my mind, one of the most important passages of scripture is found in the third chapter of Paul’s letter to the Galatians, specifically Galatians 3:26-28. Paul wrote,

“You are all God’s children through faith in Christ Jesus. All of you were baptized into Christ and have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (CEB).

As I wrote in Chapter 8 of Spelunking Scripture: The Letters of Paul, “We are one in Christ Jesus. We are not divided by race, or social status, or gender, or any other demarcation.”

How we need to hear that message in our world today! Racism, and sexism, and so many other divisive “isms,” were rampant in the ancient world, as they are today. Jews in both the Old and New Testaments looked down on other races and separated themselves from others. They were patriarchal in their attitude toward women. But then along came a Jew named Jesus, and another Jew named Paul, who challenged the bigotry of their Jewish culture.

The growing antisemitism around the world today is not just the product of the Israel-Hamas war. The modern-day nation of Israel was established, in part, in reaction to the violent antisemitism that led to the Holocaust in the 20th century. And the creation of the nation of Israel did not end the antisemitism; in many ways it increased it. The October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas in Israel are evidence of that.

Now the war in Gaza has killed and is killing many Palestinians, including women and children. The racial divides have become even more violent. I can understand why so many students on campuses across the U.S. are protesting to call for an end to the violence. As Christians, guided by the examples of Jesus and Paul, we have a message to proclaim: we are all God’s children!