Kingdom Harbor

I have to pass this conversation along featuring Carl Ellis and Preston Sprinkle. For the past few years Christians along the conservative and liberal political divide have been talking passed one another on the issue of systemic racism, white privilege, and critical theory on the one hand, and Christian nationalism on the other hand.

This conversation with Carl Ellis captures the more complex reality of being a Christian subversive in the midst of a dominant culture in America. Ellis knows what it’s like to get flack from both left and right because he’s navigating a “third way” as a Jesus follower. Yes, systemic racism is a problem, but critical race theory is also problematic. Yes, white privilege is a reality to be aware of, but not a sin to feel guilty about. Yes, we need to work to pass more equitable legislation, but values are also a huge factor in the extent to which black and white people achieve success or lag behind.

While many will enjoy the commentary and insights on race, the most important (and largely neglected) point Dr. Ellis makes is in reminding Christians that we are part of the sub-dominant culture, called to be subversive as we follow Jesus and protest against all sub-Kingdom ideologies and cultural forces. He will get shrugs when he calls Trump “an opportunist” and raise some eyebrows when he says he wishes we could have a president combining the likability of Obama with the policies of Trump.

Anyways…move beyond the partisan tribal shouting passed each other, and settling into a grown up conversation with nuance and grace with the always humble and inquisitive Preston Sprinkle.

Preston says of his guest:

“Carl is a brother from another mother and I want him to adopt me as his kid. I love the way he thinks through tough issues and refuses to be stuffed into some ideological box. In this conversation, we talk about all the hard stuff in the race conversation: critical theory, systemic racism, pros and cons in multiethnic churches, the “Cold Civil War” between achievers and non-achievers in the African American community, the 400 years of collective trauma that black people experience, white privilege, whiteness, and many other things. No matter where you land on these controversial issues, I think you’ll consider Carl to be a humble, thoughtful, and seasoned voice.”

LISTEN HERE