[Darris McNeely] Are you prejudiced? Do you not like minorities? Do you not like people who are different from you, by race, ethnicity, or religion? Stop and think about it. If there's even a hint in your life of prejudice, what might be at the cause of it?

There's one form of prejudice that is beginning to raise its very scary head in Europe, that's been getting some attention in some of the sources that I read of late. It's anti-Semitism, the hatred of Jews. We know about the Holocaust. We know what that meant to more than six million Jews during World War 2. I've been to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Memorial in Israel. I've seen the evidence; I've seen the memorials to all of that. I watch this pretty closely for a number of reasons.

Just recently, a few weeks ago (May 24, 2014), there was an attack at a Jewish museum in Brussels, in Europe. Four people were murdered. Now, this created a bit of a buzz in certain parts of the media. They called it, as this article does, exactly what it is: anti-Semitism. Another news source I was listening to kind of brushed it aside, it's not a big problem. But every country it seems in Europe has some aspect and stain of anti-Semitism that they are dealing with to one degree or the other. France has a great deal of it. This incident in Brussels, ahead of the European elections earlier this month, is just one example. The article goes on to talk about a French comedian who is of Cameroon descent, at least in part, who is making a living laughing about – telling jokes with comedy routines about anti-Semitism and has a large following in France in regard to this. The point is this: anti-Semitism in Europe, and in parts of Europe, is raising its head, and that scares people in that continent, in those lands, where historically, anti-Semitism have often led to some very, very unfortunate circumstances.

Let's bring it back down to you and I. Let's think about ourselves. What can we do about it, and how can we approach this? What can we do in regard to avoiding anti-Semitism?

First of all, have a zero-tolerance for anything in your life that might be prejudiced, that might be any type of ethnic, racial slur toward anyone. Watch it, don't let it get a part of your life. Have a zero-tolerance toward that.

Secondly, avoid prejudice of any group of people that might be different from you. I'm not condoning problems and illegalities and other major issues of sin. But avoid the hint of prejudice in your own life that could lead to extremes.

And there's one last thing that I would tell to anyone who wants to avoid especially this problem with anti-Semitism. And that is, learn about God. That's right, the God of the Bible.

In Romans 1:28, the apostle Paul described the people of the first century, and it has an application of this very problem. In verse 28, he says, "They did not like to retain God in their knowledge. And God gave them over to a debased mind to do things which are not fitting." It's a general description of society at that time. But at any time anyone does not like to keep God in their knowledge, there's going to be room, then, for a lot of problems – and this one is very large. Because at the root of anti-Semitism is a hatred of God, and God's way, God's laws, and anyone who has any remote connection with that. That statement is backed up by clear teaching in the Scripture. And it is something for anyone who knows God, obeys God in the fullest degree of the Scriptures, should be very much concerned about. If you know God, than you cannot allow any type of virulent anti-Semitism into your heart and into your ways. And when you see it, understand what its source is. But also learn a lesson from this, and what is a creeping problem in certain parts of society today – to keep a high regard for God and His way of life. And avoid anything that would lead us into a feeling of hatred for anyone remotely connected with God and His way of life.

That's BT Daily. Join us next time.