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Martin Luther King, Jr. is the only American who is nationally recognized for living his faith, and as disciples, this should motivate us to use this holiday to dig deep into his speeches and books at every word that leads us back to the actions of Jesus.
After reading and studying the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37, Martin offered these words for our consideration to act:
“The first question which the priest and the Levite asked was: “If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?” But the good Samaritan reversed the question: “If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?” And this, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’”
What would Martin say to us today? Would love still be the answer to ending these ills – poverty, racial and economic inequality, hatred and violence – that that he spoke of in his dream? What would that love look like today?
This message is excerpted from “Has Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream faded?” by Valora Starr from the January 21, 2019, blog of the Women of the ELCA. Today is Martin Luther King Day. Today we commemorate Henry, Bishop of Uppsala, martyr, 1156.