How Much Progress Have We Really Made?

Yesterday we observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day. It deservedly recognized one of the most influential African-American leaders in history. But as with many other men and women who have left profound impacts on our society, remembering Dr. King shouldn’t be a one time a year occasion. The legacies of those who have contributed mightily to our nation should never be forgotten.

 

Dr. King was certainly an advocate for justice, but also strongly endorsed non-violence, following the lead of people like India’s Mohandas Gandhi. Considering what’s transpiring in our society these days, it would be interesting to know what his take would be. Would he think that we’ve progressed – or regressed – in terms of interracial relations?

 

Many of Dr. King’s profound statements were recorded for posterity. Often, they reflect faith in God and a belief in peaceful resolution of conflicts. Here is just a sampling that I have found especially inspirational and appropriate for our times. I’m adding a comment or two:

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” This is taken from his well-known, “I Have a Dream” speech. How are we doing on this? I fear we’re still dwelling too much on people’s skin tones rather than the content of their character – from all sides of the political spectrum.

“We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” There are factions in our society that apparently have no interest in seeing us living together as brothers and sisters, regardless of color or ethnicity.

“The time is always ripe to do right.” Who can argue with this? Sadly, in a time when too many people question or deny the existence of objective truth, we’re losing the ability to even agree upon what’s right.

“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. That is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.” Unconditional love – selfless, sacrificial love, as it’s defined by the Greek word “agape” – is a quality that’s central to the Scriptures but has largely been forsaken by our “what’s in it for me” culture.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” This wasn’t original with Dr. King. The apostle John wrote, “Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him” (1 John 2:9-11).

 

Racism and prejudice toward people different from us are hardly new human developments. During His earthly ministry, Jesus Christ used at least two occasions to teach the wrongs of ethnic and racial discrimination and prejudice. 

 

One was when He met a woman in Samaria as she was going to a well to draw water, recorded in the 4^th chapter of the gospel of John. In those days, Jews and Samaritans, who were of a mixed race, had a mutual hatred. On top of that, cultural mores discouraged casual interactions between men with women they didn’t know. So, when Jesus addressed the woman at the well, asking, “Will you give Me a drink?” she nearly dropped the buckets she had lugged from her town of Sychar.

 

In today’s terms, Jesus was acting in stark contrast to the racism and misogynism of His day. Her reply was typical: “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” Jesus didn’t offer any excuses or explanation. He responded simply: “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water” (John 4:7-10).

 

Much more could be said about this encounter. It’s been the focus of countless sermons. But one certain takeaway was that Jesus had no use for hatred or prejudice toward any human being. He wasn’t afraid of shattering cultural norms.

 

Another time was a story Jesus told, found in Luke 10:30-37. We commonly know it as the parable of the good Samaritan. He used it to provide a definitive answer to the question, “Who is my neighbor?” Since most of us understand little about the animosity Jews had toward Samaritans, it’s easy to overlook what it tells us about racism and discrimination. But for Jesus’ hearers, the message was clear. 

 

It concerned a Jew traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho who was beaten and robbed, left for dead. Two religious leaders traveling the same road saw the man but rather than stopping to help, moved to the other side of the road and passed by. Next a Samaritan came across the man, stopped and bandaged his wounds, then took him to an inn nearby where he could recover. The Samaritan even promised to cover in full whatever expenses the injured man incurred.

 

Such a story of kindness and sacrificial love was unheard of in Jesus’ day, but it communicates what He expects of us as we interact with people who are different from us. As God told the prophet Samuel, “The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).

 

Such “sight” is possible only through the power of God. It’s not something we can conjure up through sentiment or good intentions. In the coming days, may He enable us to act more like what Dr. King described, not judging based on the color of people’s skin but rather, according to the content of their character.

 

Doing Right in an Age of Demanding Rights

These days, perhaps more than ever before, we hear talk about “my rights.” During my lifetime there have been important movements to secure rights of many kinds. And today, protests and debates continue, sometimes civil and sometimes not. But amid all these demands for rights, the simple act of “doing right” isn’t greeted with the same degree of enthusiasm. And that’s unfortunate.

 

Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr.: "The time is always 
right to do what is
right."
(Wikipedia photo)

It was the great civil rights leader, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., who said, “The time is always right to do what is right.” To state it in a slightly different way, there’s no wrong time to do the right thing.

Years ago, there was much discussion about “situation ethics,” especially in the business world. What’s that? One dictionary defines it as, “the doctrine of flexibility in the application of moral laws according to circumstances.” Another definition is “taking into account only the particular context of an act when evaluating it ethically, rather than judging it only according to absolute moral standards.” Does this have a familiar ring?

 

Even though we might not use the term as much, situation ethics seems to reign in the minds of many people. Doing what Dr. King advised is problematic, because who’s to say what’s right – especially when taking “context” or circumstances into account?

 

This is hardly a new phenomenon. At the end of the Old Testament book of Judges we find this sad assessment: “In those days there was no king in Israel; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes” (Judges 21:25).

 

I wonder what would happen if the vast majority of people shifted their focus from, “I want my rights!” to “Am I doing what’s right?”

 

At his Presidential inauguration in 1953, Dwight Eisenhower preceded his inaugural remarks by uttering a very personal but public prayer. It included these words: “Give us, we pray, the power to discern clearly right from wrong, and allow all our words and actions to be governed thereby….” Of course, this was in the days before notions of “separation of church and state” were enforced. Are we allowed today to petition God for “the power to discern clearly right from wrong”?

 

For some, that seems a very old-fashioned concept, but I think Dr. King was absolutely correct: The time is always right to do what is right.

 

In business, the circumstances may indicate that shading or even twisting the truth might be expedient or advantageous. But is it the right thing to do?

 

While walking through a convenience store, it might seem easy to snatch a pack of gum or a candy bar and leave without paying for it. But even if you’re not caught, is it the right thing to do?

 

If while driving, you receive an alert that a text you’ve been waiting for has arrived, should you read and respond to it – as long as you’re trying to be careful as you steer the car? Or should you ignore your phone until you find an appropriate place to stop? What’s the right thing to do?

 

We could consider hundreds of similar situations, many of them even more serious than those cited above. In another Old Testament book, Deuteronomy, Moses was addressing the Israelites, knowing his time on earth was coming to an end as they were anticipating finally entering the Promised Land. He said:

“See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse – the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; the curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today…” (Deuteronomy 11:26-28).

 

A bit later Moses said, “You are not to do as we do here today, everyone as he sees fit” (Deuteronomy 12:8). Apparently, the Israelites had become deeply immersed in their own brand of situation ethics, leading them away from the God who had delivered them out of bondage in Egypt.

 

We find one of the best examples of doing the right thing, even when it meant denying one’s personal rights, in Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37. In the story, a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho was attacked by robbers and left “half dead.” Two men – a Jewish priest and a Levite – were going down the road later that day and had the opportunity to go to the man’s aid. Instead, each man moved to the other side of the road and acted as if he hadn’t seen him.

 

Finally, a Samaritan – whose people were despised by the Jews – happened by and “took pity on him.” The Samaritan could have reasoned, “Why should I help a Jew? They hate me. Besides, I’ve got places to go and things to do!” However, he chose to do the right thing – bandaging the injured man’s wounds, pouring oil and wine on them to ease his pain, and then taking him to a nearby inn where he could recover. Not only that, but the Samaritan also promised to cover the man’s expenses in full.

 

As He concluded this parable, Jesus asked “the expert in the law” who had prompted the story, “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” In other words, which of the men passing by chose to do what was right?

Yes, we all have rights. The U.S. Constitution’s Bill of Rights defines many of them. But in our troubled, increasingly self-centered world, might it not be a good thing to redirect our concerns toward doing things that are right?