January 17, 2018
Pray that justice will roll “down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
“But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” (Amos 5:24 NIV)
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a dreamer. He saw what others could not see. He heard what others did not hear. He felt what others did not feel. Therefore, he did what others were not willing to do.
King understood any form of racism defies the dignity of human life. That is why, in the midst of racial injustice and division in America, he dreamed about a day in our nation when “justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.” His quote of Amos 5:24 mirrored the heart of a prophet who in his own day was witness to injustice and inequality. But King’s interpretation of the text was tinged with a sense of holy dissatisfaction.
Standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, he framed it this way: “No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
Most of us remember MLK’s 1963 speech by its most famous theme—“I Have a Dream”—but King was much more than a dreamer. What made him one of the most consequential figures of the 20th century was his insatiable desire for biblical justice. This desire would end up costing him his life, but his dream of biblical justice in America would live on. It still lives on today.
Reflecting upon this history, I’m moved to humility and repentance.
We are not black churches. We are not white churches. We are not Latino churches. We are not Asian churches. We are the church of Jesus Christ. We are members of the same body. In the true church of Jesus Christ, the walls of racism and injustice come down….
Our goal is not political or even racial, but biblical. We must not, we cannot, be satisfied until, as Amos said, “justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
It’s past time for racial unity in America. We’ve decided to be united. (Excerpts from Ronnie Floyd’s article in ChurchLeaders.com)
