It’s been 40 years today since Martin Luther King was shot and killed on a Memphis Tennessee balcony.

Much has changed since then and much has stayed the same.

I hope that we can embrace the true essence of Martin King’s message – the claws and the soft feathers, if you will – rather than create a non-threatening caricature to suit our needs.

Here is an excerpt from the speech he delivered on April 3rd, 1968:

“Well, I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now, because I’ve been to the mountaintop. And I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life — longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over, and I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. So I’m happy, tonight. I’m not worried about anything, I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”

We, too, have seen the promised land of God’s Kingdom and have tasted the coming fullness of His justice and righteousness. May we become laborers in the work of Martin King – loosing justice, fighting systemic oppression, speaking for those who cannot speak, reconciling divides in race, socioeconomic conditions, gender, etc. – for this is also the work that God has called us to co-labor in with Him – this is HOW the Kingdom makes itself known.

Isaiah 58: 6-11

6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?

7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe him,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness [a] will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,

10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.

11 The LORD will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.

For those of you interested, there are a couple good features about the martyrdom of MLK right here on NPR. These are not well-worn biographies about his life and death, but instead analysis of modern conditions, calls to action and even an audio excerpt from the speech given the day before his death. I would encourage you to make this part of your day.