Martin Luther King - A Man Whom God Raised Up for Such a Time as His
On the third Monday of each January, we pay homage to the life of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. through a national holiday. No other individuals, besides George Washington and Christopher Columbus, have we bestowed a similar honor.
We remember Dr. King primarily for his profound accomplishments as a civil rights activist. What was the fuel that drove his passion? I believe it was his relationship with God. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was also a pastor and preacher of the gospel. His Christian convictions heavily influenced the content of his speeches and the dream of his heart: “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.”
Dr. King lived in the Deep South under a system of segregation known as the Jim Crow laws. This system served as a daily reminder to blacks that they were in no way equal to whites.
Additionally, attempts by blacks and whites who joined Rev. King in the marches to protest the injustices of their day, were met with fierce opposition. Protesters were subjected to jail time, dog attacks, high pressure water hoses, police brutality, house burning, and even murder. Dr. King received death threats throughout the time of his civil rights work.
Dr. King refused to be deterred. He knew he had a message America needed to hear. He was blessed with the exceptional ability to effectively deliver that message, and God had given him the unshakable courage to lead the fight against the social injustices of his day.
In the face of the seemingly insurmountable challenges Dr. King encountered during the movement, he has left a positive mark upon our nation that cannot be erased. Hence, a national holiday in his honor. I submit that if God had not been with him, his phenomenal works to secure civil rights for all people through nonviolence would not have been possible. That’s why I say he was a man whom God raised up for such a time as his.
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