MLK

The Flight of the Navigator

Frank

“Aviation in itself is not inherently dangerous. But to an even greater degree than the sea, it is terribly unforgiving of carelessness, incapacity, or neglect. ” -Anonymous

I first read the above quote in one of the many articles I’ve read on the Air France disaster. Sadly, this event reminds us just how unforgiving flying can be. Yesterday, airlines replaced the speed sensors suspected to have been the cause of the accident even though the “black box” hasn’t been found and there’s limited information from data sent from the plane prior to its crash. These are experts in aviation however, who have reached this conclusion. So I trust they know what they’re talking about.

And I can understand, even relate. Imagine you’re the pilot of this plane: you’re flying over the ocean, you can’t see any landmarks and you’re surrounded by blue, above and below. Your sensors then give you conflicting readings of your speed. You’re cruising, not climbing, so you don’t have a physical sense of how fast you really are going. There’s nothing on the ground or on the horizon to relate your speed with. You have no choice but to trust your instruments.

This had to have been extremely difficult for the pilot. I was once handed the controls of a plane and had the pleasure of experiencing aviation beyond the textbook. We were approaching a mountain peak when the guy I was with told me to climb to a certain altitude. I thought the peak was a long ways off, but sure enough, by the time I reached that altitude I could tell the peak was right there. It’s very difficult to judge distance, and therefore speed, from the air.

“Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.” -Martin Luther King

Spiritually, it’s also very difficult to judge not only how fast we’re going but also where we’re going. How do we know we’re doing alright with our relationship with God? How do we know we’re making the right decision when given choices? How do we know we’re honoring God when we seize opportunities and not honoring ourselves? We can’t trust our own instruments. If we do, we’re likely to crash. “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jer 17:9)

Thank God we don’t have to rely on our own navigation. He gives us a guide, a navigator. “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.'” (Is 30:21) We can trust the Holy Spirit when our instruments fail. I pray that as many as possible on that flight had a navigator they could trust.

The Flight of the Navigator

Frank

“Aviation in itself is not inherently dangerous. But to an even greater degree than the sea, it is terribly unforgiving of carelessness, incapacity, or neglect. ” -Anonymous

I first read the above quote in one of the many articles I’ve read on the Air France disaster. Sadly, this event reminds us just how unforgiving flying can be. Yesterday, airlines replaced the speed sensors suspected to have been the cause of the accident even though the “black box” hasn’t been found and there’s limited information from data sent from the plane prior to its crash. These are experts in aviation however, who have reached this conclusion. So I trust they know what they’re talking about.

And I can understand, even relate. Imagine you’re the pilot of this plane: you’re flying over the ocean, you can’t see any landmarks and you’re surrounded by blue, above and below. Your sensors then give you conflicting readings of your speed. You’re cruising, not climbing, so you don’t have a physical sense of how fast you really are going. There’s nothing on the ground or on the horizon to relate your speed with. You have no choice but to trust your instruments.

This had to have been extremely difficult for the pilot. I was once handed the controls of a plane and had the pleasure of experiencing aviation beyond the textbook. We were approaching a mountain peak when the guy I was with told me to climb to a certain altitude. I thought the peak was a long ways off, but sure enough, by the time I reached that altitude I could tell the peak was right there. It’s very difficult to judge distance, and therefore speed, from the air.

“Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.” -Martin Luther King

Spiritually, it’s also very difficult to judge not only how fast we’re going but also where we’re going. How do we know we’re doing alright with our relationship with God? How do we know we’re making the right decision when given choices? How do we know we’re honoring God when we seize opportunities and not honoring ourselves? We can’t trust our own instruments. If we do, we’re likely to crash. “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jer 17:9)

Thank God we don’t have to rely on our own navigation. He gives us a guide, a navigator. “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.'” (Is 30:21) We can trust the Holy Spirit when our instruments fail. I pray that as many as possible on that flight had a navigator they could trust.

The Spirit of MLK

Frank

I’ve asked before where is our modern-day Martin Luther King and heard crickets in response. While hope in a presidential candidate for change brought out the likes of Rev Wright, a preacher in the mold of MLK, but lacking the spirit of humility. I’ve heard a good description of Rev. King- that he held the Bible in one hand and the Constitution in the other, respecting the Separation of Church and State but more so respecting the call of God and His sovereignty over any nation or government. His cause was a social justice, rooted in scriptural morals. His struggle was not only against flesh and blood, but also against the rulers of the day. In order to bring about moral change in society, he had to take on the laws that ruled that society.

So here we are today, with lines boldly drawn along the moral/cultural divide, with entire denominations picking sides based on politics rather than the word of God. Today, religious leaders are less likely to preach with the Bible in one hand and the Constitution in the other and more likely to hold member rolls in one with political contributions in the other. So I do not depend on religious “leaders” to rise up in the spirit of Martin Luther King. Instead, I rely on the lay-person, the congregant, the Public Christian to boldly proclaim the Word of God in the face of moral decay in our society.

Right now I’m reading about Gabriel’s visit to Mary to tell her she was going to give birth to the Son of God. I think of all that could have gone wrong for her by saying yes. Not only would she have a child out of wedlock, but she would claim that that child was the long-awaited Messiah. Imagine the ridicule, the rejection, the suffering she could face. She could be outcast from society, rejected by her fiance, called “crazy” by the religious leaders. There were a lot of reasons to say no, but one large reason to say yes. It was the will of God.

What do we face for speaking out in the name of Jesus? Ridicule, rejection, suffering? Do you risk rejection for society, family, and even your religion for “speaking the truth in love?” If not, then you’re not a Public Christian but likely a Sunday-pew-filler. I’m not going to say what issues we need to be speaking out on, or what institutions we need to face up against. There are plenty, and too many regrettably have been hijacked for the sake of politics. But what about closer to home? Is there a false doctrine being preached in your church that you’re too afraid to speak up about? Is there a local need that you have a vision to minister to but are uncertain how? Is there a neighbor or co-worker that you know has a spiritual need that only you can meet? If so, answer like Mary and say, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” (Luke 1:38)

I leave you with some excerpts from Martin Luther King’s Letter From a Birmingham Jail, 1963:

So the question is not whether we will be extremist but what kind of extremist will we be. Will we be extremists for hate or will we be extremists for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice–or will we be extremists for the cause of justice?..

There was a time when the church was very powerful. It was during that period when the early Christians rejoiced when they were deemed worthy to suffer for what they believed. In those days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society.

For Martin Luther King Day

Frank

Not long ago I was getting an oil change and car wash and passing time in their convenience store. Among the greeting cards and postcards were some short books on Martin Luther King, Mother Theressa, and Nelson Mandela. They were compilations of inspirational quotes, meant to be easy encouragement on a low budget. Thumbing through both the King’s and Mother Theressa’s, I found few quotes relating to their religion. Sure there were the feel good quotes about God and love, but nothing reflecting the sharp edge of Rev. King or the desolate conditions surrounding Mother Theressa. I found that odd, but it called another observation to mind. I grew up reading in the history books about Reverend Martin Luther King. But in the headlines tomorrow, you’ll read about Doctor Martin Luther King. Very rarely do I see “Rev” next to his name anymore. Maybe there’s an etiquette behind it; doctors in any field don’t like it when you call them “mister”. Or maybe it’s further evidence of the secularization of our society. You’ll likely read or hear many quotes celebrating Martin Luther King Day. You’ll probably hear snippets of his “I had a dream” speech. But will you hear him invoke the name of God? Credit God’s glory? Express God’s will?

I’ll close with a quote, taken from part of his letter from a Birmingham jail dated April, 1963. I hope in this era of the Separation of Church and State, that his words light a lamp in your heart and soul that will not be covered by a basket. That his words call us back to arms in the ongoing culture war. But most of all that his words cause us to pause, look around, and ask ourselves, “where is the Reverend King of this era?”

A just law is a man-made code that squares with the moral law or
the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. To put it in the terms of Saint Thomas Aquinas, an unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal and natural law.

Of course, there is nothing new about this kind of civil disobedience. It was seen sublimely in the refusal of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to obey the laws of Nebuchadnezzar because a higher moral law was involved. It was practiced superbly by the early Christians who were willing to face hungry lions and the excruciating pain of chopping blocks, before submitting to certain unjust laws of the Roman empire.

I’m grateful to God that, through the Negro church, the dimension of nonviolence entered our struggle.

Was not Jesus an extremist for love — “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, pray for them that despitefully use you.” Was not Amos an extremist for justice — “Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.” Was not Paul an extremist for the gospel of Jesus Christ — “I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.” Was not Martin Luther an extremist — “Here I stand; I can do none other so help me God.” Was not John Bunyan an extremist — “I will stay in jail to the end of my days before I make a butchery of my conscience.” Was not Abraham Lincoln an extremist — “This nation cannot survive half slave and half free.” Was not Thomas Jefferson an extremist — “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” So the question is not whether we will be extremist but what kind of extremist will we be. Will we be extremists for hate or will we be extremists for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice–or will we be extremists for the cause of justice? In that dramatic scene on Calvary’s hill, three men were crucified. We must not forget that all three were crucified for the same crime–the crime of extremism. Two were extremists for immorality, and thusly fell below their environment. The other, Jesus Christ, was an extremist for love, truth and goodness, and thereby rose above his environment.

There was a time when the church was very powerful. It was during that period when the early Christians rejoiced when they were deemed worthy to suffer for what they believed. In those days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. Whenever the early Christians entered a town the power structure got disturbed and immediately sought to convict them for being “disturbers of the peace” and “outside agitators.” But they went on with the conviction that they were “a colony of heaven,” and had to obey God rather than man. They were small in number but big in commitment. They were too God-intoxicated to be “astronomically intimidated.” They brought an end to such ancient evils as infanticide and gladiatorial contest.

We will win our freedom because the sacred heritage of our nation and the eternal will of God are embodied in our echoing demands.