Amazing.

How else can you describe what happened last night when Barack Obama became the first African American elected President of the United States? The internet is saturated with essays documenting the magnitude of this event, but it’s the images of people cheering, crying, and celebrating throughout the world that really capture the emotion of it all.

Amid the reflection there have been numerous references to Martin Luther King Jr.’s pioneering civil rights movement and his “dream.” One commentator on the news last night said the day King delivered his famous speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial he could not have known that a two year old boy in Hawaii would become the fulfillment of his prophecy.

I’ve been fascinated by Martin Luther King since seminary–not just as a civil right leader, but as a preacher. In 1967 he told a Chicago congregation, “Before I was a civil rights leader, I was a preacher of the gospel. This was my first calling and it still remains my greatest commitment.” It’s King’s powerful prophetic proclamation of the gospel into our American reality that I’ve been drawn to. It is only within this larger calling that we can make sense of his civil rights work. For King, combating the injustice of segregation and Jim Crow fell under the umbrella of gospel ministry.

I’ve read a number of books about King including his autobiography (which I highly recommend). Right now I’m reading A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration from the Great Sermons of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. It’s a short book and a wonderful introduction to King’s theology and brilliant preaching. The book contains a sermon he preached early in his career titled, “Paul’s Letter to American Christians.” Showing his creativity, King composed a letter in the voice of Paul both praising and warning the American church.

The letter is a glimpse into the values and convictions of Martin Luther King, and it might be surprising to discover that his focus isn’t just racial justice. In fact, he frames the letter by contrasting the scientific progress of America with its moral decline. He says,

It seems to me that your moral progress lags behind your scientific progress….Through your scientific genius you have made of the world a neighborhood, but through your moral and spiritual genius you have failed to make it a brotherhood.

King then warns against giving one’s loyalty to the country:

Your ultimate allegiance is not to the government, not to the state, not to nation, not to any manmade institution. The Christian owes his ultimate allegiance to God, and if any earthly institution conflicts with God’s will it is your Christian duty to take a stand against it.

That’s a timely word as many Christians (black and white) find themselves pouring their hopes and dreams into the new President-Elect Obama. Where is our hope? Where is our loyalty? Where is our allegiance? No doubt Martin Luther King would be celebrating the election of Barack Obama, but his dream transcended any single leader, any one nation, and any earthly power.

King’s epistle to the Americans goes on to attack the dangers of materialism:

I am afraid that many among you are more concerned about making a living than making a life. You are prone to judge the success of your profession by the index of your salary and the size of the wheelbase on your automobile, rather than the quality of your service to humanity.

How many of our churches need to hear that message today?

MLK includes a lengthy section about the disunity of the church, competition between denominations, and racial segregation. (This sermon includes his famous remark about 11am Sunday morning being the most segregated hour of the week.) He also outlines his belief in non-violence and that love is the most powerful force in the world- it is the principle that stands “at the center of the cosmos.”  

And then we discover these amazing words about the purpose of life:

I still believe that standing up for the truth of God is the greatest thing in the world. This is the end of life. The end of life is not to be happy. The end of life is not to achieve pleasure and avoid pain. The end of life is to do the will of God, come what may.

So, I’m left with this question: What was Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream? And was it fulfilled last night when Obama won more than 270 electoral votes?

The election of an African American to the White House certainly fulfills part of MLK’s dream to see a society where people would be judged by the content of their character rather than the color of thier skin. But MLK dreamt of so much more. He wanted to see an America as morally good as it is technologically advanced. He hoped to see a society that valued people more than things; life more than making a living. And he longed for Christians who valued God’s will ahead of comfort and pleasure.

Read King’s entire sermon here.