On Aug. 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech has gone down with Abraham Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address” and Patrick Henry’s “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” as one of the most important speeches in U.S. history.
In the speech, Dr. King references many important documents from U.S. history, but he also points to the basic truths of freedom and love shown to us by God in Scripture. He pulls directly from Amos 5:24 when he says, “We will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
We can read Amos 5:24 in one of two ways—that God’s justice will flow, or it could be for God’s people to exercise justice and righteousness. I think Dr. King saw it as the latter, and so do I.
Both Dr. King and Amos saw injustice in this world, and they called on people of God to act. Another Old Testament prophet, Zechariah, put it this way: “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Judge fairly, and show mercy and kindness to one another” (Zechariah 7:9).
So, how can we be a part of this “endless river of righteousness”? We can care for each other. We can see that even in our differences, we are still beloved children of God. We can pray for our neighbors—those who agree with us and those who do not.
Let us not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.
Questions for reflection:
1. What comes to mind when you think about repentance?
2. What do you think it looks like to be a part of God’s “endless river of righteous living”?
3. How can you start living a life where you are exercising both justice and righteousness?