Tag Archives: Martin Luther King

An MLK repost

I posted this three years ago. Seems worth posting again on this holiday:


IMG_0717In September, I had the privilege to speak at the Westside Church of Christ in Baltimore, Maryland. Carolina was able to go with me, and we took a few days to visit Washington before speaking at Westside on Sunday.

I had gone to Washington when I was a boy, so there were several new memorials that I hadn’t seen before. One of them was the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. While the statue there is impressive, what really impressed me were some of the quotes that surrounded it. These were some of my favorites: (click on the images to see them in a larger size)

IMG_0720

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” (1963, Strength to Love)

IMG_0719

“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.” (10 December 1964, Oslo, Norway)

IMG_0718

“If we are to have peace on earth, our loyalties must become ecumenical rather than sectional. Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective.” (24 December 1967, Atlanta, Georgia)

IMG_0715

“It is not enough to say “We must not wage war.” It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it. We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war, but on the positive affirmation of peace.” (24 December 1967, Atlanta)

The MLK Memorial

IMG_0717In September, I had the privilege to speak at the Westside Church of Christ in Baltimore, Maryland. Carolina was able to go with me, and we took a few days to visit Washington before speaking at Westside on Sunday.

I had gone to Washington when I was a boy, so there were several new memorials that I hadn’t seen before. One of them was the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. While the statue there is impressive, what really impressed me were some of the quotes that surrounded it. These were some of my favorites: (click on the images to see them in a larger size)

IMG_0720

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” (1963, Strength to Love)

IMG_0719

“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.” (10 December 1964, Oslo, Norway)

IMG_0718

“If we are to have peace on earth, our loyalties must become ecumenical rather than sectional. Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective.” (24 December 1967, Atlanta, Georgia)

IMG_0715

“It is not enough to say “We must not wage war.” It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it. We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war, but on the positive affirmation of peace.” (24 December 1967, Atlanta)

My favorite quote on vocation

If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the host of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.

Martin Luther King, Jr.