January 19, 2014 ~ Witness from John Knox Kirk on Vimeo.
A sermon preached at John Knox Kirk of Kansas City, Missouri, on January 19, 2014.
Isaiah 49:1-7
and John 1:29-42
First, a moment of confession, on this Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend.
I want to tell you about a time I cried in public.
Its fine to cry in public, of course.
Its just that this particular experience was rather emotional for me.
It was either my last year of High School or my first of College
and I was watching a film
on Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights movement.
The film was moving, and it captured the protests and the marches
the vitriol and the efforts by law enforcement to keep things contained
using dogs and fire hoses and intimidation through batons
and worse…
And I remember seeing Dr. King and others, chin up
speaking truth to power
witnessing to God’s love for all of God’s children
regardless of the color of their skin
or any other condition of their birth.
And I remember the discussion about King’s famous letter from the jail cell
in Birmingham, Alabama.
Injustice anywhere….a threat to justice everywhere.
Amos was an extremist….for Justice
Jesus an extremist…in love.[i]
And I heard this, and I took in the images, and I wept.
