Truth. Speaking. Is. Unpopular.

Excerpt from video below in this post, "One of the things that 's always perturbed me...as we come to celebrate the life and living of Martin Luther King Jr, one of the things we can say with alarm since the legalization of the holiday is that Dr King has been reduced to the syrupy sweet Hallmark Card where he is no longer prophetic and he no longer speaks to the nation and he no longer causes us to speak to the nation in ways that shake the foundation of this nation's immorality..."

All my friends who are not Christfollowers do not need to listen to the following flash video. Feel free, but this message is mainly a convicting reminder that those of us who dare to claim that we are disciples of Jesus are expected to be peacemakers.

Peacemakers.

And that's not peacemaking as defined by Nathan Myers, or Jane Doe, or whoever else. It's peacemaking as defined by Jesus.

What was his example? What did his life scream to us about how to confront evil as a faithful disciple? How did his disciples live this out?

If you are a Christfollower, you and I don't have a choice with whether we "want" to be a peacemakers or not. We don't. Oh, we justify it...we say this and that....define peacemaking like this or that...in short, interpret peacemaking the way we do much of the Bible...seize onto the "For I know the plans I have for you" and "fearfully and wonderfully made" and "I call you my friends" passages while ignoring the "love your enemies" and "those who seek to protect their life will lose it" and "he was faithful to the point of the death, even death on a cross" and "for our battle is NOT against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities" passages because they challenge us too much.

As I watched this simple little flash from a simple speech, I was deeply convicted and tears welled up in my eyes as I thought about how often I shrink back from clear statements on truth when I'm around my fellow Christfollowers in church because I'm afraid they'll leave or reject me or hate me for that position. My friends that don't know Christ are begging to see me live like I love them and will give my life, my finances, my energy, and my prayers for them no matter what...they're CRYING out! And I'm often a shuddering, emasculated Christian who's ok with false unity in church in the name of comfort and "family" and all the easy Scripture; and I say I don't, but I really DO want you to look like me, dress like me, like the same things I like, hate the same things I hate...or at least PRETEND you do so our relationship doesn't challenge me. I'd rather not be called to take most of what I've learned in my life and unlearn it through pain and struggle and cyclical addictions to various things. I'd rather be comfortably numb in my self-centeredness, thank you very much.

But, MLK, for all his struggles, was a man who spoke truth...he would not let us sit in our seats and just nod along and afterwards say, "Good speech. Good delivery. Your voice intonation was tremendous." *pat on the back* "See you next week, Marty." Wouldn't let us do it. He chose to say what he said and live like he did and give himself like he did. He knew his life was in danger, and he wasn't afraid to confront the status quo and whoever stood to continue reaping the rewards from it. And for that, I am grateful. Because the status quo was and is continuing to rip us apart as humanity.

"Have we not come to such an impasse in the modern world that we must love our enemies - or else? The chain reaction of evil - hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars - must be broken, or else we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation...He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it. " -MLK Jr.

I'm tired of cooperating. I'm tired of my smarmy proof-text-quoting-Scripture-life that exists because I'm not disciplined enough to grow beyond it and don't have the stones to challenge my friends and church family and neighbors to take that step with me. But still I settle for recycling the same verses, saying the same prayers, and talking about the same issues I did a week ago...all the while, I'm spinning my tires and going nowhere! I'm TIRED of that life. I want MORE. There has to be MORE than where I am now. And we are now. And I don't really care that the beginning of this video has a strong message about Bush. Watch it all the way through. Give it a fair shake. Sit back and think a little about what it means to follow Jesus the way he told us to...no matter what.

And challenge me. Forgive me. Let me rant like this from time to time. Help me to love more, give more, forgive more, expect more, pursue more.

And if I'm going to hold the leaders of the United States to a high standard of truth-telling as I am by endorsing this flash video, I sure as heck better be pursuing it myself, or I'm a flat hypocrite.

Click on play, lower left corner.
http://www.djpauledge.com/wewillnotbesilenced/#

ht on video: Ariah