"Fit to Live"...
One of King's most powerful weapons that aided him in fighting the enemy of discrimination was his ability as a gifted speaker. When King spoke, it was more than the words that he shared that would cause you to stop and listen, but it was his voice, which sounded more like music than just mere speech. Now, I don't mean to detract from his content as a speaker, because his words alone were so powerful that they continue to ring in our ears today.
One of my favorite Martin Luther King quotes, and believe me when I tell you, I have many of them, was shared in a speech that he gave in Detroit, Michigan in 1963. In speaking to his audience that day King said, "If a man hasn't discovered something for which he is willing to die, then he isn't fit to live." From the time I first heard that statement as a child, it has been forever lodged in my brain. It is one that I continue to reflect upon especially now that I am in my fifties. Basically King was saying, that unless each of us has determined in our hearts that there is something in this life that we hold so dear that we would even be willing to give our lives for it, then we haven't truly lived.
Think about it for a moment. Is there anything in your life that is so important to you that you would be willing to give your life for it? In my sermon this Sabbath, I will examine this question further with a message that I have titled, "Dying to Be A Christian." I am looking forward to seeing you there.
Charles A. Tapp
Senior Pastor
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