After I posted a photo of Dr. King on Facebook with a reference to Luke 4:17-21 to commemorated the 45th year since his assassination because of his "Discipleship of Christ" a friend of mine noted:
"I thought it was because he wanted equal rights. and i'm not being a smart a$$. I always thought that he was assassinated because of his part in the civil right movement. I am curious to hear why you say it was about his spiritual beliefs. were they just too intertwined?" I told her the short answer is both, but I'm posting here a longer and more complete response, because I think the question deserves it.
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I think Dr. King would say that there was very little if any difference between his calling as a Christian Minister and his work in the Civil Rights Movement. Even more emphatically; he argued on a number of occasions that his presence in the movement was a direct result of his discipleship. In his first major speech against the Vietnam War on 4/4/1967 a year to the day that he was killed he says referring to the Nobel Peace prize:
“But even if it were not present , I would yet have to live with the meaning of my commitment to the ministry of Jesus Christ. To me, the relationship of this ministry to the making of peace is so obvious that I sometimes marvel at those who ask me why I am speaking against the war. Could it be that they do not know that the Good News was meant for all men, for communists and capitalists, for their children and ours, for black and white, for revolutionary and conservative. Have they forgotten that my ministry is in obedience to the One who loved His enemies so fully that he died for them? http://www.myprogressivefaith.com/2011/11/why-i-oppose-vietnam-war-by-martin.html
In April of 1963 he found himself again in jail this time in Birmingham Alabama. While in prison he became aware of a Public Letter published by white ministers who questioned his presence and leadership of protest in their city. They referred to him as an extremist and essentially they wanted him to go back home to Atlanta, tend to his church, and let things be. In his now famous “Letter From A Birmingham Jail” he answers:
“ though I was initially disappointed at being categorized as an extremist, as I continued to think about the matter I gradually gained a measure of satisfaction from the label. Was not Jesus an extremist for love: "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you."“...Jesus Christ, was an extremist for love, truth and goodness, and thereby rose above his environment. Perhaps the South, the nation and the world are in dire need of creative extremists.” I came to Birmingham with the hope that the white religious leadership of this community would see the justice of our cause and, with deep moral concern, would serve as the channel through which our just grievances could reach the power structure. I had hoped that each of you would understand. But again I have been disappointed.“ I have heard many ministers say: "Those are social issues, with which the gospel has no real concern." And I have watched many churches commit themselves to a completely other worldly religion which makes a strange, un-Biblical distinction between body and soul, between the sacred and the secular.” http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/resources/article/annotated_letter_from_birmingham/
So often the contemporary church is a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound. So often it is an arch-defender of the status quo. But the judgment of God is upon the church as never before. If today's church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century.“I hope the church as a whole will meet the challenge of this decisive hour...If the inexpressible cruelties of slavery could not stop us, the opposition we now face will surely fail. We will win our freedom because the sacred heritage of our nation and the eternal will of God are embodied in our echoing demands.”http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/resources/article/annotated_letter_from_birmingham/
The night before he was killed he was speaking to sanitation workers in Memphis TN in a prophetic speech now titled “I’ve Been to The Mountain Top” he prophetical predicted his his impending death. He also made special mention of christian ministers and commended them for living the true Gospel by their leadership in the movement.
And you know what's beautiful..., is to see all of these ministers of the Gospel. It's a marvelous picture. Who is it that is supposed to articulate the longings and aspirations of the people more than the preacher? Somehow the preacher must be an Amos who said when God speaks who can but prophesy , and again with Amos, "Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream." Somehow, the preacher must say with Jesus, "The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to deal with the problems of the poor."And I want you to thank them, because so often, preachers aren't concerned about anything but themselves. And I'm always happy to see a relevant ministry .It's all right to talk about "long white robes over yonder," in all of its symbolism. But ultimately people want some suits and dresses and shoes to wear down here. It's all right to talk about "streets flowing with milk and honey," but God has commanded us to be concerned about the slums down here, and his children who can't eat three square meals a day. It's all right to talk about the new Jerusalem, but one day, God's preachers must talk about the New York, the new Atlanta, the new Philadelphia, the new Los Angeles, the new Memphis, Tennessee. This is what we have to do. http://www.myprogressivefaith.com/2013/02/ive-looked-over-and-ive-seen-promised.html
So back to your point. Or better yet your question. I am convinced that Dr. King did not see a difference between the work for Justice and what we typically call spiritual believes. He would argue that a religion or spiritual belief that is not connected to justice and alleviating human suffering is a useless, and from the Christian perspective “Un-biblical”.
I would add my two cents only to say that the Christian Discipleship of MLK is more than consistent with the Jesus Christ of the Bible. It's in line with the Jesus who feed the hungry, healed the sick, consorted with so called “sinners”, protected the prostitute from stoning, challenged the religious leaders at the temple, shared with us the parables of the Samaritan and the Prodigal Son, and taught us that salvation is found in Christ and revealed in our emulating him, by serving the ‘least of these” and serving our neighbor as we would want to be treated ourselves. Luke 10:25-28
The idea that "spiritual beliefs" particularly "Christian Spiritual Beliefs" can be detached from the suffering of others... the notion that one can find peace with God, or proclaim a devotion to Jesus Christ and not feel the pain of your sisters and brothers - AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT - is inconsistent to me.
The early Christians knew this. Paul tells them: "Share each others burdens and in this way obey the laws of Christ." Gal 6:2 James the brother of Christ put it this way: "Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:26-27
Ok I’m done preaching...
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