The Theology Of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s importance to the civil rights movement is undeniable. There is nothing wrong with remembering such accomplishments; however, celebrating his theology is dangerous.

Martin Luther King, Jr. is an icon of the civil rights movement, and that much is undeniable; however, he should not be celebrated as a Christian.

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ROTTEN FRUIT

Would you call someone a brother in Christ who:

• said hell doesn’t exist¹

• denied the virgin birth²

• denied the physical resurrection of Christ³

• denied Christ’s Sonship⁴

• was an avid adulterer⁵

• believed Christianity could learn from Communism⁶

• received an award from Planned Parenthood for his work supporting the abortion of minority babies, for which Planned Parenthood proudly displays his acceptance speech on their website⁷

King also said “doctrines such as a supernatural plan of salvation, the Trinity, the substitutionary theory of the atonement, and the second coming of Christ⁸” to be fundamentalist beliefs, and if a person holds such beliefs that person “is opposed to theological adaptation to social and cultural change⁹.” King believed that such doctrines were “contrary to science.¹⁰”

The Word of God calls us to judge righteously (John 7:24). We are to judge the people inside the church (1 Corinthians 5:12). We are called to distance ourselves from such wicked people (1 Corinthians 5:11). So, what are we doing celebrating this man’s so-called religion? It’s perfectly fine to appreciate all he did for the civil rights movement, but don’t even think of celebrating such a person as a brother in Christ.

VARIOUS QUOTES

I’ll finish this with many unorthodox and heretical MLK quotes that D.B. Harrison posted on X (formerly Twitter) that shed light on King’s overall theology:

• “I am a profound advocator of the social gospel.” — Martin Luther King, Jr. in a 1948 essay titled “Preaching Ministry of the Church”¹¹

• MLK, Jr. on what he saw as the dual role of preaching: “On the one hand I must attempt to change the soul of individuals so that their societies may be changed. On the other I must attempt to change the societies so that the individual soul will have a change.”¹²

• “To say that the Christ, whose example of living we are bid to follow, is divine in an ontological sense is actually harmful and detrimental.” — MLK, Jr. in a 1950 essay titled “The Humanity and Divinity of Jesus”¹³

• “If Christ by his life and death paid the full penalty of sin, there is no valid ground for repentance or moral obedience as a condition of forgiveness. The debt is paid; the penalty is exacted, and there is, consequently, nothing to forgive.” - MLK, Jr. (1950)¹⁴

• “How did Jesus finally cone to the point that his will, which had in the beginning been contrary to God's will, become one with God will?” — MLK, Jr., in a sermon titled “A Way Out,” preached on May 1949 as an associate pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia¹⁵

• “There is an evil way opened to you and there is a good way open to you. In the final analysis you must decide which way your soul will go. God grant that you will choose your good self thereby mastering your evil self.” - MLK, Jr. in a 1949 sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church¹⁶

• “Concerning the origin of sin the Bible teaches many things. It must be stated at the outset that the Bible teaches no doctrine of original sin.” - MLK, Jr. in a Boston University essay dated November 2, 1953, written in preparation for his doctoral dissertation¹⁷

• “The churchman who ministers to the poor or economically insecure section of the population knows well that morality is influenced by poverty.” - MLK, Jr. in an address at the Religious Leaders Conference on May 11, 1959¹⁸

• “In dealing with even the worst of men, Christ constantly made appeal to a hidden goodness in their nature. We must somehow believe that the lives of men are changed when the potential good in man is believed in.” - MLK, Jr. in a Boston University essay dated May 15, 1953¹⁹

CONCLUSION

Stop building people up to a pedestal just because they have achieved something great in their lives. Not all who have done great things are Christians. Not all who claim to be following Christ are indeed Christians. As R.C. Sproul said, “It’s the possession of faith, not the profession of it, that translates a person from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light.²⁰”

I know this offends many people, but it only offends them because they have idolized the MLK version they know: the man who was vital to the Civil Rights Movement.

Stop idolizing people just because they have accomplished some good in this world. Scripture tells us, “There is no one righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10) and that “all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). All the “good” in the world cannot save someone. While we should rejoice in good deeds, they cannot save us.

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1. https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/mans-sin-and-gods-grace

2. https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/what-experiences-christians-living-early-christian-century-led-christian

3. https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/what-experiences-christians-living-early-christian-century-led-christian

4. https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/what-experiences-christians-living-early-christian-century-led-christian

5. And the Walls Came Tumbling Down, (Lawrence Hill Books, 2010)

6. https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/communisms-challenge-christianity

7. https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-gulf-coast/mlk-acceptance-speech

8. The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Volume I, (University of California Press, 1992), p. 242

9. The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Volume I, (University of California Press, 1992), p. 242

10. The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Volume I, (University of California Press, 1992), p. 242

11. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483137251659771905

12. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483141094346870784

13. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483149629877198848

14. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483154904671604739

15. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483159907603935233

16. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483165988224782337

17. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483177655268626432

18. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483181127690952708

19. https://twitter.com/D_B_Harrison/status/1483190836850348032

20. “The Center of Christian Preaching: Justification by Faith (Session IV),” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ph3MZ73E7E