I Have Another Dream...

Though the sound waves are 50 years old, Martin Luther King's voice continues to travel through time. The voice still echoes through the Lincoln Memorial and through the red hills of Georgia. And though some of those dreams have become a reality...many have yet to be fulfilled. Racism and inequality continue to exist in our great nation and most likely will continue to exist as long as we insist on governing ourselves apart from God's word.

As great as the continuing need is for racial harmony and equal opportunity when it comes to the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness for all men and women who are citizens of the United State of America...there remains an even greater injustice in the world. 

Martin Luther King was a voice for thousands and hundreds of thousands who had no voice...and he used that voice to make one of the greatest speeches of all time. 

But where are the rallying cries for the millions and millions who are born, live and die without a single moment in, a single interaction with, or a single word from the Bible. Where is the voice echoing through our churches for the millions who have suffered generation after generation for over 2,000 years without a single word of the gospel in their language.

200 years of racial inequality pales in comparison to 2,000 years of living and dying apart from any knowledge of the gospel. Yes many horrific things have happen during those 200 years; but even Martin Luther King benefited mightily from being born in the realm of the gospel reach. His name was changed early in life, after the great reformer 'Martin Luther'.

If we would only truly understand how much worse, how much more awful, traumatic and desperate is it being born in a land where there is no gospel light than being born black in America in any era. Being born in a land where there is no gospel...means you never have the opportunity to call on the name of the Lord and be saved. And you if can not call on the name of the Lord...you perish. You lived eternity apart from him, in torment. That is much worse than anything we can imagine or suffer here in America. (Never mind that most of those same people don't have access to clean drinking water and medication never mind the right to vote, health care and flat screen tv's and the 1,000 other luxuries we have!!!!) 

The lack of fervor by supposed born-again believers for world evangelization is a much worse atrocity than any social injustice we face in America. The lack of interest in living for God's dream because we are too busy living for our own dreams is a much worse injustice than any social issue America is up against today.

I have a dream...that one day America Christians will wake up to their disobedience and realize that there are still over 2,393 whole languages in the world that do not have a Bible. They do not have the message of sin through Adam and salvation through faith in Christ alone! 2,393 whole languages can not call on the name of the Lord and be saved today! But we are more worried about our cell coverage.

I have a dream...that one day America Christians will wake up to the reality that there is only 1 missionary per 1 million unreached people in the world today! 

I have a dream...that one day soon Southern Baptist Christians will wake up from their stupor and realize that there are over 6,686 Southern Baptist Christians per unreached group in the world today!! 

I have a dream...that we would start caring less about our own comforts and desires and more about God's desires.

I have a dream...that we would be more concerned about people in Kenya getting the gospel for the first time than if we are treated fairly today, or if our clothes are just right and our lives are turning out exactly the way we planned.

God has a dream. Will it be your dream?

God has a dream...that all the nations that he has created will come and worship him. (Psalm 86:9)

God has a dream...to gather all his sons and daughters that he created for his glory. (Isaiah 43:6-7)

God has a dream...that one day there will be a great multitude from every tribe, tongue and nation worship him in Heaven! (Rev 7:9, 5:9)

God has a dream...that the church would abandon their own pursuits and obey him at all cost to make disciples of all nations. (Matt 28:19, Matt 16:24, Matt 19:29)

To close...amongst all the hype of continuing social injustices in America that do need to be addressed, don't forget the greatest injustice and inequality of all... that we have over 100 translations of the Bible in English, while 2,393 languages don't have a single one.

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. -Martin Luther King, Jr.