Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

On April 16, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. sat in his Birmingham jail cell and used the margins of a smuggled newspaper to write one of the greatest essays of the 20th century—known today as the Letter from a Birmingham Jail. In this moving letter, Dr. King argued his case for why we can't wait to end racial injustice. But the letter also contains a passionate plea for the church: either pursue and fulfill your Christ-given mission, or become an irrelevant social club. In this week's skills article, four contemporary pastors—Crawford Loritts, Matt Chandler, Soong Chan-Rah, and John Piper—share letters of appreciation for Dr. King's ministry.

About three years after his famous essay, Dr. King came to Cornerstone Baptist Church in Brooklyn, New York as a marked man. Dr. Sandy F. Ray, the sixth senior pastor at Cornerstone Baptist Church, had invited him to commemorate the completion of Cornerstone's new family life center. The sermon given that Sunday morning (published only on PreachingToday.com, thanks to Rev. Lawrence Aker III), "Guidelines for a Constructive Church," offered a clarion call to a nation in the tumult of the "Civil Rights Movement." But this message still brings a stirring challenge for Christians today.

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• Featured Skills Article: Dear Dr. King, Thank You for Your Ministry

In Christ,

Matt Woodley
Editor, PreachingToday.com
mwoodley@christianitytoday.com

P.S. 2014 was an eventful year at the Christianity Today office in Carol Stream, Illinois! Take a look at some of our staff gatherings!

Matt Woodley is the pastor of compassion ministries at Church of the Resurrection in Wheaton, Illinois.