Honoring Dr. King

I listened to Dr. King's sermon "Drum Major Instinct" in 2015 and wrote this essay in response. I share it today as we honor his legacy and recognize the work we all need to do to fulfill the dream, keeping in mind that God Himself has a dream or aspiration for us as well.

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Dr. King's sermon "The Drum Major Instinct" focused on our need to be out front and noticed. Yet he did not condemn this attitude altogether, for he described one way this tendency could be harnessed and directed for positive results. In his sermon, Dr. King had this to say concerning Mark 10:39-45:

But that isn't what Jesus did; he did something altogether different. He said in substance, "Oh, I see, you want to be first. You want to be great. You want to be important. You want to be significant. Well, you ought to be. If you're going to be my disciple, you must be." But he reordered priorities. And he said, "Yes, don't give up this instinct. It's a good instinct if you use it right. It's a good instinct if you don't distort it and pervert it. Don't give it up. Keep feeling the need for being important. Keep feeling the need for being first. But I want you to be first in love. I want you to be first in moral excellence. I want you to be first in generosity. That is what I want you to do."

And he transformed the situation by giving a new definition of greatness. And you know how he said it? He said, "Now brethren, I can't give you greatness. And really, I can't make you first." This is what Jesus said to James and John. "You must earn it. True greatness comes not by favoritism, but by fitness. And the right hand and the left are not mine to give, they belong to those who are prepared."

And so Jesus gave us a new norm of greatness. If you want to be important—wonderful. If you want to be recognized—wonderful. If you want to be great—wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That's a new definition of greatness.

And this morning, the thing that I like about it: by giving that definition of greatness, it means that everybody can be great because everybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve. You don't have to know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve. You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love. And you can be that servant.

THE CURE

Dr. King did not say this instinct to be out front was evil in and of itself. The problem is our tendency to believe that we somehow deserve to be out front or that we are better than others. The only antidote I know for the drum major instinct is the concept of servant-leadership. Each of us are as susceptible as anyone to the arrogance and pride that come from our fallen human condition and especially from leadership power.

As we celebrate Dr. King's memory today, I urge you to take your place as a servant and minister to the needs of the oppressed, the powerless, the marginalized, like Dr. King did. Don't try to be more than you are, but for His sake don't be any less. Let's all harness what he called the drum major instinct, directing it toward initiatives that will heal and not harm, unite and not divide, build bridges and not walls.