“There is no Negro problem. There is no Southern problem. There is no Northern problem. There is only an American problem. And we are met here tonight as Americans – not as Democrats or Republicans – we are met here as Americans to solve that problem.”
These were the words of President Lyndon B. Johnson on the night of March 15, 1965 as he addressed a joint session of Congress to encourage them to pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This speech has been titled “And We Shall Overcome.” It was a powerful speech delivered just a few days after “Bloody Sunday” when protestors marching in Selma, Alabama were brutally attacked and beaten. He understood that if things were going to change in our society, it would take a collective effort on the part of all people in order to make that happen.
I believe the same thing is true for us in the Church. If we are to ever see a transformed world and experience the abundant life Jesus said He came to bring us, it cannot happen in isolation. Whether we are talking about abundant life here on earth, or abundant life eternal, it must be approached as a communal activity. There is no Methodist problem. There is no Baptist problem. There is no Lutheran or Catholic problem. There is only a human problem.
In Paul’s first letter to the church in Thessalonica, he encourages them in chapter 5 to “be at peace among yourselves” and later on to “see that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all.” Paul was trying to teach the church that if they were to live out God’s will for their lives, it could only happen by treating each other with kindness and respect. They would only truly be able to experience the Kingdom of God if they did it together as a family of faith.
I want to encourage you today to reach out to someone who you may feel has done you wrong, or you know you have wronged, and seek reconciliation. Find forgiveness and offer peace to each other. It is only when we are able to come together to face this journey that we are all on called “life” that we can truly experience that abundant life that God has planned for each of us.
Rev. Josh Attaway, Edmond Campus Pastor
