By Steven Mosley

Lord, today we come to honor your servant, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We pray as King stated in the “I have a dream” speech that we would not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream. In Jesus’ name, we pray amen!

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr (MLK) was born on January 15, 1929. If he were still alive today, he would be 93 years old. MLK died at the age of 39, but what a life did he live! I am glad that 50+ years after his death (1968), his legacy and impact still lives. Today as Americans, we are celebrating one of the most influential persons in American history. An American Hero. The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

I have a few things I would like to say to my fellow Republicans. As many of you know, I am a Christian, conservative, and college educator from the Mount Vernon district. Today I am here to call our party to return to a few fundamental principles that were the backbone of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life.

Let’s Return to Being the Party of Civil Rights

The Republican party was started as the anti-slavery party. We are the party of civil rights. We were the party of civil rights in the 1800’s when we passed the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. We are the party of Lincoln, not the confederacy! We are the party that abolished slavery (13th), made sure that all African-Americans were counted as citizens (14th) and ensured that African-Americans had the constitutional right to vote (15th). In the mid-1900’s, history records that the Democrat presidents relied heavily on the GOP to pass Civil Rights Acts because Democrats were divided on the issue of civil rights.

As we return to being the party of civil rights, let’s fight for the right to life lest we forget that abortion is the number one killer of African-Americans. As we return to being the party of civil rights, let’s fight for school choice, for 65% of African-Americans and 70% of Hispanics support school choice and charter schools. Quality education is available for all if we would let the parents, not a 5-digit number, become the primary educators of their children.

Let’s Return to Being the Party of Christian Values

As we return to being the party of Christian values, let’s advocate for religious liberty and the God-ordained “success sequence,” which is the key to building a prosperous society. For we know that the best pathway from poverty to the middle class is to graduate from high-school, get a full-time job, get married, then have kids. Seventy percent of those who follow this success sequence go from poverty to the middle class. There is no better equity building machine than the family. Let’s remember that religious liberty is more than saying “Merry Christmas” but rather living out our faith where we live, work, worship, and play.

In conclusion, the most important thing about MLK is not his academic attainment, though he entered college at the age of 15 and earned a doctorate from Brown University in 1954. The most important thing about MLK is not that he was an author, and wrote multiple books. The most important thing about MLK was not his famous “I Have a Dream” speech or civil rights victories, whether it was his role in advocating for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or the Voting Rights Act in 1965. The most important thing about MLK is not that he won a Nobel peace prize. The most important thing about MLK is not that he was a husband to Coretta or a father of four. All of these things are all noteworthy and deserving of high praise, but the most important thing about MLK is that he was a Christian.

We must never forget that on this day, we celebrate the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. MLK was a Baptist pastor who understood the church’s role in culture and political engagement. This aspect of his life is nowhere to be found on the monument in DC that bears his name, which is why we must remember to celebrate the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

King’s faith is the most important thing about his life and legacy because what you do with Christ determines where one spends eternity. As we advocate for justice on earth, let us never forget earth is not our final destination. Let us share the good news that Jesus came and died on the cross for our sins so that anyone who would believe in Jesus shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16-18,36).

Let’s be the party that stands with God and commits to faith over party! Faith over everything!

Steven Mosley was the 2019 Fairfax GOP-endorsed candidate for school board in the county’s Mount Vernon district. This article is derived from his address to the Suburban Virginia Republican Coalition breakfast honoring the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on January 15, 2020.