How Do We Talk About Hope?

Two of our sessions in Adult Confirmation focused on sin and hope. It is easy for us to talk about sin because of how rapidly our eyes and attention are drawn to the consequences of sin. In just one segment of broadcast news, we're likely to hear a report about police brutality, labor conflict, political oppression, etc. Because of how prevalent this bad fruit is, hope becomes more recognizable when we see and experience it. Communities and individuals forgo expenditures so they can send relief aid to Haiti, Japan, The Sudan, and countless other places where it is needed. Organizations form to care for the mentally disabled, the imprisoned, or those who struggle with addiction. These are fruits of hope.

How though, as disciples of Jesus Christ, do we talk about hope? How do we explain to someone who is un-churched, de-churched, over-churched, or just-the-right-amount-of-churched (whatever that means) that our hope is founded in something far deeper than mere charity or goodwill? If someone were to ask you what the difference was between your church and the United Way or UNICEF, what would your response be? The way that we communicate speaks just as much as what we try to say. 

In Session 6, "Salvation and the Solution of Hope," the table groups did an exercise from Romans 3:21-31 [an exercise borrowed from my friend and colleague Rev. Will Rice]. They were asked to paraphrase this selection of text without using the words: RIGHTEOUS, RIGHTEOUSNESS, RECONCILE, RECONCILIATION, JUSTIFY, JUSTIFIED, ATONE, ATONEMENT, GRACE or FAITH. Most of these words are used frequently in our churches; you might even say they are "church words." The point of the exercise was to help us talk about salvation - the source of our hope - with someone for whom "church words" aren't a part of their normal vocabulary.

Here is how some of the groups responded:

• Everyone has sinned and everyone is a sinner. Those sins have been forgiven through belief in Christ. Christ was a sacrifice presented for us from God whose blood cleansed us from these sins. God is a God for everyone, alike and different.
• We have all sinned. God has freed us from sin through the blood of Jesus Christ. All we have to do is accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. We are not bound by law. We do not earn this great gift by works. All we have to do is believe. This gift is open to all. Our belief is not an excuse to break the law, but a reason to uphold the law.

This was a tough exercise, and I am really proud of their work. For those of us who've been a part of congregations for a long time, we sometimes forget that much of the world doesn't speak using "church words." As much as this exercise helped us better understand our salvation, we need to be reminded that part of salvation in Christ Jesus means we share it with others. How can we share our hope if we aren't sure how to talk about it?

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship