“We Are The Hope”

On Sunday, we sang Rend Collective Experiment’s “Build Your Kingdom Here” at church. It’s a fun song to sing, with some really good lyrics. Here it is, in case you’re not familiar with it. (And no, our worship team didn’t perform it precisely the same way as RCE did. Apparently nitpicky things like “fire codes” and “potential for bodily injury” take precedence over artistic expression and creativity at my church. It’s sad, really.)

While there are a lot of good lines in the song, what’s been resonating with me are the last lines of the final verse:

“We are Your Church,

We are the hope on earth.”

The church … is God’s representation of hope on this earth?

When people outside the church think about the church, what do they see first? Usually, it’s what we’re against—or what they assume us to be against. “You can’t do this, you can’t do that; these people are all right, those people aren’t … and if you think differently than I do about any of this, you’re on a straight path to hell.”

That really brings a lot of hope, doesn’t it?

The thing is, it isn’t our place to convict people of their sin. That’s the job of the Holy Spirit, and I’m pretty sure He knows what He’s doing. Our message is one of hope, of life, of freedom. Our job is to work with the Lord in establishing and spreading His rule on earth.

Instead of leaving people in their sin, we introduce them to the One who can take away sin.

Instead of leaving people in their poverty, whether physical or spiritual, we serve them in the name of the One who loves the poor.

Instead of speaking harsh judgment and criticism, we are to speak words of life and healing.

Can God work without working through His people? Of course.  Even when we are used in others’ lives, His grace has been there ahead of us, preparing the way. But He does allow us to be present and ministering in others’ lives. Let’s be voices that bring healing. Let’s be voices that bring hope.

“We are Your Church,

We are the hope on earth.”