We come to you today as Christians in the United States after a week of turmoil and we repent. We repent of misrepresenting you to the world, to our neighbors. We repent of not embodying the beatitudes Jesus spoke. We have not humbled ourselves before you to be poor in spirit, to mourn, to be meek, to hunger and thirst for righteousness, to be merciful, to be pure in heart, to be peacemakers. Rather we have been afraid, defensive, and proud, unbecoming of your people. We have cried “persecution” when we were not being persecuted for proclaiming Jesus Christ, but rather for promoting your morality before proclaiming the good news that Jesus saves sinners, of whom we are the uttermost. We are sorry. Forgive us.
Restore us. You are our only hope.
We have failed to be salt and light as we have fought amongst ourselves: gossiping, slandering, and hating our brothers and sisters. We’ve all done it and we’ve tolerated it from others, even retweeting, posting, or speaking others’ gossip, slander, and hate. We are sorry. Forgive us.
Restore us. You are our only hope.
Lord, we are lawbreakers, maybe not civil laws, but Your law - the law Christ came and fulfilled. We fool ourselves into believing we are good. We clean the outside of the cup and we receive your grace in vain. You have set us free and we use our liberty to promote worldly power, position, and privilege rather than to proclaim your salvation in humble awe. We are sorry. Forgive us.
Restore us. You are our only hope.
We have been angry, in public and private, murdering one another, most often in the interest of self-preservation or self-interest. We believe the lie that our anger is “righteous” and gives us a free pass to perpetuate untruths, which damages our ability to share the good news of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. We are sorry. Forgive us.
Restore us. You are our only hope.
We are quick to point out the sins of others, or simply how their behavior doesn’t suit our preferences. We are slow to see our own sin as the Holy Spirit reveals it, because we are too busy trying to play His role in other peoples’ lives. How we have offended you! How we have wronged our brothers and sisters! We are sorry. Forgive us.
Restore us. You are our only hope.
We have misapplied, misquoted, and misunderstood your Word, twisting it to fit our agendas. We have used your Word to harm others, quoting Scripture and Christian platitudes when people needed us to stand up for them or be quiet and sit with them. We are sorry. Forgive us.
Restore us. You are our only hope.
We have not followed the example of Christ by loving or ministering to our enemies. And we have wrongly labeled people as enemies who are not. We have not cared for the vulnerable, too lost in our own concerns and causes. We are sorry. Forgive us.
Restore us. You are our only hope.
We have tried to “be perfect” in our own strength. We have listened to lies even in our own Christian circles about what it means to be a “good Christian” rather than listening to the Spirit. We have burdened others with those chains or tried to force them into our mold, rather than pointing them to Jesus, who is our righteousness. We are sorry. Forgive us.
Restore us. You are our only hope.
Lord, have mercy on us. We are sinners.
Restore to us the joy of your salvation, that we be moved to acts of justice and righteousness for the vulnerable and proclaimers of the good news of Christ to all. Help us never forget our utter dependence on You. You are our only hope.
Amen
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