Renounce, Reject, Repent - Feb. 24, 2013

What is a vow?  A promise one makes.  In confirmation we make a vow to enter into a new relationship with the church in the presence of God and the church family.
On page 34 of The United Methodist Hymnal are the Confirmation vows.  The first vow is this:

On behalf of the whole church, I ask you:
Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of this world, and repent of your sin?

We talk about these vows so that the confirmation students know what it is they are promising to do when they get confirmed. 

What is wickedness and evil?  What actions or events come to mind when you hear these words?  What makes something wicked or evil?  Have you ever seen or heard of wickedness or evil in your community or school?

~Christians affirm that evil and wickedness are present in the world.  But Christians also believe that God is always present and active and is more powerful than evil. 
~Evil is the result of sin.  Because all people are sinful, we create situations that bring evil into the world.  Rejecting evil involves both resisting the temptation to do evil and resisting the temptation to encourage or participate in evil.  We should strive to eliminate sin in our lives and we should be careful not to support groups that are responsible for evil.
~We are not God and some of the evil in this world seems massive (like terrorism, poverty, abuse and murder).  Sometimes we feel powerless to address evil in our home and schools.

What does it mean to renounce?  Webster's dictionary defines it as: to give up, refuse, or resign usually by formal declaration.  To refuse to follow. So when we "renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness", we refuse to follow wickedness. 

What does it mean to reject?  Webster's dictionary defines reject as:  to refuse to accept, consider, submit to, take for some purpose, or use.  So when we "reject the evil powers of this world", we refuse to accept the evil powers of the world. 

What does it mean to repent?  Webster's defines it as:  to turn from sin and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one's life; to change one's mind.  So when we repent from sin, we turn away from sin and change our life. 

When you vow to renounce wickedness and reject evil, you are promising to stand up against and resist any thing that is opposed to God's will.  Some forces of evil may seem too big for us to take on, but God calls us (individually and corporately as a church) to stand up and take action against evil and wickedness.  As Paul affirms in Philippians 4:13 - "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength."

To follow Christ and to call Christ our Lord we must consistently turn from sin.  Sin disrupts our relationships with God and others and keeps us from doing what God calls us to do.  When we repent of sin, we turn away from the evil in our lives and turn toward Christ and Christ's love and saving grace. 




The United Methodist Hymnal
Webster's Dictionary
Credo Confirmation Curriculum
Holy Bible (NIV)