OVERCOMING SKEPTICISM by Rev. Ken Rickett

ADVENT! What a glorious time of the year! But Advent must “get off” on the right foot or the season can become less fulfilling. Let me suggest a beginning point.  

All of us are skeptics. On occasion our skepticism prevents us from getting caught up in fraudulent scams, shady deals, bad investments, and keeps us from becoming gullible to every tale and whim.

But there is a pervasive skepticism that affects everyday life. All we have to do is to listen to one another. Each time we say, “I hope the Colts win” …we are voicing skepticism that it will happen. When we say, “I hope we get a good, much needed rain” …we are voicing a skepticism that it will soon rain. Even when we say, “I hope I get ______ for Christmas”, there is this skepticism that a neatly wrapped gift will contain the desired item. Run that thinking out. Each time we hope for a promotion at work, or a scholarship for college, or finding an affordable house, etc. then we are voicing wishes that may or may not come to fruition. When we think about the future of the Church (all Denominations), we are skeptical that we would be comfortable in a Church a hundred years from now.

To get Advent “off on the right foot” means re-discovering HOPE, which is the theme of the first Sunday in Advent. The Greek word for hope, elpis, in the New Testament does not have any hint of any skepticism, it will come to pass. No wishful thinking allowed! Elpis, hope is rooted in God…The Everlasting, The Unchangeable, The Righteous One…Who chose to be The Loving and Redemptive One by sending His Son, The One Truly Worthy of our Praise and Worship.

Greek mythology tells the story of Pandora’s Box; a jar filled with all the evils possible in this world. The gods entrusted Pandora, their princess, to safeguard this container. Poor Pandora! She had no idea what a little white lie was, let alone the atrocities of war and inhumane treatment of one another. Curious, she lifted the lid. Evils of all sorts infected the world HORRORS! Not a single evil, great or small, could be recaptured and put back in the box.

BUT remaining in the box was ELPIS (Hope). Elpis did not command all evils to return to the box. NO! Rather, Elpis represented the confidence that the gods would somehow overcome the evils….

…so, the Scriptures teach that God overcomes the evils of the world for those who recognize Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior, Apart from Christ one is “without hope (elpis), but in Christ one possesses an ‘imperishable inheritance”, and we LIVE (rest, dwell) our elpis (hope) upon the Grace brought to us by the coming (advent) of Jesus Christ.

Elpis (Hope) is a sure confidence that God is who God says He is, and no suffering through the evils of this world can diminish the confidence that God is victorious over all evils AND the grave!

In Advent, let go of skepticism. What God has promised will happen. No “ifs, ands, or buts!”

Unless we grasp elpis, hope, the rest of Advent can become mere routine with decorations, shopping, and family traditions. Don’t misunderstand. Even as a minister, I, like anyone else, needed a fresh elpis (Hope). That comes on the First Sunday of Advent. After all, Advent is observed annually for that reason!

Next Sunday is PEACE Sunday. And we read, “may the God of Hope fill you with peace”

Then comes a Sunday of JOY! The Apostle Paul (Romans 15:13) declares “May the God of Hope fill you with joy”.

A Sunday of LOVE, and the Apostle Paul (I Cor 13:13) pointedly says, “Now these three remain, faith, hope and love, and the greatest of these is love.”

Did you get “off on the right foot” this Advent? I hope so.