The Church: Standing Firm in Faith, Walking Forward in Hope

Hebrews 12:1–3; Micah 6:8 

Dear sisters and brothers in Christ, 

I bring you the greetings of the Word Council of Churches a fellowship of 356 member churches in 120 countries in the world with over 600 million members. We pray God`s blessings and wisdom upon you in this congregation and the whole denomination. 

It is a profound privilege to stand in this Great Church of Debrecen. This is more than a beautiful building. These walls carry the memory of generations. They have heard prayers in times of joy and in times of sorrow. They have witnessed the faith of people who lived through war, political upheaval, uncertainty and suffering. 

And yet, generation after generation, the people of God have gathered here and proclaimed: 

Jesus Christ is Lord. God is faithful. Hope is alive. 

That is why our text from Hebrews speaks so powerfully to us today: 

“Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus.” 

We stand today in the company of those who have gone before us. 

But we are not here merely to remember them. We are here to continue their witness. The faith we have received is now entrusted to us. The question before us is not simply, What did our ancestors believe? The question is: What will we do with the faith they entrusted to us? 

1. A Church that remembers 

Debrecen occupies a special place in the history of the Reformed Church. This city has been a centre of Reformed faith, theological reflection, education and Christian witness. The Great Church has become a powerful symbol of a people who sought to place the Word of God at the centre of their lives. We honour that heritage. But there is a danger in every historic Church. We can become so proud of what God has done in the past that we fail to hear what God is saying in the present. Heritage must never become a museum. Our traditions are not given to us simply to preserve. They are given to us so that we may faithfully carry the Gospel into a new generation. 

The question is therefore not: How can we protect the Church we have known? But: How can we faithfully witness to Christ in the world God has placed before us? 

2. We live in a wounded world 

And what a world it is. Europe carries the wounds of war. The Russia and Ukraine war continues to suffer the terrible consequences of violence. Millions of people have been displaced from their homes. Across our world there are wars, conflicts, poverty, hunger and inequality. There is growing polarisation in societies. People are increasingly divided by politics, nationality, ethnicity, religion and ideology. We see refugees knocking on doors. We see young people anxious about their future. 

We see creation itself groaning under the pressure of climate change. And we are witnessing technological changes — including artificial intelligence — that are transforming human life at a speed we have never experienced before. 

In such a world, what is the Church called to be? Is the Church simply another institution defending its own interests? Is it another voice in the political arguments of the day? Is it a community concerned primarily with preserving itself? No. 

The Church belongs to Jesus Christ. And therefore the Church must be where Christ is — among the suffering, the forgotten, the excluded, the broken and the searching. 

3. The Church must be a community of hope 

Hebrews tells us to keep our eyes on Jesus. This is important because there are many things competing for our attention. 

Fear tells us to look at the crisis. Politics tells us to look at our opponents. Nationalism tells us to look at our own people. Consumerism tells us to look at what we possess. Despair tells us that nothing can change. But Scripture tells us: Look to Jesus. 

When the world is confused — look to Jesus. When the Church is divided — look to Jesus. When we are afraid — look to Jesus. When we are tempted to give up — look to Jesus. For Christian hope is not simply positive thinking. Christian hope is grounded in the resurrection. Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ is with us. And Christ will come again. 

Therefore, death does not have the last word. War does not have the last word. Hatred does not have the last word. Division does not have the last word. Despair does not have the last word. God has the last word. And God's last word is life. And God calls us to affirm the gift of life, especially where life is denied or destroyed. 

4. “Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly” 

The prophet Micah gives us one of the simplest and most demanding descriptions of Christian discipleship: “What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” 

Three things: Do justice. Love kindness. Walk humbly with God. 

This is not complicated theology. But it is demanding discipleship. To do justice means that the Church cannot remain silent when human dignity is violated. To love kindness means that compassion must become more than a word. To walk humbly with God means that we recognise that no church, nation or tradition possesses God. We belong to God. And because we belong to God, we belong to one another. 

5. The world needs a Church of reconciliation 

Perhaps nowhere is this more important than in Europe today. Europe knows what happens when differences become hatred. It knows what happens when nationalism becomes absolute. It knows what happens when human beings are divided into “us” and “them”. The Christian response cannot be another wall. 

The Christian response must be reconciliation. This does not mean ignoring injustice. Peace without justice is not true peace. Reconciliation does not mean pretending that suffering has not happened. It means refusing to allow the wounds of history to determine the future. The Church must therefore become a place where enemies can meet. A place where strangers can become neighbours. A place where differences do not automatically become divisions. A place where we learn again that: 

Christ is greater than our nationality. Christ is greater than our politics. Christ is greater than our denominational differences. 

6. We need one another 

This is why the ecumenical vocation of the Church matters so deeply. Jesus prayed: “That they may all be one. ” Christian unity is not a luxury. It is part of our witness to the world. When Christians remain divided, the world asks: How can you proclaim reconciliation when you cannot live reconciled with one another? 

The World Council of Churches speaks of the Pilgrimage of Justice, Reconciliation and Unity. A pilgrimage means that we are moving. We have not arrived. We walk together. And walking together does not mean that we are identical. We remain Reformed, Orthodox, Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Evangelical and from many other traditions. But we can say: We belong to Christ. And that is enough to begin walking together. The world does not need a Church that competes with itself. The world needs a Church that demonstrates what reconciliation looks like. 

7. The Church must listen to the young 

If we want to know what kind of Church God is calling us to become, we must listen to our young people. Many young people today carry enormous burdens. They worry about war. They worry about climate change. They worry about employment and economic insecurity. They struggle with loneliness. They question institutions. And some wonder whether the Church has anything meaningful to say. We must not simply tell young people what the Church was. We must invite them to discover what the Church can become. 

We must give them more than information. We must give them a vocation. We must say: Your life matters. Your voice matters. Your gifts matter. God has a purpose for you. And we must show them a Church that is courageous enough to confront injustice, humble enough to listen, and hopeful enough to believe that another world is possible. 

8. The Church must care for creation 

We also face a profound ecological crisis. The earth is not merely a resource to be exploited. It is God's creation. The first words of Scripture remind us: “In the beginning God created…” Creation belongs to God. We are stewards, not owners. Therefore, ecological justice is not an optional programme of the Church. It is part of our Christian calling. 

We cannot love God while destroying God's creation. We cannot love our neighbour while ignoring the ecological crises that disproportionately affect the poor. The Church must help humanity rediscover a relationship with creation characterised by gratitude, responsibility and care. 

9. What kind of Church will we be? 

Standing in this Great Church today, prompts me to ask a simple and profound question: What kind of Church will we be? 

Will we be a Church afraid of the future? Or a Church confident in God's presence? Will we be a Church that builds walls? Or a Church that builds bridges? Will we be a Church that protects privilege? Or a Church that serves the vulnerable? Will we be a Church divided by differences? Or a Church that discovers unity in Christ? Will we be a Church looking backwards? Or a Church that carries its heritage faithfully into the future? 

I believe God is calling us to become a Church of courageous hope. A Church rooted in Scripture. A Church centred on Christ. A Church open to the Holy Spirit. A Church committed to justice. A Church pursuing reconciliation. A Church caring for creation. A Church walking with the poor and the marginalised. A Church listening to young people. A Church reaching across denominational and national boundaries. A Church that can say to a wounded world: There is another way. The way of Christ. 

10. From Debrecen to the world 

Dear sisters and brothers, This Great Church has stood here for generations. Connected with the history and life of this Church, it tells me the Church is not called simply to stand still. 

We are called to walk. We walk with Christ. We walk with one another. We walk with those who suffer. We walk with those who are searching. We walk with creation. We walk towards God's future. And perhaps that is the message we need most today from the writer to the Hebrews and the prophet Micah: 

Stand firm in faith — but keep walking. Stand firm in Christ — but keep walking. Stand firm in truth — but keep walking in love. Stand firm in justice – but keep walking. Stand firm in hope — but keep walking with those who suffer. The Church has a future because Christ has a future. And Christ's future is the future of God's kingdom — a kingdom of justice, peace, reconciliation and life. 

Conclusion 

The writer of Hebrews says: “Let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus.” We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. 

Those who worshipped here before us have completed their race. Now the race is ours. The world is waiting for our witness. The poor are waiting for our solidarity. The wounded are waiting for our compassion. The young are waiting for our courage. Creation is waiting for our care. And Christ is calling his Church forward. 

So let us go forward. Not with fear, but with faith. Not with hatred, but with love. Not with despair, but with hope. Not alone, but together. And always, looking to Jesus. 

For Jesus Christ is our foundation. Jesus Christ is our peace. Jesus Christ is our reconciliation. Jesus Christ is our hope. And Jesus Christ is our future. 

May the Great Church of Debrecen continue to be a beacon of faith. May the Reformed Church in Hungary continue to offer a courageous Christian witness to Europe and to the world. May Christians everywhere rediscover the joy of walking together. And may God give us the grace to receive the inheritance of those who came before us — and the courage to pass it faithfully to those who will come after us. 

Stand firm in faith. Walk together in love. Work for justice. Seek reconciliation. Care for creation. Proclaim Christ. And walk forward in hope. 

For Christ is risen. Christ is with us. And because Christ lives, hope has the final word. 

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. 

Amen. 

Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay 
General Secretary 
World Council of Churches