My Beloved the Benevolent November 2022
Grace and peace, Wishing you every goodness and blessing!
I am pleased to congratulate you on the beginning of the Advent Fast, which begins on Friday, November 25th; wishing you a blessed fast. The Advent Fast precedes our celebration of the Nativity Feast which coincides with the 29th of Kiahk, and falls on Saturday, January 7, 2023.
The time of fasting is a special spiritual period that we spend in worship, repentance and preparation to celebrate the glorious feast. Therefore, I want to reflect with you in this message on the purpose of the coming of the Son of God and His blessed Incarnation. In the Annunciation of the birth of the Lord Jesus, the angel said to the Mother of Light, “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.” Luke 1:31 The word Jesus means Savior; so, when the angel appeared to Joseph to reveal to him the mystery of the Holy Conception, he said, “do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Matt. 1:20-21
The purpose of the Incarnation is the salvation from authority of sin, death and corruption. God is gracious and merciful, the forgiver of sins and iniquities. If it was only for the forgiveness of sins, then there would be no need for the Incarnation, but it was deeper than that. The fall of the first man Adam led to the fall of the entire human race to the power of sin, death and corruption. Man became incapable of being justified by his deeds, and the law was incapable of justifying man; therefore, the human race was in need of the Redeemer and the Savior, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed” Rom. 3:23-25 Salvation was accomplished by redemption through the death of Christ on the cross on behalf of mankind to grant us freedom from the authority of sin, death, and corruption: “God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh” Rom. 8:3.
St. Paul explains to us the meaning of “He condemned sin in the flesh” by saying in his Epistle to the Hebrews, “but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.” Heb. 9:26 He abolished sin by offering himself as a sacrifice, offering humanity the perfect obedience to God, “became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.” Phil.2:8 By the sin of Adam, Adam died, “the day you eat of it you shall surely die.” Gen 2:17
The human race died with him, “In Adam all die” 1 Cor. 15:22 By the obedience of the second Adam, he conquered death by death and gave us life, “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.” 1 Cor. 15:22. Christ abolished sin by the sacrifice of Himself. By doing so, He abolished the thorn of death, “Death is swallowed up in victory. “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” The sting of death is sin” 1 Cor. 15:54-56
My Beloved
We shall remember the freedom that God granted us by the Incarnation of His only begotten Son and His death on the cross. Therefore, we must live free from sin, living according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh, “Therefore, brethren, we are debtors- not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Rom. 8:12-13. We are called to walk according to the Spirit, “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Gal. 5:16
Walking in the Spirit means to bear the fruit of the Spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” Gal. 5:22 Walking according to the Spirit means doing good, “And let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Gal.6:9-10
May God bless your offerings to support Santa Verena’s charitable programs.
Metropolitan Serapion
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