The Reading from the Epistle of St. Paul to Titus. (2:11-14; 3:4-7) and the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew. (3:13-17)
Joy of the feast my brothers and sisters in Christ! In today’s reading we hear these words of St. Paul to his fellow worker Titus. He writes “the grace of God has appeared for the salvation of all men, training us to renounce irreligion and worldly passions, and to live sober, upright, godly lives in this world; awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ…”
I want to begin by pointing out that the teaching of the Holy Scriptures, the New Testament, the apostles and the Church is clear: God desires to save all men, all mankind. For what else can be taken from this phrase “the grace of God has appeared for the salvation of all men”? We understand everything about the life in Christ and in the Holy Orthodox Church through that lens. Through the lens of the work of salvation and through the lens of God’s infinite love, and mercy for mankind, who is the pinnacle of God’s creation.
St. Paul tells Titus that God saved us. He uses the past tense. In so doing the apostle is telling us that what God set out to do, has been accomplished as much as it is within God’s power and ability to do so. He saved us. How did he do this? He saved us by taking human form and suffering and dying upon the cross and rising again to conquer sin and death that had enslaved all of mankind. From God’s standpoint the work is complete forever. He cannot add to His saving work. It was done perfectly and the cross stands as the axis upon which the history of creation and of salvation is understood, around which it revolves. This is the meaning of the grace of God. God opened the door to the salvation of all people, not because we deserved it, but because He desired this for us. It is God’s desire to save us. However, it must also be noted that often it is not our desire to be saved. God in His love, refuses to push or coerce or force us to accept His gifts. He wants us to be with Him, to choose Him, to be His friends, to have communion with Him.
This week I was reading the life of St. Seraphim of Sarov since he was commemorated on January 2nd. Did you know that the Mother of God appeared to him 12 times during his life? 12 times! Why did he get such special treatment? Because the Mother of God and the saints found him to be of one mind and one heart with them. In fact the Virgin Mary said exactly that to St. John during one of her visits while Seraphim was very sick. She said “he is one of us.” And that sentiment is something that the saints take from the Lord. The Lord wants us to be with Him. He became a man to make us like Him.
In today’s feast we celebrate the baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ and all of the miracles that surround this event. We believe that everything that was undertaken by the Lord was undertaken for us and for our salvation. Jesus did not need to be baptized for His sake. He was baptized for our sakes. In so doing He transformed the merely symbolic water baptism of John the baptist into a baptism into power. The power to become a Son or Daughter of the Most High. The Lord entered the baptismal waters so that we could then be baptized into His death and resurrection. We could be put to death in the old man and raised from the dead as a new creation.
He was baptized so that by our baptism and Chrismation, we could receive the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit and become temples of the living God. By grace He has permitted us to become what He is by nature, a child of God. So we are renewed and saved by this mystery of baptism because the Lord Himself first partook of this to sanctify and make holy this act. Yet, we see that our salvation exists as promise and potential. The promise is God’s part. The potential is our part.
St. Paul says in today’s epistle that the Lord Jesus purified for Himself a people of His own who are zealous for good deeds. How do we become God’s very people? Certainly through our baptism but this won’t be enough. In order for each of us to reach his God given potential and growth in Christ, he is expected to be zealous to do good at all times and to everyone. To become good. To be like Christ who alone is good.
We don’t undertake this to add to God’s work or to earn something. We don’t do this from a sense of moralism either. We do this to build on the foundation of God’s work through synergy, a cooperation with the grace of God, the grace of the Holy Spirit. That is what the saints did and they had a nature like ours! They dedicated themselves and their lives to putting their carnal desires and passions and sinful habits to death. They dedicated themselves to taking every possible advantage they could in the spiritual struggle so that they could walk innocently, blamelessly, purely, according to the holy commandments of Christ. Because in the commandments of Christ there is knowledge of God and a relationship with God becomes possible.
On the day that Our Lord Jesus Christ approached His cousin John and asked to be baptized, John trembled! He was afraid. Our hymns tells us that the very waters themselves were terrified at the coming of their creator. This is not fear in the worldly sense. It is reverence and awe at the great mercies and blessings of God.
But how about each of us? We come to the liturgy on Sunday morning, we come to approach the body and blood of Jesus Christ, and how do we approach? We approach the Lord Jesus Christ in the liturgy not simply to touch Him, but to consume His holy body and precious blood! What a truly awesome and terrifying gift that we have been given by God. Some of you, our newly illumined will be receiving the body and blood of Christ for the very first time. Glory to God! Today you receive His power and grace and the joy and peace of His resurrection within yourselves. The Lord Himself teaches that the one who eats and drinks His blood receives eternal life and will be raised up at the last day. May we all come to receive worthily, with humility and reverence and purity of heart because the holy things are indeed for the holy.
As the Deacon prepares for the distribution of the gifts he proclaims “In the fear of God, with faith and love, draw near!” Let this also be our desire not only when we receive the divine gifts of holy communion but in our daily efforts to know God. May we draw near because He is near and He desires each of us to dwell with Him. AMEN.
Source: Sermons