The Descent of the Spirit on the Son

For it is not true that Christ then descended on Jesus: nor are Christ and Jesus two distinct persons, but the Word of God, the Savior of all and the Ruler of heaven and earth, is Jesus. He took flesh; he was anointed by the Father with the Spirit and became Jesus Christ as also Isaiah says ‘there shall spring forth a rod from the root of Jesse, and a flower shall come up from this root, and the Spirit of God shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding’ . . .  (Isaiah 11:1-2)

And again Isaiah, foretelling his anointing, and the end for which he was anointed, says, ‘The Spirit of God is upon me, wherefore he has anointed me, and sent me to preach good tidings to the lowly’ . . . (Isaiah 61:1)  Therefore the Spirit of God descended on him; the Spirit of him who through the prophets had promised that he would anoint him, in order that we might receive of the abundance of his unction and be saved.

God promised through the prophets to ‘pour out this Spirit upon his servants and handmaidens in the last days, that they may prophesy.’   

  

And the Spirit descended from God on the Son of God, made son of man, and with him became accustomed to dwell among the human race and to ‘rest on’ men and to dwell in God's creatures, working the Father's will in them, and renewing them from their old state into the newness of Christ.

St Irenaeus of Lyons

I SINNED! I SINNED!

Repent and turn away from your idols, and turn away 

your faces from all your abominations

Ezekiel 14:6 

From the inspiration of Ezekiel  (14)
 

My God … How difficult it is for me to confess!

Expose to me my hidden depths; so that I should cry out:

I sinned! I sinned!

In the old days, the people used to cast the blame on the priests;

And the priests used to cast the blame on the people!

And every generation think that it is punished for sins of their fathers.

As for me, I confess to You:

I sinned! I sinned!

My father will not intercede on my behalf, if I neglect my salvation!

And I will not be punished for his weaknesses!

I admit to You my personal responsibility!

I sinned! Forgive me, and absolve me!

The prophet Moses interceded on behalf of his people.

And the prophet Samuel kept on praying for them.

A cloud of witnesses surrounds us,

who intercede and pray for us, and support us!

Instruct me on how to care for my salvation,

Then this cloud would become my support!

I complain about myself to You; Sin has destroyed me:

A famine for God's word has come on me!

I became like a desolate land, in which evil thoughts dwell, like wild beasts!

The sword of sin strokes my depths, destroying my talents!

By my sin, I became like a pestilence, corrupting those around me.

I confess my sin to You;

The responsibility is all mine!

Save me … Rescue me!

Fr. Tadros Malaty

From the Inspiration of The Book of Ezekiel

He Came To Restore

What is restored to life is not something other than that which dies; just as that which is lost is not something different from that which is found.

It was the sheep that was lost which the Lord came to find. What then was it which perished? Clearly it was the substance of flesh, which lost the breath of life …

The Lord came to restore this flesh to life, that 'as in Adam all die', as possessing merely sensual life, we may live 'in Christ', as having spiritual life, putting away not the handiwork of God but the lusts of the flesh, and receiving the Holy Spirit. 

St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Resurrection Destroyed Death

Christ came that He might slay sin, 

render death null and void, and give life to men. 

The Word of God was made flesh in order that 

He might destroy death and bring us to life. 

Saint Irenaeus

Salvation of The Lord

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,

To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

Isaiah 61:1-3 (NKJV)

Isaiah calls “poor” those who have lost heavenly riches, “broken-hearted” those who have corrupted their reason, “blind” those who do not know God and who worship creation, “prisoners” those brought into the enemy’s camp and who have lost their original freedom.

Christ did not only give to us the forgiveness of sins and free us from the tyranny of the devil and reveal to us the divine light, but He also announced the future existence and warned of the righteous judgment.

For I think that “the year of grace” means His first coming and “day of recompense” the day of judgment. To console all who mourn with the hope of the resurrection, He has tempered the despair of death.

Theodoret of Cyr