Christ for All and for His Own
First: Christ’s Universal Love for All
The lecture affirms that the Lord Christ came to the whole world, and His love includes all nations and peoples. He came to bear the sins of all without exception. He does not will the death of a sinner, but that he should return and live, and He offered a sufficient atonement for the salvation of every person. His call is general, His voice reaches every heart, and He stands at the door knocking, asking to enter into the life of every soul.
Second: Man’s موقف toward Christ
Although Christ came for all, the problem is not in His call but in man’s response. There are those who hear and do not act, those who hear and do not want, and those who love darkness more than light. Therefore, a person should not blame God, but rather ask himself: Have I accepted Christ? Have I opened the door to Him? Do I have ears to hear and a heart ready to obey?
Third: Free Will and Fellowship with God
God does not take away human freedom, but desires that man choose Him with his full will. Salvation is offered to all, but accepting it requires a true will and real fellowship with God. Christ calls, and the Holy Spirit works, but man must respond and abide in Christ as a branch abides in the vine in order to bear spiritual fruit.
Fourth: His Own Who Know His Voice
Although Christ is for all, there are “His own” who hear His voice and follow Him. These are the ones who accepted Him, loved Him, and abided in Him. They distinguish His voice from the voice of the stranger and live in true fellowship with Him. Not everyone who says “Lord” belongs to Him, but the one who does His will and keeps His commandments.
Fifth: A Call to Renew Life
At the beginning of a new year, His Holiness Pope Shenouda III calls every soul to enter into a deeper relationship with God, not merely intellectual or ritual knowledge, but a living experience of the Lord’s love. Whoever tastes God cannot replace Him with anything else. True knowledge of God changes the heart, transforms life, and makes a person strive toward spiritual perfection.
The General Message
Christ came to save all, but not all accept Him. Salvation is a free gift, but accepting it requires will, response, and true fellowship with God. The problem is not in God’s love, but in man’s readiness to open his heart and abide in Him.
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