Even Christ had his opponents

The lecture shows that the life of Christ on earth was a battlefield between good and evil, and that evil tried by all means to destroy the work of salvation but God’s love and divine providence saved it. The lecture explains examples from the Holy Bible (Cain and Abel, Joseph and his brothers, David and Absalom) to show the continuation of this struggle throughout history and then how this struggle clearly appeared in the life of Christ from the Nativity until the Cross.

Ways Christ was resisted by evildoers

It shows that the resistance to Christ was varied: tyrant kings (Herod and Pilate), the devil with his temptations and whispers, and the leaders of the Jews — the scribes and Pharisees — who pretended to defend religion while inwardly they had hatred and jealousy. It also described how an internal thought turned into speech then into slander and distortion then into conspiracy and death.

Examples of the stages of hatred and hostility

The lecture presented a sequence: thought in the heart → criticism with speech → trial and defamation → conspiracy to kill. It mentioned how they accused him of blasphemy, how they fought him with religious and social arguments, and how evil used authority and intimidation to silence witnesses who testified to the good.

Spiritual and educational dimension (from a Coptic Orthodox faith perspective)

The talk focuses on that Christ came in a salvific love without reason from those who hated him, and that divine love is not extinguished by many waters of trials and slanders. The spiritual teaching calls the believer to discern between a legalistic outward religion and true spirituality, and to have a heart pure not only external appearances. It also affirms that patience and steadfastness in love and good works can overcome the schemes of evil when God works by His providence.

Final call to reflection and practice

The lecture invites us to learn from Christ’s patience who endured slander and denial, and invites us to love sinners and call them to repentance instead of defamation, and to do good even if the world opposes it in the name of religion or authority.

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