Sermon of the Glorious Feast of Theophany Liturgy
✝️ The Essence of the Feast: The Divine Manifestation
His Holiness Pope Shenouda III speaks about the Feast of Theophany as the feast of the Divine Manifestation, where the Holy Trinity declared Itself: the Father by His voice from heaven, the Son in the waters of the Jordan, and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. It is the feast of the declaration of the true identity of the Lord Christ as the Only-Begotten Son from the essence of the Father.
🌊 The Humility of Christ in Baptism
The most prominent thing that appears in this feast is the wondrous humility of the Lord Christ, as He came to receive the baptism of repentance while He is the Holy One without sin. He did not need repentance, but He represented humanity and acted on its behalf, presenting the example of perfect humility. He accepted baptism from John the Baptist, the humble servant, and fulfilled all righteousness without displaying His divine glory.
🔥 Repentance as the Way of Salvation
The teaching focuses on that repentance is the essential way to accept salvation. Therefore John the Baptist preceded the Lord Christ with the call to repentance, and Christ Himself began His ministry saying: “Repent.” For the unrepentant heart cannot accept the work of grace nor the message of redemption.
✝️ Baptism and the Forgiveness of Sins
His Holiness Pope Shenouda III explains that forgiveness of sins is accomplished by the blood of Christ on the cross, and also by baptism connected with repentance. But baptism does not cancel the freedom of man, therefore the believer after baptism needs a continuous life of repentance in order to preserve his first grace.
👑 The Declaration of the Divine Sonship
The voice of the Father: “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased” is a clear declaration of the divine Sonship of Christ, a Sonship from the essence of the Father, equal to Him in divinity. This Sonship is what shook Satan and made him tempt Christ saying: “If You are the Son of God.”
🛡️ Spiritual Struggle after Baptism
As the Lord Christ was tempted after His baptism, so the believer is also tempted. Therefore His Holiness Pope Shenouda III calls us to continually reject Satan and to hold fast to the holy life, because fasting is not merely changing food for food, but changing life for life.
🎉 A Call to a Holy Life
The teaching concludes with a call to preserve the grace of our baptism and to live a life of repentance and humility, remembering that we came out of the baptismal font with our sins forgiven, and we are called to live as children of God in holiness and purity.
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