DYNAMIS!
A publication of St. George Orthodox Christian Cathedral
Wichita, KS
Sat., Dec. 29,
2007
Orthodox Christians Who Died from Hunger, Thirst, the Sword, &
Freezing
3rd Vigil Nativity: Micah 4:6-7 Epistle: 1
Timothy 6:11-16
Gospel: St. Matthew 12:15-21
A New Day: Micah 4:6-7; 5:2-4 LXX, especially vs. 7: “I will make her that was bruised a remnant, and
her that was rejected a mighty nation: and the Lord shall reign over them in
God spoke through His servant Micah concerning
a future day. Look at the wording:
“In that day...I will gather...and will receive....And I will make...and
the Lord shall reign” (vss. 6,7). Ah, but that new day has come! Christ is born! Glorify Him all the earth! Illumined by grace of the Holy Spirit,
the Prophet put voice to the Lord’s forecast, and reveals its import for
the Church today. God’s
future moment is upon “her that is bruised” (vs. 6), Who is now “gathered” into the pasture of the
Lord, Who is “beside the water of rest” and nurtured (Ps. 22:2
LXX). She was “cast
out,” seemingly “rejected” by the Lord (Mic.
4:6), but now is received at His table, filled from His cup, anointed with oil,
to dwell in His house (Ps. 22:5,6 LXX).
At the dawn of the new day, the Lord
Jesus’ Apostolic remnant was tiny, “a brand plucked out of the
fire” (Amos 4:11 LXX) by the firm hand of the Lord. Today, the Church is a torch that burns,
but is not consumed. She gives
saving light to all nations. Today,
we are “a mighty nation” (Mic. 4:7)
within every nation, desiring to claim no land of our own, but pleased to live
before the final, end-time of the Kingdom of God while the Lord reigns over us
“from henceforth, even for ever” within the Church that is called
“Mount Zion” (vs. 7).
As the new day began, “with one accord
in prayer and supplication with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and
with His brothers....the number of names was [only] about a hundred and
twenty” (Acts 1:14,15)! Yet, look at us now, spread over every
continent. Yes, we are not well
received in some nations, but at least we are known in every land. The bruising, the casting out, and the
rejection continue in every generation - now here, now there. But in the Church it is all Christ
Jesus, gathering the bruised, upholding the rejected, extending His reign over
us in this new day, whenever we gather and wherever.
Those of us in the Church who reside in
certain places, where at this moment we are allowed to live relatively quiet
and peaceful lives, should realize that our respite is temporary. The norm for God’s People is
bruising, casting out, and rejection.
To realize what is the norm for Christians in this present life is what
makes this message of the new day so special for Orthodox Christians now living
under Islam, eking out their existence in countries ravaged by, and still
recovering from, militant Marxist atheism, or clinging to each other in lands
where active warfare, bombing, sudden death, looting, rapine, and murder are
commonplace.
Perhaps your life is difficult while others
beside you enjoy prosperity. Then
the message of this new day is especially for you as you endure bruising,
casting out, and rejection. Before
His birth in time, the Lord promised to address the diminishing conditions that
mark this fallen world. Then, He
came as one of us, bruised, cast out, and rejected; but trampling down these
deaths by death. Now, His Body and
His Blood are for you, whoever you are, however you are hurting; for in the
Church, in
Be Thou entreated for the sake of the
sufferings of Thy Saints which thy endure for Thee, O
Lord, and do Thou heal all our pains, we pray, O Friend of Man!
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