Sermon for the Day of the Holy Theophany of Our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ

Today, beloved brothers, the holy Church has set before us a most edifying reading from the Apostle—namely, from the epistle of the holy Apostle Paul to Titus. Here is that reading: «Brethren, the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this present age, awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people of His own who are zealous for good deeds. Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you. Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all men. For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving-kindness of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life» (Tit 2:11-15,3:1-7). Such is today’s reading from the Apostle. The Apostle speaks of the grace, or mercy, and power of God—that is, of Christ—bringing salvation to all men, excluding no one who is willing to receive this grace. If this saving grace had not appeared through Jesus Christ, and in Him alone, then no one, not a single man, would have been saved, and all would have perished forever in their sins, for sin by its nature gives birth to death, both temporal and eternal. But now saving grace has appeared to all men, and all who believe and submit to it may be saved; no one can excuse himself on the grounds of impossibility or incapacity. This saving grace is found in the Church of Christ; hold fast to her, keep her precepts and commandments, take part in her Mysteries and her divine worship—and you will surely be saved.

And so the saving grace of God requires of us that, renouncing ungodliness—that is, coldness and estrangement from God, self-love, and every worldly and fleshly lust—we should strive to live righteously, chastely, and godly in this present age, awaiting our blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. In speaking of the present age, the Apostle has in view another age, the age to come, which has no end, as is plain from the close of today’s reading, and indeed from the very next words; for he goes on to say that we must all await our blessed hope—that is, the resurrection of the dead, the universal judgment, the life of the age to come, and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, meaning by the appearing of Christ’s glory His second coming in the fearsome glory of the heavenly Father, when His eternal glory will be seen by every nation and tribe of the earth, and they will not be able to help acknowledging Him as God, though then He will be, for many, only an avenging God and a stern Judge. The Apostle goes on to say that Jesus Christ gave Himself for us—that is, appearing in the world in the form of a man, He fulfilled for us all the righteousness of God, taught us godliness, suffered, died, and rose for us, and gave us every power for a righteous life, in order to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people of His own, zealous for good deeds.

Here we too, brothers and sisters, have the happiness of being a people of His own—the people of Christ. But I ask: are we truly, in our life and deeds, a people of His own? Are we zealous for good deeds? Are we not, rather, quick and eager for sin? Very often we are. But may God preserve us from now on from readiness to sin—may this not be found in any one of us; let us, on the contrary, be quick for every good work. The Apostle goes on to remind us of the good works that Christians must perform—namely, submission to rulers and authorities, readiness for every good work, for instance, for self-denial out of love for God and neighbor, for mercy and mutual help—that we should not speak evil, not quarrel, not revile our neighbors with abusive words in anger and malice, not be quarrelsome or contentious, unyielding, but gentle and meek toward all. After this the God-wise Apostle confesses over himself the great mercy of God, in that the Lord saved him too, not for works of righteousness that he had done before—for he too was once foolish, that is, when he was still a persecutor of the Church of God, disobedient, led astray, a slave to various passions and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating Christians—but according to His own mercy the Lord drew him out of the abyss of ruin and washed him in the washing of regeneration, that is, of baptism, and of renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom the heavenly Father poured out on him richly through Jesus Christ our Savior—so that, being justified by His grace, both he and all Christians might become, according to hope, heirs of eternal life. And so, far from us be that dark foolishness in matters of piety proper to unenlightened pagans, who walk in darkness and the shadow of death; let us cast far from ourselves disobedience, lusts, and various unlawful, foolish, and coarse pleasures, malice and envy, every shameful deed and mutual hatred; and let us live in love and mutual help and in every godliness and purity; let us be a people of our own, zealous for good deeds. Let us always remember that a holy life is required of us—our life must differ from the life of Muslims and Jews as heaven differs from earth; we must live on earth in a heavenly manner, as children of God; our love for God and neighbor must be ardent, unfeigned, disinterested, firm, constant; we must at all times preserve purity and chastity, self-restraint, do all righteousness, hate falsehood; show meekness and patience toward all. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord (Hebr 12:14). Amen.