WELCOME TO CHURCH OF THE ASSUMPTION
Wednesday Faith Clinic
Reflections
On
the
Incarnation
By Rev. Fr. George Ehusani
3
God’s Original Creation
Man & Woman
(Image of God & Crown of creation)
____________________
Placed in the Garden of Eden
Perfect Harmony
Concord
Peace
Love
Paradise
_____________________
God saw that it was all very good
Genesis 1:26-31
4
Sin & its consequences (i)
Then came the serpent
Adam & Eve were tempted
They ate the forbidden fruit
They fell from grace
They lost God’s glory
_______________________
They were covered with shame
They hid themselves
They were expelled
They lost paradise
(Genesis 3:1-19)
5
Sin & its consequences (ii)
Disobedience led to alienation –
From God
From Neighbour
From the Natural Environment
From Self
Disobedience brought about –
Fruitless toil
Suffering
Sickness and Pain
Ecological disharmony & revolt
(Genesis 3:1-19)
6
Sin & its consequences (iii)
Human sinfulness is characterised by—
Hatred & Wickedness
Selfishness & Greed
Deceit & Manipulation
Jealousy & Envy
Quarrels and Antagonism
Corruption & Oppression
Ignorance & Foolishness
Idolatry & Occultism
Witchcraft and Wizardry
Sodomy & Incest
Blasphemy & Sacrilege
Sexual Immorality & Impurity
(See Romans 1:18-32; Galatians 5:19-21)
7
Sin & its consequences (iv)
Alienated from God, human beings
were subject to:
Satan’s dominion
Loss of meaning/purpose - Futility
Reign of darkness
Hopelessness & despair
Death and damnation
(Eccl 1:1-2; Romans 5:14; 6:23)
THE MESSIANIC IMPERATIVE (I)
Humanity needed a Savior
The world yearned for a Messiah
Creation itself groaned in endless travail –
for freedom from decay (Romans 8:18-22)
___________________________
God revealed that he will intervene
He called Abraham, Isaac & Jacob;
Moses, Joshua, Samuel, etc
He raised up the nation of Israel and prepared
them for 2000 years for the coming of the
Messiah
He made a firm promise to David about the
establishment of a new Kingdom of
Justice and Righteousness
(Gen 12:1-9; Exodus 3:1-10; 2 Samuel 7:1-17)
8
THE MESSIANIC IMPERATIVE (II)
The Prophets kept this promise alive
and prepared the people for the new
dispensation – when love will overthrow hate
when light will overcome darkness
when peace will triumph over war
when life will dislodge death
Most notable among the Messianic
Prophets are —
Isaiah
Zephaniah
Ezekiel
Baruch
John the Baptist
9
THE MESSIANIC IMPERATIVE (III)
Isaiah 40:1-5 says:
Console, my people, console them, says the Lord…
Isaiah 9:1-7 says
The people that walked in darkness have seen
a great light…
Isaiah 52:7-10 says
How beautiful on the mountain are the feet
of those who bring good news…
Isaiah 61:1-2 says
The Spirit of the Lord has been given to me for he
has anointed me to bring good news to the poor…
and to declare the Lord’s year of favour
Isaiah 11:6-9 says:
The wolf will live with the lamb, the panther lie
down with the kid; calf, lion and fat-stock feast
together…
10
JOYFUL EXPECTATION (I)
Psalm 96
O sing a new song to the Lord
Sing to the Lord all the earth
O sing to the Lord, bless his name.
Proclaim his help day by day
Tell among the nations his glory
And his wonders among the peoples.
Let the heavens rejoice
and the earth be glad
Let the sea and all within it thunder praise
Let the land and all it bears rejoice
All the tress of the woods shout for joy
At the presence of the Lord for he comes
He comes to rule the earth.
With justice he will rule the world
He will judge the peoples with his truth.
11
JOYFUL EXPECTATION (II)
Psalm 97
Sing a new song to the Lord
For he has worked wonders
His right hand and his holy arm
Have brought salvation.
The Lord has made known his salvation
Has shown his justice to the nations
He has remembered his truth and love
For the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
The salvation of our God
Shout to the Lord all the earth
Ring out your joy.
Sing psalms to the Lord with the harp
With the sound of music
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
Acclaim the King, the Lord.
12
JOYFUL EXPECTATION (III)
Psalm 71
O God, give your judgment to the king
To a king’s son your justice
That he may judge your people in justice
And your poor in right judgment.
In his days justice shall flourish
And peace till the moon fails
He shall rule from sea to sea
From the Great River to earth’s bounds.
The kings of Tarshish and the sea coasts
Shall pay him tribute
The kings of Sheba and Seba
Shall bring him gifts
Before him all kings shall fall prostrate
All nations shall serve him.
For he shall save the poor when they cry
And the needy who are helpless
He will have pity on the weak
And save the lives of the poor.
13
THE WORD BECAME FLESH
In the beginning was the Word
The Word was with God, and the Word was God
He was with God in then beginning
Though him all things came into being
Not one thing came into being except through him
What has come into being was life
Life that was the light of men
And light shines in darkness
And darkness could not overpower it…
He was in the world
That had come into being through him
And the world did not recognise him
He came into his own
And his own people did not accept him
But to those who did accept him
He gave power to become children of God…
The Word became flesh
And lived among us…
(John 1:1-18)
14
THE INCARNATION (I)
15
At man times in the past
and by many means
God spoke to our ancestors
through the prophets;
but in our own time
the final days,
He has spoken to us
in the person
of his Son
Hebrews 1:1-2
THE INCARNATION (II)
16
The Incarnation is:

God’s great act of salvation

God’s definitive revelation in Christ

The fulfillment of the grand promise

The supreme expression of God’s love

The inauguration of a new covenant
relationship between God & humanity
With the Incarnation:

The light has shone in darkness

The glory of the Lord has risen
upon the world

Men and women are no longer
condemned to a life of misery/agony
or subject to sin and corruption
THE INCARNATION (IV)
The Incarnation is—
The coming of God’s light
into the darkness of the world
The light of Christ—
is a persistent and defiant light
which no darkness can overpower
The light of Christ—
shines in the midst of storms and
tornadoes, disaster and upheaval
The light of Christ—
brings healing, freedom, justice,
peace, joy, happiness and life
Those who come to Christ in
John 8:12; Matthew 5:14-16; Gal 5:1 darkness go away bathed in light
17
THE INCARNATION (V)
18
With the Incarnation—
Christ shatters the darkness of hatred and violence
And shines the light of love and peace
Christ shatters the darkness of hopelessness & despair—
And shines the light of meaning and purpose
Christ shatters the darkness of sorrow and distress—
And shines the light of joy and happiness
Christ shatters the darkness of fear and anxiety—
And shines the light of confidence and conviction
Christ shatters the darkness of doubt and disbelief—
And shines the light of faith and trust
Christ shatters the darkness of ignorance and futility—
And shines the light of knowledge and wisdom
Christ shatters the darkness of sin and disobedience—
And shines the light of holiness and justice
THE CHALLENGE OF THE INCARNATION (I)
Repent and Believe the Good News
(Mark 1:14-15)
Reject Satan the Prince of Darkness
And all his works
And all his promises
______________________________________
Experience Conversion/Transformation
Be born anew – be born of the spirit
_______________________________________
Believe in God the Father Almighty
Believe in Jesus Christ his Son our Lord
Believe in his incarnation, passion, death,
resurrection & in his 2nd coming in glory
Believe in the Holy Spirit the Sanctifier
Believe in and practice all that Christ taught
19
THE CHALLENGE OF THE INCARNATION (II)
20
Those who truly encounter Jesus the Christ
cannot remain the same. It cannot be business
as usual
Their hearts are awakened, and they burst
into life
 The fountain of goodness (which was hidden
inside them), are suddenly bursts forth
The immense love, generosity and sacrifice
of God in Christ calls forth their own love and
generosity.
 They can now joyfully offer their gifts to Christ
and to their brothers and sisters – especially
those who are poor, sick, lonely or lowly
 They now begin to find fulfillment in living
for other, rather than living for themselves
 They now begin to realise that it is in giving
that we receive, and in dying that we are born
to eternal life
Luke 19:1-10; John 12:1-8
THE CHALLENGE OF THE INCARNATION (III)
21
Those who truly encounter Jesus do discover
in him a treasure of great price:
They are ready to trade off all they had owned…
They are ready to break off all previous (negative)
alliances
They acquire with joy & gratitude:
a new world view
a new sense of purpose
a new set of values for living
a new set of goals for life
a new roadmap for life
a new driving force
St. John says: “Now you know that he appeared in order
to abolish sin, and that in him there is no sin, and anyone
who sins has never seen him or known him.” 1 John 3:5-6
Those who encounter the person of Jesus
are changed. They live and act differently.
It is impossible to encounter Christ
without it affecting the way we live/look at life
John 3:1-21; Gal 2:19-20
THE CHALLENGE OF THE INCARNATION (IV)
Those who truly encounter Jesus do come off:
Touched - in a deep & profound way
Converted - Transformed
Born again – Become a new creation
Meeting the person of Jesus is often the onset
of a love affair. And such lovers of Jesus
could be recognised by:
Their hatred of sin/struggle against sin
Their passion for the things of the Lord
Their commitment to spreading his message
Their humility, frugality, joyfulness
peacefulness, self-control
Their love, selflessness/self-sacrifice
(Jer 20:7; 1 Cor 9:16; Phil 1:21; 1 Thess 2:1-10)
22
THE CHALLENGE OF THE INCARNATION (V)
The Incarnation means that God now lives
with men and women. The Word seeks to take flesh
in, and be present to every believer
_____________________________________________
Through Baptism (and the other Sacraments)
we have been:
Delivered from the power of Satan/Darkness
Freed from slavery to sin
Liberated from all kinds of fear
Given power over the enemy
Given the Holy Spirit – the Comforter
Given the key to full/abundant life here
below and eternal happiness in the next
(Matt 28:20; John 10:10; 16:33; Acts 1:8; Gal 5:1)
23
TRUTH AND LIGHT
I’ve been blessed with truth
And I’ve been graced with light
These identical twins of reality
That pride in eternity
Truth is axiomatic
As light is magnetic
There is a compelling element in truth
As there is a revealing force in light
To know truth
Is to be espoused to truth
And in fidelity to truth
To detest any romance with lie
To encounter light
Is to be charmed by light
And in fascination with light
To renounce all flirtation
with darkness
24
This to me is freedom:
That I have known the truth
And I can no longer lie galantly
This, my friend, is liberty
That I have seen the light
And I can no longer sin gloriously
25
RESPONDING
Life in Christ
Is the fascinating dynamic
Of calling and answering
Speaking and hearing
The divine-human alliance
Is the mysterious interplay
Of invitation and response
Giving and receiving.
The Incarnation—
That supreme act of communication
With humanity
Invites a response
That is no less
Than the total giving
Of self
To the One Whose Son
Was the object
Of loving communication
With every man and woman.
The Christian life mean
Constantly responding
To God’s loving invitation
And true life
True joy
True peace
Are to be found
In this response.
Thank You