Homily Three on the Annunciation (St. John of Kronstadt)

Homily Three on the Annunciation 

By St. John of Kronstadt

“Today is the beginning of our salvation 

and the revelation of the mystery from all eternity:
the Son of God becomes the Son of the Virgin.”
(Troparion of the Feast)

Beloved brothers and sisters!

This present day is the beginning of our salvation from sin, which entered the human race through our forefather Adam; today the greatest mystery of God has been revealed, foreordained by God before all ages: the Son of God, without beginning, all-powerful, the Source of wisdom and understanding, the Source of goodness, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Creator of Adam, becomes the Son of the Most Pure Virgin, and the Virgin becomes the Mother of God; God becomes man without ceasing to be God, in order to restore man from the fall, from sin, to deliver him from death and eternal torment, and to make the sinner holy.

O wondrous mystery, surpassing all understanding! O ineffable goodness of God! To fallen man, deserving of every punishment, such immeasurable mercy has been given! Yes, mercy truly divine and boundless — but mercy, however, for sinners who truly repent; for the unrepentant, there will be the greater condemnation, because, trampling upon such great gifts of God by their lawless life, they have not desired to repent sincerely.

Thus, God becomes man in order to make man god; to make earth heaven, through the renewal of humanity, through the planting on earth of the Church of God, with heavenly teaching, with heavenly Mysteries, with members of the Church living on earth in a heavenly manner — such as were all the saints of our Orthodox Church: the apostles, hierarchs, martyrs and martyrs’ companions, venerable men and women, and all the saints.

But how was it possible, you will say, to make man, a sinner, god by participation in the Divine nature? Do not ask how it is possible — with God all things are possible (Matt. 19:26; Mark 10:27; Luke 18:27). For man such a transformation is impossible, but for God all things are possible. Yet there is a reason why this was possible.

Man was created in the beginning in the image and likeness of God — that is, upright, pure, holy, rational, free, and immortal; simply speaking, the first-created were living portraits of the Divinity. But through sin they lost their uprightness and became sinful and impure, according to the image of the devil who deceived them. Man fell away from God and attached himself to the enemy, to whom he sold himself for the forbidden fruit; yet he fell through deception by the devil and therefore deserved compassion and deliverance.

In order to unite again the image with the Prototype, to bring it into living communion, the Lord willed to redeem the perishing one, Himself to come to his aid in the form of a man, to enlighten him who was darkened, to teach him, and to give him grace and strength to do the will of God — which is our holiness, and in the fulfillment of which lies both our temporal and eternal life — to redeem him from sin, curse, and death, and for this to suffer and die for him, and by His death in the flesh to conquer our death and grant resurrection to all the fallen.

And thus the Son of God became the Son of man — and makes the sons of men into sons of God, through the grace-filled Mysteries of His Church, through spiritual instruction and the guidance of shepherds.

Therefore, brothers and sisters, as far as possible, value the full greatness of God’s mercy toward us, manifested in the Incarnation of the Son of God, and strive to become worthy of this mercy through sincere and unceasing repentance. Strive to live worthily of the high, heavenly calling of a Christian; strive to flee every sin and to live in virtue, in righteousness, and in holiness.

Live on earth in a heavenly way — in meekness, humility, love, harmlessness, obedience, patience, in doing good, in purity and chastity, in self-restraint — in all righteousness and truth.

Remember that God descended to earth in order to raise us to heaven.

The holy saints of God, who were once subject to the same passions as we are, always remembered this; they strove to cleanse themselves from every defilement of flesh and spirit, and to perfect holiness in the fear of God (2 Cor. 7:1), and they ascended to heaven, where they rejoice with God and the angels and will rejoice forever without end.

Let us also remember this continually and act as the saints did — and the Lord will raise us to heaven, to the land of immortality and eternal blessedness. Amen.

Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.