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Abba Father
The Pentecost in the Old Testament was celebrated to
commemorate the giving of the Law on Mount
Sinai after they departed from Egypt and they were
freed from slavery. It was the feast of harvest or the feast of first fruits
after 50 days from the feast of Passover. We received many spiritual
gifts on Pentecost in the New Testament as a result of the sacrifice of
the Lord Jesus on the cross, His atonement and redemption. The Holy
Spirit would not grant us to be children of God without the reconciliation
that was completed on the cross. “And all things are of God, who has
reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of
reconciliation,” 2 Corinthians 5:18. He passed through His passions,
labor, anguish, and death to give us the Holy Spirit the Comforter, the
Helper, the rejoicing, and the life giver, John 14: 26 and 15:26; Galatians
5:22; and Romans 8:11.
He teaches the ways that we should follow. The Holy Spirit descended
down on the disciples in the third hour (9 AM) the same hour of the
passions of our Savior. We received the gift of the Holy Spirit the
Comforter because of His passions.
Therefore, the spiritual life is a life of comfort during our time of tribulations
and labors. He never forsakes us even if we think differently.
The Holy Spirit inside us helps us during the time of sufferings and
gives us grace during our trials as the psalm mentions: “He that goes
forth and weeps, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again
with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him,” Psalm 126: 5. The Law
was written on stone tablets but it is written now on our fleshly hearts.
“Written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not in tables of
stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart,” 2 Corinthians 3:3. Fulfilling the
Divine commandments and doing good are natural results of the work
of the Holy Spirit in our hearts if we pursue the preparation of our
hearts to allow the Holy Spirit to work in us.
The one that labors in plowing the soil and spreads seeds in faith,
hope, endurance, and love will receive the Divine reward. He will
reap in joy in due time but he should patiently expect the end. The
number 50 is a jubilee number. After 49 days (7 X 7 days) the joy and
comfort come and therefore it is called the feast of the weeks that
comes after 7 weeks from Passover. “And let us not be weary in well
doing. For in due season we shall reap if we faint not,” Galatians 6:9. The
condition is that we do not faint. The Jubilee year was a great year
because in which the slaves were freed. The Lord freed us and gave us
the spirit of adoption in our hearts at the day of Pentecost. “For we have
not received the spirit of bondage again to fear but you have received the Spirit
of adoption whereby we cry Abba Father,” Romans 8:15. “And because you
are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts crying Abba
Father,” Galatians 4:6.
The fruit of the Spirit must be in us through faith, hope, and love and
it makes us rejoice by calling the Father “Abba Father.”
Copyright © 2006 Saint Antony Coptic Orthodox Monastery, California, U.S.A. The above article may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of Saint Antony Coptic Orthodox Monastery, California, U.S.A. |
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