Redeeming The Time

Fr. Seraphim Holland discusses three rhetorical questions that are asked in today’s readings that we must strive to answer. "Who will ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above)" "Who will descend into the abyss? (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead)" "What have we to do with you, Jesus, you Son of God?" Paul’s answer to these rhetorical questions is that we must live an intimate life with God, so that "The word is nigh thee even in thy mouth." He points out the insufficiency of the law for salvation. Only Jesus saves, not any rule of life. To come to salvation requires struggle, and a daily effort to rid ourselves of the distraction and spiritual blindness of sin, which keeps us from realizing the intimate presence of God in our hearts.