A story is told of the final temptation of Christ. Satan had been trying to tempt Jesus to sin, to compromise, to abandon His divine mission (see Matthew 4:1-11 and Luke 4:1-13), and according to this story, Satan tried one last time to deflect Jesus from His goal. Jesus had been arrested, interrogated, condemned by the Sanhedrin, brought before Pilate, again condemned, mocked and flogged. He carried His cross along the way from the Roman praetorium to the place of execution and was nailed to the cross. His adversaries continued to mock Him, even unto the end: “He saved others, He cannot save Himself! He is the King of Israel; let Him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in Him!” (Matthew 27:42). And it was then, the story goes, that Satan whispered into His ear the words of the final temptation, intended to convince Jesus to give it all up and indeed come down from the cross. Satan said to Him, “They’re not worth it, Lord”.

I am sometimes asked if an Orthodox Christian can have an assurance that he or she will be saved. The question usually comes from my converts from Evangelicalism. They were previously taught that when one is saved, one is given the assurance that they are saved and this assurance offers a real and constant source of comfort. They ask me, “Were we misled? Can an Orthodox Christian have the same assurance of salvation?”

It has been suggested to me that in many (most?) Evangelical circles one becomes a Christian “by accepting the finished work of Christ”—i.e. by believing and accepting as true that on the cross Jesus paid the full price due our sin and by saying a prayer acknowledging this.

Thousands of years ago when I was a teenager and a brand-new Christian, I happened to read an article by S.G.F. Brandon about Jesus being a Zealot, in which he questioned much if not most of the Gospel portrait of Jesus and suggested that the Gospels (particularly that of Mark) constituted a whitewash of Jesus, eliminating His Zealotry from the Gospel picture to make Him and His movement more acceptable in Roman eyes. It was, of course, a precis of his 1967 book Jesus and the Zealots which created something of an academic dust up in its day.

Recently a minor fracas in the narthex of our church was caused by (I kid you not) my long hair (see inset for a rear view of said hair). Since my hair steadfastly refuses to grow on the top of my head, you would think I could be cut a little slack for the bit that grows at the back, but apparently not.

Recently I have come across an anti-Orthodox polemic which rejects our veneration of icons on the grounds that venerating an image painted on a board of Christ, His Mother, or His saints is contrary to the practice of the apostles and of the earliest Church. The objection is stated with some sophistication, and is not the usual fundamentalist reference to the Mosaic Law’s proscription of carved statues used in worship (e.g. Exodus 20:4f). This more sophisticated objection acknowledges that there were indeed images of Christ, His Mother, and His saints used in the early Church such as can be found in the funerary art of the catacombs and on the walls of churches (such as that of Dura Europos). But, it points out, there is no evidence that these images functioned as anything more than mere decoration. That is, the people did not come up to the wall to kiss the wall art or venerate the images.

Fr. Apostolos encourages us to let the light of Christ shine through us.

Fr. Apostolos reminds us this Halloween season of the absolute and exclusive claims laid upon us by Jesus Christ.

Fr. Apostolos asks, "What investments are we making in the life to come?"

Fr. Apostolos asks the most important question that each of us must answer in this life: What comes next?

Fr. Apostolos reminds us that while prayer is difficult, it is essential to our salvation.

Fr. Apostolos continues his homiletic series on prayer.

Fr. Apostolos begins a discussion of the Lord's Prayer.

Fr. Apostolos continues his discussion of the Lord's Prayer.

Fr. Apostolos outlines the basic stewardship principles from 2 Corinthians 8.

Fr. Apostolos explains that the Gospel message is the meaning of Christmas.

Fr. Apostolos reminds us that unless we see our salvation in the face of Christ, there is no particular reason for joy at Christmas.

Fr. Apostolos concludes his discussion of the Lord's Prayer.

Fr. Apostolos discusses Jesus's healing of the ten lepers.

Fr. Apostolos reflects on Zacchaeus's desire and how this powerful force can lead to salvation or destruction.

Fr. Apostolos addresses parents' responsibility to rear their children in Church.

Fr. Apostolos discusses the final judgment of the human soul.

Fr. Apostolos explains that God's forgiveness depends on our willingness to forgive those who have trespassed again us.

Fr. Apostolos speaks on knowing God and merely knowing about Him as we celebrate the memory of St. Gregory Palamas.

Fr. Apostolos addresses Christ's triumph through the elevation of the Cross.

Fr. Apostolos shares about spiritual progress on the Sunday of St. John of the Ladder.

Fr. Apostolos shares about St. Mary of Egypt and other "rascal" saints.

Fr. Apostolos talks about the difference that Christ's resurrection makes in our lives.

Fr. Apostolos shares about myrrh in the Old Testament, New Testament, and today. "We must become emblems of hope as we bear that sacred myrrh, that oil of healing to a broken world."

Fr. Apostolos shares on the Sunday of the Blind Man. "Jesus Christ ardently desires to remove from us our own deeply seated spiritual blindness, replacing the shattered eyes of our unrepentant hearts with the eyes of faith capable of receiving the vision of His glory."

Fr. Apostolos speaks about the First Ecumenical Council and the importance of obedience to our spiritual fathers.

Fr. Apostolos shares on All Saints Sunday, "The memory of all the saints, those who we know and those whose names only God knows, may be we inspired by their witness and their confession from all of those from ancient times to more recent times for whom there was no turning back."

Fr. Apostolos talks about the dangers of confusing externalism with spiritual fruit.

Fr. Apostolos addresses sin as the animating principle behind the blood-letting we are witnessing around the world. References are drawn primarily from the Prophet Isaiah whose insights are as relevant today as they were 2,700 years ago.

With reflections on the life and ministry of St. Panteleimon, Fr. Apostolos encourages us to commit ourselves to give at least as much attention to our spiritual health as we do to our physical well-being.

Fr. Apostolos shares from 1 Corinthians 3, reminding us that our bodies belong to the Lord, "The temple of God is holy, and that is what you are."

Fr. Apostolos talks about financial pressures, contentment, and priorities. "As we grow in contentment, and learn to resist the allure of the never-ending parade of consumer goods that we didn't know existed a moment ago, but somehow cannot now possibly live without, a new world of possibilities will emerge for us in the freedom that only Jesus Christ can give."

On Labor Day weekend, Fr. Apostolos shares about the tyranny of being BUSY (Being Under Satan's Yoke) and entering into God's rest.

Fr. Apostolos speaks from the Gospel of St. John, chapter 3, "For God so loved the world...," exhorting us that "love alone is the surety of our doctrinal purity."

Fr. Apostolos shares about suffering on the Feast of the Universal Exaltation of the Holy Cross. He quotes an abbot, "The one who has suffered nothing in this life has been abandoned by God."

Fr. Apostolos speaks about the importance of attending and participating in the divine services. "No matter how many theological books we read or classes we attend, the treasure of Holy Orthodoxy can only be revealed in and through the medium of divine worship."

Fr. Apostolos talks about synergy with Christ.

Fr. Apostolos shares from 2 Corinthians 6 about the importance of finding the right context for our life in Christ. "Come out and be separate...."

Fr. Apostolos shares about real strength from St. Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians.

Fr. Apostolos speaks about accepting and rejecting Christ.

Referencing the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, Fr. Apostolos shares about suffering. "Suffering can make no sense to us unless we view it from an eternal perspective. Our suffering is made worse because we have lost the vision of the goal of suffering."

Fr. Apostolos shares about the life of Saint Nektarios of Pentapolis and encourages us to follow his example of humility, gentleness, perseverance, and devotion.

Fr. Apostolos shares three reasons to be grateful and three suggestions to consecrate the Thanksgiving holiday.

Fr. Apostolos talks about the theme of light as it relates to the Feast of the Nativity.

Fr. Apostolos exhorts us to be as welcoming to others at the Eucharistic feast as we are to welcoming new family members around our holiday tables.