¹ God, desiring to reconnect with the form He had created in His own image, sent His divine and only Son into the world in these latter days. Incarnated in the Virgin’s womb, He was born as a fully human being to restore fallen humanity and gather together its scattered parts. For what other reason would Christ have died? Was He facing capital charges? And since He was divine, why did He take on human form? Why did the one who reigned in heaven descend to earth? What compelled God to descend to earth, to take on the form of a human through the Holy Virgin, to be wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger, to be nourished with milk, to be baptized in the Jordan, to endure mockery from the people, to be crucified on the cross, to be buried in the earth, and then rise from the dead on the third day? It was for the sake of redemption, to offer His life for ours, His blood for ours, to undergo death in our place. Through His death, Christ has settled the debt of death that humanity owed. Oh, what a remarkable and incomprehensible mystery! The Judge faced judgment. The One who forgives sin was bound. The Creator of the world was mocked. He who spread out the heavens was stretched on the cross. The Provider of manna tasted gall. The Giver of life tasted death. The One who raises the dead was laid in the tomb. The powers were astounded, the angels amazed, the elements trembled, the entire created order was shaken. The earth quaked, its foundations trembled. The sun retreated, daylight faded, unable to bear the sight of their crucified Lord. The world, in astonishment, exclaimed, “What is this extraordinary mystery? The Judge is judged and remains silent; the unseen is revealed and is not troubled; the unfathomable is understood and shows no resentment; the boundless is confined yet offers no resistance; the impassable undergoes suffering without seeking retribution; the immortal experiences death without protest; the heavenly is buried and accepts it calmly. Truly, what is this enigmatic marvel? The world is utterly transfixed with wonder.” However, when our Lord rose from death and conquered it, when He subdued the forces of darkness and liberated humanity, every creature marveled at the Judge who, for Adam’s sake, underwent judgment, at the invisible becoming visible, at the impassable enduring suffering, at the immortal experiencing death, at the heavenly being buried in the earth. For our Lord became human; He was condemned to show compassion; He was bound to grant freedom; He was captured to bring liberation; He suffered to alleviate our suffering; He died to restore life to us; He was buried to raise us up. When our Lord suffered, His humanity endured the same pains as any human; and in doing so, He alleviated the suffering of those like Him, and by His death, He eradicated death itself. This is why He descended to earth: to confront death head-on and defeat the adversary that brings death to humanity. One faced judgment, and countless were liberated; one was buried, and countless rose again. He is the mediator between God and humanity; He is the resurrection and the savior of all; He is the guide for the lost, the shepherd for the freed, the giver of life to the dead, the leader of the cherubim, the messenger of the angels, and the supreme ruler to whom eternal glory belongs. Amen.