In the heart of every man, there is a great conflict between good and evil, between light and darkness, between serving God, and serving the devil. No man walking the path of life on this earth is wholly on one side or the other. Rather, he fights a constant battle either to serve the Creator who loves him, nurtures him, and died on the Cross for him, or to serve the one who hates him and seeks to make him suffer in hell along with himself.
Dear right-believing Orthodox Christians, it is not actually death we fear, but judgment. The Lord tells us that all …shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation (Jn 5:29). Our conscience accuses us and therefore we fear the righteous judgement of God.
The Gospel account of the Nativity of Christ is filled with joy and light. In the sky, we see the angelic star, the host of angels appear in glory, hymning the Newborn Saviour, bringing peace on earth, good will toward men.
"One of the cornerstone messages of the Gospel is the preaching of joy. Having met the myrrh-bearing women after the resurrection, the Lord says to them: Rejoice! And now, on the path toward His suffering on the Cross, He gives His disciples a foretaste of the future of the time of the resurrection."
