Raising Thoughts

Μέμνησο τοῦ σοφωτάτου Παύλου γεγραφότος περὶ Χριστοῦ·  Τὸ γὰρ ἀδύνατον τοῦ νόμου, ἐν ᾧ ἠσθένει διὰ τῆς σαρκὸς, ὁ Θεὸς τὸν ἑαυτοῦ Υἱὸν πέμψας ἐν ὁμοιώματι σαρκὸς ἁμαρτίας καὶ περὶ ἁμαρτίας, κατέκρινε τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐν τῇ σαρκὶ, ἵνα τὸ δικαίωμα τοῦ νόμου πληρωθῇ ἐν ἡμῖν τοῖς μὴ κατὰ σάρκα περιπατοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ κατὰ πνεῦμα.  Τί οὖν ἐστι τὸ, ἐν ὁμοιώματι σαρκὸς ἁμαρ τίας ἀπεστάλθαι λέγειν τὸν Υἱόν;  Ἐμφωλεύει μὲν τοῖς μέλεσι τῆς σαρκὸς ἡμῶν, τῆς ἁμαρτίας ὁ νόμος, καὶ τῶν ἐμφύτων ἐπιθυμιῶν τὸ ἔκτοπον κίνημα·  ὁ δέ γε τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγος γενόμενος ἄνθρωπος, ἁγίαν εἶχε τὴν σάρκα καὶ πάναγνον ἀληθῶς·  καὶ ἐν ὁμοιώσει μὲν τῆς ἡμετέρας σαρκὸς, οὐ μὴν ἔτι καὶ κατ' αὐτήν·  ἀπήλλακτο γὰρ εἰς ἄπαν τῶν ἐμπεφυκότων τοῖς ἡμετέροις σώμασι μολυσμῶν, κινήματος καὶ ῥοπῆς τῆς ἡμᾶς ἀποφερούσης ἐφ' ἃ μὴ θέμις.  Ἀλλ' αὕτη μὲν ἡ αἰτία τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος σαρκώσεως.  Καὶ ἐσπαργάνωσεν αὐτόν. Ὅταν ἴδῃς βρέφος ἐσπαργανωμένον, μὴ μέχρι μόνης τῆς κατὰ σάρκα γεννήσεως αὐτοῦ τὴν σεαυτοῦ διάνοιαν στήσῃς, ἀλλ' ἀναπήδησον εἰς θεωρίαν τῆς θεοπρεποῦς δόξης αὐτοῦ·  ἀνάβηθι τὸν οὐρανόν· οὕτως αὐτὸν ἐν τοῖς ἀνωτάτω θεωρήσεις ὑψώμασι, τὴν ὑπερτάτην ἔχοντα δόξαν, ὄψει καθήμενον ἐπὶ θρόνου ὑψηλοῦ καὶ ἐπηρμένου· ἀκούσῃ τῶν Σεραφὶμ ὑμνολογούντων αὐτὸν, πλήρη τε εἶναι λεγόντων τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ.  Γέγονε δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς· δόξα γὰρ Θεοῦ περιήστραψε τοὺς ποιμένας·  καὶ πλῆθος ἦν στρατιᾶς οὐρανίου δοξολογούντων Χριστόν. Πλεῖστοι μὲν γὰρ ἐγεννήθησαν κατὰ καιροὺς ἅγιοι προφῆται, ἀλλ' οὐδεὶς ἐκείνων ἐδοξολογήθη πώποτε διὰ φωνῆς ἀγγέλων· ἄνθρωποι γὰρ ἦσαν καὶ ἐν μέτροις τοῖς καθ' ἡμᾶς οἰκέται Θεοῦ γνήσιοι. Χριστὸς δὲ οὐχ οὕτως· Θεὸς γάρ ἐστι καὶ Κύριος καὶ προφητῶν ἁγίων ἀποστολεὺς, καὶ ὡς ὁ Ψάλλων φησὶ, Τίς ἐν  νεφέλαις ἰσωθήσεται τῷ Κυρίῳ, καὶ τίς ὁμοιωθήσεται ἐν υἱοῖς Θεοῦ;  Ἡμῖν μὲν γὰρ τοῖς ὑπὸ ζυγὰ καὶ φυσικὴν δουλείαν, ἐν χάριτος τάξει προσνενέμηται παρ' αὐτοῦ τὸ τῆς υἱότητος ὄνομα·  Χριστὸς δ' ἐστὶν ἡ ἀλήθεια, τουτέστιν ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρὸς κατὰ φύσιν Υἱὸς, καὶ ὅτε γέγονε σάρξ· μεμένηκε γὰρ ὂ ἦν, καίτοι προσλαβὼν ὃ οὐκ ἦν. Ἅγιος Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας, Ἐξὴγησις Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Λούκαν Εὐάγγελιον, Κεφ. Β'

Remember what the very wise Paul has written concerning Christ. 'For as to the powerlessness of the law, in which it was weak through the flesh, God having sent His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and because of sin, has condemned the sin in the flesh, that the justice of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.' 1 What, then, is this, that the Son was sent 'in the likeness of sinful flesh? Why that the law of sin lies hidden in our fleshly members, together with the disordered movements of innate desires, but when the Word of God became man he had flesh all holy, so that being in the likeness of our flesh, He was not according to it, for He was completely free from the natural flaws of our bodies and from that inclination which turns us away us to what is not lawful. This then is the nature of the Savior's incarnation in which he swaddles himself. When, therefore, you see the child wrapped in swaddling cloth, do not hold your thought solely upon His birth according to the flesh, but rise up to contemplation of His Divine glory, ascend to heaven, for so will you see Him in highest exaltation, possessed of supernal glory, you will see Him 'sat upon a throne high and lifted up,' 2 you will hear the Seraphim praising Him, and saying that heaven and earth are full of His glory. And even upon earth this has come to be, for the glory of God shone upon the shepherds, and there was a multitude of the heavenly armies telling of Christ's glory. For many holy prophets have been born from time to time, but never had any one of them been glorified by the voice of angels, for they were men, and they were according to the same measure as ourselves, true servants of God. But it was not so with Christ, for God He is and Lord, and the Sender of the holy Prophets, and, as the Psalmist says, 'Who in the clouds shall be compared to the Lord, and who shall be likened to the Lord among the sons of God?' 3 For to those under the yoke and who are by nature servants in grace have the title of sonship bestowed by Him, but Christ is the true Son, that is, He is the Son of God the Father by nature, even when become flesh, for He remained what He was though He took upon Himself that which He had not been. Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on Luke, Chapter 2 1 Rom 8. 3-4 2. Is 6.1  3 Ps 88.7