7/27/2019 Addiction Brochure 6: We Are Created Good

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We arecreated good

When God created the world, He said it

was very good. The world is a good

place.

Man is made in the Image and Likeness

of God, and therefore man is also very

good, because God Himself is good. Yet

man falls into sin and brings harm to

himself.

The Church brings healing to man so that

he can wash away those things he has

added to himself that are not good, and

put on the Humanity of the Resurrected

Christ. We are called to bear witness to

the goodness of God, and the inherent

goodness of man.

Did you knowthat in the Tradition of the Church,

both in the teachings of the saints and

the Scriptures, it always been taught that

man is essentially good? We have never

believed that man is utterly depraved,

but rather that his goodness is held

captive to fallenness.

Listen to christ!And He said, What comes out of a man

is what defiles a man. For from within,

out of the heart of man, come evil

thoughts, fornication, theft, murder,

adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit,

licentiousness, envy, slander, pride,

foolishness. All these evil things come

from within, and they defile a man.

(Mark 7:20)

The Fall of Man essentially caused mans

separation from God. But, being

separated from God does not mean that

man stops desiring to be loved and cared

for by God.

When man sins, it is not because man is

evil by nature, but rather because man

is in an unnatural state of separation,

and so he turns to sin as a replacement

for Gods love. The heart of man is

where God is supposed to be. If God is

not there, then man suffers from

passions which drive him into sin.

Christ says they come from within, but

they are not who man is. Man is not

meant to be evil.

Become a servantDo not come to church to be served, but

come each Sunday in hope that you can

serve others. Be the welcoming

presence that the tired and lonely souls

of this world yearn to meet.

If you would serve God, then serve those

people whom the world has forgotten.

There are millions of people out there

who do not know what the love of God is

at all. They have never seen it.

When they come to the Divine Liturgy, it

is overwhelming for them. They may not

understand it all. But, they will under-

stand your love. So, love those whom

God sends you.

To do that, you must be cleansed of the

sins and wounds in your life which drives

out Gods love. Dont hold on to anger

and resentment, but repent and be

washed through Baptism and Confession.

Then, receive the Body and Blood ofChrist, so that you can be united to Him

and be the pipeline of Divine love that

you are meant to be.

Service is the ultimate manifestation of

human life.

http://orthodoxyandrecovery.blogspot.com

2013 Fr. George Aquaro - for free distribution only

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7/27/2019 Addiction Brochure 6: We Are Created Good

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What is evil?Evil is anything that is not the will of

God. Evil is not created by God, but

rather evil is what angels or men do with

their free will that twists what is good in

an unnatural way.

Only God can create, so we must ask: didGod create evil? No! Since evil is has not

been created by God, then it is only an

adjective. It is a description rather than a

thing.

What does this meanfor me?This means all evil is temporary, and all

that is evil can be returned to its inherent

goodness.

This also means that no matter how

much you sin and harm yourself, you

cannot shape yourself into something

other than who you really are. No

matter how greatly you are fouled with

sin, it does not undo what God has

created.

We now see clearly the truth, that Gods

love for us from the very moment of ourcreation is what ultimately protects us

from undoing ourselves. He has given us

something of Himself, and so our sin

cannot overcome that which is holy

within us. After all, Gods Image is

indeed holy.

What about all my sins?

God has forgiven us, but the wounds of

sin remain within us until we agree to

allow God to heal us. How does He do

this?

He heals us by killing us in Baptism.Thats right! Baptism is death, but a

death that leads to Resurrection the

resurrection of Christ! We become

partakers in His Resurrection, and begin

to live life in His humanity through His

divinity.

To be Baptized and come to receive the

Body and Blood of the Resurrected

Christ, we must first repent. That is to

say, we must acknowledge the truthabout our sins and ask God to work

within us.

There is a catch!

There is always a catch with any promise

that seems too good to be true, isnt

there? This is no exception.

The catch is this: you must also be willing

to forgive other people their sins against

you: Forgive us our trespasses, as we

forgive those who trespass against us

If you do not, then you cannot receive

what you yourself are unwilling to give.

In this way, you cannot be a hypocrite.

If you can forgive and ask for forgiveness,

then all the evil things you have done can

be turned into something good. You

become dead to sin, and alive in Christ!

What about others?God desires that all men should be

saved, and so we are called to preach theGospel to all people especially those

who are lost in sins. We should have

mercy on people who come to Church

and invite them to experience Gods love

as we do.

Sure, people will come to us who are

homeless, and felons, and beggars, and

addicts will you turn them away

because perhaps they smell bad or dont

dress in nice clothes like you?

They clean up just like everyone else,

because they are made in the Image and

Likeness of God, just like you! Their sins

are obvious and easy to spot. Some of us

look well, but really are not.

Looks can be deceiving. Welcome all

people who come earnestly looking for

God and maybe your love will inspire

them to repent and be cleansed!

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