👉🏾👉🏾👉🏾The Feast of Our Fathers #Abraham, #Isaac, and #Jacob (#Nehase 28)
Beloved in Christ, today the Church gathers us into the holy mystery of remembrance. On the twenty-eighth day of Nehase, we celebrate the feast of the righteous patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. These fathers are not merely figures of history, but pillars of faith, roots of the covenant, and living examples of obedience, humility, and trust in the Most High.
Let us, therefore, with reverence, recount their lives, not to glorify men, but to magnify the Lord who worked wonders through them. For as the Scriptures proclaim, “God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared for them a city” (Hebrews 11:16).
The Glory of the Patriarchs
The kingdom of heaven itself is adorned with their names, for Christ declared: “Many will come from the east and the west and will sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 8:11). Their righteousness shines more numerous than the stars, and their faith is counted as everlasting treasure. What tongue can fully tell their glory? What pen can describe their holiness? It is enough for us to fall in awe before their Creator and cry, “Glory! Glory! To God who is wondrous in His saints.”
Abraham: The Friend of God
Abraham, the father of faith, began his journey amidst idols, for his father Terah fashioned them. Yet, seeking the true God, Abraham saw the emptiness of wood and stone. He mocked their lifelessness, saying: “Eyes they have, but they see not; ears they have, but they hear not.” He shattered the false gods and set his heart upon the living Lord.
He departed to Canaan, trusting only in the promise of God. He faced famine, sojourned in Egypt and Palestine, yet in all these, the Creator honored him. Kings trembled before him, prophets were healed by his prayer, and strangers were welcomed into his tent. His hospitality was so great that he would not taste food unless it was shared with a guest. And behold, the Lord rewarded him: the Holy Trinity itself came to him in the plains of Mamre. and by his humility washed the feet of the Godhead.
He pleaded before the Lord for Sodom and Gomorrah, showing both mercy and boldness in intercession. And when tested, he did not withhold his beloved son but offered him upon the altar. For this obedience, he is called father of prophets, apostles, kings, and priests the very root of the covenant.
So beloved was he, that the angels proclaimed him:
“Abraham, friend of God”
“Abraham, faithful to God”
“Abraham, beloved of God”
Even in the place of the dead, God granted him a resting place of honor, shielding him from the reach of demons, until the coming of Christ.
Our father Abraham is honored in glory, holiness, and grace from Genesis to the Revelation of John. The saints invoke the Creator in his name. Because of his holiness, even the forces of darkness could not approach him. Abraham rested in peace one thousand nine hundred years before the birth of Christ, having lived one hundred and seventy-five years
Isaac: The Model of Obedience
Isaac, son of the promise, born by divine intervention, was pure and blameless. In him we behold the image of Christ, for he was the willing sacrifice. When Abraham, in obedience, bound him upon the altar, Isaac did not resist. He said instead, “Bind me, father, lest I move against you; cover my eyes, lest your heart be softened with pity.”
O wondrous obedience! O holy humility! For this reason, we honor him saying: “Peace be upon Isaac, who was faithful to his father.”
God spared his life, revealing the mystery of Christ’s coming sacrifice. Isaac lived one hundred and eighty years, walking in holiness. With his wife Rebecca, he conceived Jacob and Esau. At his passing, a heavenly voice declared:
“I will honor him who honors my friend Isaac.”
“Who bows in his name, who prays in his name, who shows mercy in his name I will reward him in heaven.”
Thus Isaac rests, adorned with blessings and eternal glory.
Continues 👇🏾