From antiochan.org, rongolini.com and dynamispublications.org:
Daily Readings:
Saints/Martyrs/Feasts/Fasts to be observed/commemmorated/celebrated: the Fast of the Nativity
Scriptural Readings:
2 Kingdoms 5:6-26 (12/11-12/24) Second Reading in Kellia: David as Type of Christ
David: Type of Christ 2 ~ Gaining Dominion: 2 Kingdoms 5:6-26 SAAS, especially vs. 12: “So David knew the Lord had prepared him as king over Israel, and his kingdom was exalted for the sake of His people Israel.” David’s accession as king for all the tribes of Israel (2 Kg. 5:1-5) presented the young monarch with a host of national security problems. Gaining success foremost because he was careful to seek and follow God’s counsel, he proved an outstanding student and practitioner of statecraft. Thus, “...the Lord Almighty was with him (2 Kg. 5:10).
Each of us has been anointed as a ruler on behalf of the Lord to address the unruly kingdom within our hearts and souls. Will not the good God Who established David also assist each of us in extending the gracious rule of our God and King, the Son of David (Mt. 22:41-45)? Surely He will! Let us read this passage thoughtfully and observe how David strengthened his nation’s security. Let us heed how to foster the Lord’s dominion within our hearts, souls, and wills by relying on God’s unfailing help. Let us pray Christ to be all in all.
A sovereign nation must have control of its territory, yet King David faced an enclave within his borders that was not submitted to his governance - a city of Jebusite people who did not hesitate to say “...to David, ‘You shall not be welcomed here...’” (vs. 6). Likewise each of us, as Saint John of Sinai says, “...must renounce all things, despise all things, deride all things and shake off things” that will not submit to Christ and His will within our hearts.
A secure nation must have a defensible ‘stronghold’ for its seat of government (vs. 9). As we love our Savior, let us say, “...the Lord is my foundation, and my refuge, and my deliverer...I will hope in Him, my defender...” (Ps. 17:1,2). Christ is our secure Stronghold!
To prosper, a nation needs good working relationships with other countries, especially those willing to furnish it with resources for building (2 Kg. 5:11). We have, as fellow laborers in the Church: Priests, Confessors, all the Saints, the Holy Fathers, the Divine Liturgy and other services, all of which can supply us with what we require to build our inner house.
A nation needs many ‘sons and daughters’ (vs. 13) to increase its population and settle its land (vss. 14-17). We, too, must nurture a large family of growing virtues, if we are to further our inner realm, turn words into deeds, and populate our lives with fruitful offspring.
Nations must have effective defenses against hostile enemies who come ‘up to seek’ out its leaders and conquer its people (vs. 18). King David had prepared his defenses at Jerusalem, so “...he went down to the stronghold” (vs. 18). If we are accustomed to receiving counsel from Christ, our living Stronghold, we shall always resort to Him when the enemy comes after us. Our Lord knows how to defeat the temptations, passions and demons that attack hearts and souls.
With each invasion of the Philistines, David prayed to the Lord, setting before Him his battle plan for approval and adaptation (vss. 20,24). Pity those who do not seek Divine guidance and receive help in their tactical and strategic planning in this life. Likewise, God pity us if we do not ‘inquire of the Lord’ (vs. 20) and heed our Almighty Ally, Security Advisor, and Defender Who can help us to break through our enemies “...like water that breaches a barrier” (vs. 20).
Observe that David maintained his nation’s security by doing “...as the Lord commanded him...” (vs. 26). Since, as Saint John of Sinai says, “Obedience is the tomb of the will and the resurrection of humility”, let us without hesitation beseech the Lord for grace to defeat our own will and to follow His directions always so that Christ may have full dominion over our lives.
O Lord, reveal to us the word of truth, reveal the gospel of righteousness, unite us to Thy holy Church, and have mercy on us, save us, help us and keep us, O God, by Thy grace
Ephesians 2:11-13
Ephesians 2:11-13
11So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called “the uncircumcision” by those who are called “the circumcision” —a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands— 12remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
Luke 13:18-29
Luke 13:18-29
18He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? 19It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” 20And again he said, “To what should I compare the kingdom of God? 21It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” 22Jesus went through one town and village after another, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.
23Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few be saved?” He said to them, 24“Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able. 25When once the owner of the house has got up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then in reply he will say to you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ 27But he will say, ‘I do not know where you come from; go away from me, all you evildoers!’ 28There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrown out. 29Then people will come from east and west, from north and south, and will eat in the kingdom of God.
The Synaxarion:
December 11
Memory of our venerable Father Daniel the Stylite (409-493).
Saint Daniel was born in 409 in the small market-town of Maratha, in Upper Euphratensis, near Samosata. He embraced monastic life when he was twelve years old. He then went to Saint Simeon the Stylite and was blessed by him. In 451, he went to Anapla, near Constantinople, and shut himself up in a temple of idols, where he was submitted to multiple assaults by the demons. In 460, he became a stylite on a column; neither cold, nor heat, nor violent winds-nothing-could weaken his courage. Ordained a priest by Patriarch Gennadius (458-471), he won the general esteem and commanded the attention of everyone. Even Emperor Leo came in person to see him to ask for his prayers. He died in peace on Saturday, December 11, 493.
Fifth Class Feast.
Sunday of the Holy Ancestors of our Lord Jesus Christ.
On the Sunday between December 11 and 17, we remember all the Ancestors of Christ according to the flesh.
On this day the Church commemorates the Holy Ancestors of Christ, and at the same time all the holy Patriarchs of the Old Testament who prefigured or foretold Christ: Adam the first Father, Enoch, Melchisedec, Abraham, the friend of God, Isaac, the fruit of the Promise, Jacob and the twelve patriarchs. Then those who lived under the Law: Moses Aaron, Josue, Samuel, David, and the Prophets: Isaia, Jeremia, Ezechiel, the twelve minor prophets, Elia, Eliseus, Zacharia, and John the Baptist, and finally the Virgin Mary, the intermediary between mankind and her divine Son.
Indeed, the Lord Jesus did not come to abolish the Law and the Prophets, but to redeem humanity which bemoaned the weight of evil since Adam, to realize the promise made to Abraham, to change the Law of fear into the Law of Love, to give resurrection and life to mankind. This feast is a preparation for the Nativity of Jesus. It places before us the sentiments of anticipation and hope for His coming among us.
Third Class Feast. Typika and Beatitudes. Isodikon of the Sunday. Troparia: of the Resurrection, of the Ancestors, and of the Church Patron. Kondakion of the Pre-festive Period of the Nativity according to the Flesh of Our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ (December 20). Epistle and Gospel of the Ancestors. Kinonikon of the Sunday.
Epistle of the Twenty-ninth Sunday after Pentecost: Colossians 3:4-11.
Gospel of the Eleventh Sunday after the Exaltation of the Venerable and Life-giving Cross: Luke 14:16-24.
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