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To: stripes1776; qua; blue-duncan; Dr. Eckleburg; HarleyD; AlbionGirl; kosta50; Kolokotronis
Now, I have this question for you. A certain Christian confession uses the following words in its worship service, which seem to me quite relevant as we approach Easter. The words are "trampling down death by death." In other words, God uses the evil he does not create to defeat and overcome the evil he does not create. In other words, the death of Christ on the cross results in the overcoming of death and the resurrection of Christ. Is that consistent with your understanding of God's will?

I haven't heard that phrase before, so after looking around a bit, it seems to turn up in Orthodox services quite a lot, even in one funeral I found. Here is one example of something one priest says during the MATINS ON THE HOLY AND GREAT SUNDAY OF PASCHA:

"CHRIST is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and on those in the tombs bestowing life.

Without knowing its established meaning, my impression of this is that the physical death of Jesus tramples down the Spiritual death of us, His children, past, present, and future. If that is pretty close, then I do agree. So, Christ used the evil done against Him, which He did not create (but did allow), to save (I would say "pay for") us against our own sins, which He did not create.

I would add that none of this could have been by accident. Since we all seem to agree that none of us is up to the task of following the Law perfectly, then no one is saved without the work of Christ on the cross. Therefore, God must have ordained everything that was to happen if anyone was going to be saved. Christ knew every detail of what was going to happen to Him.

4,701 posted on 04/16/2006 3:41:57 PM PDT by Forest Keeper
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To: Forest Keeper; stripes1776; qua; blue-duncan; Dr. Eckleburg; HarleyD; AlbionGirl; kosta50
Here's what it means:

"CHRIST is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and on those in the tombs bestowing life.

4,702 posted on 04/16/2006 3:52:33 PM PDT by Kolokotronis (Christ is Risen, and you, o death, are annihilated!)
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