Accept and Serve Christ and Each Other

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. God is one. Amen.

The epistle today is from the 4th chapter of the Letter of St Paul to the Ephesians. St Paul begins with a heart-felt plea to the people of Ephesus and to us. He writes, and I quote: “I … a prisoner for the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called with all lowliness and meekness, with patience, forbearing one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace,” urged St Paul. He calls for all Christians to accept the challenge of truly following Christ in our daily lives. How can we do that?

St John Chrysostom points out that the phrase “maintain the unity of the Spirit—that is, the Holy Spirit—in the bond of peace” is an important first step in following Christ every day. St John writes, and I quote: “In the body it is the living spirit that holds all members together, even when they are far apart. So it is here. The purpose for which the [Holy] Spirit was given [to us] was to bring into unity all who remain separated by different ethnic and cultural divisions: young and old, rich and poor, women and men,” concluded St John. The modern word for what St Paul and St John Chrysostom are urging upon us is “inclusion”—that is, respecting and including everyone whatever their race, culture, age, poverty or gender. What I find quite important—initially quite surprising—is that the Holy Spirit has been given to each of us not only to empower us to follow Christ, but to draw all peoples together in unity. But wait; think and pray for a moment! That is exactly what happened at Pentecost—“the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard [the disciples] speaking [their] own language,” as explained in the Book of Acts, chapter 2, verse 6. So the Holy Spirit was given to those thousands of listeners at Pentecost just as the Holy Spirit is given to each of us today—not only to draw us to Christ, but also to guide us in learning how to accept and serve others. And the first step in being empowered by the Holy Spirit to accept and serve others is to learn how to speak so that others hear us “in their own language”—that is, within the parameters—the limits—of their own unique beliefs and hopes. To put it clearly and challengingly—the Holy Spirit wants each of us as Christians to love not only God, but every person in the world, all of whom have been made by God.

Then, St John Chrysostom ponders that question of how to live such an inclusive life. He asks, “How is it possible to ‘walk worthily’ with ‘all lowliness?’” He answers his question immediately, and I quote: “Meekness is the foundation of all virtue. If you are humble and are aware of your limits and remember how you are saved [by Christ], you will take this recollection as the motive for … excellent moral behavior. You will not be excessively impressed with either chains or privileges. You will remember that all is of grace and so walk humbly…. ‘with all lowliness,’ … not in words or even in deeds but so in the very manner and tone of your voice. And not [be] meek toward one person and rude toward another but humble toward everyone whether enemy or friend, great or small,” concluded St John Chrysostom.

Both in Ephesus in the first century and throughout the world today we seek “excellent moral behavior,” but we need to learn how to achieve it. The fourth-century translator and philosopher Marius Victorinus offers some clear and profound advice. He writes, and I quote: “[St Paul] speaks of several forms of forbearance [that is, patience and self-control], each of which prevents [us] from being carried away or proud. Lowliness is first, then meekness. Patience consists in bearing any [unfavourable] circumstances that may befall [us]. With lowliness and meekness [we] learn not to be afraid to suffer. With patience [we] learn how to respond if [we] must suffer,” advised Marius Victorinus. That is a beautiful challenge—it takes seconds to read, but years to learn how to avoid being proud. First, we accept a low position and are meek, accepting any unfavourable circumstances that might happen to us.  This teaches us to be patient, “not to be afraid to suffer” and helps us to become truly humble.

The epistle today from St Paul’s letter to Ephesians continues, and I quote: “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all. But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift,” concluded St Paul. Now, as St Jerome explains, and I quote: [These] words ‘one body and one Spirit’ can be taken most simply to mean the one body of Christ, which is the Church. Or [these words] could refer to the humanity of the Lord, which He assumed from the Virgin,” concluded St Jerome.

I would suggest to you today that these words from today’s epistle, “one body and one Spirit,” refer to BOTH the Church AND all of humanity. That is St Jerome’s own interpretation of the next phrase in this epistle, that we are each “called to the one hope that belongs to [our] call.” St Jerome writes, and I quote: “If the Father’s house has many mansions, how are we to say that we are called to one hope? One reply is that the one hope of the calling is the kingdom of God. It is as though we were to speak of the house of God or to say that in one house are many mansions…. Or again, [a] subtler meaning may be implied [which is that] at the end and consummation of all things everything is to be restored to its original condition, when we are all made one body and formed anew into a perfect [person],” concluded St Jerome.

In other words, here is the full meaning of Christ as the Second Adam when He brings all of us into His Body at the end of time. Now, that might sound rather overwhelming to you, as it does to me. However, listen carefully to what St Paul and St John Chrysostom and St Jerome together are saying. “Grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift”—that is the concluding sentence of today’s epistle. Marius Victorinus offers us some helpful and calm advice. He writes, and I quote: “In counselling humility, meekness [and lowliness, St Paul] sets forth the reason why each person is called to patience and forbearance. Grace has been given to each of us according to the measure in which Christ grants it. Since therefore different people have different gifts, there is no cause for envy or refusal [of the gifts]. One should not grieve over what another has, nor should any refuse to give [to others] what grace [they] have received. If therefore Christ grants according to the measure of grace given to each, we should all embrace one another in love, bearing everything with forbearance and patience, with meekness and humility,” concluded Marius Victorinus.

  As we study today’s epistle, we should not be overwhelmed by its meaning. What St Paul and St John Chrysostom and St Jerome and Marius Victorinus are each saying is simply “Accept Christ and accept others. Do it now and do it for the rest of your life!” It is striking that in the year 355 all three of those interpreters of St Paul’s epistle were alive, with ages varying from perhaps one to 75. The message that they and St Paul gave then remains true today. Pray to be in unity with Christ and all people whatever their race, culture, age, poverty or gender. Then discern precisely what are the unique gifts that Christ has given to you to empower you to serve Him and to serve others. 

And so, we ascribe as is justly due all might, majesty, dominion, power and praise to God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, always now and ever and unto the ages of ages.             

Father Emmanuel Kahn