Sunday After Epiphany

“Brethren, grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ's gift.”

Grace is “charis,” taken from the Greek verb, “charizo,” meaning, “I give.” Grace was given to each of us; thus, each of us has a gift from God. Are we all given the same grace? No, grace was given to each of us “according to the measure of God’s gift,” implying that we are given grace in different quantities and qualities.

“Therefore it is said, ‘When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.’"

This is a quote from Psalm 67 (68), one of the great Messianic or prophetic psalms. Orthodox Christians use this psalm especially on Easter, perhaps because it begins with the words, “Let God arise.” What can the words, “Let God arise,” possibly mean, if God is everywhere? How might God arise? St. Paul quotes the words, “when he ascended,” meaning, when God moved up. How can God move up? To St. Paul, it is an indication that God has come to earth. To us, it is a sign that God has become human; it reveals his incarnation.

“He ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men." The last few words are what I want you to take with you, “He gave gifts to men.”

“His gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry…” These titles seem to blend together; in today’s church they might all be seen as the tasks of a priest, but in the ancient church they were shared by many. What was the purpose of these roles?

“Building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

As I said last week, some people misinterpret the sacrament of Baptism by viewing it is the beginning and the completion of Christian life. Some baptize their children and then never bring them back to church. Others say that once you have been baptized and “washed in the blood of the Lamb” that your salvation is complete. But we who are orthodox Christians view Christian life as a ongoing process, which is what St. Paul’s words indicate. “Building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

“Grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ's gift…” Many of us make New Year’s resolutions. I would suggest that one resolution would be to cultivate a gift from God. God has given to each of us: what can we do with His gift?

This doesn’t have to be complicated or dramatic, just sincere. Some of us are good teachers and explainers of things. I am so grateful to the people who teach in our Orthodox Forum or in Orthodox Education or in St. Makrina Bible Study or in church tours at the Festival. We need people doing these tasks. Others are better in one-on-one teaching. We need grandparents and aunts and uncles and godparents teaching children the things that are better heard when they come from a source other than a parent. 

Some people have a gift of music. We need singers, both in the choir and at the chanters stand. Music and worship have been intertwined since antiquity, but we take for granted that the musicians will always be there. Will they? Only if good people resolve to use their gift for God’s glory.

St. Basil once wrote about the gifts of wealth and poverty. Isn’t it strange that he would consider poverty a gift? But both wealth and poverty can be used to glorify God. “Is God unjust,” he asks, “dividing unequally the goods of our life? Why are you rich, while the other is poor? Isn't it, if not for any other reason, in order for you to gain a reward for your kindness and faithful providence, and for him to be honored with the great awards of patience?” The rich person acquires a blessing by giving; the poor person acquires a blessing by being patient.

I have a friend, a priest, whom I consider my “angel of appreciation.” I can get frustrated when I see empty pews in church or people coming very late or this or that problem. Yet he is there to constantly remind me of how wonderful this person is or how blessed we are to have that program in our parish… he is constantly counting my blessings and our blessings. This, too, is a gift from God.

St. Seraphim of Sarov, a Russian mystic of the late 18th and early 19th century, taught that the goal of life is to acquire the Holy Spirit. He said, “You understand, of course, what acquiring money means? Acquiring the Spirit of God is exactly the same...  Acquire the grace of the Holy Spirit also by practicing all the other virtues for Christ’s sake. Trade spiritually with them; trade with those which give you the greatest profit. Accumulate capital from the superabundance of God’s grace, deposit it in God’s eternal bank…Weigh every virtue done for Christ’s sake in this manner.” In short, he said, take whatever Christian virtue you like, do it for Christ’s sake, and let it work for you.

This is my wish for you: that you make the effort to take an inventory of your gifts and to select one that you can use to acquire God’s spirit. I leave you with the words of St. Seraphim.

"Acquire the grace of the Holy Spirit also by practicing all the other virtues for Christ's sake. Trade spiritually with them; trade with those which give you the greatest profit. Accumulate capital from the superabundance of God's grace, deposit it in God's eternal bank which will bring you immaterial interest, not four or six percent, but one hundred percent for one spiritual ruble, and even infinitely more than that.

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Text:

Ephesians 4:7-13

Brethren, grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ's gift. Therefore it is said, "When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men." (in saying, "He ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is he who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.