Беседа 13

John 1:15. John testifies of Him and, exclaiming, says: This was He of whom I said that He who came after me stood before me, because He was before me. 1. The inattention of the hearers does not deprive the preacher of his reward. - Why ev. John often refers to the testimony of St. John the Baptist? – 2 and 3. The meaning of the testimony of St. John the Baptist. – 4. There is nothing more beautiful than a right life. – Rejection of gifts brought from ill-acquired estates. 1. Are we not working in vain? Do we not sow on the stones, or do the seeds fall along the way and among the thorns, beyond our expectations? I am very worried and afraid that agriculture will remain fruitless for us, but not because I myself might suffer a loss in the reward for this work. The work of teachers is not the same as that of farmers. The farmer, often after a year's work, after such exhaustion and sweat, if the land does not bring anything worth the work, cannot find any consolation from anyone else for his labors, and with shame and sorrow he returns from the field home to his wife and children, having no right to demand reward from anyone for his long labors. But nothing like that can happen to us. Let the cultivated land bear no fruit; If only we, on our part, put in all the work, the Lord of the earth and our Lord will not allow us to remain with empty hopes, but will grant retribution. “Everyone,” it is said, “will receive his reward according to his own labor” (1 Cor. 3:8), and not according to the outcome of things. And that this is so, listen: “And you,” it is said, “the son of man,... speak my words to them, whether they listen or not” (Ezek. 2:6-7). And through the same Ezekeel one can learn this: if the guardian foretold what one should flee and what one should choose, then he delivered his soul, even if no one listened to him 12 . Nevertheless, having this strong consolation, confident of reward for our labors, when we do not see success in the matter of your salvation, we feel no better than those farmers who groan, shed tears and hide in shame. Here is the complicity of the teacher, here is the guardianship of the father. So Moses, although he could get rid of the Jews who were ungrateful to him and become an even more glorious ancestor of another and much more numerous people (“Leave Me,” God told him, “and I will destroy them, and make you a numerous nation” (Ex. 32:10), since Moses was a holy man, a servant of God, a friend, close and faithful to God), but he could not even hear such words, but rather wanted to perish with people once entrusted to him, rather than be saved without them and receive a more important dignity. This is what a leader of souls should be. It would be strange if someone, having bad children, wanted to be better called the father of others, and not those who were born from him; It would be so strange if we began to constantly change the disciples entrusted to us from one to another, to assume authority over one or the other, and not have a sincere affection for anyone. However, let there never be such suspicions about you. We are convinced that you abound in faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, in love for each other and for everyone. And we say this with the intention of arousing you to intensify your zeal and to increase, more and more, virtue in your life. In this way, you will be able to penetrate with your mind to the very depth of the teaching proposed by us, if, that is, sinful impurity does not darken the eyes of the mind and does not damage its vigilance and sharpness. So, what do we have on offer today? “John testifies of Him and, exclaiming, says: This was He of whom I said that He who came after me stood before me, because He was before me.” Repeatedly the evangelist, both above and below, turns to John and in many places presents his testimony. But he does this not in vain, but very wisely. Since all the Jews had great respect for this man (Joseph even attributes the war to his death and proves that because of him the once capital city ceased to be a city, and generally speaks a lot in praise of him), the evangelist, wanting to shame the Jews with his name, often reminds them of the testimony of the Forerunner. Other evangelists mention the ancient prophets, and under every circumstance in the life of Him (Christ) they refer the listener to them. So, when He is born, the evangelist says: “all these things happened, that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet (Isaiah) might be fulfilled, who says: Behold, the virgin is with child and bears a Son” (Matthew 1:22–23). When He is subjected to evil intentions and is sought out everywhere with such care that even the immature is beaten by Herod, they bring Jeremiah, who says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and mourning and a great cry; Rachel weeps for her children” (Matthew 2:18; Jeremiah 31:15). When He returns again from Egypt, they remember Hosea, who also says: “Out of Egypt I called My Son” (Matthew 2:15; Hosea 11:1). This is what other evangelists do in all cases. And this evangelist (John), preaching with a more elevated voice than the others, presents the clearest and closest evidence, and brings not only those who have departed and died, but also a modern witness who pointed to the one who had already come (the Lord) and baptized Him - not so as to give more credibility to the words of the Master by the testimony of a slave, but condescending to the weakness of the listeners, because just as if the Lord had not taken the form of a servant, he would not have been would have been easily accepted, so if the voice of the slave had not predisposed the ears of his fellow servants to himself, then many of the Jews would not have accepted His words. 2. Moreover, something else was arranged here, worthy of surprise. Whoever says anything great about himself makes his own testimony suspicious and often in this way alienates many of his listeners; That is why another comes to testify about him. On the other hand, the majority usually flock to a voice that is more familiar and familiar, since they know it more than any other. That is why the voice from heaven came only once or twice, but the voice of John came often and many times. Those who stood above the infirmities of the people renounced everything sensual; only they could hear the voice from above and did not really need the human voice, since in everything they obeyed the voice from above and were led by it. But those who were still turned down were covered with many veils - they needed a lower voice. So John himself, having already completely renounced everything sensual, did not need instruction from people, but received teaching from heaven. “He who sent me to baptize in water,” he says, “said to me: On whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining on Him, he is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit” (John 1:33). Meanwhile, the Jews, being still children and unable to rise to such a height, had as a teacher a man who, however, did not tell them his own things, but proclaimed the revelations from above. So what does (the evangelist) say? “John testifies of Him and, shouting, speaks.” What does "exclaiming" mean? This means: he preaches boldly, freely, without any fear. What does he preach? What does it testify and appeal to? “This was He of whom I said that He who came after me stood before me, because He was before me.” The testimony is somewhat secretive and not yet very sublime. He does not say: this is the only begotten Son of God; And what? “This was He of whom I said that He who came after me stood before me, because He was before me.” Just as birds teach their chicks to fly not suddenly and not completely in one day, but first only take them out of the nest, then, giving them a rest, continue their flight, the next day they add even more, and thus imperceptibly, little by little raise them to the proper height - in the same way, blessed John does not suddenly raise the Jews to the things above, but little by little teaches them to soar from the earth, saying that Christ was higher than him (Forerunners). And this was not enough for the listeners to believe that the man, who had not yet appeared to them and had not yet performed miracles, surpassed John, such a wondrous and glorious man, to whom everyone flocked and whom they revered as an angel. Meanwhile, John tried to confirm in the thoughts of his listeners that the one being testified is greater than the one testifying, who came after the one who came before, who has not yet been seen greater than the one who is known and glorified. And look how intelligently he speaks his testimony. He indicates not only who appeared, but even before His appearance he preaches about Him. This is precisely the meaning of his words: “This was the One of whom I spoke,” just as Matthew narrates that he said to everyone who came to him (John): “I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who comes after me is stronger than I; I am not worthy to carry His sandals” (Matthew 3:11). But why did he do this even before the appearance (of the Lord)? So that the testimony of Himself who appeared could be accepted all the more conveniently when the thoughts of the listeners were already prepared for this by the words of John, and so that His humiliated appearance would not harm this testimony. After all, if the Jews saw Christ himself, without first hearing anything about Christ and without receiving this wonderful and great testimony about Him in the words of John, then the wretched appearance of Christ would immediately become in conflict with the greatness of His words. And He put on such a humble and common appearance for everyone that Samaritan wives, harlots, and tax collectors dared to approach Him with great freedom and entered into conversation with Him. 3. So, I said, if the Jews had heard the conversation and seen (Christ) himself at the same time, then perhaps they would have laughed at the testimony of John. But since they had already heard a lot about Christ before His appearance, and what was said about Him aroused their attention, the opposite happened to them: they no longer rejected the teaching, judging by the appearance of the One about whom John testified, but, believing what had already been said, they recognized Him as even more glorious than John. The expression: “He who comes after me” means: one who has to preach after me, but one who does not have to be after me. This is also indicated in Matthew by the words: “He who comes after me” (Matthew 3:11), referring not to His birth from Mary, but to His coming to preach. If it had been spoken about birth, then it would have been said not: “he who is coming,” but: “he has come,” because Christ was already born at the time John said this. What does it mean: “stood ahead of me”? That he is more glorious, more honorable than me. “Do not think that I am greater than Him, because I just came to preach before Him; I am much less than Him and so less that I am not worthy to be among His servants.” Thus, the words: “stood before me” mean the same thing that Matthew otherwise expresses when he says: “I am not worthy to carry His sandals.” And that the words: “he stood before me” were not spoken about His origin, is obvious from the addition. If John wanted to talk about origin, then the addition: “he stood before me” would have been unnecessary. And who is so stupid and senseless that he does not understand that his former one is superior to him? If this saying refers to pre-eternal existence, then it means nothing else, just like the words: “He who follows me has stood in front of me.” But in this case it would be said unreasonably and such a reason would be added in vain. If he wanted to show this, then he should have said: He who came for me was before me, as he was before me. Whoever came first, for this reason, can rightly be said to be prior to the other; and if one is only earlier than the other, this is not a reason that the other occurred before this. And what we are saying now has its own solid foundation. You all, of course, know that unclear thoughts always need evidence, not clear thoughts. If we were talking about existence, then it would not be incomprehensible that what happened first should be first; but since John speaks of dignity, he rightly deals with the solution to the perplexity that appears. And probably many were perplexed, why and on what basis did the one who came after become ahead, that is, turned out to be more venerable? To such a question he immediately presents a reason; and the reason is that Christ is superior in being to him (John). “It was not because of any success,” he says, “that Christ, who came before him, left me behind him and himself stood in front: He is before me, although he comes after me.” But, you say, if this was said about the appearance (of Christ) to people and about His subsequent glorification among them, then how does he speak of something that has not yet come to an end as if it had already happened? He did not say: it will be, but: it was. But this was the custom of the ancient prophets, that is, to speak about future events as if they had already happened. So Isaiah, speaking about His killing, did not say that He would be led like a sheep to the slaughter - in the future tense - but: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter” (Is. 53:7). He had not yet incarnated at that time; and the prophet speaks of a future event as if it had already happened. And David, signifying the cross, did not say: “They will pierce my hands and my feet,” but: “They pierced my hands and my feet.” And: “They divide my garments among themselves and cast lots for my clothing” (Ps. 21:17, 19). Speaking about the traitor who has not yet been born, he expresses himself this way: “who ate my bread lifted up his heel against me” (Ps. 40:10). In a similar way, he speaks about what happened on the cross: “And they gave me gall for food, and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink” (Ps. 69:22). 4. Do you want us to continue further, or is this enough? I think so. True, we did not develop this area along its entire width, but we penetrated into its depth; and there is no less work in this; Moreover, we are afraid that, by delaying you beyond measure, we will weaken your jealousy. So let's finish the word properly. And in what proper way? Praise befitting God. But praise befits God not only in words, but much more in deeds themselves. “Let your light so shine,” it is said, “before men, so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). And truly, beloved, there is nothing more luminous than a good lifestyle. Expressing this, one of the wise says: “The path of the righteous is like a shining light” (Proverbs 4:18). They not only shine for those who kindle the light in their deeds, but also guide their neighbors to the right path. Let us pour oil into these lamps, so that the fire may rise higher and the light may appear in abundance. This oil not only has a lot of power now, but when the sacrifices were still in use, it greatly exceeded their power. “I want mercy,” it is said, “and not sacrifice” (Hos. 6:6; Matt. 9:13): and quite rightly so. That altar is soulless; and this one is animate 13. There everything laid on the altar becomes the prey of fire, turns into ashes, is reduced to ashes and dust, and the smoke disperses into the air; there is nothing like that here, and the fruits here are different. Paul also shows this. Speaking about the wealth of love for the poor among the Corinthians, he wrote: “For the work of this ministry not only fills the poverty of the saints, but also produces abundant thanksgiving to God in many.” And then: “they glorify God for your obedience to the Gospel of Christ that you profess and for your sincere communication with them and with everyone, praying for you, according to your disposition” (2 Cor. 9:12-14). Do you see what kind of love for the poor is resolved into thanksgiving and praise to God, into fervent prayers and into the most ardent love of those who have received a benefit? Let us, beloved, make sacrifices, let us offer on these altars every day. These sacrifices are more important than prayers and fasting and many other deeds, as long as they are (made) from the income of the righteous and the same labors, and are clean from all covetousness, theft and violence. Such offerings are accepted by God, but others - the opposite ones - are rejected and hated. He does not want us to honor Him by being victims of other people's misfortunes. Such sacrifices are unclean and indecent and would rather anger than appease God. Therefore, we must make every effort to ensure that, under the guise of service, we do not offend the One whom we want to honor. If Cain, having brought to God the worst that he had, and in this without having done injustice to anyone else, was subjected to extreme punishment, then will we not suffer an even more severe punishment when we bring something from theft and covetousness? Therefore, God showed us this type of commandment 14, so that we would have mercy and not torture our fellow servants. But whoever takes what belongs to others and gives it to another does not show mercy, but wrongs and commits extreme injustice. Just as a stone does not produce oil from itself, so hardness of heart does not produce love for mankind. Almsgiving, which has such a root, is not yet mercy. Therefore, I urge you to pay attention not only to giving to the needy, but also to ensuring that this alms is not theft from others, since “When one prays and another curses, whose voice will the Master hear?” (Sir.34:24). If we behave so carefully, then, by the grace of God, we will be able to receive from God great love for mankind, pardon and forgiveness in everything we have sinned during this long time - and avoid the river of fire, from which may we all be snatched up and reach the kingdom of heaven, by the grace and love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom and with whom be glory to the Father with the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith” Here St. Chrysostom expresses only the thought contained in the book of the prophet. Ezekiel (Ezek.3:12) without quoting his words literally. That is, a kind, merciful heart. Of course, the saying: “I want mercy, not sacrifice.” You might be interested in: