I know people who, before the recession of these past several years, ‘had it all,’ in the eyes of the world in terms of creature comforts and financial security—only to see it all slip through their fingers when the economy imploded. Many of these same people also came to realize how dependent they were, not on Christ, but on their material resources. And so, they found themselves destitute—not only was their false sense of security taken from them but since this was actually the most important part of their lives, of their identity, what they were living for, they lost their sense of purpose and were struck with the worst ravages of depression.
Christ says of the man that thinks he is set: “Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided? So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
It’s very challenging to die to this world and live for Christ. It demands of us a conscience spiritual effort, struggle, prioritizing the things of God, of bringing Christ into our daily lives, moment by moment, analyzing what we take in from the culture around us, taking thoughts ‘captive’ to obey Christ and not the dictates of the culture: If we’re filling the moments of our lives with entertainment and distraction, we’re going to suffer at the hands of this world, of its temporal but powerful hold on us, we’re going to find ourselves in a downward spiral, maybe even in depression. For this reason, Christ in His love for us and desire to save us says, “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness,” and we are reminded over and over, that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matt. 6:21).
For this reason also, St. John Climacus says that “the thought of death is the most necessary of all works…he who has died to all things remembers death.” St. John isn’t being morbid here, but he’s emphasizing a central truth of the Gospel and the Orthodox Faith: we who desire salvation remember death because by dying to self and living to God, with eternity before our eyes, we become fellow victors with Christ over death.
So likewise, St. Paul says: it is Christ who has raised us up from death together with Him by virtue of our death to self and new life in Him. There’s an irony at work here: those who live for themselves and apart from Christ and the koinonia (communion) of His Body, the Church, though they think they live, are actually already dying or spiritually dead. Whereas those who die to self, die to this world’s grip on them, continuously struggle with dying to the passions that separate them from life in God, they abide in the life of Christ. This is what St. Paul means when he says in today’s Epistle, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…” Such a dying to self is a cross, is a sort of death to the world.
Let’s be honest: it’s easy to prefer the temporal offerings and attachments of this world, to turn inward, to focus only on ourselves, to give in to the passions! But, this temporal and selfish focus turns to pure poison for our eternal souls. Living in the temporal realm without care for our souls, our healing, our salvation, life without God, without accountability, without conviction, dependant on the creature comforts of the world and its material provision, feels like freedom at first, but like a child who in an unfettered manner is released into a candy store and eats to many sweets, it easily turns toxic to our souls.
This is one of the lessons Jesus is teaching us in today’s Gospel: The rich man lays up his treasure only for himself and believes that this wealth has somehow bought him the security he so confidently, but mistakenly, proclaims that he has.
In the end, what do we have if we don’t have Christ? What has our self-focus, what has the world’s philosophy and materialism, or our having Christ on our terms without submission and obedience, provided for us, for our souls? We easily fall into the same trap as the man in today’s parable. Whatever our means, if we put our trust in our own resources or prefer our own ideas of the life in Christ, then we’re headed down the same road to the same words of Christ: “Fool, this night your soul will be demanded of you.”
Instead of autonomy, individualism, self will, Christ offers us koinonia (communion) in His Body—an opportunity to love and be loved. He offers to graft us into His one body by virtue of our willingness to be “crucified with Christ”, so that we can become more of what He is, which is also more of what you and I are called and created to be. As we submit to His life, His will, what He’s revealed to us in the Church as the way of healing and salvation, tested and proven by 2,000 years of sinners made Saints, we also grow in our communion with Him and with all those who are likewise in Christ, striving to submit themselves to live with Him.
In this way, Christ builds up the ekklesia, the community of the Church. We grow as the family of God, helping to supply the lack in another with the spiritual effervescence of the gifts that God has given us. This is how the Holy Spirit works in us and through us to build up the Body as a whole. Not only do we grow our mission, our church in this way, but we change our neighborhoods, our city, our culture to reflect more of Christ and His Kingdom.
But this way demands that we see the temporal life we’re now living for what it is—a living death if it’s without Christ at its center. Our culture’s philosophy is that of the rich man in today’s Gospel: “take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” The lesson of the rich man teaches us that we can never think that we’ve already ‘arrived’. Our growth and healing is unending; it progresses only when we’re willing to put Christ and His Church first above all other earthly priorities. If we’re to inherit the Kingdom of God, we can put no other gods before Him.
Conversely, when we seek first His Kingdom, dying to self, we’re given a purpose, an identity, beyond this world and all its temporal pastimes and ‘glories,’ all of which can be ripped out from under us at a moment’s notice. This is the alternative to entrusting ourselves and our loved ones to God and making sure that we are doing our utmost to avail ourselves of the tools of salvation that Christ God offers us. This means we pray and work for discipline: reading the Psalms, the Scriptures, the lives of the Saints, coming to worship. We pray in order to pray, we get ourselves to church—we prepare for Sunday to be a holy day. We prioritize our social calendars around church and not church around our social calendars. Otherwise, we won’t see the growth you and I need to be transformed more and more into the likeness of Christ and be liberated from conformity to this world, which is passing away.
As we learn to put our trust more in God for our spiritual and physical needs, our dependence on this transitory world, and its temporal hold on us, weakens and our reliance on God, the only Lover of mankind, increases. God fills us to overflowing with His joy and love to build in us treasure in heaven, giving us true and lasting fulfillment through contentment in Him, peace, and participation in His eternal Kingdom, which begins now.
For this reason, St. Paul says to us today, the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. He loves each of us too and has given Himself for us. This holy season that has now begun is an important time to begin considering now what Christ God through His holy Incarnation has done for each of us, but also the glory to which He calls each of us as heirs of His Kingdom. Blessed Fast to all!
Fr. Robert Miclean
Holy Archangels Orthodox Mission
November 17, 2013
Epistle: Gal. 2:16-20
Gospel: Luke 12:16-21
