Thursday, December 23, 2004 Nativity Fast
The Venerable Nahum of Ochrid
Kellia: Numbers 20:22-29 Epistle: Hebrews 10:35-11:7 Gospel: St. Mark 9:10-16
Numbers 20:22-29, especially vs. 24: "Aaron shall be gathered to his people; for
he shall not enter the land which I have given to the people of Israel, because you rebelled against My command at the
waters of Meribah." When the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph, the betrothed of the Virgin Theotokos, he directed
Joseph to take to him Mary his wife, and he explained to Joseph that she would bear an extraordinary son Whom Joseph
was to name Jesus, "for He will save His people from their sins" (Mt. 1:21). By an extraordinary conception "of the Holy
Spirit," this promised child was born (Mt. 1:20) and grew into the extraordinary man, Jesus of Nazareth. This same Jesus
was "attested by God...by miracles, wonders and signs which God did through Him," Whom God also "raised up...being
exalted to the right hand of God" and made "both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:22, 32-33, 36).
Beloved, through this unique Lord and Christ, God has provided something extraordinary for us (Heb. 11:40): "a kingdom
which cannot be shaken...[and] grace by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear" (Heb. 12:28).
Let us understand further: this extraordinary man, Jesus Christ, because He also is God as well as a man, "the same
yesterday, today and forever" (Heb. 13:8), has enabled a fallible man like Aaron to receive this same "kingdom which
cannot be shaken" (Heb. 12:28), even though Aaron lived centuries before Jesus Christ, even though he "rebelled against
[God's] command at the waters of Meribah" (Nu. 20:24), and even though in his lifetime Aaron was denied entrance into
the Holy Land.
The miracle of the Nativity we are about to celebrate soars not only above those of us who live in this century, but above all
men through all of history with extraordinary power and meaning, exactly because of Him Who was born. Recall the
Apostolic message concerning this extraordinary child and man Whom we call our Savior and Lord. They declare that
"God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them" (2 Cor. 5:19). Hence, the
denial to enter the land which God imposed on Aaron, as it turns out, was nothing in comparison with that which Aaron
now receives along with us. Yet Aaron's failure still is a warning to us not to approach Christmas frivolously, looking only
for brightly wrapped joy under our tree, for we, like Aaron, also shall have to appear before "the dread Judgment Seat" of
this same Christ and answer for our rebellion against His commands.
Let us humbly admit how subtly disobedience can overtake us! When the wandering People of God came to Kadesh in the
wilderness of Zin "there was no water there" and "they assembled themselves against Moses and against Aaron" (Nu.
20:2). Without panic, Moses and Aaron "fell on their faces. And the glory of the Lord appeared to them" (Nu. 20:6). The
Lord told them to take Aaron's rod, "assemble the congregation...and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water; so
you shall bring water out of the rock for them" (Nu. 20:8). And the two brothers gathered the assembly together and Moses
said to the People, "Hear now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?" (Nu. 20:10). And Moses
"lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his rod twice; and water came forth abundantly" (Nu. 20.11).
What was wrong in this? Two things: Moses spoke to the People and not to the rock, and he struck the rock instead of
telling it to "yield its water," as commanded. He did not fully trust God. Were these small things? God did not think so,
for He told Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not believe in Me...therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the
land" (Nu. 20:12). What shall we render to Thee, O Christ, for that Thou didst appear on earth as a man for our sake?
Wherefore, O God before the ages, have mercy upon us.