Monday, May 3, 2004
Christ is Risen!
The Martyrs Timothy and Maura of Egypt
Kellia: Deuteronomy 3:1-11 Apostle: Acts 10:1-16 Gospel: St. John 6:56-69
Deuteronomy 3:1-11, especially vs. 2 RSV: "But the Lord said to me, 'Do not fear him; for I have
given him and all his people and his land into your hand; and you shall do to him as you did to Sihon the king of the
Amorites.'" For the past six days, we have been examining Moses' account of the struggles of the ancient People of God to
possess the Promised Land, discerning through his teachings some of what it means to possess or attain the Kingdom of
God as Christians. Beginning with the departure of ancient Israel from Kadesh-barnea, where their disobedience threw a
chill over the prospect of occupying the land, and on to the People's final battle along the northern reaches of the trans-Jordan, obedience was the mark of ancient Israel's initial success, just as disobedience had been the cause of their earlier
failures. The two early chapters of Deuteronomy (Deut. 2,3) describe Israel's departure from Kadesh-barnea and their
conquest of Og "the king of Bashan and all his people" (Deut. 3:3). In that period of time, ten Divine commands were
given to them through the Prophet Moses. These directives of God formed them into a nomadic people (Deut. 2:1), took
them out of the desert region of the Sinai peninsula, started them northward toward the Promised Land (Deut. 2:3), kept
them from contending with the sons of Esau, Moab, and Ammon (Deut. 2:5,9,19), and brought them victory against the two
Amorite kingdoms of Sihon and Og (Deut. 2:24,31; 3:2).
Obedience assured Israel's migration and possession of the land. For instance, God commanded them "do not contend with
[the sons of Esau]" (Deut. 2:5), and "we went on, away from our brethren the sons of Esau" (Deut. 2:8). They obeyed.
Still, these first movements were only preparation for their later struggles. They moved along a path chosen by the will of
God and marked out for them by His command. Thus, they defeated those whom God designated to be "utterly destroyed"
(Deut. 2:34; 3:6). Obeying became possessing.
Abba Dorotheos observes that when the devil finds one bit of self-will or self-righteousness, "he will cast him down
through that." This surely was exactly what happened to the generation of Israel's warriors who came out of Egypt and
received the Law from God at Mount Sinai. Their burial mounds in the wastelands of the Sinai peninsula are a permanent
reminder of the need to defeat the enemy of self-assertion.
Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos reminds each of us similarly that we are "told to obey the will of God uncritically as it is
expressed in Scripture and in the works of the Fathers of the Church. Our intelligence [nous] will certainly rebel and
protest, but it is necessary to subject it to the will of God. And since it is possible not to know God's will in so many
details of our daily life, we are required to obey a spiritual father who will guide us on our spiritual journey." We note that
the commands of God to ancient Israel were given through His Holy Prophet Moses.
The theme of obedience, as a precursor for possession, echoes in the teachings of the Lord, Who says plainly, "he who does
not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me" (Mt. 10:38). The Apostles teach the same: "he who looks into
the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in
what he does" (Jas. 1:25). Note how well the words of St. John of the Ladder reflect Israel's journey: "Obedience is
unquestioning movement, voluntary death, a life free of curiosity, carefree danger, unprepared defense before God,
fearlessness of death, a safe voyage...." Beloved, let us possess through obedience, guided by the wisdom of God in His
Holy Church.
Teach us Thy righteousness, Thy commandments and Thy statutes, O God. Enlighten the eyes of our understanding, lest at
any time we sleep unto death in sins.
