Orthodox Voices

DYNAMIS, Enduring to the End, August 25, 2011, Thursday, 11th Week APe

noreply@blogger.com (Metropolitan SYMEON) — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 14:23:00 +0000

?Saint Matthew 24:13-28 NKJ Gospel for Thursday of the Eleventh Week
After Pentecost
Jesus said to the disciples,
13 "But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a
witness to all the
nations, and then the end will come.
15 Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by
Daniel the prophet,
standing in the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand),
16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
17 Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of
his house.
18 And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes.
19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies
in those days!
20 And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath.
21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since
the beginning of the world
until this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but
for the elect's sake those
days will be shortened.
23 Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!'
do not believe it.
24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs
and wonders to deceive, if
possible, even the elect.
25 See, I have told you beforehand.
26 Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go
out; or 'Look, He is in the
inner rooms!' do not believe it.
27 For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so
also will the coming of the
Son of Man be.
28 For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together."
__________________________________________________________
Saint Matthew 24:13-28 (8/25-9/7)
Thursday of the Eleventh Week after Pentecost

Enduring to the End: Saint Matthew 24:13-28, especially vs. 25: "See, I
have told you beforehand." Since the Lord Jesus Christ ascended,
tribulations have assailed the Church in this world. One of the most
horrendous seasons of anguish occurred in AD 70, during the Jewish
revolt against the Roman Empire. In the years prior to the revolt,
anger in society was building. Christians were arrested and threatened
by the Sanhedrin (Acts 4:3; 5:18). Finally, about AD 36, the Archdeacon
Stephen was judicially stoned (Acts 6:8; 7:59), and the assaults aimed
against the faithful caused many of them to flee the city (Acts 8:1).
In AD 45, all of Jerusalem endured a major famine (Acts 11:28). Again
murders and arrests were aimed at the Christians as scapegoats (Acts
12:2, 4). Records, including Acts (13-28), show that after that date,
the Twelve mostly left Jerusalem, evangelizing and planting churches in
other places. James, the brother of the Lord, remained as head of the
Jerusalem Christians until his murder in AD 62.

But persecution of the Church spread throughout the Empire. In AD 65,
in the city of Rome, at the instigation of Emperor Nero both Peter and
Paul were executed with many others of the faithful - a cover-up for
Nero's arsonist insanity. A year later, the Palestinian Jews revolted.

Ever gracious, our Lord and Savior sought to prepare the Church for the
many assaults and times of affliction that He knew were coming. His
words have aided countless Christians in tribulation. The Lord Jesus'
abiding purpose is encouraging the faithful to endure "...to the end..."
(Mt. 24:13). While His remarks in this portion of Saint Matthew were
aimed to succor the early Church in Jerusalem before and during the
Jewish revolt, four principles underlying His message have aided
Christians in every generation who face and endure affliction.

First, Christ our God tells disciples under attack, "...when you see the
'abomination of desolation'...standing in the holy place...flee to the
mountains" (vss. 15,16). The Evangelist Matthew adds a brief aside:
"whoever reads, let him understand" (vs. 15). He is referring to the
defilement of the Jewish Temple by the pagan general Titus in AD 70.
The Roman troops, in close combat, remorselessly subdued the defenders
of the Temple. Then Titus himself strode into the Most Holy Place -
forbidden to Gentiles. It shocked the pious sensibilities of the Jews.
What principle may we draw from our Lord's warning? Faithful Christians
should not foolishly hesitate to flee and take prudent precautions when
the forces of evil are aroused to desecrate.

Second, there is no special virtue or divine blessing for making useless
gestures against concerted, overwhelming evil storms. Countless records
of the martyrs show that often they withdrew during times of direct
repression, as in the case of the Hieromartyr Polycarp. Still, the
blessed Bishop demonstrated that when one is apprehended and pressed to
deny the Faith, there is no question - the faithful are to accept even
death as he did. Discipleship can be costly.

Third, while the Lord Jesus assures the faithful that we do well to
withdraw when appropriate (vss. 16-22), we always should be ready to
stand up for God's Truth when faced with inescapable affliction (vs. 13)
or immoral compromise (vss. 19,20). Under such conditions, Christ's
disciples' first response should be to redouble prayers before Heaven's
throne (vs. 20).

The Lord Jesus' other remarks in this passage center around a fourth
principle: be ever and always especially alert against deception during
tribulation. Christians often foolishly say, "This is 'The Tribulation'
attendant upon Christ's return." But what does our Lord say? "Do not
believe it" (vss. 23,26)! And how does He guide us away from such
delusion? He says plainly: do not second-guess His return; it will be
obvious to all when it happens (vss. 27,28).

O Lord, grant us the light of Thy truth in affliction as may be most
expedient for us.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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