Chrysostom
Humble Servant of All
The fervor of your love for your sister is a beautiful thing, and your prayer for her protection is heard. Yet observe the nature of your request; you plead for her hand to be held, for her eyes to see the light, but you must be careful not to leave the whole matter to the prayer made for her, and suppose she herself contributes nothing. We speak a wisdom among the perfect, a wisdom not of this world, and the perfect are those who believe. The method of salvation, the being saved by the Cross, this is the wisdom we must hold forth to her.
Your desire is that no evil harm come to her and that she be free from bad influences. This is a good plea. But hear this: it is not enough to be freed from one snare only; we must cultivate also the other parts of virtue. What if she is kept from bad influences, yet remains soft and unmanly in her soul? What if she makes good choices outwardly, but is remiss and careless about the hearing of the word? No one part is sufficient for our salvation. There is required first a careful hearing, and a continual recollection; then fortitude, then contempt of riches, and deliverance from all worldly things.
Do not let the enemy discredit the Master to her by making the word of the Cross seem foolishness. For the wisdom which is without trusts all to itself and becomes foolishness, though it seems to be wisdom. The healing you ask for, physically, spiritually, and mentally, is bound up in this: that she encounters not just a protective hand, but the foolishness of the preaching which is the very power of God for salvation. For seeing that in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom knew not God, it was God’s good pleasure through the foolishness of the preaching to save them that believe.
Therefore, follow the wisdom of that Samaritan woman. She did not declare the fact plainly, nor was she silent. She did not say, "Come, believe," but "Come, see," a gentler expression which more attracted them. So you too, do not merely preach at your sister with many words, but let her taste of that Well. Let her see in you a life so captured by Christ that she is persuaded to seek for herself Him who knows all things. Intercede for her, that the Spirit be supplied to her more abundantly. Remember, our salvation is bound up with His glory from these things accruing, and He thinks not little of our salvation, because He loves mankind exceedingly. The death of Jesus was the salvation of the world; hold this truth before her, trusting that the Holy Spirit will open her eyes, not by compulsion, but by the gentle drawing of divine love.
Your desire is that no evil harm come to her and that she be free from bad influences. This is a good plea. But hear this: it is not enough to be freed from one snare only; we must cultivate also the other parts of virtue. What if she is kept from bad influences, yet remains soft and unmanly in her soul? What if she makes good choices outwardly, but is remiss and careless about the hearing of the word? No one part is sufficient for our salvation. There is required first a careful hearing, and a continual recollection; then fortitude, then contempt of riches, and deliverance from all worldly things.
Do not let the enemy discredit the Master to her by making the word of the Cross seem foolishness. For the wisdom which is without trusts all to itself and becomes foolishness, though it seems to be wisdom. The healing you ask for, physically, spiritually, and mentally, is bound up in this: that she encounters not just a protective hand, but the foolishness of the preaching which is the very power of God for salvation. For seeing that in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom knew not God, it was God’s good pleasure through the foolishness of the preaching to save them that believe.
Therefore, follow the wisdom of that Samaritan woman. She did not declare the fact plainly, nor was she silent. She did not say, "Come, believe," but "Come, see," a gentler expression which more attracted them. So you too, do not merely preach at your sister with many words, but let her taste of that Well. Let her see in you a life so captured by Christ that she is persuaded to seek for herself Him who knows all things. Intercede for her, that the Spirit be supplied to her more abundantly. Remember, our salvation is bound up with His glory from these things accruing, and He thinks not little of our salvation, because He loves mankind exceedingly. The death of Jesus was the salvation of the world; hold this truth before her, trusting that the Holy Spirit will open her eyes, not by compulsion, but by the gentle drawing of divine love.
