As we are in Easter week here is a sermon from John Chrysostom (the golden mouthed) Read it and you will see why he was called John the Golden Mouthed. These are eloquent truths couched in honest and inspiring invitation. This is the invitation we bring to those to whom we witness and we should never forget the power in it.
Are
there any who are devout lovers of God?
Let them enjoy this
beautiful bright festival!
Are there any who are grateful
servants?
Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their
Lord!
Are there any weary with fasting?
Let them now
receive their wages!
If any have toiled from the first
hour,
let them receive their due reward;
If any have come
after the third hour,
let him with gratitude join in the
Feast!
And he that arrived after the sixth hour,
let him
not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss.
And if any delayed
until the ninth hour,
let him not hesitate; but let him come
too.
And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour,
let him
not be afraid by reason of his delay.
For the Lord is gracious
and receives the last even as the first.
He gives rest to him
that comes at the eleventh hour,
as well as to him that toiled
from the first.
To this one He gives, and upon another He
bestows.
He accepts the works as He greets the endeavor.
The
deed He honors and the intention He commends.
Let us all enter
into the joy of the Lord!
First and last alike receive
your reward;
rich and poor, rejoice together!
Sober and
slothful, celebrate the day!
You that have kept the fast, and
you that have not,
rejoice today for the Table is richly
laden!
Feast royally on it, the calf is a fatted one.
Let
no one go away hungry. Partake, all, of the cup of faith.
Enjoy
all the riches of His goodness!
Let no one grieve at his
poverty,
for the universal kingdom has been revealed.
Let
no one mourn that he has fallen again and again;
for forgiveness
has risen from the grave.
Let no one fear death, for the
Death of our Savior has set us free.
He has destroyed it by
enduring it.
He destroyed Hell when He descended into it.
He
put it into an uproar even as it tasted of His flesh.
Isaiah
foretold this when he said,
"You, O Hell, have been
troubled by encountering Him below."
Hell was in an uproar
because it was done away with.
It was in an uproar because it is
mocked.
It was in an uproar, for it is destroyed.
It is in
an uproar, for it is annihilated.
It is in an uproar, for it is
now made captive.
Hell took a body, and discovered God.
It
took earth, and encountered Heaven.
It took what it saw, and was
overcome by what it did not see.
O death, where is thy
sting?
O Hell, where is thy victory?
Christ is Risen,
and you, o death, are annihilated!
Christ is Risen, and the evil
ones are cast down!
Christ is Risen, and the angels
rejoice!
Christ is Risen, and life is liberated!
Christ
is Risen, and the tomb is emptied of its dead;
for Christ having
risen from the dead,
is become the first-fruits of those who
have fallen asleep.
To Him be Glory and Power forever and
ever. Amen!
The Easter sermon of John Chrysostom
(circa 400 AD)
Comments