November: Day 16: Holy Apostle and Evangelist Matthew

 

November: Day 16:
Holy Apostle and Evangelist Matthew
 
(Jesus Christ Draws Everyone to Himself)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. The Holy Evangelist Matthew, whose memory is celebrated today, was first a publican, i.e. a tax collector, and was converted by Jesus Christ Himself. Walking along the shore of Lake Gennesaret, the Lord saw him sitting at the tax collection point and said to him: "Follow Me." Matthew joyfully followed the Lord and, having gathered other publicans, arranged a feast for the Lord in his house. When the proud Pharisees began to say to the disciples: "Why does Jesus Christ eat and drink with publicans and sinners?" The Lord answered: "It is not the healthy who need a physician, but the sick. I have come to call not the righteous, but sinners to repentance." Matthew was among the 12 disciples of the Lord. Eight years after the ascension of the Lord, he wrote the Gospel for the Jews who had converted to Christ. Wanting to prove that Jesus Christ is the One about whom the prophets predicted, the Holy Evangelist Matthew, in his Gospel, constantly cites Old Testament prophecies and shows how they were fulfilled in Jesus Christ. According to tradition, Saint Matthew's subsequent life is known to have been spent preaching in Media, Persia, Parthia and India.

II. Jesus Christ, with a few words spoken to the publican Matthew: "Follow Me," drew him to Himself and made him His closest disciple. And we will not be wrong if we say that Jesus Christ draws everyone to Himself, if only those who are drawn do not resist the voice calling them. He Himself said: "If I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all to Myself" (John 12:32).

a) The promise of Jesus Christ to draw everyone to Himself is certain, and began to be fulfilled immediately from the time He was lifted up on the Cross. Even from the crowd of His tormentors, who did not cease to torment Him even on the Cross itself, one separated himself, apparently inaccessible to any saving actions - one of the thieves crucified with Him. The Lord enlightened his mind, touched his heart, he saw his crimes, recognized himself as worthy of punishment, believed in the Lord, and said to Him: "Remember me, Lord, when You come into Your kingdom" (Luke 23:42).

When the Lord gave up the ghost, when the curtain of the temple was torn in two and the earth shook, another, a pagan, a centurion, who was on guard at the Cross, was called and said of the Lord: “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:54). Immediately after the centurion, Joseph of Arimathea and Nikodemos were called, who until then had been only secret disciples of the Lord.

When the Lord ascended into heaven, the number of those drawn to Him was already more than a hundred.

And when the All-Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples of the Lord, and they began to preach to everyone repentance and faith in the crucified Lord, then the people began to be drawn to Him by the thousands.

Look at the first three Christian centuries! What do we see? A countless multitude of men and women, young men and maidens, old people and children, boldly and with full hope for a blessed life after death go to bonds, to prisons, to all the tortures and death. They all go to remain faithful to Christ, who died for them on the Cross, in whom they believe, in whom they hope, and whom they love with all their hearts.

Look to the times to come! What do we see?

We see many like the prodigal son. All the gifts with which the Lord God granted them, they used for evil and fell into extreme misery. But the Lord, crucified and suffering for the sins of the world, voluntarily touched their hearts with His grace on the Cross: they heard His word and turned to Him.

We see many sinners like the sinner mentioned in the Gospel (Luke 7:37). They were very wicked, served only the world or the flesh and were completely perishing in soul and body. But the Crucified One touched them with His grace: they heard His voice, wept over their error and turned to Him.

We see many like Zacchaeus. They were without God. Their divinity was self-interest. But Jesus Christ touched their hearts with His grace: they turned to Him, changed the evil direction of their hearts, returned what belonged to someone else, compensated for the harm done, and their sins are forgiven: they are Christ's!

We see many like the Apostle Paul before his conversion. They were proud of their wisdom and virtue, and laughed at Christ's teaching. But the Lord touched their hearts with His grace, and they turned to Him and rejoiced greatly that they had found their Lord and God in Him.

So we see that the Lord crucified on the Cross actually drew to Himself all who did not resist His attraction.

b) Now let everyone turn to themselves and see: has the Lord drawn me to Himself? Am I Christ's?

1) The Holy Apostle said: “Those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts” (Gal. 5:24). Therefore, if the Lord has drawn me, if I am Christ’s: then I certainly forsake sin, crucify the flesh, or do not allow the evil inclinations living in me to come to pass, destroy sinful habits, and atone for my sins with true repentance. But do I act in this way? Do I cease my inclinations that are contrary to the law of God? Do I destroy sinful habits? Do I atone for my sins with true repentance? No! If I acted in this way, then I would be doing violence to myself, suppressing impure desires at their very beginning, suppressing in myself improper anger, revenge, envy, jealousy, self-will, self-love, etc. Thus, I am not yet drawn to my Savior; I am still attached to the flesh, to the world, to sin. I am not yet Christ's!

2) The Holy Apostle said: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20).

Therefore, if the Lord has drawn me to Himself, then I must live by faith, I must judge things earthly and heavenly in accordance with what my faith says about them. But what do I do? I live and judge as I wish, or as the general tone of the world demands, or as the opinions of people change like a wave. Today denying what tomorrow will accept; today praising, tomorrow blaming for the same thing; today shouting: "Hosanna to the Son of David," tomorrow crying out against Him: "Crucify Him, crucify Him!" I seek only the earthly, corruptible. Earthly gain, short-term pleasure, praise and favor of the world, fashionable clothes, spectacles, etc. occupy my head and my heart much more than eternal life, eternal blessedness. If I lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me, then faith in the Crucified One would show me the inexpressible love with which He loved me from eternity and for which He accepted universal shame and death for me. This faith would inspire me to gratitude and mutual love! But do I have such gratitude to the Lord, such love for Him? No! If there were, then I would constantly think about the crucified Lord, I would greatly love to hear when they speak of Him and His teaching, I would feel pleasure from serving and praying to Him, I would zealously go to God's church for His services. But I rarely think about the Lord crucified for me, I am inattentive to His teaching, absent-minded during the divine service. Woe is me! I do not belong to Christ, but belong to the world and to myself!

c) Why do I not belong to the Lord? Does He not draw me? On the contrary, He has called me to Himself very often. He drew me in the first days of my life, when I was taught Holy Baptism and Chrismation. He drew me in my youth, when I was instructed in His teaching and His love. He drew me with the Holy Mysteries of Repentance and Communion. He has called me to Himself many times through inner enlightenment and awakening. He has drawn me through the joys and sorrows of life, through illnesses and various tribulations, through the suggestions of my parents, teachers and friends, through the reproaches and slander of my enemies. He has called me through divine services, sermons, and edifying books. But I have not allowed Him to draw me to Himself: I am not His, I belong to the world, to myself and to sin!

Therefore I can very easily perish forever; for whoever is not attached to Jesus Christ, as He Himself says, “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned” (John 15:6). But, my God, I do not want to perish, I want to be saved.

III. What should I do? If I really want to be saved, then it is very clear to me what I must do. Until now I have resisted the attraction of the crucified Lord, from now on I must not do so. I must turn all my attention to the immeasurable love of the crucified Lord, to everything that He did for me, and to His teaching. And after this, everything that is contrary to Him in me, I must strive in every way to destroy through true repentance, renounce all the pleasures of the world that are destructive to my soul, and in general crucify my flesh with its lusts. From this time on, I must love with all my heart the One who loved me and gave Himself up for me, belong completely to Him and remain faithful to Him throughout my life and at death.

Source: A Complete Annual Cycle of Short Teachings, Composed for Each Day of the Year. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.