Wednesday, March 21 (O.S., March 8), 2018: Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Lent; St. Theophylactus the Bishop of Nicomedia († 842-845); New Hieromartyr Priest John († 1923); New Martyr Vladimir (1942); Venerable Dometius († 363); Hieromartyr Priest Theodoritus of Antioch (4th C); Apostle Hermas of the Seventy (1st C); Venerable Lazarus († 1391) and Athanasius (14th C) of Murom; St. Felix of Burgundy, Bishop of Dunwich and Enlightener of East Anglia.
Sixth Hour: Isaiah 41:4-14
Vespers: Genesis 17:1-9
Vespers: Proverbs 15:20-16:9
Creation testifies to the goodness of God, His mercy and fidelity.This is why idolatry, economic sins and sexual immorality are so roundly condemned by the prophets. These obscure and even undermine the testimony of God’s holiness of God and concern for His people.
The stability of creation, the ability of human beings to create wealth and engage in trade and the fidelity of husband and wife, all join together to affirm what God says to Israel
“You are my servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off”; fear not, for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.
While they are all of different moral weight, floods, earthquakes, double-dealing in the marketplace, fornication, and adultery, all shake our confidence in God’s offer of friendship. They do this by violating our sense of trustworthiness of creation, of each other and, ultimately, of God Himself.
Our trust in God is important because God Himself is the guarantor of the covenant with Israel and the promise of salvation in Christ. “I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’”
Abraham (as he’s now known), is the exemplar of this trust in God. At “ninety-nine years old” he is still waiting for the son through whom God will make of him a great nation and give him “all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession.” This doesn’t mean he doesn’t struggle to be faithful. Rather it means he is never overwhelmed by his doubts.
The majesty and stability of creation, economic fair dealing, and chastity all testify to God’s faithfulness. Not only that. They also serve to foster a similar fidelity in us.
Without this fidelity to God, as Solomon makes clear, my life falls apart.
The LORD tears down the house of the proud, but maintains the widow’s boundaries. The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD, the words of the pure are pleasing to him. He who is greedy for unjust gain makes trouble for his household, but he who hates bribes will live.
As Abraham’s example makes clear, in a fallen world, trust in the promises of God will always be a struggle. There is no shortage of occasions to doubt God. Creation is marred by pollution. Greed afflicts our economic relationships. Marriages fail. To those who look, there is ample evidence to justify mistrust in God.
Solomon is aware of this. His counsel in response is not to close our eyes and pretend that the world isn’t fallen. Instead, he counsels intellectual humility. He reminds us that “The plans of the mind belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.”
Hearing that answer requires that, like Abram, I quiet myself. Good though they may be, to hear God I have to lay aside my plans and projects and instead “commit” or more likely, re-commit my “work to the Lord.”
The evidence of God’s fidelity is there to be seen. As Solomon reminds us the “LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.” Understanding how “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28), however, requires effort on my part. God doesn’t impose faith on me. Rather, He invites me to believe.
In Christ,
+Fr Gregory