Homilies on the Gospel of St. John and the Epistle to the Hebrews

NPNF (V1-14)St. Chrysostomsmall, appear great. Only be not thou slothful; though thou cast in but two farthings, He refusesthem not, but receives them as great riches. For since He is without wants, and receives theseofferings, not because He needs them, it is reasonable that all distinction should be not in the quantityof the gifts, but the intention 539 of the giver. Only show that thou lovest Him who is come, that forHis sake thou art giving all diligence, that thou rejoicest at His coming. See how He is disposedtoward thee. He came for thee, He laid down His life for thee, and after all this He doth not refuseeven to entreat thee. “We are ambassadors,” saith Paul, “for Christ, as though God did beseech youby us.” ( 2 Cor. v. 20 .) “And who is so mad,” saith some one, “as not to love his own Master?”I say so too, and I know that not one of us would deny this in words or intention; but one who isbeloved desires love to be shown, not by words only, but by deeds also. For to say that we love,and not to act like lovers, is ridiculous, not only before God, but even in the sight of men. Sincethen to confess Him in word only, while in deeds we oppose Him, is not only unprofitable, but alsohurtful to us; let us, I entreat you, also make confession by our works; that we also may obtain aconfession from Him in that day, when before His Father He shall confess those who are worthyin Christ Jesus our Lord, by whom and with whom, to the Father and the Holy Ghost be glory, nowand ever, and world without end. Amen.Homily XXI.John i. 49, 50“Nathanael answered and saith unto Him, Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God, Thou art the King ofIsrael. Jesus answered, and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under thefig-tree, believest thou? Thou shalt see greater things than these.”[1.] Beloved , we need much care, much watchfulness, to be able to look into the depth of theDivine Scriptures. For it is not possible to discover their meaning in a careless way, or while weare asleep, but there needs close search, and there needs earnest prayer, that we may be enabled tosee some little way into the secrets of the divine oracles. To-day, for instance, here is no triflingquestion proposed to us, but one which requires much zeal and enquiry. For when Nathanael said,“Thou art the Son of God,” Christ replies, “Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig-tree,believest thou? Thou shalt see greater things than these.”Now what is the question arising from this passage? It is this. 540 Peter, when after so manymiracles and such high doctrine he confessed that, “Thou art the Son of God” ( Matt. xvi. 16 ), iscalled “blessed,” as having received the revelation from the Father; while Nathanael, though hesaid the very same thing before seeing or hearing either miracles or doctrine, had no such word539προαιρέσει .540Morel. and ms. in Bodleian read the passage thus: πολλοὶ τῶν ἀναγινωσκόντων τὸ ῥητὸν τοῦτο διαποροῦντες φάσι· τίδήποτε Πέτρος κ.τ.λ .112