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

NPNF (V1-14)St. Chrysostom210space of life for serving Him, and dost thou while thou spendest it vainly, and at random, and onnothing useful, still ask, “What loss is there?” If thou hast spent a little money to no purpose, thoucallest it a loss: when thou spendest whole days of thine upon the devil’s pageants, thinkest thouthat thou art doing nothing wrong? Thou oughtest to spend all thy life in supplications 1576 andprayers, whereas thou wastest thy life and substance 1577 heedlessly, and to thine own hurt, on shouts,and uproar, and shameful words, and fighting, and unseasonable pleasure, and actions performedby trickery, and after all this thou askest, “What is the loss?” not knowing thou shouldest be lavishof anything rather than time. 1578 Gold, if thou shalt have spent, thou mayest get again; but if thoulose time, thou shalt hardly recover that. Little is dealt out to us in this present life; if therefore weemploy it not as we ought, what shall we say when we depart “there”? For tell me, if thou hadstcommanded one of thy sons to learn some art, and then he had continually stayed at home, or evenpassed his time somewhere else, would not the teacher reject him? Would he not say to thee, “Thouhast made an agreement with me, and appointed a time; if now thy son will not spend this timewith me but in other places, how shall I produce him to thee as a scholar?” 1579 Thus also we mustspeak. For God will say also to us, “I gave you time to learn this art of piety, wherefore have yefoolishly and uselessly wasted that time? Why did ye neither go constantly to the teacher, nor giveheed to his words?” For to show that piety is an art, hear what the Prophet saith, “Come, ye children,hearken unto me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.” ( Ps. xxxiv. 11 .) And again, “Blessed isthe man whom Thou instructest, Lord, and teachest him out of Thy Law.” ( Ps. xciv. 12 .) Whentherefore thou hast spent this time in vain, what excuse wilt thou have? “And why,” saith someone, “did He deal out to us but little time?” O senselessness and ingratitude! That for which thouwert most bounden to give thanks to Him, for that He hath cut short thy labors and abridged thytoils, and made the rest long and everlasting, for this dost thou find fault, and art discontented?But I know not how we have brought our discourse to this point, and have made it so long; wemust therefore shorten it now. For this too is a part of our wretchedness, that here if the discoursebe long, we all become careless, while there 1580 they begin at noon, and retire by torch and lamplight. However, that we be not always chiding, we now entreat and beseech you, grant this favorto us and 1581 to yourselves; and getting free from all other matters, to these let us rivet ourselves.So shall we gain from you joy and gladness, and honor on your account, and a recompense forthese labors; while ye will reap all the reward, because having been aforetime so madly riveted tothe stage, ye tore yourselves away, through fear of God, and by our exhortations, from that malady,and brake your bonds, and hastened unto God. Nor is it “there” alone that ye shall receive yourreward, but “here” also ye shall enjoy pure pleasure. Such a thing is virtue; besides giving us crownsin heaven, even here it maketh life pleasant to us. Let us then be persuaded by what has been said,that we may obtain the blessings both here and hereafter, through the grace and lovingkindness ofour Lord Jesus Christ, by whom and with whom, to the Father and the Holy Ghost be glory, nowand ever and world without end. Amen.1576al. “ alms-deeds. ”1577βίον1578al. “ that thou wilt rather have required of thee the husbandry of time than any other thing. ”1579al. “ an artist. ”1580i.e. in the theater.1581al. “ or rather, both to us and. ”318