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

NPNF (V1-14)St. Chrysostom324“Ye have no difficulty, owing to what hath already come to pass, and to the dignity of Me whosend you.” Here He lifteth up their souls, and showeth them their great cause of confidence, if sobe that they were about to undertake His work. And no longer is an appeal made to the Father, butwith authority He giveth to them the power. For,Ver. 22, 23 . “He breathed on them, and said, 2560 Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whosesoeversins ye remit, they are remitted unto them, and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained.”As a king sending forth governors, gives power to cast 2561 into prison and to deliver from it, soin sending these forth, Christ investeth them with the same power. But how saith He, “If I go notaway, He 2562 will not come” ( c. xvi. 7 ), and yet giveth them the Spirit? Some say that He gavenot the Spirit, but rendered them fit to receive It, by breathing on them. For if Daniel when he sawan Angel was afraid, what would not they have suffered when they received that unspeakable Gift,unless He had first made them learners? Wherefore He said not, “Ye have received the Holy Ghost,”but, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” Yet one will not be wrong in asserting that they then also receivedsome spiritual power and grace; not so as to raise the dead, or to work miracles, but so as to remitsins. For the gifts of the Spirit are of different kinds; wherefore He added, “Whosesoever sins yeremit, they are remitted unto them,” showing what kind of power He was giving. But in the othercase, 2563 after forty 2564 days, they received the power of working miracles. Wherefore He saith,“Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come 2565 upon you, and ye shall be Mywitnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judæa.” ( Acts i. 8 .) And witnesses they became by meansof miracles, for unspeakable is the grace of the Spirit and multiform the gift. But this comes to pass,that thou mayest learn that the gift and the power of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, isOne. For things which appear to be peculiar to the Father, these are seen also to belong to the Son,and to the Holy Ghost. “How then,” saith some one, “doth none come to the Son, ‘except the Fatherdraw him’?” ( c. vi. 44 .) Why, this very thing is shown to belong to the Son also. “I,” He saith,“am the Way: no man cometh unto the Father but by Me.” ( c. xiv. 6 .) And observe that it belongethto the Spirit also; for “No man can call Jesus Christ Lord, 2566 but by the Holy Ghost.” ( 1 Cor. xii.3 .) Again, we see that the Apostles were given to the Church at one time by the Father, at anotherby the Son, at another by the Holy Ghost, and that the “diversities of gifts” ( 1 Cor. xii. 4 ) belongto the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.[4.] Let us then do all we can to have the Holy Spirit with ourselves, and let us treat with muchhonor those into whose hands its operation hath been committed. For great is the dignity of thepriests. “Whosesoever sins,” it saith, “ye remit, they are remitted unto them”; wherefore also Paulsaith, “Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves.” ( Heb. xiii. 17 .) And holdthem very exceedingly in honor; for thou indeed carest about thine own affairs, and if thou orderestthem well, thou givest 2567 no account for others, but the priest even if he rightly order his own life,if he have not an anxious care for thine, yea and that of all those around him, will depart with the2560Ver. 22 . “ And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and saith unto them, ” &c., N.T.2561al. “ having the power of casting, ” &c., “ gives it. ”2562“ The Comforter, ” N.T.2563ἐ κεῖ2564The sense seems to require “ fifty, ” but there is no other reading than the above.2565or, “ of the Holy Ghost coming. ”2566“ call Jesus Lord, ” N.T.2567al. “ wilt give. ”487