TRYING THE DIVINE PATIENCE: A SERMON FOR THE FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY

Christ, the Sower of Good Seed

By Bp. Joseph (Ancient Church of the West)

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to St. Alopen's Church in East Asia, the cathedral parish of our Missionary Diocese of East and Southeast Asia in the Ancient Church of the West, a Western Rite Vicariate of the Orthodox Archdiocese of America, and also a founding member of the World Federation of Orthodox and Apostolic Churches. Our goal as a jurisdiction is to worship God and grow our Christian Faith in the ancient paths of the Apostolic and Orthodox Christian Tradition, in continuity with our English-speaking British Patrimony, solving the problems we face in the modern world through the Ancient Faith in Jesus Christ. We work to establish loving, local communities that preach the original Gospel to a lost and dying world. Our goal is clear. Our loyalties are solid. Our community is empowered and marching on, and our work ahead of us is great and worthwhile. God's truth is marching on! The fields are ripe for the harvest. The need is great, but the laborers are few. Pray to the Lord of the Harvest that many righteous young people will be raised up to continue this powerful Apostolic Ministry!

SCRIPTURE

Acts 17:29-34

Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter. So Paul departed from among them. Howbeit certain men clave unto him, and believed: among the which was Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.

Colossians 3:12-17

Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

St. Matthew 13:24-30

The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

THE PROBLEM OF EVIL IN A WORLD MADE BY GOD

The parable speaks to a fundamental and powerful paradox: the coexistence of good and evil, not just in the world, but even within the Church. The field represents the world, and the wheat symbolizes the children of the kingdom. Yet among them, the enemy - Satan - has sown tares, false believers and evildoers. The servants, eager to purge the field, wish to tear up the tares immediately. But the master, in divine wisdom, restrains them, knowing that premature judgment would harm the wheat as well. There is patience here, but not indifference. There is delay, but not neglect. The harvest will come, and the separation will be made.

This principle is echoed in Genesis 37, where Joseph, the righteous son of Jacob, suffers betrayal at the hands of his brothers: "Behold, this dreamer cometh. Come now therefore, and let us slay him" (Gen. 37:19-20). He is cast into a pit, sold into slavery, and seemingly forgotten. Yet his story does not end in suffering. God’s purposes unfold in time, and Joseph is eventually exalted over his brethren. Likewise, Acts 17 reminds us of God's patience: "The times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness" (Acts 17:30-31). God's forbearance does not mean injustice will prevail. Rather, the day of reckoning is assured. From Genesis to Revelation, the pattern remains: suffering before vindication, patience before judgment, the cross before the crown.

THE WISDOM OF DIVINE FORBEARANCE 

St. John Chrysostom, preaching on this passage, warns against a zeal that is too quick to judge: "Why does He not take them away at once? Because He is long-suffering. He does not wish to destroy all at once, but spares some for the sake of others. And He allows them to grow together, that He might bring the sinner to repentance." This is a crucial point: the patience of God is not weakness but mercy. How many of us, once far from grace, have been given time to turn and be gathered among the wheat?

St. Augustine, in his City of God, reflects on the two cities - the city of God and the city of man - that grow together in this age, but will be divided at the end: "In the field both grow together, but in the barn they shall be separated. The Lord permits the wicked to remain for a time, lest by removing them, the good should be harmed. But in the end, each shall receive his due reward." Just as wheat and tares may look similar in their early stages, so too the righteous and the wicked may appear indistinguishable for a season. But in time, their fruits will reveal their true nature.

St. Cyril of Jerusalem, in his Catechetical Lectures, points to Christ's own suffering as the supreme example of patience before judgment: "Our Lord was betrayed, condemned, and crucified by sinners; yet, He opened not His mouth, for He knew that His vindication would come. So too, we must wait, for the Son of Man shall return in glory to separate the wheat from the tares." If our Lord endured suffering and injustice with patience, trusting in the Father’s appointed time, then how much more must we?

St. Basil the Great exhorts believers to patience: "God’s providence is not hastening to punish, but giving time for repentance. Let us not presume upon His patience, for the day of the Lord shall come as a thief in the night." Likewise, St. Gregory of Nyssa notes: "Evil is permitted for a time, that good might shine forth all the more. The fire of judgment shall reveal the nature of each soul—whether it be wheat or tare, gold or dross."

THE COMING JUDGMENT IS CERTAIN

St. Gregory the Great warns against assuming that outward appearances indicate final judgment: "Some who seem as tares today shall be found among the wheat at harvest, and some who now appear as wheat shall prove to be tares. Therefore, let no man boast, but let all live in fear and humility before the coming of the Lord." There is a great danger in thinking that we can make such judgments ourselves. How often has history seen men rise to condemn others, only to be found guilty themselves?

In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the wicked flourish for a time. Macbeth ascends the throne through treachery and violence. Yet, despite his apparent success, judgment is inevitable. He imagines himself secure, but his sins find him out. Lady Macbeth laments: "What’s done cannot be undone." The delay of judgment is not its cancellation. Macbeth's seeming triumph crumbles into despair. Like the tares, the wicked may stand tall for a season, but they cannot escape the harvest.

Similarly, C.S. Lewis, in "The Great Divorce," describes the souls who refuse God’s grace: "There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘Thy will be done.’" Justice is not absent; it is only delayed. And G.K. Chesterton warns against confusing patience with permissiveness: "Do not be so open-minded that your brains fall out. The world may mock at virtue and embrace the tares, but God shall not be mocked."

A CLOSING POEM FROM OUR ENGLISH PATRIMONY

John Keble, reflecting on the patience of God and the certainty of final judgment, writes:

The seed is sown, the field is wide,

The silent years pass on the tide;

But He who watches from above,

Shall reap with justice, grace, and love.

Let us, then, be patient and faithful, reflecting the nature of God and His divine plan. The harvest shall come, in His time, in His way, and we may only become an accomplice to this transformation through humility, submission and truthful repentance, constantly aligning ourselves with the power of God, as an open sail in the wind, moving by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

A COLLECT FOR DIVINE PATIENCE

O Lord, most just and patient Judge, who dost suffer the wicked to flourish for a season, yet hast appointed a day when all shall be revealed; grant unto us the grace to endure with steadfastness, neither despairing at the seeming triumph of iniquity, nor growing weary in well-doing. Keep us ever mindful that Thou dost see all, and that in Thine own time, Thou wilt gather Thy wheat into Thy barn. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.