Lenten Sundays - 2016 The Grain of Wheat Sunday of Preparation - 13 March 2016 !1 The Grain of Wheat Abouna Matta El-Meskeen “Unless a grain wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone” (John 12:24). EFORE HIS CRUCIFIXION, Jesus told the Greeks the parable of the grain of wheat. He B began to explain it with these words: “He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life” (John 12:25). “For whoever would save his life will lose it and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it” (Mark 8:35). “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 10:39). “Remember Lot’s wife: whoever seeks to gain his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve it” (Luke 17:32-33). The self comes between the body and the soul, said St. Isaac. It is either united with the body and takes its part against the spirit, or united with the spirit and works with it against the body. So the soul can be either physical or spiritual. The Bible says in Galatians 5:17: “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh: for these are opposed one to another, to prevent you from what you would!” The self is the seat and source of all emotions, and it is embodied in one’s physical life. The spirit however is the basis and expression of all that is spiritual, in touch with God and in loving relationship with Him. We are called to make the self lean towards the spirit, so that we may obtain everlasting life. For if the self leans towards the bodily, or carnal, life it will be destroyed and we shall be deprived of eternal life. The flesh is of dust; it returns to the dust and dies. That is why the Bible says, “ The wages of sin are death” and in Romans 8:13 we also read: “To set the mind on the flesh is death”. He who clings to what is vain will die, and he who accumulates vain things will die with them. The Spirit that is in man is the breath of God. This makes man a living soul, with a living body. !2 In baptism a new birth for man is achieved; it is called the birth from above (this is to distinguish it from physical birth). The new birth is accomplished by the Holy Spirit at work in the soul, which then becomes united with Him. Thus man’s spirit becomes joined and bonded to God. So the person baptised into Jesus is said to be ‘born of God’. He can thus be called a son of God through the power of Jesus Christ. This adoption–being made a child of God–enables a person to live according to the laws of God. The person who remains faithful to God and is inspired by Him will live eternally with Him, for the baptised man, born of water and the Spirit, is born of God–that is reborn from above. After being baptised, he is invited to live a life according to the Spirit, although he still lives in the flesh. The flesh is originally a creation with no corruption, despite all human passion and lusts. It is created to yield to the spiritual law and be controlled by the spirit, yet without losing any of a man’s natural passions and desires, though if the flesh yields to, and is controlled by, the Spirit it becomes a complete and well-balanced being and can look forward to a life which is longer, more peaceful and happier (according to the flesh). However, this new beginning in the spiritual life is complete; we start the new birth as it were from scratch. The flesh, on the other hand, has already been living for a long time without the control or guidance of the Spirit, thus allowing human lust and passion to grow unnaturally. A man has lived with and in sin for so long that he has allowed it to posses his whole being and so has lived long with sin. Sin is naturally of the flesh and the carnal mind neglects the laws of God, coming to hate any spiritual law that limits its physical pleasure, self-pride and ego. Therefore the spiritual life which results from the new birth is only made possible through the power of the Gospel–under the Holy Spirit Himself, His guidance and leadership. The flesh therefore becomes uneasy, and feels that is hated by the new self that remains bonded to the flesh. The new self, still united to its natural passions and lusts, may become proud and independent. There is a resulting conflict between the spirit growing within the man reborn of God–in unity with the Holy Spirit–and the rebellious body and soul that tends to be drawn back to the old self. The Gospel thus begins to lay down the laws and practical steps required to release the spirit of the new man, so that he may not be converted back to his fleshly nature through its bond tons spirit, for the new man still shares the one existence with the old self! The old self is the man of sin and lust, pride and false freedom. His ego is his only concern– his thoughts, his labours, his hates, griefs and joys, his peace and fears, his glory and even his worship! He works so as to glorify himself, and if he does not achieve glory thereby, he despises his work. He loves, but only when his ego and pride have been satisfied; he hates because he has not been successful and honoured. He is sad because he has been injured and his spirit has lost its source of pleasure; he is satisfied because he has achieved his passions, joy and pleasure. He feels at peace when comfortable with circumstances; but he is afraid when he loses his sense of security. He fights and compromises and struggles, all to bring glory to himself, but becomes lazy and sleeps and ceases to strive, if there is no glory to be achieved. !3 The old man worships and prays and prolongs prayers: he is diligent in singing hymns so as to appear religious and be held in high esteem by those who think he is very godly, but there is no one to observe and flatter him, he neglects his worship and fasting and shortens his prayer time, rushing through his devotions. In Matthew 6:16 we read: “They disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward.” Thus is life with all its toil, and its greater or lesser responsibilities toward others and God! All depends on the state of a man’s spirit, for in the end, man’s only harvest is a handful of dust. As for the human spirit, however it strives, destruction is its fate. Having enjoyed worldly glory and earthly pleasures, it has been deprived of eternal life: “The man who loves his life will lose it; while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life” (John 12:25). In this way Jesus pictures ‘self ’ as the true enemy–the only real enemy that stands in the path of man’s salvation and eternal life. Jesus ordered us to love our enemies, but he also ordered us to hate ourselves. Only if man hates himself can he find the one true door to reach the depths of the Spirit, for man’s soul or ‘self ’ is like a dark covering that binds the spirit, and makes it unable to obey God’s command to be pure in spirit. This prevents the new man from developing spiritually, being in a constant with God and winning through to eternal life. The self controls all man’s actions, both physical and spiritual, so the Holy Spirit remains imprisoned and dimmed within a man’s inner self. A man must master his fleshly passions and his natural spirit, and overcome all its power - turning it to dustin his hands and laying it down in the earth at his feet. Then and only then can the Holy Spirit become active and radiant. Man’s spirit will shine forth through the dimness of the body and spirit; it will actively work the deeds of light and, rejoicing in its salvation, will live for God. We can choose either the one or the other - to enjoy the liberty of the flesh and the soul, which both lead to destruction, sin and eternal damnation, or to exercise control, renouncing all the license that leads to destruction and sin, so the spirit is released and soars forth to reflect the light. You cannot have liberty of the flesh and body and also enjoy the freedom of the spirit that is united with the Holy Spirit. The old man or ‘self ’ must first renounce his sinful deeds and the liberty that will surely lead to destruction. The new man has to become active, made according to God’s creative law, and thus enabled to live for God in holiness and truth. !4 How the old ‘self’ decays and dies so that the new one may live and flourish It does not lie within man’s power to kill the old self or to make alive the new one.