Homily on Humility for the Fifth Sunday of Great Lent
By Holy Hieromartyr Sergius Mechev
By Holy Hieromartyr Sergius Mechev
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit!
The Holy Church concludes its guidance of us as we pass through the great school of the Fast, pointing out to us the examples of two great ascetics of spiritual labor, whom we must imitate — John of the Ladder and Mary of Egypt — yet on this last Sunday it reminds us also of one more necessary condition of spiritual labor.
You heard in today’s Gospel reading how Christ, being on the way to Jerusalem, said to His disciples: “The Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes… and they will mock Him, and beat Him, and spit upon Him, and kill Him…” (Mark 10:33–34). And the disciples “were astonished, and as they followed Him, they were afraid.”
And then, having heard about the resurrection, the sons of Zebedee came to Him and said: “We want You to do for us whatever we ask.” He said to them: “What do you want Me to do for you?” They said to Him: “Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory.” After the Lord answered them that this is not for Him to give, “but for those for whom it is prepared,” and the other disciples, hearing the request of the sons of Zebedee, were indignant at them, the Lord called them all and said: “You know that those who are considered rulers of the nations lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you: whoever desires to be great among you shall be your servant; and whoever desires to be first among you shall be the servant of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:42–45).
In this Gospel narrative there is contained one of the conditions (and the other I have tried, as far as I was able, to explain during the Fast), without which the path offered to us by the Church in these days will be in vain. The Lord, having come to earth, came to serve us: “For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
And the Lord calls us to learn from Him: “Learn from Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart.”
“Learn this humility, for the prince of this world rules over you, and even the best among you — the apostles James and John — are troubled by vainglory and pride.”
And so the Holy Fathers appointed for this day the reading of that Gospel which gives us the necessary condition for our spiritual labor.
For one may walk along the path indicated by John of the Ladder and Mary of Egypt, and in the end fall into great pride. Warning us against this, the Holy Fathers point us to the example of the Lord and the disciples.
“The Lord shows not labors, but humility,” says John of the Ladder. Only he who walks the path of humility can receive spiritual gifts.
Thus, we are called to walk the path of humility. But what is humility? Let us turn to him whom the Church gives us as a teacher in the days of Great Lent.
“No word can explain its (humility’s) nature. This treasure has only one inscription — an inscription incomprehensible, as coming from above; and those who try to interpret it in words take upon themselves a great and endless labor. This inscription is: holy humility. Let those who are guided by the Spirit of God enter with us into this spiritual and wise assembly, carrying in the hands of their mind the God-inscribed tablets of understanding… And we assembled, examined, and tested the power of this honored inscription. Then one said that ‘humility is the constant forgetfulness of one’s good deeds.’ Another said: ‘Humility consists in considering oneself the lowest of all.’ Another says that ‘humility is the awareness in the mind of one’s weakness and powerlessness.’ Another says that ‘a sign of humility is, when offended, to be the first to reconcile with one’s neighbor and thus destroy enmity.’ Another said that ‘humility is the knowledge of the grace and mercy of God.’ Yet another said that ‘humility is the feeling of a contrite soul and the renunciation of one’s own will.’
Having listened, and with great exactness and attention examined and compared, I could not comprehend the blessed feeling of humility by hearing; and therefore, being the last of all, like a dog gathering crumbs that fall from the table of wise and humble men — that is, words from their lips — I define this virtue thus: humility of mind is an ineffable wealth; a gift of God; a name of God. For the Lord says: ‘Learn not from an angel, not from a man, not from a book, but from Me — that is, from My indwelling, foundation, and action within you — that I am meek and humble in heart and in thoughts and in the manner of thinking, and you will find rest for your souls from battles and relief from tempting thoughts’” (Matt. 11:29) (The Ladder, Step 2, 3, 4).
Thus, we must learn humility not from angels, not from men, not even from the great book of the Gospel, but from Christ Himself, for He calls us to this. “To know this blessed feeling one can only know it within himself by experience, and it is impossible to explain it in sensible words” (The Ladder, Step 25, 41).
How then can we know anything about humility in the sense of understanding it? The Holy Fathers say that humility can be known not by its essence, but by its action.
“Thus, we cannot say what the power and essence of this sun (humility of mind) is; however, from its properties and actions one may comprehend its nature” (The Ladder, Step 25, 26).
“Humility of mind is a divine covering that does not allow us to see our good deeds” (The Ladder, Step 25, 27).
A humble person does not see his achievements, but only his sins. His achievements are covered over, hidden from him.
How can we test whether we have humility or not? John of the Ladder says that “many call themselves sinners, and perhaps they truly think so; but the heart is tested by humiliation (from others)” (The Ladder, Step 25, 34).
“It is not the one who condemns himself who shows humility (for who would not endure reproach from himself?), but he who, being reproached by another, does not diminish his love for him” (The Ladder, Step 22, 17).
Here is the sign that can reveal the state of our soul with regard to humility.
“…a sign of the deepest humility is that a person, for the sake of humiliation, in certain cases accepts blame for things that he has not done” (The Ladder, Step 25, 44).
If we not only endure humiliations, but also consider ourselves worthy of them — then we will have humility.
The Lord says that we must learn humility from Him: “for I am meek and humble in heart.” Jesus Christ came to earth “to restore the fallen image of the forefather;” fallen, because man fell through his pride.
The Lord came, taking the form of a servant, becoming like us in everything except sin—He humbled Himself, humbled Himself unto death, “becoming obedient even unto death, even the death of the Cross.”
He continually testifies to His disciples that He came not to do His own will, but the will of the Father, and in the Garden of Gethsemane He prays: “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours be done.”
And in the prayer which the Lord gave us, He commands us to say: “Thy will be done.” He Himself gave us the great example of how to relate to the will of God; He showed that upon this our spiritual labor is founded.
We must do the will of God, and for this we must know it.
This knowledge is acquired through discernment, for “discernment is the understanding of the divine will at all times, in all places, and in all things” (The Ladder, Step 26, 2). But it is given to one who is already walking the path of spiritual labor, who ascends by the path of humility. As for us, we must walk the path of obedience — the path by which Mary of Egypt walked, having entrusted her will to her faithful Protectress.
What, then, is the connection between obedience and humility?
Here is what John of the Ladder says:
“Once I asked one of the most experienced elders to instruct me how obedience produces humility. He answered: ‘A prudent obedient one, even if he raises the dead, receives the gift of tears, and attains deliverance from spiritual warfare, always thinks that this is accomplished by the prayer of his spiritual father, and remains a stranger to vain pride; and how could he take pride in what, as he himself knows, he has done by the help of another and not by his own effort?’” (The Ladder, Step 4, 4).
Thus, an obedient one is he who always attributes whatever he has, in terms of any achievements, to his guide. From the life of Mary of Egypt you know that she regarded all her spiritual deeds as a gift of the Mother of God.
This is the condition that helps us in the struggle to acquire humility, and we must remember that the Lord gives us various gifts not according to our merits. To the extent that we struggle with pride, we receive humility.
“Some, by incomprehensible arrangements of divine Providence, received gifts of grace before their labors, others during their labors, and others after their labors — whichever of them is more humble than the rest” (The Ladder, Step 26, 88).
And so John of the Ladder says that according to the measure of humility the Lord grants spiritual gifts; therefore we must struggle for humility. We must remember that everything which the Holy Church has taught us in the days of Great Lent will serve for our salvation only if we have humility as its foundation; for we know that one may fall even from heaven, but having humility — even for humility alone — David was shown mercy: “I was humbled, and the Lord saved me.”
“If the pride of some of the angels turned them into demons, then undoubtedly humility can also make angels out of demons. Therefore let those who have fallen take courage, hoping in God” (The Ladder, Step 25, 63).
Thus we all, fallen, all who come to God in repentance and only yesterday for the last time cried out: “Open to me the doors of repentance, O Giver of Life,” must remember that no labors, no ascetic feats will help us if we do not walk the path of humility. Therefore the Gospel appointed for today gives us that foundation without which our labors are in vain.
Yes, we must know what can destroy us. Only in humility can we receive from Christ a reward and a crown.
When we come to the Last Judgment, the Lord will not demand from us gifts, but only humility. He will ask us whether we have learned humility from Him.
“Many,” says John of the Ladder, “have attained salvation without prophecy and illumination, without signs and miracles; but without humility no one will enter that bridal chamber” (The Ladder, Step 25, 52).
Thus, when we receive from God prayer, or the inexpressible joy of love for others, we consider this our own possession; we do not regard it as something the Lord has given us freely, but as our own acquisition, and we begin to judge others and exalt ourselves — and then through pride our gift is exhausted and destroyed.
We must remember that the Church calls us along the path of prayer and the mysteries, through illumination by the light of Tabor, through bearing the cross and imitating the saints.
We must remember that the reading of the Holy Fathers teaches us humility; for when we read those who knew what humility is — though they could not express it in words — their soul shines through their writings. And further, let our neighbors be teachers of humility for us, for they know our wounds better than we do. Let us pay careful attention to those who reveal to us our shortcomings, and receive their reproaches as indications from God. They reveal our sins to us, they humble us. And if someone says something unjustly against us, this unites us with the Lord, who “was wounded for our sins and bruised for our iniquities.” Those who wish to walk the path of ascent must always remember that it is not enough simply to walk, but that their labors may prove vain if they do not acquire humility.
Let us learn, then, from Him who came to raise us to heaven and Himself ascended there in glory; and only under this condition will our spiritual labor receive the crown which is given to those who have struggled well upon the earth.
The Church does not in vain present to us today the example of these two disciples — the sons of Zebedee — who were infected with pride and vainglory and stirred up the other Apostles. And the Lord points out not only to them but to all of us that whoever wishes to be first must be the servant of all.
This is the commandment Christ gives us; this is what it means to walk the path of humility; this is how we must learn humility.
“Thy will be done” must be not only our prayer, but also our way of life.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven”… not only those who struggle in caves, deserts, and the depths of the earth, but also all those who accomplish every deed in humility — they will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, while others will be cast out.
Let us remember that without fulfilling this commandment no virtue serves for salvation, and that by fulfilling it we cannot take pride in our gifts. Amen.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.