Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: September 13

The Month of September

Day 13

14. The Devil Cannot Overcome the Church of Christ

(Sermon on the Consecration of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, which is in Jerusalem. Menaion, September 13)

The Lord said: “I will build My Church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). What do these words of the Lord mean? They mean “that no hostile forces, not even the powers of Hades and Satan, will be able to overcome the Church founded by Christ, ... that no evil counsels, machinations, or actions of hidden forces will overcome it” (Mikh., Commentary on Matthew, p. 297); “that the Church of Christ will exist until the end of the world, that it will stand firmly upon the earth, and that no attacks of the enemy—the devil, together with all his accomplices—will destroy it.” (Euseb., Instruction on the Faith, Part 2, p. 273). Is all this really true? Is it true that no attacks of the enemy—the devil, together with all his accomplices—will destroy the Church of Christ, and that no evil counsels, machinations, or actions of hidden forces will overcome it? Of course it is true, brethren, for on the one hand you yourselves know that heaven and earth will pass away sooner than the words of the Lord will pass away; and on the other hand, it is true also because the devil has already shown his powerlessness in his struggle against the Church of Christ and has suffered defeat at the hands of Christ. From where, you may ask, is this latter thing evident, and when did it happen? From the following account, which we shall offer you, you will see from what this is evident and when this took place.

After the Lord's Ascension into Heaven, the devil declared irreconcilable warfare against His Church. At his instigation, the holy place at which our salvation was accomplished was hated and defiled by people who hated Christ. Thus, for example, the impious Emperor Hadrian defiled all the holy places with demonic idols and sacrifices. He ordered the Lord's Tomb to be covered with earth and stones; on Mount Golgotha, where the Lord was crucified, he established a temple to the impure goddess Venus and set up her idol; over the Tomb of God he also set up another idol, that of Jupiter. And there, where the Lamb of God offered Himself as a sacrifice to God the Father for the sins of the world, unclean sacrifices were offered to demons and unclean sins were committed. And in Bethlehem, where Christ was born, an idol of Adon was set up, and the holy place was likewise defiled by shameful deeds. On the site of Solomon's Temple an idolatrous shrine was established, and the city of Jerusalem itself was ordered to be called not Jerusalem, but Aelia. And all this was done so that even the memory of Jesus Christ might be destroyed from the earth, and for the same reason demonic dwellings were established in the holy places. Well, was this not a complete triumph for the devil? Did he not achieve victory over the Church? No. The Lord said: “I will build My Church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it,” and His words are not false. He raised up, for the glorification of His Church, the pious sovereigns Constantine and Helen, and the holy places were cleansed of demonic defilements; temples were erected upon them whose magnificence struck those who beheld them, and they were solemnly consecrated; the Christian faith was declared to be the dominant faith; where the blood of the martyrs had flowed, the signs of the Son of Man—the Lord's Crosses—were raised; the name of the Lord Jesus began to be glorified from one end of the earth to the other, and thus the devil was conquered, put to shame, and struck down, so to speak, in the very head.

Now look and see whether it is true that the gates of Hades shall not prevail against the Church of Christ, and that no counsels, machinations, or actions of the demon will overcome it. Surely, as you have seen, what could have been more terrible than the condition of the holy places at the time of which we were speaking! But if the condition of the holy places was terrible, what was the condition at that time of the very people who were not ashamed to confess the Crucified One? They were burned at the stake, hanged upon crosses, and given over to be devoured by wild beasts. In a word, there were no tortures to which they were not subjected. But how did it all end? Everywhere, as you have heard, the Lord's Crosses shone forth, and the name of Jesus was glorified from one end of the earth to the other, and the devil himself was conquered and put to shame. But know, brethren, that even this will not be the end for him. It is said, “he [will be] cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10). Thus it is clear, therefore, that never and by nothing will the devil overcome the Church of God, and that, consequently, the words of the Lord are true: “I will build My Church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Amen.

Questions for Discussion 14:

1. Which sovereigns did the Lord raise up for the glorification of His Church?

2. What was erected in the holy places after they had been cleansed of demonic defilements?

3. What was raised up in the places where the blood of the martyrs had flowed?

4. Where did the name of the Lord Jesus come to be glorified?

5. What will the devil never and by no means overcome?

 

Source: The Cheti-Minei: Homilies for Every Day of the Year (Book 1: September, October, November) by Archpriest Viktor Guryev. Publication of the Russian Panteleimon Monastery on Mount Athos, 1896. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.