HOMILY VI.

12.

(1)

Luke 6,

John15,

20.

11, 29.

36.

PHIL. ii. 5-8.

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and become obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

OUR Lord Jesus Christ, when exhorting His disciples to great actions, places before them Himself, and the Father, and Matt. 5, the Prophets, as examples; as when He says, For thus they did unto the Prophets which were before you; and again, If they 23. have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; and, Learn of Me, for I am meek; and again, Be ye merciful, as your Matt. Father which is in heaven is merciful. This too the blessed Luke 6, Paul does; in exhorting them to humility, he brings forward Christ. And he does so not here only, but also when he discourses of love towards the poor, he speaks in this wise. 2 Cor. 8, For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor. Nothing rouses a great and philosophic soul to the performance of good works, so much as learning that in this it is likened to God. What encouragement is equal to this? None. This Paul well knowing, when he would exhort them to humility, first beseeches and supplicates them, then to awe them he

9.

VI.

27.28.

12.

One Text of St. Paul overthrows numerous Heresies. 61 says, That ye stand fast in one Spirit; he says also, that it is Hoм. to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation. And last of all he says this, Let this mind be in you, Phil. 1, which was also in Christ Jesus, Who, being in the form of Phil. 2, God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made 5-7. Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant. Attend, I entreat you, and rouse yourselves, for as a sharp two-edged sword, wheresoever it falls, though it be Heb. 4, among ten thousand phalanxes, easily cuts through and deRev. 1, stroys, because it is sharp on every side, and nought can 16. bear its edge; so are the words of the Spirit. For by these words he has laid low the followers of Arius of Alexandria, of Paul of Samosata, of Marcellus of Galatia, of Sabellius the Libyan, of Marcion that was of Pontus, of Valentinus, of Manes, of Apollinarius of Laodicea, of Photinus, of Sophronius, and, in one word, all the heresies. Rouse yourselves then to behold so great a spectacle, so many armies falling by one stroke, lest the pleasure of such a sight should escape you. For if when chariots contend in the horse race there is nothing so pleasing as when one of them dashes together' and overthrows whole chariots with their drivers, and after throwing down many with the charioteers that stood thereon, drives by alone towards the goal, and the end of the course, and amid the applause and clamour which rises on all sides to heaven, with coursers winged as it were by that joy and that applause, sweeps over the whole ground; will not the pleasure be much greater here, when by the grace of God we overthrow at once and in a body the combinations and devilish machinations of all these heresies together with their charioteers?

And if it seem good to you, we will first arrange the heresies themselves in order. Would you have them in the order of their impiety, or of their dates? Let us take the order of time, for it is difficult to judge of the order of their impiety. First then let Sabellius the Libyan come forward. What does he assert? that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,

b B. and Sav. mar. uyngoúras, which seems better than xgouras, 'dashes against,' but the latter suits the illustration.

See Euseb. vii. 6. his heresy had been held before by Praxeas, he was himself later than Marcion.

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The Form of God' implies Divine Personality. PHIL. are mere names given to one Person. Marcion" of Pontus 2,5-8. says, that God the Creator of all things is not good, nor the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, but that there is another righteous One, and that the Son did not take flesh for us. Marcellus', and Photinus", and Sophronius assert, that the Word is an energy, instead of a substance, and that this energy dwelt in Him who was of the seed of David, and not a personal substance.

(2)

Arius confesses indeed the Son, but only in word; for he says that He is a creature, and much inferior to the Father, and others say that He has not a soul. Seest thou the chariots standing? See then their fall, how he overthrows them all together, and with a single stroke. How then does he throw them down? Let the same mind be in you, he says, which was in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God. By this Paul of Samosata has fallen, and Marcellus, and Sabellius. For he says, Being in the form of God. If in the form, how sayest thou, O wicked one, that He took His origin from Mary, and was not before? and how again, that He was an energy? For it is written, being in the form of God, He took the form of a servant. Tell me, the form of a servant, is it the energy of a servant, or the nature of a servant? Thou wilt say, "Truly the nature of a servant.". Thus too the form of God, is the nature of God, and therefore not an energy. Behold Marcellus of Galatia, Sophronius and Photinus have fallen.

Behold Sabellius too. It is written, He thought it not robbery to be equal with God. Now equality is not predicated, where there is but one person, for that which is equal hath somewhat to which it is equal. Seest thou not the substance of two Persons, and not empty names without things? Hearest thou not the eternal pre-existence of the Only-begotten? And thus much against these.

Lastly, What shall we say against Arius', who asserts the Son is of a different substance? Tell me now, what means, He took the form of a servant? it means, He became Man.

d Euseb. iv. 11. Tertullian wrote a

treatise against him.

Tert. adv. Marc. i. 6.

f Theod. ii. 6. 8. Soer. ii. 19, 20.

Theodoret. v. 11.

h Euseb. vii. 27-30.

iSee St. Ath. Dise. i. c. xi. § 4. Tr. г. p. 237.

No unequal Divinity found in Scripture.

63

μου

VI.

Wherefore being in the form of God, He was God. For Hoм. one form and another form is named, if the one be true, the other is also. The form of a servant means, Man by nature, wherefore the form of God means, God by nature. And he not only bears record of this, but of His equality too, as St. John also doth, and that He is in no way inferior to the Father, for he saith, He thought it not a thing to seize, to άe̟«uybe equal with God. Now what is their wise reasoning? Nay,' say they, he proves the very contrary; for he says, that, being in the form of God, He seized not equality with God. Now if He were God, how was He able to seize upon it? and is not this without meaning? Who would say that one, being a man, seized not on being a man? for how would any one seize on that which he is? No, say they, but he means that being a lesser God, He seized not upon being equal to the great God, Who was greater than He. Is there then a great and a lesser God? And do ye bring in the doctrines of the heathens to those of the Church? With them there is a greater and a lesser God. If it be so with us, I know nought of the matter, for you will find it no where in the Scriptures: there you will find a great God throughout, a lesser one no where. If He were little, how would he be God? If man is not greater or lesser, but the nature is one, and if that which is not of this one nature is not man, how can there be a lesser or a greater God, who is not of that same nature?

He who is little is not God, for He is every where called great in the Scriptures; Great is the Lord, and greatly to be Ps.48,1. praised, says David. This is said of the Son also, for he always calls Him Lord; and again, Thou art great, and Ps. 86, doest wondrous things. Thou art God alone. And again, 10. Great is our Lord, and great is His power, and of His great- Ps. 154, ness there is no end.

3.

But this, says Arius, is spoken of the Father, but the Son is less1. Thou sayest so, but the Scripture the contrary:xgós. as of the Father, so it speaks of the Son; for listen to Paul, saying, Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious Tit. 2, appearing of the great God. But can he have said ap-13 pearing of the Father? Nay, that he may the more con-μ vince you, he has added to the appearing of the great God.

* E. V. robbery, but St. Chrys. takes it otherwise, and it seems rightly.

64

Our Lord's right implied in not seizing.'

PHIL. Is it then not said of the Father? By no means.

See

For the

2, 5-8. sequel suffers it not which says, The appearing of the great Middle- God, and our Saviour Jesus Christ. See, the Son is great also. How then speakest thou of small and great?

ton on Gr. Art.

Listen to the Prophet too, calling him The Messenger' of Isa. 9,6. great counsel. The Messenger of great counsel, is He not great Himself? The mighty God, is He small and not great? What mean then these shameless and bold men when they say, that being small He is a God? I repeat ofttimes wliat they say, that ye may the more avoid them. He being a lesser God seized not for Himself to be like the greater God! Tell me now, (but think not that these words are mine,) if He were, as they say, lesser, and far inferior to the Father in power, how could He possibly seize to Himself equality with God? For an inferior nature could not seize for himself admission into a greater; for example, a man could not seize on being equal to an angel in nature; a horse could not, though he wished it, seize on being equal to a man in nature. But besides all that, I will say this too. What does Paul wish to establish by this example? You will surely say, to lead the Philippians to humility. To what purpose then would he have brought forward this example? For no one who would exhort to humility speaks thus; "Be thou humble, and think less of thyself than of thine equals in honour, for such an one who is a slave has not risen against his master. Do thou imitate him." say, is not humility, but arrogance". is, ye who have a devilish pride! To be lowly minded. And he is lowly minded who humbles himself, not he who is lowly by necessity. To explain what I say; and do ye attend; he who is lowly minded, when he has it in his power to be high minded, is humble, but he who is so because he is not able to be high minded, is no longer humble. For instance, If a King subjects himself to his own irágxy officer, he is humble, for he descends from his high estate; but if an officer does so, he is not lowly minded; for how? he has not humbled himself from any high estate. It is not

18ee also Jer. 32, 18. some copies of LXX omit the latter part of Is. 9, 6. probably because it was not understood.

This, any one would Learn ye what humility What then is humility?

m ἀπονοίας. He means either that calling it humility were arrogance, or 'this is not a question of humility but of presumption.'