Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Monday of the Thirty-Second Week

Epistle

The Reading is from the General Epistle of Saint Iakovos [§ 53].

2 ¹⁴Brethren, what is the profit if one declare oneself to have faith but have not works? Is faith able to save him? ¹⁵Now if a brother or a sister be naked and wanting of daily food, ¹⁶and any of you should say to them, “Go in peace, warm yourselves and feed yourselves,” but ye give them not the necessities of the body, what is the profit? ¹⁷Even so faith, if it be not having works, is in itself dead. ¹⁸But someone will say, “Thou hast faith, and I have works”; show me thy faith without thy works, and I by my works will show thee my faith. ¹⁹Thou believest that God is one. Thou doest well. The demons also believe, and shudder. ²⁰But dost thou wish to know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? ²¹Was not Abraham our father justified by works, after he offered Isaac his son upon the altar? ²²Thou seest that faith was working with his works, and by works faith was made perfect. ²³And the Scripture was fulfilled which saith, “And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness [cf. Gen. 15:6]”; and he was called a “friend of God [cf. Ex. 33:11; Is. 41:8].” ²⁴Ye see then that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. ²⁵But in like manner also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, after she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? ²⁶For even as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Mark [§ 54]. At that time:

12 ¹³ The chief priests and the scribes sent out to Jesus certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, in order that they might catch Him in a word. ¹⁴And having come, they say to Him, “Teacher, we know that Thou art true, and there is a care to Thee for no one; for Thou lookest not on the person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth. Tell us then, is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Cæsar, or not? ¹⁵“Shall we give, or shall we not give?” But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, “Why are ye trying to put Me to the test? Bring Me a denarius that I might see it.” ¹⁶And they brought it. And He saith to them, “Whose is this image and the inscription?” And they said to Him, “Cæsar’s.” ¹⁷And Jesus answered and said to them, “Render the things of Cæsar to Cæsar, and the things of God to God.” And they marvelled at Him.

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of the Forefeast of Theophany, and the holy Prophet Malachias, and the holy Martyr Gordios at Cæsarea in Cappadocia.

Epistle

The Reading is from the Second Epistle of Saint Paul to Saint Timothy [§ 292]. Child Timothy:

2 ¹Be thou empowered in the grace that is in Christ Jesus; ²and the things which thou heardest from me in the midst of many witnesses, commit thou these things to faithful men who shall be competent also to teach others. ³Thou therefore suffer hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. ⁴No one serving as a soldier is entangled with the affairs of life, in order that he might please the one who enlisted him. ⁵And if anyone also contend as an athlete in the games, he is not crowned unless he contend lawfully. ⁶The farmer who laboreth must be first to partake of the fruits. ⁷Be considering what I say; O may the Lord give thee understanding in all things! ⁸Be remembering Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, Who hath been raised from the dead, according to my Gospel, ⁹in which I suffer hardship even to bonds as a malefactor, but the word of God hath not been bound. ¹⁰On this account I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they might also attain salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew [§ 36]. The Lord said to His disciples:

10 ¹⁶“Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. Become therefore wise as the serpents and guileless as the doves. ¹⁷“But continue being on guard against men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues. ¹⁸“And also ye shall be brought before governors and kings on account of Me, for a testimony to them and to the nations. ¹⁹“But whenever they deliver you up, do not become anxious about how or what ye should speak; for it shall be given to you in that hour what ye shall speak. ²⁰“For ye are not the ones who are speaking, but the Spirit of your Father Who is speaking in you. ²¹“Now a brother shall deliver up a brother to death, and a father a child; and children shall rise up against parents and shall put them to death. ²²“And ye shall be hated by all for My name’s sake; but the one who endureth to the end, this one shall be saved.”

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

January 16th – Civil Calendar
January 3rd – Church Calendar

1 The Prophet Malachi.

He was chronologically the last of the prophets, born after the return of the Jews from exile in Babylon in 538 B.C. He was unusually fair of face. According to folk-tradition, he was named ‘the angel,’ perhaps because of his outward fairness, or because of his purity of spirit, or, again, perhaps, because of his companionship with an angel, with whom he often spoke face to face. At these times, others also heard its voice but were not worthy to look on its face. The young prophet spoke forth that which the angel revealed to him. He cried out against the ingratitude of Israel and the sins of the priests. Five hundred years before Christ, he clearly foretold the coming and work of St. John the Baptist (3:7). But he was chiefly the prophet of the Day of Judgment (4:1-3). He went to God young in years, and after him there was no prophet in Israel until John the Baptist.

2. The Holy Martyr Gordios.

Born in Caesarea of Cappadocia, he was an officer in the Roman army under the Emperor Licinius. At the outbreak of a terrible persecution, he left the army and his former rank and went into the Sinai desert. Alone on Mount Horeb, Gordios spent his time in prayer and in pondering the mysteries of heaven and earth. In particular he pondered on vanity and on the worthlessness of all for which people struggle and strive so on earth. He came finally to the desire to die and so move into that life that is without transience or corruptibility. With this desire, he went down into a town where pagan games were held. He presented himself to the governor as a Christian. The governor attempted in vain to turn him from the Faith with flattery and threats. Gordios remained unyielding and firm as diamond, saying: “It would obviously be an act of the greatest folly to trade this brief life for eternal torment and spiritual peril.” Condemned to death, he hastened joyfully to the place of execution, speaking with the executioners on the way of the wonderful and sweet knowledge of Christ. With the name of Christ on his lips, he delivered his youthful body to the sword and his righteous soul to God in the year 320.

3. St. Geneviéve.

Protectress of Paris, she became worthy of the kingdom of God by fasting, prayer and works of mercy. She entered into rest on January 3rd, 512, at the age of 89.

FOR CONSIDERATION

God hearkens to the prayer of a righteous man. This is clearly seen in the lives of Moses and Elias and of many righteous men and prophets of the Old Testament, as also from the lives of the apostles and saints. When St. Genevieve was living the monastic life in Paris, Attila and his savage Huns laid siege to the city. Fear and horror took hold of all the inhabitants, who were in hourly expectation of its occupation by the enemy. St. Genevieve then called on the people to fast and pray, that the calamity might be averted. Many men and women responded to the saint’s call, and began to fast and to pray. Genevieve herself kept the strictest fast and made the most fervent prayer to God. After a very short time, the enemy withdrew from Paris, without any obvious reason, and went to some other place. That which cannot be accomplished by the swords of many sinners, the prayer of one righteous person can perform.

Daily Scripture Readings taken from The Orthodox New Testament, translated and published by Holy Apostles Convent, Buena Vista, Colorado, copyright © 2000, used with permission, all rights reserved.

Daily Prologue Readings taken from The Prologue of Ochrid, by Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic, translated by Mother Maria, published by Lazarica Press, Birmingham, England, copyright © 1985, all rights reserved. Edited by Dormition Skete.